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Post by dbutler69 on Nov 10, 2020 7:53:16 GMT -5
I read The Brave & the Bold #161. This was a clever idea by Gerry Conway, where Adam Strange is accused of murder, and arranges for a zeta beam to swap him and Batman, so that Batman can be on Rann to, as earth's greatest detective, clear Adam of murder. Meanwhile, Batman had been trying to solver his own mystery, as a serial killer had been stalking Gotham. So, now that Adam's on earth, he tries to fill in for Bats there. I loved the concept of this story. Unfortunately, as this was during the era of 17 page stories (grrr!) the mysteries here were a bit rush. This comic would have benefited greatly from a few more pages to develop and solve the mystery. Also, Comish Gordon and the GCPD again look a bit oncompitent as both Adam and I were able to see the one common link between the murder victims, while the police could not. Anyway, a nice story, and of course, the usual excellent Jim Aparo art. I've been reading though Brave & Bolds and I'm so glad that Bob Haney's run is done! ![](https://files1.comics.org//img/gcd/covers_by_id/4/w400/4015.jpg?3706819527341197614) By the way, what's up with the dc.fandom.wiki covers lately? They don't show up when I post them here, so I have to go to comics.org.
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Post by tonebone on Nov 12, 2020 14:27:52 GMT -5
I just read the three hardcover collections of Batman and the Outsiders... which cover issues 1 - 32... the end of the title, renamed "The Outsiders" I really enjoyed it up until the last volume when Aparo was replaced by Alan Davis. I love Davis's art, but coinciding with the art change, Mike Barr's stories started going downhill for me, cumulating in the "Looker" saga. A character who's a "looker", get it? She's so pretty. What a waste of talent. Anyways, I recommend vol. 1 and 2. ![](https://images.penguinrandomhouse.com/cover/9781401268121) ![](https://cdn11.bigcommerce.com/s-igquupw3/images/stencil/500x500/products/730536/27758115/9781401277536__00647.1602472351.jpg?c=2) ![]()
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Post by spoon on Nov 13, 2020 21:46:43 GMT -5
I started the Essential Black Panther vol. 1 (and only) TPB. I've read Jungle Action #5-9 so far. The TPB reprints the whole Don McGregor run in Jungle Action as well as the first 10 issues of the Jack Kirby Black Panther series that followed it. I've never read this before, but I know Panther's Rage is a famous storyline, so I'm interested to see how it unfolds.
I have such a large backlog of unread comics to work my way through, so I should slow down my purchases. There are a bunch of Essential and Showcase Presents TPBs that I bought when those lines were still being published but haven't read yet. If I had known that so many of these runs would later be reprinted in color by the time I got around to reading them, I might have held off on buying some of them.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
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Post by Confessor on Nov 15, 2020 4:09:25 GMT -5
Continuing with my re-read of Jeph Leob and Tim Sale's colour-themed books for Marvel, I finished Spider-Man: Blue last night... ![](https://i.imgur.com/h0Iy575.jpg) This was always my favourite of these colour-themed mini-series. That's partly because I'm a big Spider-Man fan, but mostly because the pathos, tragedy and romance that is an inherent part of Spidey's back-story is the best fit for the unashamedly nostalgic and sentimental writing that Leob uses in all of the books in this series. As with Daredevil: Yellow, the colour mentioned in the title has a double meaning to it; it refers to the blue in Spider-Man's costume, but also the melancholy that is at the heart of Peter Parker's story. The book is concerned with Peter's first love Gwen Stacy, the guilt that he feels about her demise at the hands of the Green Goblin and the regret he harbours at not having gotten to spend as much time with her as he would've liked. That said, her death is not shown here, since the flashbacks in this story are all from the period when John Romita had recently taken over art chores on Amazing Spider-Man (the first 8 or so Romita-drawn issues of ASM, I'd say). Spider-Man: Blue uses a similar framing device for the narrative as the previous book in the series: in Daredevil: Yellow it was a love letter that Matt Murdock was writing to the deceased Karen Page, but here it's a tape recorded Valentine's Day message that Peter is recording for the long dead Gwen. As our flashback starts, the Goblin has recently discovered Spidey's identity, but promptly forgotten it due to amnesia, and Peter has a crush on his classmate Gwen, who is just starting to pay him some attention too. Then along comes Mary Jane Watson! This complicates matters immensely and turns things into a burgeoning love triangle. As such, the focus here really isn't on Spider-Man as much as it is on the relationship between Peter, Gwen and Mary Jane. Sale's artwork is excellent and he handles the action sequences and the book's numerous romantic scenes with equal expertise. The art is perhaps less shadowy than in Daredevil: Yellow, with Sale channelling John Romita and Steve Ditko, rather than Wally Wood or Frank Miller, as you would expect. But it's still absolutely gorgeous to look at. Like the first book in this series, this is much more of an emotional and romantic read than an action-packed one (although there are several superhero/super-villain fights in it). As such, this might not be everyone's cup of tea. But if delicate, coming-of-age tales of romance and loss are your thing, then this is a story you should definitely check out. Maybe I'm just a sucker for a nostalgic love story, but Spider-Man: Blue is still the best entry in Leob and Sale's colour-themed series, as far as I'm concerned.
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Post by Icctrombone on Nov 15, 2020 7:40:38 GMT -5
Continuing with my re-read of Jeph Leob and Tim Sale's colour-themed books for Marvel, I finished Spider-Man: Blue last night... ![](https://i.imgur.com/h0Iy575.jpg) This was always my favourite of these colour-themed mini-series. That's partly because I'm a big Spider-Man fan, but mostly because the pathos, tragedy and romance that is an inherent part of Spidey's back-story is the best fit for the unashamedly nostalgic and sentimental writing that Leob uses in all of the books in this series. As with Daredevil: Yellow, the colour mentioned in the title has a double meaning to it; it refers to the blue in Spider-Man's costume, but also the melancholy that is at the heart of Peter Parker's story. The book is concerned with Peter's first love Gwen Stacy and the guilt that he feels about her demise at the hands of the Green Goblin and the regret he harbours at not having gotten to spend as much time with her as he would've liked. That said, her death is not shown here, since the flashbacks in this story are all from the period when John Romita had recently taken over art chores on Amazing Spider-Man (the first 8 or so Romita-drawn issues of ASM, I'd say). Spider-Man: Blue uses a similar framing device for the narrative as the previous book in the series: in Daredevil: Yellow it was a love letter that Matt Murdock was writing to the deceased Karen Page, but here it's a tape recorded Valentine's Day message that Peter is recording for the long dead Gwen. As our flashback starts, the Goblin has recently discovered Spidey's identity, but promptly forgotten it due to amnesia, and Peter has a crush on his classmate Gwen, who is just starting to pay him some attention too. Then along comes Mary Jane Watson! This complicates matters immensely and turns things into a burgeoning love triangle. As such, the focus here really isn't on Spider-Man as much as it is on the relationship between Peter, Gwen and Mary Jane. Sale's artwork is excellent and he handles the action sequences and the book's numerous romantic scenes with equal expertise. The art is perhaps less shadowy than in Daredevil: Yellow, with Sale channelling John Romita and Steve Ditko, rather than Wally Wood or Frank Miller, as you would expect. But it's still absolutely gorgeous to look at. Like the first book in this series, this is much more of an emotional and romantic read than an action-packed one (although there are several superhero/super-villain fights in it). As such, this might not be everyone's cup of tea. But if delicate, coming-of-age tales of romance and loss are you thing, then this is a story you should definitely check out. Maybe I'm just a sucker for a nostalgic love story, but Spider-Man: Blue is still the best entry in Leob and Sale's colour-themed series, as far as I'm concerned. I really enjoyed this mini series. I read it because I read somewhere, that there is a scene that proves that Gwen slept with Peter. I also enjoyed it because it recapped all the Spidey events minus the Peter Parker whining.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 9,670
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Post by Confessor on Nov 15, 2020 13:23:08 GMT -5
Continuing with my re-read of Jeph Leob and Tim Sale's colour-themed books for Marvel, I finished Spider-Man: Blue last night... ![](https://i.imgur.com/h0Iy575.jpg) This was always my favourite of these colour-themed mini-series. That's partly because I'm a big Spider-Man fan, but mostly because the pathos, tragedy and romance that is an inherent part of Spidey's back-story is the best fit for the unashamedly nostalgic and sentimental writing that Leob uses in all of the books in this series. As with Daredevil: Yellow, the colour mentioned in the title has a double meaning to it; it refers to the blue in Spider-Man's costume, but also the melancholy that is at the heart of Peter Parker's story. The book is concerned with Peter's first love Gwen Stacy and the guilt that he feels about her demise at the hands of the Green Goblin and the regret he harbours at not having gotten to spend as much time with her as he would've liked. That said, her death is not shown here, since the flashbacks in this story are all from the period when John Romita had recently taken over art chores on Amazing Spider-Man (the first 8 or so Romita-drawn issues of ASM, I'd say). Spider-Man: Blue uses a similar framing device for the narrative as the previous book in the series: in Daredevil: Yellow it was a love letter that Matt Murdock was writing to the deceased Karen Page, but here it's a tape recorded Valentine's Day message that Peter is recording for the long dead Gwen. As our flashback starts, the Goblin has recently discovered Spidey's identity, but promptly forgotten it due to amnesia, and Peter has a crush on his classmate Gwen, who is just starting to pay him some attention too. Then along comes Mary Jane Watson! This complicates matters immensely and turns things into a burgeoning love triangle. As such, the focus here really isn't on Spider-Man as much as it is on the relationship between Peter, Gwen and Mary Jane. Sale's artwork is excellent and he handles the action sequences and the book's numerous romantic scenes with equal expertise. The art is perhaps less shadowy than in Daredevil: Yellow, with Sale channelling John Romita and Steve Ditko, rather than Wally Wood or Frank Miller, as you would expect. But it's still absolutely gorgeous to look at. Like the first book in this series, this is much more of an emotional and romantic read than an action-packed one (although there are several superhero/super-villain fights in it). As such, this might not be everyone's cup of tea. But if delicate, coming-of-age tales of romance and loss are you thing, then this is a story you should definitely check out. Maybe I'm just a sucker for a nostalgic love story, but Spider-Man: Blue is still the best entry in Leob and Sale's colour-themed series, as far as I'm concerned. I really enjoyed this mini series. I read it because I read somewhere, that there is a scene that proves that Gwen slept with Peter. I also enjoyed it because it recapped all the Spidey events minus the Peter Parker whining. I don't know about "proves" it, but they are shown to have had their first kiss in Peter's bedroom at his and Harry Osborn's apartment, and Peter is half naked, so the implication that sex followed shortly after is certainly there.
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Post by Icctrombone on Nov 15, 2020 13:39:15 GMT -5
One would hope that Peter got there before Norman...
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Post by tonebone on Nov 17, 2020 14:43:32 GMT -5
One would hope that Peter got there before Norman... Have to wait and see if the baby has hair like a plastic safety mat.
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Post by tartanphantom on Nov 17, 2020 15:35:21 GMT -5
One would hope that Peter got there before Norman... Have to wait and see if the baby has hair like a plastic safety mat.
Wow. That is so wrong... Doesn't Archie Andrews have the same kind of hair, but just on the sides of his head... and of course with no widow's peak?
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Post by Icctrombone on Nov 17, 2020 16:09:24 GMT -5
Have to wait and see if the baby has hair like a plastic safety mat.
Wow. That is so wrong... Doesn't Archie Andrews have the same kind of hair, but just on the sides of his head... and of course with no widow's peak?
Wait, Gwen had sex with Archie too ?!
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 9,670
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Post by Confessor on Nov 17, 2020 18:29:11 GMT -5
Wow. That is so wrong... Doesn't Archie Andrews have the same kind of hair, but just on the sides of his head... and of course with no widow's peak?
Wait, Gwen had sex with Archie too ?! What a shameless strumpet that girl was!
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Post by berkley on Nov 17, 2020 21:36:23 GMT -5
I started the Essential Black Panther vol. 1 (and only) TPB. I've read Jungle Action #5-9 so far. The TPB reprints the whole Don McGregor run in Jungle Action as well as the first 10 issues of the Jack Kirby Black Panther series that followed it. I've never read this before, but I know Panther's Rage is a famous storyline, so I'm interested to see how it unfolds. I have such a large backlog of unread comics to work my way through, so I should slow down my purchases. There are a bunch of Essential and Showcase Presents TPBs that I bought when those lines were still being published but haven't read yet. If I had known that so many of these runs would later be reprinted in color by the time I got around to reading them, I might have held off on buying some of them.
I'll be curious to see how those two vastly different takes on the Panther strike you. To many readers the contrast between them is too jarring, or they just plain can't stand the Kirby series in itself, but I find each an inspired piece of work in its own way.
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Post by spoon on Nov 17, 2020 22:11:49 GMT -5
I started the Essential Black Panther vol. 1 (and only) TPB. I've read Jungle Action #5-9 so far. The TPB reprints the whole Don McGregor run in Jungle Action as well as the first 10 issues of the Jack Kirby Black Panther series that followed it. I've never read this before, but I know Panther's Rage is a famous storyline, so I'm interested to see how it unfolds. I have such a large backlog of unread comics to work my way through, so I should slow down my purchases. There are a bunch of Essential and Showcase Presents TPBs that I bought when those lines were still being published but haven't read yet. If I had known that so many of these runs would later be reprinted in color by the time I got around to reading them, I might have held off on buying some of them.
I'll be curious to see how those two vastly different takes on the Panther strike you. To many readers the contrast between them is too jarring, or they just plain can't stand the Kirby series in itself, but I find each an inspired piece of work in its own way.
Yes, I've heard differing opinions on the transitions, and I've been anticipating getting to that point to see the contrast. I've just finished Jungle Action #14 so I have a bunch of issues to go. I recently did my binge read of Doom Patrol, so the Kupperberg to Morrison transition was quite an experience. The jump to Kirby's 70s Captain America from whoever preceded it was jarring. I'd read the Lee/Kirby Cap of the 60s, but when Kirby's return felt much less like the house style, so to speak. He went in his own direction, avoiding past villains and plotlines. Although I've mostly been reading from the Essential Black Panther, I do have two issues of Jungle Action, so I chose to read those in color. Also, one of those issue has a feature that goes through the clues regarding Zatama's murder. That feature wasn't reprinted in the Essential TPB.
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Post by brutalis on Nov 18, 2020 7:45:17 GMT -5
I like to think of Kirby's Black Panther as a flashback to the 60's after his debut in Fantastic Four. It is his solo series of adventures if Marvel had King Kirby create the King of Wakanda's monthly comic. A real could of should of moment given life years later. All hail the king baby!
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Post by dbutler69 on Nov 18, 2020 9:11:42 GMT -5
I like to think of Kirby's Black Panther as a flashback to the 60's after his debut in Fantastic Four. It is his solo series of adventures if Marvel had King Kirby create the King of Wakanda's monthly comic. A real could of should of moment given life years later. All hail the king baby! I thought Kirby's Black Panther series, while it wasn't what I was expecting, was a fun ride. It had bit of Indiana Jones in it, well before Indiana Jones!
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