Defenders #4 - "Fourth Cosmos: The Lovers"

[laughing_tree]

I say I have no desire to write individual Marvel characters, but that sort of falls by the wayside when you talk about one aspect of Marvel from the 70s, which is the idea that all of these concepts are these huge giant-sized humanoid beings that hang around and gab at each other, essentially. That's catnip to me. -- Al Ewing

Comments

[numeronone]

This felt very personal.

It meant a lot to me to see Cloud embracing their genderqueer identity - something I'm trying to do myself, incrementally - but it carries a little extra weight since Ewing recently came out as bi.

It's also a little tragicomic that this comes out on the heels of his "Immortal Hulk" run, given that a decent part of that run was about breaking out of old patterns and trying to do things differently.

You'll note both that Marvel has been oh-so-eager to sweep IH under the rug and pretend it never happened...and here we have a proto-Hulk sitting placid inside a cage, unable to progress...

[phantomfo]

And that proto-Lifebringer.

[blues32]

I dunno, the fact we have Red Harpy here suggests that IH isn't being swept under the rug. It's due to her immortal gamma nature that Betty even took this form.

As for Proto Hulk...you see it as being unable to progress. I see it as getting what the Hulk always wanted. Hulk wants to be left alone. The pain is outside. Even a Proto Hulk can't be contained unless he wants to be.

[zachbeacon]

I mean, Hulk has never actually wanted to be left alone. Even Devil Hulk surrounded himself with found family. He just doesn't want to live in constant fear of a "friend" or father figure trying to kill him.

[arilou_skiff]

I often feel like that's kinda what happens when you write a defining run: Anyone trying tof ollow it up will just come across as badimitation, so instead they do something else.

[tinygaylaura]

This was beautiful but also very sad

You can feel Ewing's frustration with Marvel's obsession with keeping everything constantly tied to the same old status quo over and over again

Go be free and be happy Cloud

[giraffesforever]

That transition from CMYK to RGB is pretty neat, particularly coming from the cloud reveal. From the subtractive color model used to print comics on paper to the additive color model used for screens.

[zachbeacon]

Saying "Perhaps I should do the talking now" after Galactus' mom explains that he clearly has no idea what's going on is the most Doctor Strange thing ever.

Also, YAY CLOUD!

[dan_ingram]

I'm in the minority, but I don't like Cloud being left behind. They were in limbo for decades, barely did anything in this mini and now are back, deeper in limbo.

Boo urns!

[iamrman]

I still don't have the faintest idea what is going, but I love it!