Its been awhile since I bought or read a comic, as I took some much needed time away from them. While I missed out on a lot of "events", I can say that professionally the move was very beneficial for me.
It's funny when you step away from the things that seem to mean so much to you for, because you often gain some much needed perspective. Family, faith, adulthood, and making ends meet, these are the things that are infinitely more important than comic books. I know anyone reading this will understand on some level, because they probably put comic books at a higher priority than they should, but it's a choice they know they make. I'm not saying it's right, and I wouldn't ever try to justify it to anyone.
Observe and Report
Having all that cryptic stuff out of the way, I can say that I recently looked up most of the stories I missed during the last few months. Here's a few lessons/ questions I have:
- Comic Companies are Dirty Thieves- When you step back and look at all the characters dying and being reborn( such as Flash, Captain America and Batman) all the renumbered series, (such as Thor, Captain America and Batman again) and all the "Who will fill out the roster" (JLA, Dark Avengers, Titans, etc.) issues that come out every month, you find the same recycled plots, and the same fanboys eating it all up. I know this is the way comics have always been, but it seems like events have taken "shock factor" to new levels. What book doesn't get shaken up with a new event or creative team every other week? It's like pro sports, if the team doesn't win (or in this analogy, the book doesn't sell), fire the coach (in this case the writer) and restructure the team ( or in this case- whether or not Batman lives in a cave). I guess I just see the business side of it a lot more. I'm now referring to DC as Dirty Crook comics. Ok, not really.
- Flash: Rebirth still looks Good- I have avoided all spoilers for it, well almost, and will wait for the trade now. Please don't tell me anything about it, or I will be forced to put my hands over my ears and go "la la la la la la", ad nauseam.
- Superboy and Impulse are alive? Well, those deaths were pretty meaningless. I haven't read the details of all of this, because I can barely keep one version of the Legion straight. Maybe in trade form it will all come together.
- Comings and Goings- So many series, mini-series, and cancellations have come about while I was briefly out. I don't think the Eternals comic exists anymore (which I admit is ok), there are a TON of Batman books now, and Superman barely appears in his own storylines. I like the idea of more Mon-El though. And please don't get me started on Red Robin. It was fairly obvious DC was headed for this "more mature" route with Tim Drake/ Wayne, but it doesn't mean he's better off. Let me say this, I read a review of the first issue the other day and honestly never made the connection between the character name "Red Robin" and the restaurant "Red Robin". I must say, some credibility is lost. Speaking of credibility, it doesn't look like Marvel is putting out anything very interesting, aside from Captain America. I don't mean to harp on them, I'm just not that into them.
- Will Batman appear as a Black Lantern? I mean, he wasn't dead in the end of Final Crisis, but by the time the Blackest Night happens he would be long dead. Logically (and chronologically), doesn't that make sense?
- Who will be the new Batgirl? Now this is speculation I can take part in. I think it will be Stephanie Brown or Misfit (the teleporting girl from Birds of Prey). I hope it isn't Barbara Gordon, but then again they repealed all the other meaningful character developments in the DC Universe, didn't they?
Fight!
In coming up with some ideas for my brilliant return to HK, I thought I would play that age old game "who would win in a fight?" Readers, feel free to weigh in as well...
This time around we have J.Jonah Jameson vs. Perry White. While Perry is as tough they come, he has a proven soft spot for Jimmy Olsen (see Superman #665). J. Jonah has facial hair, a flat top, and a hatred of the star of his book. Talk about biting the hand that feeds...
The Winner: lung disease. Please kids, don't smoke. No matter how stressful your newspaper job can be.
Check Out What I Checked Out:
In the interest of saving money, I visited the local library today and picked out some general interest titles:
- Superman: 3-2-1 Action! TPB: Superman and Jimmy Olsen team up to fight some Kryptonite powered monkeys. It ties into the reprehensible "Countdown" series from 2 years back. So far, it's better than it sounds. Kurt Busiek definitely wrote his Superman stories in the same vein as his Astro City stories. Makes you wonder which universe he originally envisioned some of the stories in...
- Green Lantern Corps: Recharge TPB-This collects the 2005 mini-series that restarted the GL Corps. So far it has answered a lot of the "who are these characters and why should I care about them?" questions I've had about GL characters.
- Green Lantern: Tales of the Sinestro Corps Hardcover: I figured I read the rest of the Sinestro Corps event, I might as well finish it out. Collects the Superman Prime, Ion, Parallax, Cyborg Superman, and GL/Sinestro Corps Secret Files Specials.
- Green Lantern Corps: Ring Quest TPB-Sensing a theme yet? This takes place after the Sinestro Corps War and features Mongul, who I actually think is a pretty menacing villain. He is one villain I actually take seriously, because he is capable of a lot of damage.
- Batman 681-686: Featuring the end of Batman R.I.P., the Final Crisis tie-ins, a faces of evil issue, and the beginning of the "Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?" 2 parter. I think I liked the "faces of evil" issue written by Paul Dini the best, because it was a done in one issue that featured a plethora of Batman characters in believable roles.
Previews? I was searching the DC website the other day and found this cover for an unused issue of Adventure comics. I wonder why they scrapped the stories?
1 comments:
Wow, that sure is a lot to comment on Kello... But luckily, I'm more than up to the task! I really can't fault the comic companies for their various attempts at shaking things up(ie. the deaths/rebirths), as long as "big" events continue to sell, the big two will continue to shove them down our throats. I'm actually more annoyed at the renumbering and rising prices(I'm looking at YOU Marvel!). $3.99 for the top selling Marvel books, as well as their mini-series' is ridiculous, and I'm really tired of Marvel restarting a comic at #1(or in Cap's case going back to the original numbering). Off the top of my head, I can name the Runaways, She-Hulk, Punisher, Black Panther and Deadpool as recently being relaunched. And things always turn out the same way, Marvel puts out a #1, it sells well for a month or two, and then the series falls back to where ever it was selling before the relaunch.
As a HUGE fan of both Kid Flash and Superboy, I have to admit to being quite pleased they've both returned to the land of the living. Especially Bart, his death really sucked. When Bart came back, I broke into my happy dance. OK, not really, but I almost did.
That's the first time I've seen anybody float that idea about Bats and Blackest Night, and I for one think it's brilliant. As you so astutely point out, Bats WOULD be dead by now, so he SHOULD be eligible to return as a Black Lantern. Bats as a Black Lantern would sure be sweet... The only hiccup with that idea is that it could be argued Darkseid shunted Bats to an alternate dimension, as opposed to the past of the main DCU.
My money is on Babs as the new(old?)Batgirl. I hope to god it's not Misfit(I CAN'T stand her!!!), I do like Spoiler, but she's travelling the world with Tim Drake/Wayne, so she seems unlikely. If not Babs, it could wind up being the Calculator's daughter(the one from that terrible Battle for the Cowl Oracle mini-series). As far as I'm concerned though, let it be anybody but Misfit.
Although JJJ's Hitler mustache would be tough to beat, I'd probably give the edge to Perry. He's already beaten cancer(take that lung disease!), plus he has that cigar that gives out super-powers. All the negative Spidey stories in the world can't top that!
Sound like some good reading there. Except for the Superman book that is. Jimmy Olsen + Kryptonite Powered Monkeys = No Thanks. I loved the Sinestro War stuff, and if the Batman story by Paul Dini is the one about Hush, I also enjoyed it immensely. Whew, sorry about the length of this comment(well, not really!)but I figured I should welcome you back to your blog with one of my customary long-winded comments.
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