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Post by Jasoomian on May 16, 2014 21:22:01 GMT -5
"Identity Crisis" #1 went on sale in June 2004. You must delete these posts immediately and repost them next month.
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Post by Hoosier X on May 16, 2014 21:32:20 GMT -5
"Identity Crisis" #1 went on sale in June 2004. You must delete these posts immediately and repost them next month. I was thinking of starting the "Identity Crisis" discussion on the Curmudgeon thread.
But I figured that might be considered obvious trolling and could get me banned.
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Post by Hoosier X on May 17, 2014 0:46:01 GMT -5
In addition to "Identity Crisis," I also got the following from the library:
Aquaman Showcase, Volume 1 - I read the first two stories. Ramona Fradon art! This looks like it's gonna be fun! But what is up with Aquaman jumping from Adventure to Showcase to Detective to World's Finest to his own comic! DC was really giving Aquaman maximum exposure in the 1960 to 1962 era (the first appearances of the JLA). This is some new comic history for me.
Justice League Showcase, Volume 5 - JLA #84 to #106 reprinted in this volume. I've read the JLA/JSA crossovers in this volume before, but the rest is new to me. And if the first story in this volume is any indication, a lot of this is gonna SUCK! Nice Dick Dillin artwork. That will probably help me get through this volume. The first half does not look promising. Too much Mike Friedrich!
Essential Hulk, Volume 3 - Hulk #118 to #142 reprinted here. I've been a Hulk fan for 40 years, and I bet I've read about half of these stories. From what I've seen, Hulk from Tales to Astonish #90 to Hulk #200 is among the greatest comic book runs ever. Trimpe rules! It will be fun to relive some stories I haven't seen for a while and to read some of these for the first time.
I finished "Identity Crisis." I guess I can see why a lot of people think it's good. I found it kind of frustrating. Really good ideas and nice scenes seemed to alternate with stuff that was ridiculous and contrived. The good idea at its core ended up being buried by gibberish and shock value.
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Post by wildfire2099 on May 17, 2014 7:37:02 GMT -5
I got "Identity Crisis" from the library and I've read the first three chapters. Is this thread the right place to discuss "Identity Crisis"? It's not really old enough to be classic, but it also doesn't seem to be new enough for the "new comics thread," which seems to be for current comics. And I have a lot to say about "Identity Crisis." If it were as terrible as I'd assumed it was from the description, there wouldn't be as much to say. Despite hating some of the key events, I found the first two chapters rather compelling, and I liked the way the JLAers were portrayed. Chapter Three (with Deathstroke) broke the spell because it was so utterly ridiculous. (I've heard a phrase "jobbing," is the Deathstroke chapter an example of jobbing? I'm not sure I understand what it means exactly.) But I'm still curious to read the rest of it. 'Jobbing' is actually a wrestling term...it means you're the guy that loses badly to make the winner look good. A wrestler who does this regularly is generally referred to as a 'jobber' or 'enhancement talent'...in recent years it's made it's way outside wrestling and been used to refer to anyone who loses badly. Personally, I feel Identity Crisis is the beginning of the end of the fun, happy, DCU, and thus my opinion of the story is colored by that. On it's own it's a pretty good story, but I hate what it was a harbinger of. |
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Post by Jesse on May 17, 2014 19:40:31 GMT -5
Uncanny X-Men #138- Cyclops quits the team after Jean Grey's funeral
- The issue mostly features flashbacks of earlier X-Men adventures
- Kitty Pryde joins the X-Men
Uncanny X-Men Annual #4- Nightcrawler is killed after opening one of his birthday gifts
- Doctor Strange is enlisted to help the X-Men traverse a replica of Dante's Hell
- First appearance of Margali Szardos
- Nightcrawler's adopted mother
- Doctor Strange notes that her powers rival his own
- Amanda Sefton is revealed as Jimaine Szardos
- Nightcrawler's foster sister
Uncanny X-Men #139- First appearance of Wolverine's Brown & Tan costume
- Angel returns to the X-Men
- First appearance of Stevie Hunter
- Nightcrawler and Wolverine travel to Canada where they encounter Alpha Flight and the Wendigo.
- First appearance of Heather MacNeil Hudson
- Heather would later be known as Guardian and Vindicator
- Both monikers originally used by her husband James MacDonald Hudson, Jr.
Uncanny X-Men #140- Nightcrawler, Wolverine, Shaman, Vindicator and Snowbird defeat the Wendigo
- The Canadian Prime Minister disbands Alpha Flight
- The Blob escapes a maximum security prison so he can join the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants
Uncanny X-Men #141- Days of Future Past part 1
- In a dystopian future ruled by Sentinels Kitty Pryde's mind is sent backward through time to prevent the assassination of Senator Robert Kelly
- First appearance of Rachel Summers
- First appearance of Destiny
Uncanny X-Men #142- Days of Future Past part 2
- The X-Men square off against Mystique's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants
- Kitty Pryde prevents the death of Senator Kelly
- Henry Peter Gyrich is assigned by the President to head the government's new Sentinel program
Uncanny X-Men #143- A N'Garai attacks the X-Mansion while Kitty is home alone on Christmas Eve.
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Post by Hoosier X on May 18, 2014 14:24:18 GMT -5
I read the first couple of stories in JLA Showcase, Volume 5. (That's issues #84 and #85 of the original Justice League series.) It's 1970 and the Justice League is having a very difficult transition as the Silver Age becomes the Bronze Age.
I've only read these two issues, but I flipped through the rest of it, and this looks like a pretty bad era for the League. (Despite the Dick Dillin art. He is one of the most underrated artists in the business.) Unless there is some unforeseen rise in quality pretty quick, I might call this run among the worst in a major team comic book in the Silver Age or Bronze Age.
I know that the famous JLA/JSA team-up of #100 to #102 is coming up, but there are a lot of issues to get through before coming to the start of Len Wein's JLA.
I know some of the CCF members read comics in the 1960s. So I'm wondering if anybody read JLA at this time. What was it like for JLA fans as the Silver Age became the Bronze Age? Did you stick with it, hoping it would get better? Did you ignore it except for the JSA/JLA team-ups? (I have read the team-up in JLA #91 and #92. It's ... not one of my favorites.) Did you miss dudes like Amazo, Felix Faust, Dr. Light, Amos Fortune and Kanjar Ro?
I'll probably be popping in with more to say about these issues of the JLA. (I haven't read that much JLA overall. I've read the early JLA in the first volume of the JLA Archives and I have two volumes of the JLA/JSA team-up TPB's (#1 and #3). And I collected it rather sporadically in the 1980s, with most of the issues from #208 to #220, and I also have all the Justice League Detroit issues. (I know. I'm such a braggart.)
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Post by Hoosier X on May 18, 2014 15:13:13 GMT -5
I went to the Comic Book Database to see what JLA #84 was competing with and to see how other major comics were coping with the ongoing transition from Silver Age to Bronze ...
Also with November 1970 cover dates:
Amazing Spider-Man #90 - The death of Captain Stacy - arguably the first Spidey Bronze Age comic book. Batman #226 - The first appearance of the Ten-Eyed Man! Detective Comics #405 - The first appearance of the League of Assassins! Fantastic Four #104 - Magneto and Namor. The Incredible Hulk #133. - Hulk fights an Eastern European dictator. Lois Lane #106 - Lois celebrates the Bronze Age by turning black in "I Am Curious (Black)! Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D #16 - Fury celebrates the Bronze Age with reprints. Our Army at War #225 - Sgt. Rock celebrates the Bronze Age by partying like it's 1944! Swing with Scooter #31 - Yup. This was still around. Thor #182 - Thor fights Dr. Doom! |
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Post by fanboystranger on May 18, 2014 21:19:29 GMT -5
Yes, Simonson is a major Turok fan. He's a massive Russ Manning fanboy, which, quite frankly, everyone should be. He did some covers during the Valiant days, but couldn't commit to a ongoing run. Right now, he's doing his own thing, but Nick Bertozzi's quite good at luring talent in. (Although the current Greg Pak series is quite good.)
Hondo, you need Secret History. It's basically Rex Mundi with better art and no goofy superhero stuff at the end. Also, if you like Jonathan Hickman's stuff, here's where he steals it from.
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Post by fanboystranger on May 18, 2014 21:21:25 GMT -5
Yes, Simonson is a major Turok fan. He's a massive Russ Manning fanboy, which, quite frankly, everyone should be. He did some covers during the Valiant days, but couldn't commit to a ongoing run. Right now, he's doing his own thing, but Nick Bertozzi's quite good at luring talent in. (Although the current Greg Pak series is quite good.)
Hondo, you need Secret History. It's basically Rex Mundi with better art and no goofy superhero stuff at the end. Also, if you like Jonathan Hickman's stuff, here's where he steals it from.
Also, sorry I lost your original posts. Tried to scale back to the pertinent elements, but deleted everything. Blackhawks won today, so a little bit tipsey.
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Post by Deleted on May 18, 2014 23:38:41 GMT -5
I've been reading through the Penny Century series today and saw a few Jaime and Gilbert series I've never heard of. Is there a comprehensive list of their work anywhere?
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Post by Hoosier X on May 18, 2014 23:45:21 GMT -5
Penny Century!
I don't know if there's a comprehensive list anywhere, but you reminded me that I haven't read "100 Rooms" for a long time. "100 Rooms" is my favorite Jaime Hernandez story. He wrote a lot of great stories later on, but I've never gotten over how much I loved "100 Rooms" the first time I read it.
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2014 0:16:58 GMT -5
Yeah that was a memorable one. The Penny Century series is pretty good. A lot of short one pagers mixed in, which is a change of pace from the first series. I'm trying to read through everything in order so I'll have to research a little to see where to go next. I have most everything I think, probably around 20 issues short of everything Jaime did, a little more for Gilbert.Most of it unread for both, but I seem to be less particular about reading Beto's stories in order, I read his stuff as it comes out, but when I buy a back issue I file it away until I have them all.
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Post by Hoosier X on May 19, 2014 0:33:17 GMT -5
It took me a while to warm to Gilbert. I started getting Love and Rockets about #34 or so, and both "Love and Rockets X" and "Poison River" were in the middle of the storyline. Since Gilbert's stories all have a cast of thousands, I didn't really get what was going on at all. But I loved the Jaime stories right from the start.
After I had 3 or 4 issues in a row, I found "Love and Rockets X" to be a lot more coherent, so I started over on those issues and found them to be incredible! Next time I was at the comic book store, I bought all the issues of the "Love and Rockets X" storyline (I think it started at #31) and read all of it that had been published up to that point, and I became a Gilbert devotee for life! "Love and Rockets X" is still my favorite L&R story. (It took me a little longer to warm to "Poison River." And I still haven't read "Human Disastrophism." I'm saving it. I like the idea that there's one last classic Palomar story that I haven't read.)
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Post by berkley on May 19, 2014 2:45:37 GMT -5
100 Rooms is one of my favourites of Jaime's work. It might be the single piece of his that best encapsulates the peculiar charm of his early period, though I don't think it or any L&R story can be fully appreciated without having read everything that came before it.
I was lucky enough to have already become a regular reader of L&R before Poison River started, and I'd have to say that in its serial form it was the single most riveting saga in the entire history of the series, for me.
There was a lot of great stuff from both Jaime and Gilbert between the end of the first L&R series and its revival in the 2000s.
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Post by Rob Allen on May 19, 2014 13:06:56 GMT -5
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