Comics are Awesome III

[andersonh1]

The first issue of New Guardians showed us a decimated Oa after Hal's rampage as Parallax, where Ganthet creates the power ring he'd give to Kyle. So that event we can certainly say still happened in the New 52.

Ok, good to know.

Picked up GL issue 24 today, and it continues to be a good storyline. Maybe if I'd read the other series I'd have known that Relic was a giant, but that came as a surprise. I'm not sure the idea of the destruction of Oa had enough buildup to really be shocking, and as we've discussed, it's not the first time it's happened. Maybe for new readers it's huge, but for long-time readers of Green Lantern like myself, my reaction was more "what, again?". Still, with the old Guardians gone it's hard to see how the planet and battery can be reconstructed this time around. I'm not sure the newly-freed Guardians have the knowledge or power to pull that off. So we'll have to see how the Corps functions from this point forward.

As for Relic's theory about an emotional reservoir that can run dry, I'd tell him to re-check his theories. If emotional energy is generated by living beings (and I think that's been established as how it works in the GL universe, but I could be wrong), as long as life exists then the energy shouldn't run out. Yeah, the "comic-book science" of the emotional spectrum is absurd, but in-story the logic works. I suspect Relic himself is to blame for the problem, but that remains to be seen of course. Of course, the various Corps could be draining it faster than it can be generated, or perhaps the fact that there are now seven corps instead of one has accellerated the drain. The Green Lanterns were the only corps for thousands of years, so maybe they alone weren't enough to "drain the reservoir", but the recent arrival of the others has caused the problem?

I'm tempted to buy the other three series this month to see how the entire story goes, but I hate to give in to the crossover mentality. I'll stick to just Green Lantern, and I'll likely wait for the trade to read the whole thing.

[Sparky Prime]

I'm tempted to buy the other three series this month to see how the entire story goes, but I hate to give in to the crossover mentality. I'll stick to just Green Lantern, and I'll likely wait for the trade to read the whole thing.

I'll be picking up all the books, since I'd be buying them all anyway. I'll be posting my thoughts on those books as well.

As for Relic's theory about an emotional reservoir that can run dry, I'd tell him to re-check his theories. If emotional energy is generated by living beings (and I think that's been established as how it works in the GL universe, but I could be wrong), as long as life exists then the energy shouldn't run out.

To be fair, Relic's theory is supported by the fact his universe's destruction coincided with the spectrum running out. Because of that, he's convinced his theory about an emotional reservoir is correct, even though that's only circumstantial evidence. He never did find any concrete proof.

Of course, the various Corps could be draining it faster than it can be generated, or perhaps the fact that there are now seven corps instead of one has accellerated the drain. The Green Lanterns were the only corps for thousands of years, so maybe they alone weren't enough to "drain the reservoir", but the recent arrival of the others has caused the problem?

I don't think so. From what they showed of Relic's universe, the Spectrum was a lot more widely used, with even civilians using it to create entire cities made of constructs, while the Lightsmiths from his universe don't appear to be unlike the Lanterns. And they all seemed to have been around a lot longer than the various Lantern Corps. I'm sure the real reason behind whatever is going on is something Relic hasn't considered.

[Onslaught Six]

You're going to get good and bad quality in all eras of writing and if all of that was so terrible then why is it referred to as "Golden Age"?

So "collectors" and speculators could make a lot of money, and people who hated it when Barry Allen and Hal Jordan replaced Alan Scott and Jay Garrick could reminisce about "the good old days."

[Shockwave]

You're going to get good and bad quality in all eras of writing and if all of that was so terrible then why is it referred to as "Golden Age"?

So "collectors" and speculators could make a lot of money, and people who hated it when Barry Allen and Hal Jordan replaced Alan Scott and Jay Garrick could reminisce about "the good old days."

But how many of those are there? And why would the fandom as it is today, most of whom I'm guessing weren't around for said "good ole' days" still continue to call them "golden age"?

It also seems to me that the naming of the various eras is backwards. Generally in evolutionary terms it goes from worse to better: The Bronze age came before the Silver and Golden ages, but in comics we start off with Golden and then go to Silver and then... bronze apparently sucks so bad it wasn't even worth using so we just call everything post Silver "Modern". Isn't it supposed to go the other way? As technology gets better, the more "primitive" comics should be called Bronze and the modern ones Golden? I mean, we certainly have comics printed with far better art and paper than anything before.

[andersonh1]

I don't think "golden age" is an indicator of quality as much as it is an adaption of the old Greek golden/silver/bronze/heroic age classifications as a handy means to break up the different eras of comic books. I'd have to research exactly when the terms started being used to really answer the question of why they were chosen, but I know I've seen them in some of the comics of the 70s when they were useful in dividing up the old and new guard of characters. So I suspect it was DC editoral who coined the term.

The golden age was certainly golden in terms of creativity and sales. I'm still amazed when reading that Captain Marvel sold a million copies a month at one time. I can't imagine a modern series doing that. A lot of DC's mainstays originated in that age, and a few of Marvel's characters were around then as well. There were hits and misses of course, and it would be interesting to see just which decades have the highest level of success when it comes to creating characters that have staying power. Probably the 30s and 40s for DC, with the reinventions of the 50s and 60s being the versions that are still around in some form, and Marvel's big successes originate in the 60s as well. There are successful characters that were created later, but not nearly as many as far as I can tell. But I could be wrong.

Now, without a doubt, the writing and art in modern books is by and large far more sophisticated than older comics. On the other hand, the audience for that art and writing has shrunk drastically. I don't think quality is entirely to blame of course. Competition from other media is probably the culprit, with television, home media and video games competing for the attention and money of the audience is a big part of the collapse in sales in the modern day.

It also seems to me that the naming of the various eras is backwards. Generally in evolutionary terms it goes from worse to better:

Comics have "evolved", for lack of a better term, and have improved in many ways over time. They've also become cyclical, expensive and cater to a narrower and narrower audience, which makes me wonder if we hit the peak of quality at some point and are on the decline.

[Dominic]

In terms of comics being cyclical, both Marvel and DC are very much going back to the 90s.

The theory I have heard (in the local shop) is that the larger companies (Disney and Warner Brothers) are looking at the history of the industry, and have taken note that the last time that comics sold *really* well was during the early to mid-90s boom. They are ignoring the fact that the boom was followed by a bust that nearly destroyed the industry, instead repeating the same mistakes in the hopes of recreating a temporary wave of success.


I am not sure that quality has peaked. Things can always improve. (Of course, comic fans do not much like change, which could be problematic.) But, the audience is shrinking. And, the price bite is getting worse, with $5 per book becoming more common.

[Dominic]

I likely have a new job lined up. But, for the moment, I am taking it slow with comic.

Uber Volume I: Left it in my pull file. There are enough extras in here to justigy rebuying the comics. But, money-wise, I want to wait. Luckily, the shop-owner is understanding.


Batman & Superman #4:
As expected, the characters' memories of this story are all wiped out at the end. There is also some forshadowing to

Spoiler

the E2 Superman's return

in current issues of "Earth 2". Pak did a good job of portraying pre-invasion Earth 2 as being a general pre-event setting, providing enough history and world-building to make it seem "established" without getting tedious. The I get the feeling that DC meant this story to be a sort of "get over it" to fans who are still wistful for pre="Flashpoint" DC. (Given what we know happens to the E2 characters, it is pretty obvious which set of Superman/Batman are in fact better in story.)
Grade: B/C


Superior Spiderman #18:
The 2099 cross-over ends. By end of this issue, "Superior Spider-Man" is one step closer to being set back to default Spider-specifications, with Parker's cushy job being gone and it being understood that he will not be finding a similar job. Given O'Hara's disposition at the end of this issue, I am wondering if Marvel might be setting up for some kind of reboot/wipe-out of the 2099 setting, similar to what they tried a few years ago. Aside: Having Parker being known as the guy who is supplying Spider-Man with gear opens up the same can of worms that "Batman Inc." did for Batman/Wayne in that it opens the door for anybody with a half-way functioning brain to figure out that they are the same guy.
Grade: C

[BWprowl]

Superior Spiderman #18:
The 2099 cross-over ends. By end of this issue, "Superior Spider-Man" is one step closer to being set back to default Spider-specifications, with Parker's cushy job being gone and it being understood that he will not be finding a similar job. Given O'Hara's disposition at the end of this issue, I am wondering if Marvel might be setting up for some kind of reboot/wipe-out of the 2099 setting, similar to what they tried a few years ago. Aside: Having Parker being known as the guy who is supplying Spider-Man with gear opens up the same can of worms that "Batman Inc." did for Batman/Wayne in that it opens the door for anybody with a half-way functioning brain to figure out that they are the same guy.
Grade: C

I was mainly taken aback by the fact that Otto apparently bought his Spider-themed tech and henchmen directly using his old Dr. Octopus bank account, not even bothering to launder it or anything. Then again, Carlie and her friend there had to go through a whole hell of a lot to track down that information, so maybe he didn't expect anyone would even be looking for it in the first place, but still.

Regarding the status quo's reemergence: Aside from Otto losing Pete's job at Horizon, there was also imagery accompanying his searching of Parker's mind for the equation that indicated that the original Peter's mind had resurfaced (Otto thought he had wiped it, when really it had only been shown to be 'buried'.) Between that, Otto finding himself 'inferior' at something in this issue, his friends and family growing suspicious, Carlie finding the evidence of Spidey using Ock's bank account, and the Goblin kingdom making moves underground, the stage is being set for all sorts of holy shit to come crashing down on Otto. It's the denouement Slott's been building to for some time now, and if it does turn out to be the end of Otto's stint as Spider-Man (and given that Marvel's promoting a 'Return of Dr. Octopus' event coming soon...) it'll be interesting to see what the idea (particularly with regards to what makes a hero 'superior', and if Peter will adopt any of Otto's advancements) at the end of it all is.

Also, forget Miguel's 'disposition', dude is now stuck in the 'present', completely away from his home-year. I wonder if they'll give him a mini-series now, or set him up as some other vaguely Spider-themed hero to pop up regularly.

[Sparky Prime]

Also, forget Miguel's 'disposition', dude is now stuck in the 'present', completely away from his home-year. I wonder if they'll give him a mini-series now, or set him up as some other vaguely Spider-themed hero to pop up regularly.

Apparently it was said at the Marvel Unlimited Panel at New York Comic Con that they are planning a new Spider-Man 2099 series to be drawn by Simone Bianchi.

[Dominic]

Otto pointed out that he purged Parker's memories. But, he would remember the one's he sampled. The idea was that those memories became his. The more of Parker's memories that Otto sampled, the more of Parker he could remember. This is probably has Parker will return though, even if the Parker that comes back will effectively be a copy of a copy with.....

Wait a second. Most of the memories that Otto is confirmed to have viewed and sampled are old "classic-era" Spidey-memories. Fuck. Parker just got reset to pre-Peter David status quo!


On another note, I reread "Uber" this weeked as a proxy for not having the compilation. (And, when I do get the compilation, I can just read the extras.)

I will amend my earlier comments about Guderian and Speer though. Gillen actually is more balanced on them than I previously thought (when I described him as being a little too charitable). Gillen includes a scene that clearly (and rightly) implicates Speer in knowing about the camps. (Speer consistently denied any such knowledge after the war, despite such claims straining credulity. Oddly, many peope seem to believe those claims.)


Damn, "Uber" is amazing. I want them to make toys based on it, similar to Marvel Legends.

Each wave could include one of the Battleship class characters, a human tank class trooper (either Axis or Allied) and one of the named characters. The build up could be a a piece of machinery from one of the labs or something. Variants could be "battle-damaged". Oh, man, I want "Uber" toys. I have taken to setting up Joes on my shelves in little dioramas that are vaguely evocative of "Uber".