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Feb. 20th, 2011
Sinfest Cupid Sunday
Feb. 20th, 2011 04:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
philippos42Sinfest has brought in a new character this week, & we've seen several different responses to him, but I'm posting the Sunday strip that Tat just put up, because it's gorgeous.
( Cupid )
( Cupid )
thehefnerI'm not sure at what point people started considering the Riddler to be a joke. It couldn't have been the TV show, since Gorshin's Riddler was rightly celebrated, and I'd argue that he was the only villain there to have touches of genuine menace. Did that just never translate over into comics?
Maybe it's just because I was raised on the Riddler of Gorshin, B:TAS, and his appearances written by Chuck Dixon, but I never thought Eddie was a joke character. I loved the Riddler's flair and penache, combined with his self-assured knowledge that he was the smartest guy in the room. I loved the Riddler to be genuinely brilliant, which may explain why there were so few good Riddler stories: he was just too damn smart to write.
Think about it: Lex Luthor's brilliance can be explained away with mad science or manipulative plots, but to be smart like the Riddler, you need to actually possess the kind of mind that could create and disassemble complex games of intellect. Furthermore, writers have to incorporate those games into actual stories. No wonder most writers just opted to make the Riddler a pathetic character, relying on cheesy puns and hampered by an obvious handicap that always got him caught by Batman.
That's the Riddler we see in this strip. I was disappointed at first, but by the end, I have to admit a great deal of affection for this loser version of Eddie Nigma. This is the Riddler if he were a villain on The Venture Bros, a failure criminal who finally (thinks) he strikes it big, only to get in wayyyyyy over his head.
Squint your eyes to read this preview for some idea of what I mean:
( The Deadly Riddle, behind the cut! )
Finally, I'd intended to post this yesterday, so I could end by announcing that yesterday was the 62nd birthday of writer William Messner-Loebs! But then the house's internet went out just as I was wrapping up this post. So, happy belated birthday, William Messner-Loebs!
Coming up next: the grand finale.
Maybe it's just because I was raised on the Riddler of Gorshin, B:TAS, and his appearances written by Chuck Dixon, but I never thought Eddie was a joke character. I loved the Riddler's flair and penache, combined with his self-assured knowledge that he was the smartest guy in the room. I loved the Riddler to be genuinely brilliant, which may explain why there were so few good Riddler stories: he was just too damn smart to write.
Think about it: Lex Luthor's brilliance can be explained away with mad science or manipulative plots, but to be smart like the Riddler, you need to actually possess the kind of mind that could create and disassemble complex games of intellect. Furthermore, writers have to incorporate those games into actual stories. No wonder most writers just opted to make the Riddler a pathetic character, relying on cheesy puns and hampered by an obvious handicap that always got him caught by Batman.
That's the Riddler we see in this strip. I was disappointed at first, but by the end, I have to admit a great deal of affection for this loser version of Eddie Nigma. This is the Riddler if he were a villain on The Venture Bros, a failure criminal who finally (thinks) he strikes it big, only to get in wayyyyyy over his head.
Squint your eyes to read this preview for some idea of what I mean:
( The Deadly Riddle, behind the cut! )
Finally, I'd intended to post this yesterday, so I could end by announcing that yesterday was the 62nd birthday of writer William Messner-Loebs! But then the house's internet went out just as I was wrapping up this post. So, happy belated birthday, William Messner-Loebs!
Coming up next: the grand finale.
Captain America: Man Out of Time #3
Feb. 20th, 2011 04:55 pmstolisomancerAfter some of the discussion concerning Man Out of Time #4, I went to look at issue #3 at my LCS. I'd been skipping the miniseries because, as I noted on the thread, it's a pretty well-worn plot for Cap stories, and we've seen it as recently as the early issues dealing with Ultimate Cap, or Joe Kelly's Earth's Mightiest Heroes mini from a couple of years ago.
Given how some of the discussion's gone on the previous post, though, it seems like a good idea to put up a couple of pages from #3.
( three pages from #3 )
Given how some of the discussion's gone on the previous post, though, it seems like a good idea to put up a couple of pages from #3.
( three pages from #3 )
Comics I've read this week
Feb. 20th, 2011 05:30 pmblackruzsa I don't know about you guys, but I'm seriously loving these two titles right now:
Avengers Academy
Power Man and Iron Fist (2011)
( Da da da lazy Sunday afternoon... )
Avengers Academy
Power Man and Iron Fist (2011)
( Da da da lazy Sunday afternoon... )
I want those apps
Feb. 20th, 2011 06:13 pmblackruzsa In the future, all your fight scenes will be iPhone apps.
( Soldier Zero #5, two scans. )
( Soldier Zero #5, two scans. )
Another blast from the past - Oz Squad!
Feb. 20th, 2011 07:21 pmicon_ukAnother comic unearthed from the depths of one of my longboxes is this, my only issue (as far as I recall) of Oz Squad, which came out back in 1991 from Brave New Words (No, I'd never heard of them either).
As you read this, remember that this predates "Wicked" by quite some time, and given how recently the Oz books had become public domain, it's actually a rather well thought out reimagning/updating.
I can guarantee that this won't be to all tastes, there are some VERY dodgy beats in this, and a couple of places where black humour becomes so pitch black it would cause most people (who would remember only the movie) some distinct squirming moments.
The first issue does a deal of scene-setting, and deals with Tik-Tok, who most folk probably only know through this.
After all, who couldn't trust a face like this?
Less that 10 pages from a 30 page issue.
( Be warned, some rather grim moments... )
As you read this, remember that this predates "Wicked" by quite some time, and given how recently the Oz books had become public domain, it's actually a rather well thought out reimagning/updating.
I can guarantee that this won't be to all tastes, there are some VERY dodgy beats in this, and a couple of places where black humour becomes so pitch black it would cause most people (who would remember only the movie) some distinct squirming moments.
The first issue does a deal of scene-setting, and deals with Tik-Tok, who most folk probably only know through this.
After all, who couldn't trust a face like this?
Less that 10 pages from a 30 page issue.
( Be warned, some rather grim moments... )
thehefnerAll good things, and all that.
If you haven't been reading these strips, you can find them all at over here, which I figure will be easier than giving you a whole bunch of links. For those who have been reading it, thanks for all your comments. This has been a labor of love, and I'm gratified by all the thoughtful responses for this lost gem I've been obsessed over for the past month.
I don't know why the Batman strip ended on what I can only assume was due to cancellation. Poor response from readers? The impending release of Batman Returns? Some editor didn't like it for whatever petty reason? Maybe we'll finally get the answers should this strip ever see print someday.
Either way, it's strange that the strip should end with a Mad Hatter story. But even still, Messner-Loebs manages to bring the story to an end which I found surprising and moving. As with the entire strip, this final story is not without its flaws, but it's also more bold and intriguing--in its own quiet way--than many Batman stories in recent memory.
( Final showdown in Arkham Asylum, behind the cut )
So at the end, what is there to say about the Batman comic strip? It wasn't perfect, partially due to the daily nature of the format, and partially due to creative inconsistencies. The series ended abruptly, with little in the way of a last word for major characters like Dick, Alfred, Jim Gordon, the Joker, or even Alice Dent. Even Bruce's own arc seems only sketched out at best, leaving us to fill in the blanks.
But as I said before, the true protagonist of this strip--at least, ever since Messner-Loebs and Infantino took over--was actually Harvey Dent. His arc frames the entire strip, which ends exactly when his own story does. Warts and all, this is one of the greatest Two-Face stories I have ever read.
If you haven't been reading these strips, you can find them all at over here, which I figure will be easier than giving you a whole bunch of links. For those who have been reading it, thanks for all your comments. This has been a labor of love, and I'm gratified by all the thoughtful responses for this lost gem I've been obsessed over for the past month.
I don't know why the Batman strip ended on what I can only assume was due to cancellation. Poor response from readers? The impending release of Batman Returns? Some editor didn't like it for whatever petty reason? Maybe we'll finally get the answers should this strip ever see print someday.
Either way, it's strange that the strip should end with a Mad Hatter story. But even still, Messner-Loebs manages to bring the story to an end which I found surprising and moving. As with the entire strip, this final story is not without its flaws, but it's also more bold and intriguing--in its own quiet way--than many Batman stories in recent memory.
( Final showdown in Arkham Asylum, behind the cut )
So at the end, what is there to say about the Batman comic strip? It wasn't perfect, partially due to the daily nature of the format, and partially due to creative inconsistencies. The series ended abruptly, with little in the way of a last word for major characters like Dick, Alfred, Jim Gordon, the Joker, or even Alice Dent. Even Bruce's own arc seems only sketched out at best, leaving us to fill in the blanks.
But as I said before, the true protagonist of this strip--at least, ever since Messner-Loebs and Infantino took over--was actually Harvey Dent. His arc frames the entire strip, which ends exactly when his own story does. Warts and all, this is one of the greatest Two-Face stories I have ever read.
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Emerald Twilight: The original plan
Feb. 20th, 2011 10:34 pmthelazyreaderIn the early 1990s DC tried to relaunch the Green Lantern comic(cancelled a decade ago) under Gerard Jones. Hal Jordan was rescued from the depravity of his Action Comics Weekly days and restored to his status as the main Green Lantern. However sales remained low, and it looked like Green Lantern would be cancelled once again. So DC ran the infamous Emerald Twilight story arc, where Hal went mad and destroyed the Green Lantern Corps, followed by a new, younger character, Kyle Rayner, taking over the Green Lantern mantle.
But wait! Even before Emerald Twilight DC already had plan for replacing Hal Jordan and breathing new life into the Green Lantern series. Gerard Jones had a story arc planned from #48-50(which would eventually become Emerald Twilight) that would bring an end to Hal's career as Green Lantern.
( How the Protector turned into Parallax )
But wait! Even before Emerald Twilight DC already had plan for replacing Hal Jordan and breathing new life into the Green Lantern series. Gerard Jones had a story arc planned from #48-50(which would eventually become Emerald Twilight) that would bring an end to Hal's career as Green Lantern.
( How the Protector turned into Parallax )