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Post by wildfire2099 on Feb 25, 2015 16:34:49 GMT -5
I think my favorite one was where he tries to blend into a lumber camp... Namor the lumberjack was pretty hilarious. I really liked Betty Dean, too... she's neck and neck with Mavis Trent as best Superhero wannabe girlfriend  |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2015 16:49:39 GMT -5
I have vols 2 and 3 of the Submariner MMWs, and enjoyed both of them... I'd have to look to be sure, but I think they're the ones with the Angel as the back up, which is also really good. I don't really recall I change in quality between the Marvel (Mystery) Comics stories and the Namor ones that I've read. Well! Unless I can find Golden Age Sub-Mariner MMWs for really cheap, I'm going to give them a skip. Maybe. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Feb 25, 2015 17:03:52 GMT -5
I found them on e-bay for about $10 each (I don't have #1 because I haven't seen it for a similar price).... the probably come in paperback, too, I just like the hardcovers better.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2015 17:54:54 GMT -5
I found them on e-bay for about $10 each (I don't have #1 because I haven't seen it for a similar price).... the probably come in paperback, too, I just like the hardcovers better. Oh, really? Do you know if this person still has these volumes this inexpensively? If so, would you pretty please send the link to me? |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2015 19:22:01 GMT -5
It's funny to read him go from, well, anti-hero who is self-righteous and kingly, then I step back from that to read him as this super friendly guy who is willing to help surface dwellers. Heh. Yeah, when you figure that Namor's been around practically as long as Superman and Batman, you're going to get wildly divergent interpretations of him across decades. The 1950s "Sufferin' Shad" era is particularly jarring, as is some of the late-40s stuff which emulates Archie at times. The stories are all over the place. Pre-Silver Age Namor appeals to me mostly because of the art from luminaries like the afore-mentioned Schomburg, Everett obviously, and the incomparable Joe Maneely. But each of the stories are neat in their own way. And I really love having a few different Namors to read. And, yes, those covers are quite beautiful. |
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Post by Phil Maurice on Feb 25, 2015 20:34:59 GMT -5
But each of the stories are neat in their own way. And I really love having a few different Namors to read. Yep. Moving in the opposite direction from you, I'm currently reading Agents of Atlas, a modern book that hard-retcons Namor's cousin Namora into a no-nonsense, bad-ass powerhouse MANY iterations removed from the playful, giggling character that used to mercilessly troll the Sub-Mariner back in the day, like so:
I'm really enjoying Agents of Atlas just as I'm super-pleased that the above exists. So, why not both?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2015 23:36:51 GMT -5
I picked up the first Sub-Mariner golden age masterworks in softcover from TFAW's 75% off holiday sale that was linked here, so it only cost me about $5 or so (got the first GA Capt. America from them too). While I did find the stories uneven, I did enjoy the experience of reading the GA mateiral (I have been on a bit of a GA kick recently reading Batman Chronicles 1 & 2, the GA Subby and Cap masterworks and currently making my way through the GA Dr. Fate archives, plus reading some Raymond Flash Gordon that I had. I have the first two Marvel Mystery MMW, the first Spirit Archives, the GA Hawkman Archives, Superman Chroniles Vol. 2 and 3. Vol 5 & 8 of the Batman Chronicles and collection of Sheena reprints on tap to read soon too).
-M
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Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2015 7:01:03 GMT -5
But each of the stories are neat in their own way. And I really love having a few different Namors to read. Yep. Moving in the opposite direction from you, I'm currently reading Agents of Atlas, a modern book that hard-retcons Namor's cousin Namora into a no-nonsense, bad-ass powerhouse MANY iterations removed from the playful, giggling character that used to mercilessly troll the Sub-Mariner back in the day, like so:
I'm really enjoying Agents of Atlas just as I'm super-pleased that the above exists. So, why not both?
HA! I love that scan! And that art! I should look into Agents of Atlas. Sounds fun! |
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Feb 26, 2015 20:37:26 GMT -5
I have vols 2 and 3 of the Submariner MMWs, and enjoyed both of them... I'd have to look to be sure, but I think they're the ones with the Angel as the back up, which is also really good. I don't really recall I change in quality between the Marvel (Mystery) Comics stories and the Namor ones that I've read. Well! Unless I can find Golden Age Sub-Mariner MMWs for really cheap, I'm going to give them a skip. Maybe. Volume 2 (which had some Everett covers and was pretty good fun all 'round) is 8 bucks + change on Amazon Marketplace right now. I haven't read vol. 3 - the weird-arsed triangular head era of Subby makes me nervous.
Note that Atlas Era Heroes vol. 1 and I think 2 and definitely 3 have some Everett Sub-Mariner (the one true Sub-Mariner) - Volume 3, especially, is almost all Sub-Mariner comics, almost all Everett, and a thing of beauty and wonder forever.
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Post by MWGallaher on Feb 26, 2015 21:25:53 GMT -5
I've got a couple of Sub-Mariner questions that can only be answered, I suppose, with speculation.
Reptisaurus mentioned "the weird-arsed triangular head era of Subby." I've heard a couple of people argue that Namor was always meant to be freakishly alien-looking. That doesn't totally jibe with the early appearances, but it does seem to have been the intention of the publishers in that aforementioned era. So was that a misinterpretation or a gross exaggeration of Everett's character, or bad art, or did Everett really want Namor to look inhuman from the start?
Second question: in the Golden Age, it was surprisingly common for Namor to be shown as a giant on the covers, grasping Japanese ships in his hand and stuff like that. Symbolic, presumably, but did kids in the 40's figure that Namor had the power to grow to giant size, and only used that ability on the covers? Or were they sadly disappointed when they bought a comic expecting a giant man and then didn't get it? Or were the readers of the time sophisticated enough to understand that the covers were symbolic? There were plenty of obviously symbolic covers at the time, but I can't think of any that so routinely relied on a single particular motif like that. I know I'd have felt cheated being teased like that month after month. It was superhero comics, and there was no reason why there *couldn't* be a giant-size hero.
Which leads me to one final question, that's not specifically Sub-Mariner-related. Why weren't there more significant giant-sized superheroes in the Golden Age? It seems like an obvious superpower, but I can only think of a few examples (not counting exceptionally tall but not quite "giant" characters like Stardust the Super-Wizard or occasional expansions of characters like the Spectre).
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Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2015 21:36:02 GMT -5
*My* understanding is that EVERETT actually gave Namor the more triangular head (unless there are drawings of him in those issues I haven't seen), and he was meant to be that way. As you can even see in the silver age his Namor is drawn with more of a triangular head than, say, Colan's Namor. But I am FAR from a Namor expert, so maybe Phil or another Sub-Mariner fan will chime in with more knowledge. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2015 8:40:55 GMT -5
Everett's triangle head (though most likely not as exaggerated as in his super early golden age years).  |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Feb 27, 2015 10:28:36 GMT -5
I always loved the triangular head... It's better when it's as Everett did it (obviously different, but not silly) that those ones were it was a literal triangle, but I like that alot better than, say the latter Byrne version that makes him look like a Vulcan.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2015 11:23:59 GMT -5
I always loved the triangular head... It's better when it's as Everett did it (obviously different, but not silly) that those ones were it was a literal triangle, but I like that alot better than, say the latter Byrne version that makes him look like a Vulcan. I like Byrne's art and a few of his stories, however, his Namor was never my favorite of either. Fun, yes, kind of, but he came up with some wacky ideas for Namor. Like, the oxygen and blood thing to explain his irritability (as if it needed explanation) and a couple of other things. It was cute, but I like a more...formal (?) Namor, I think. |
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Post by Phil Maurice on Feb 27, 2015 12:14:23 GMT -5
*My* understanding is that EVERETT actually gave Namor the more triangular head (unless there are drawings of him in those issues I haven't seen), and he was meant to be that way. As you can even see in the silver age his Namor is drawn with more of a triangular head than, say, Colan's Namor. But I am FAR from a Namor expert, so maybe Phil or another Sub-Mariner fan will chime in with more knowledge. I'm no expert either. According to Roy Thomas, it was Carl Pfeufer, one of the artists who worked on Sub-Mariner during Everett's military service, who gradually and radically altered Namor's appearance. Here's the quote from Thomas: |
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