The Comics Thread

[Paul Monk]

I've been getting and quite enjoying Paul Cornell's Captain Britain and MI:13 which has been quite fun. I've always had a soft spot for Captain Britain and whilst this hasn't really done the character justice, its cast of supporting characters are cool. Its a real celebration of British superheroes (and Blade) and has a sort of Gaiman/Hellblazer-lite feel to it which can only be a good thing.

I've also been reading some of the collected volumes of Marvel's Star Wars comic books from the late 70's and early eighties. They're really good fun, especially the ones set before Empire Strikes Back. Luke definitely fancies Leia whcih leads to the occassional ewwwwwww! moment and there's a great appearance by Jabba the Hutt!

[MacNimon]

I've been getting and quite enjoying Paul Cornell's Captain Britain and MI:13 which has been quite fun. I've always had a soft spot for Captain Britain and whilst this hasn't really done the character justice, its cast of supporting characters are cool. Its a real celebration of British superheroes (and Blade) and has a sort of Gaiman/Hellblazer-lite feel to it which can only be a good thing.

I've always had a soft spot for CB as well, having grown up with his original incarnation in the mid-70s. I'll check this out once it has been reprinted in graphic novel format, I think. And while we're on the subject, I'd also love to see The Black Knight, which reintroduced the character (CB) in 1979, getting reprinted as well.

I've also been reading some of the collected volumes of Marvel's Star Wars comic books from the late 70's and early eighties. They're really good fun, especially the ones set before Empire Strikes Back. Luke definitely fancies Leia whcih leads to the occassional ewwwwwww! moment and there's a great appearance by Jabba the Hutt!

Is this the Archie Goodwin/Carmine Infantino run which you're talking about? The one where Luke & co are trapped on a planet which is totally covered in oceans (among other stories)? I remember this from Star Wars Weekly, way back in the day...I've always had a soft spot for these strips. I may check them out again in the near future...

[Paul Monk]

Yes those are the ones!

[Paul Monk]

I've been getting pretty active on the comics side of things again (well active for me anyway)

As well as Captain Britain & MI:13 I've recently been reading the DC Comics Showcase volumes of The Phantom Stranger, which has been interesting. He was a character that always popped up in cameos in other titles but one that I never really knew much about. After reading these issues (including his own title) I'm not sure I any of the writers really knew anything about him either. Still they're quite entertaining which is what you want.
Having avoided the whole Batman RIP stuff I thought it might be quite interesting to read Neil Gaiman's Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? So I bought part 1 and its quite fun. It's got a good little mystery to it, whilst probably annoying continuity fans by including almost all eras of Batman, even the Tv Series.I enjoyed it and will be picking up part 2.
I've also decided that now would be a great time to jump on board with Hellblazer again. Peter Milligan has taken over the writing duties and whilst not quite one of the big guns I've always liked most of his work. Anyway his first issue is intriguing if a bit of a slow burner. Its very Delano in places which isn't a bad thing and Constantine seems to have a girlfriend. No idea if this is something left over from the previous writer or a new thing that Milligan has added but its quite a nice touch. The second issue moves at a slightly quicker pace but still hasn't quite taken off yet although its snagged me enough just to get the next issue.
I've also just started reading the graphic novel of the Saga of the Super-Sons, DC comics alternative timeline in which Superman and Batman both had sons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super-Sons

Its a very interesting quirky series with plenty of angsty generation gap stuff which does tend to be unintentionally funny at times. In one sequence in the first issue Superman is having breakfast with his wife and reading the newspaper in his costume. Interestingly both the mothers of the heroes are never seen so we never quite know who they are.

[Alex]

Oh wow, I didn't know Peter Milligan had taken over Hellblazer, I used to really like his stuff, with Shade The Changing Man showing just how great he could be - I'm definitely going to get hold of his issues to see what he does with John Constantine, who's been ruined by those pesky Americans for far too long now!

I like the sound of Gaiman doing Batman too, so shall have to check that out as well...

[Paul Monk]

If you don't want to spend any money feel free to borrow them from me.
Milligan has apparently got over a years worth of story lines plotted so could be around for a while. I loved Shade as well.

Oh the Gaiman Batman is just a 2 issue run with the second part in Detective comics next week. But it is quite good fun.

[Alex]

Thanks for the offer, but I've already got hold of them.

I've only read Gaiman's Batman story so far, but it was a lot of fun - though I had to look on wiki to see what the hell was going on in general with Bats, as Morrison has left the series in a right old mess! It was an intriguing tale, anyway, and I particularly enjoyed Alfred's tale, and the idea that he was the Joker all along.

[Alex]

I've just read the first two issues of Milligan's Hellblazer and really enjoyed them, it feels like a real return to the classic Delano / Ennis era, and I hope he stays on the title for a long time. It had a genuinely creepy edge to it, without being too weird, and has regained that distinctly English feel to the series as well.

I noticed that you can (legally) download a whole load of first issues of various Vertigo comics here - http://www.dccomics.com/sites/vertigo_num1s/ - which is really cool, I plan to check out a few titles I've never looked in to now.

[Paul Monk]

Glad you liked them. I liked Alfred's story too. In a funny way it'd be a brilliant conclusion.
Reading those two Hellblazers was really like reading a continuation of the Delano/Ennis stuff. I loved his little chat with the thing.
I looked up Morrison's run on Bats too, although Gaiman's story is quite stand alone I think.

[Martin Penny]

I should post here more often! I've just read 'Whatever happened to the caped crusader?' as well. I thought the R.I.P story was a bit of a mess, and very un-Batman like. I also didn't like the way Morrison had been handling the Joker, portraying him as some mindless killing machine devoid of the charm and charisma his character should have.

So I enjoyed this issue, loved the villains turning up to Batman's funeral, and Two Face's half smashed up car.

[Paul Monk]

Yeah, that and the Joker Mobile!
The Riddler was very obviously Frank Gorshin's one from the TV series I thought. And it was nice to see the original Catwoman costume.

I didn't know you were a comics fan, Martin.

I've read some more Saga of the Super Sons and its getting very, very preachy but in an amusing way. Bruce Wayne is quite often seen at the kitchen table with a paper, smoking a pipe!

[Alex]

I read the final parts of Angel After The Fall last night and enjoyed them quite a lot, though without going in to too much detail, I can see why some people would be frustrated by it. Originally it was supposed to be just a mini-series but because of high sales it's now ongoing, so I'm looking forward to where they take the series next.

I also read the most recent issue of The Walking Dead, which is excellent stuff, a must read for any fans of zombie horror, and one which makes them a genuinely disturbing threat again after Shaun of the Dead and all the other comedy zombie films of late.

[Paul Monk]

Funnily enough I saw The Walking Dead today in GOSH. It definitely caught my eye so maybe thats one to check out. I do love the zombie genre.

[Martin Penny]

I didn't know you were a comics fan, Martin.

I drift in and out.

I read the final parts of Angel After The Fall last night and enjoyed them quite a lot, though without going in to too much detail, I can see why some people would be frustrated by it. Originally it was supposed to be just a mini-series but because of high sales it's now ongoing, so I'm looking forward to where they take the series next.

I've still only read the first issue, but keep meaning to buy the collected versions to catch up.

I was following Buffy Season 8 as well, but I'm a bit fed up with it at the moment, and haven't bothered getting the last two issues.

[MacNimon]

Thanks for that link, Alex. I've never read Hellblazer, but I see the first issue is among the titles listed, so I'll check it out just shortly. I've never read Hellblazer before, so it's an excellent opportunity.

I had never heard of the Super Sons before, Paul, but when I looked it up I see that it had a great selection of artists during it's run. It will probably be worth checking out for that alone...Curt Swan, Dick Dillon, Ernie Chan, Rich Buckler...I feel all nostalgic just thinking about those names! But writer Bob Haney I felt to be a bit of a hit and a miss at times, although admittedly it's been a long time since I read any of his stuff...

[Paul Monk]

It very lesson of the issue type stuff. Its saved by being slightly daft though which is nice and its funny seeing Batman Snr acting like a stuffy strict father. Its interesting that you never see their mother's faces either. The penultimate issue might explain this I think (I've sneakily looked ahead).

I forgot to say that I probably wouldn't go out of your way to buy it but if your local library has it is well worth a borrow.

[MacNimon]

I've been checking out some 80s DC stuff recently. Having read the excellent Crisis On Infinite Earths last year (where DC aimed to reboot their entire line by doing away with all the confusing alternative realities by combining them into one new continuity) I thought I'd follow it up with John Byrne's 'Man Of Steel' mini-series - another excellent read where Byrne takes the character back to his origins and shows us him meeting up with the likes of Batman and Lex Luthor for the 'first' time.

However Byrne made a mistake which needed to be rectified later...his Clark Kent didn't become Superman until he was an adult, which meant he was obviously never Superboy and so would never have been the inspiration for the formation of the Legion Of Superheroes, a title which was still being published by DC. That's the problem with reboots though, isn't it?...it's so easy to overlook things when there's so much to cover. Still, they managed to get around this by temporarily reintroducing the alternate-universe scenario again in another enjoyable tale in which I was surprised to see them killing off Superboy (and Krypto, the superdog) once and for all. I'd have expected them to just fade away and be forgotten in the annals of comicbook history, but I suppose comic fans being comic fans simply wouldn't have accepted that...

I also made a start on Marvel's maxi-series, Secret Wars. And having been a Marvel fan growing up, after a 20+ year wait I found this to be a massive disappointment. Whereas DC's 'Crisis' story felt natural, Marvel's 'Secret Wars' felt contrived from the start. Of course, as this was all to tie in with a line of toys, it was contrived. But even so, they could have tried to make it more interesting. Perhaps it's just me though, but the DC story was simply of a much higher quality. I've only read the first few issues of Sectret Wars, and I'm finding it a struggle to keep up any interest in what happens next. Of course there are 'far-reaching consequences' for all the characters involved so I should really keep reading. Will someone please tell me it improves as it goes on? Please?

[MacNimon]

Another DC title I've recently been reading is Joe Kubert's of the Apes, from the early 70s. I've got fond memories of reading Tarzan comics as a boy, and I jumped at the chance to read this. It's maybe a bit simpler than later versions, but it's very enjoyable with some excellent Kubert artwork. It's very atmospheric, unlike Marvel's later version from 1977, which I found to be a disappointment. It's well enough written (by Roy Thomas) and it boasts the usual excellent artwork of John Buscema, but it simply feels too much like a Conan retread to me. It's an enjyable enough version, but it lacks the spark that the DC version had (in it's earliest days, at least). Also featured as a back-up in DC's title is an adaptation of another Edgar Rice Burroughs series, John Carter Of Mars, which I'll return to at a later date.

I'll jump over to Marvel for a moment, to a team-up which I came across of Captain Britain and Captain America, which was published in 1985, in which I was surprised to find that the villain of the piece was one Mordred The Mystic, a character from another of my favourite 70s Marvel titles (Marvel Chillers #1, 1975), and who I had thought of as being a one-off character, long forgotten about. I was rather disappointed to see that Mordred was now being used as a villain, albeit one who thought he was doing the right thing. It has made me curious though, so I'm looking forward to searching out his other appearances, to investigate his transition from hero to villain.

Back to DC for a couple of quick points. I've only recently discovered that Wonder Woman's title was cancelled in 1986 (ancient history perhaps to those who kept up with comics throught the eighties, but news to me!) and found myself disappointed by this. However, on further investigation I found that those later issues weren't of a particularly great quality (I've never been a huge fan of artist Don Heck, he's alright but nothing spectacular) but it was the writing which was at fault more than the art. The series was just a bit of a mess by this point. Maybe it would read better if I went further back a bit...If memory serves me right (and I wouldn't rely on it!), there was a George Perez run which I enjoyed in the late 70s, so I'll maybe hunt for this soon. I've also read some Batman issues from the early 80s with some nice Gene Colan artwork, but unfortunately they were all two-parters which were concluded in that same month's issues of Detective Comics. So it looks as if my Batman reading is on hold until I acquire some Detective Comics of the period as well...

[Paul Monk]

Well recently on my reading list was Flash:The Rebirth which is the start of a mini series about the re-appearance of Barry Allen, the silver age Flash. Its was quite frankly boring, which as a huge Flash fan is saying something. The whole bringing Allen back was unnecessary I think and rather undermined the good work done with Wally West in the last decade or so. One for Ebay I guess.
Speaking of the Flash I picked up Vol 1 of the DC Showcase of early issues for £4.99 which was nice.
I've also been reading Booster Gold a lot lately and whilst its nothing groundbreaking or challenging, it is good fun time travel entertainment. And there promise of a return of Ted Kord as well.
I also picked up Grant Morrison's Seaguy:The Slaves of Mickey Eye #1 which was great. I've not read the original trilogy of Seaguy but its easy enough to catch up. Its an interesting read, very old school Morrison and it strangely reminded me of his Dare strip back in the late 80's. Well worth seeking out.

[Alex]

I only found out about Seaguy last week when someone was raving about it on another forum, but I think I'm definitely going to have to check that out.

I'm racing through Fables at the moment (the first issue can be found on that Vertigo link I posted a while back), and am absolutely loving it. I didn't know if the writer would be able to pull of the concept satisfactorily for that long but he's done it brilliantly.

For those not in the know, it's about a huge selection of characters from various fairy tales (Snow White, The Big Bad Wolf, Cinderella, Prince Charming, Little Boy Blue, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack (of 'and the Beanstalk' fame) who had to flea their respective universes / dimensions after a war broke out between them and The Adversary (whose identity has yet to be revealed) and they've ended up in our world.

It's funny, sweet, bizarre, and very very clever stuff, and considering that it's a comic that I knew nothing about till recently, really deserves much much more acclaim. I honestly think it's some of the best stuff I've read in years, and recommend it to all.

[MacNimon]

I’ve been reading some early 70s Fantastic Four this week, in particular the last few issues drawn by artist Jack Kirby through to the early John Buscema ones. Ignoring the actual stories/plot for the moment, these issues are very interesting from a historical viewpoint; I remember reading reprints of these tales way back in 1976, in Marvel UK’s The Titans and Captain Britain, and at the time being surprised when Jack Kirby’s artwork was suddenly replaced by that of John Romita for a few issues, followed by John Buscema. At the time, this seemed a big deal to me as Kirby had been the only artist the FF had ever had, so his departure had surely warranted a mention? In the years to follow, it became clear that this was obviously when he left Marvel for DC…but it’s only now after reading the Bullpen Bulletin page in FF 102 that I realised just how big a shock that his departure must have been, how unexpected it was.

In a Bulletin page entitled ‘How to fill a page when you’ve got nothing to say’, Stan (Lee)‘s Soapbox reveals Kirby’s departure thus: ”Who says lightning never strikes twice? Remember a few years back when Steve Ditko suddenly left the hallowed halls of Marvel to seek his fortunes elsewhere? Well at the time of this writing (early in March), Jack Kirby has unexpectedly announced his resignation from our surprised but stalwart little staff…That’s where we’re at - under-staffed, under-manned, and under-led - but as bushy-tailed and bewildered as ever! So watch for the fireworks …as we attempt to prove again that we may not be the biggest, but we’re still the boldest and the best!” This is followed by an item stating that because they were so wrapped up in changing their schedules, and juggling their writer-artist teams, they were afraid of making any definite announcements for the simple reason that by the time the page was printed, any plans made could have totally changed beyond recognition. So the page was filled out with a short biography of Kirby’s short-term replacement, John Romita.

It seems like his departure left Marvel in a bit of turmoil at the time. He certainly wouldn’t have been flavour of the month! John Romita’s artwork over the next few issues met with a mixed reception, in the letters pages; imo it wasn’t nearly as good as I’ve seen from him on other titles…it seems to me that he tried to stick as close as possible to Kirby’s vision of the strip, rather than give us something fresh. Ironically, the first letters regarding Romita’s art appeared in the first issue drawn by Kirby/Romita’s permanent replacement, John Buscema (issue 107)…who in turn was soon regarded as “the natural replacement for Kirby”. Buscema’s dynamic artwork certainly gave the series a new breath of life, imo, at a time when it was sorely needed.

[MacNimon]

A quick run-through some of what I’ve been reading recently…I’ll kick off with the Fantastic Four. I’m currently working my way through 3 eras of this strip; the early Stan Lee/Jack Kirby stuff, the Lee & Roy Thomas/ John Buscema (soon to be followed by Rich Buckler) era from the 70s, and the John Byrne reboot of the series from the early 80s.

I’ve really enjoyed the early stuff…although rather simplistic in story-telling terms, these early issues (particularly the first dozen or so) are just oozing in nostalgia…I‘ve got fond memories of reading these as a 7-year old back in 1972 when Marvel started up its UK arm. These stories are very basic compared to what comes later, but they’ll always be rated as some of my favourite stories of all time. The quality of the artwork has greatly improved by the time John Buscema (one of my favorites, so I’m biased there) took over the artwork chores a decade or so later but unfortunately some of the magic has disappeared from the series by this time. Not that the series is poor at this point, far from it, but it pales in comparison with both the early stuff and John Byrne’s later excellent run. Byrne basically took the series back to its roots stylistically, and successfully evoked the style of the early Lee/Kirby era while trying to aim the series at a slightly more mature audience. Not many series have two 'golden ages', but this is an exception to the rule. I’m also tempted to jump past the end of Byrne’s run to see what happens next, because that’s new ground for me…but I think I’ll get more satisfaction getting to these stories in their natural order.

And speaking of John Byrne, I also recently read his all too short run on The Incredible Hulk title. He basically took the same back-to-basics route and gave us a storyline which physically split Banner and the Hulk into separate entities. Apparently this led into Peter David’s run on the series, which I’ve heard great things about…something else to be checked out sooner rather than later.

I’ve also been enjoying Don MacGregor’s excellent 'Panthers Rage' saga from Marvel’s Jungle Action title of the mid-70s. Great artwork from Rich Buckler followed by Billy Graham helped no end, and I’m looking forward to the Ku Klux Clan storyline which I clearly remember even though I haven’t read it for probably 30 years or so.

I’ve also been re-reading some old UK titles, in particular the early issues if 2000AD (Harlem Heroes is the strip I remember best) though I wasn’t overly keen on the revamped Dan Dare. Strange, because this version of the character is the one I was aware of while growing up. Another favourite title of mine I’m currently re-reading is Dez Skinn’s Warrior, which resurrected the character of Marvelman (later renamed Miracleman) in a series written by Alan Moore and drawn by artists Gary Leach and Alan Davis. An excellent title which also brought us ‘V For Vendetta’ and ‘Laser Eraser & Pressbutton’ among other great strips. I’ve also got a hold of a few issues of Bullet, Warlord, Tiger etc all of which bring back fond memories.

One final nostalgic title also worth a mention…Roy Thomas and Rich Buckler's wartime superhero title for DC, the All-Star Squadron, a fondly remembered series in my mind. I’ve only re-read the first few issues but they’re just as good as I remember…no disappointments here!

On my to-read list at the moment are the Essential Moon Knight and Marvel Horror titles, along with numerous Pocketbooks featuring the X-Men and The Silver Surfer, among others. I’m looking forward to reading some classic Lee/Ditko Hulk tales introducing the Leader from the 1978 Hulk annual (isn’t e-bay a wonderful thing!) and I’ve got loads of Conan titles to catch up with as well…where to start, that’s the problem!

[Alex]

Another favourite title of mine I’m currently re-reading is Dez Skinn’s Warrior, which resurrected the character of Marvelman (later renamed Miracleman) in a series written by Alan Moore and drawn by artists Gary Leach and Alan Davis. An excellent title which also brought us ‘V For Vendetta’ and ‘Laser Eraser & Pressbutton’ among other great strips. I’ve also got a hold of a few issues of Bullet, Warlord, Tiger etc all of which bring back fond memories.

God, I haven't thought about Warrior for years, but I did used to love it. It makes me feel incredibly nostalgic for the summer holidays we had at the Warners holiday camp at Hayling Island, as the little shop their had a whole bunch of them for sale and I devoured them over the course of one week.

I didn't quite understand a lot of V for Vendetta at the time (I was only 8 or 9ish I think) but was quite mesmerised by it, but I did love Laser Eraser and Marvelman too. Funnily enough, it was only announced last week that Marvel have finally sorted out the ridiculously complicated legal issues surrounding ownership of the title, and it should at the very least be reprinted fairly soon. There's hope that Gaiman can be persuaded to return to finish off his take on the character too, though he's not yet responded to this.

Moore-related, I've been getting in to Swamp Thing fairly recently after it not initially grabbing me. It's interesting to see him develop the character from something of a cliche of the comics world in to a very unique and fascinating idea.

I recently read Lucifer, and quite enjoyed it, but it was somehow...unsatisfying. There's a lot to like about it, but it's lacking something that I can't quite put my finger on. Still, not a bad read by any means.

[WhiteCrowNZ]

I didn't quite understand a lot of V for Vendetta at the time (I was only 8 or 9ish I think) but was quite mesmerised by it

I used to look through V for Vendetta a lot in comic shops, but never bought it. It was an odd comic, being not really super-hero. I'm glad I eventually caved in and bought though. There's something uniquely British and very 80s Britain about it.

I have mixed feelings about the film it spawned though. I know a lot of people panned it, but you understand they couldn't have filmed the comic, because the whole scenario has dated a bit - 80s chic is all about staring down the barrel of inevitable nuclear war, they were frightening times. But kids of today probably think "why were you worried".

[Paul Monk]

I think the film did a great job actually and was surprised it even got released given that its hero is essentially a terrorist.

Was sad to read the last issue of Captain Britain and MI:13 yesterday. It's had a consistly good run and Paul Cornell was really hitting his stride when it was cancelled. Its a great shame because he really was able to make me care about these characters again.
Here's hoping it returns again at a later stage in some form.