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Post by spoon on Mar 20, 2024 9:55:36 GMT -5
Speaking as a fan of that era of X-men, God Loves, Man Kills is definitely worth a read, although it's an out-of-continuity story. The Marvel Chronology Project places Marvel Graphic Novel #5 in continuity after the first 21 pages of Uncanny X-Man #168. Around Uncanny X-Men #167 and #168 is one of those great spots to slot in graphic novels, annuals, guest appearances, etc. for continuity purposes, because if you move a story a little earlier or later you run into trouble fitting it with events in Uncanny.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
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Post by Confessor on Mar 20, 2024 11:14:05 GMT -5
Speaking as a fan of that era of X-men, God Loves, Man Kills is definitely worth a read, although it's an out-of-continuity story. The Marvel Chronology Project places Marvel Graphic Novel #5 in continuity after the first 21 pages of Uncanny X-Man #168. It's more like the latter - it seems to take place in the regular continuity of the time, although no references are made to it in the regular series or anywhere else.. God Loves, Man Kills is excellent. I highly recommend it. I consider it in continuity, and I think Marvel does as well, so I wouldn't worry about that. I'm not sure what the rationale of considering it out of continuity is, since it does contradict continuity. OK great. Consensus appears to be that it's in continuity, though doesn't reference any of the on-going series of the time. I think I probably do need to get this then. I think a collection of X-Men #50-59 would be an interesting read, but it's a bit of an arbitrary cutoff. It starts in the middle of an ongoing storyline, I guess because #49 doesn't have Steranko interior art and #50 does. Also, stopped in #59 just takes you a bit into the Neal Adams run, but it's around when one arc is wrapping just as another one is starting. Yeah, the selection of issues in that collection does sound a bit random. I am a big fan of Steranko's artwork though, so that's definitely a good reason to pick it up. Maybe I need to get this in conjunction with the X-Men Visionaries: Neal Adams collection that EdoBosnar mentioned, just to finish up the Adams part of the story.
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Post by spoon on Mar 20, 2024 13:27:20 GMT -5
I think a collection of X-Men #50-59 would be an interesting read, but it's a bit of an arbitrary cutoff. It starts in the middle of an ongoing storyline, I guess because #49 doesn't have Steranko interior art and #50 does. Also, stopped in #59 just takes you a bit into the Neal Adams run, but it's around when one arc is wrapping just as another one is starting. Yeah, the selection of issues in that collection does sound a bit random. I am a big fan of Steranko's artwork though, so that's definitely a good reason to pick it up. Maybe I need to get this in conjunction with the X-Men Visionaries: Neal Adams collection that EdoBosnar mentioned, just to finish up the Adams part of the story. I bought the Visionaries TPB back when it originally came out. It's nice to have all the Adams X-Men issues in one book. It skips over #64, where Don Heck does one heck of an Adams impression on Sunfire's first appearance. I remember there was some controversy because Neal Adams did not like the new coloring that was done on the TPB. It sort of uses color to provide texture, like shading. Whether you're a purist on something like that is up to the individual. There's also an Epic Collection that covers #46-66. I'm speaking of what on the US market, as I don't know what's published in the UK versus what would be imported.
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Post by berkley on Mar 20, 2024 14:33:23 GMT -5
Yeah, the selection of issues in that collection does sound a bit random. I am a big fan of Steranko's artwork though, so that's definitely a good reason to pick it up. Maybe I need to get this in conjunction with the X-Men Visionaries: Neal Adams collection that EdoBosnar mentioned, just to finish up the Adams part of the story. I bought the Visionaries TPB back when it originally came out. It's nice to have all the Adams X-Men issues in one book. It skips over #64, where Don Heck does one heck of an Adams impression on Sunfire's first appearance. I remember there was some controversy because Neal Adams did not like the new coloring that was done on the TPB. It sort of uses color to provide texture, like shading. Whether you're a purist on something like that is up to the individual. There's also an Epic Collection that covers #46-66. I'm speaking of what on the US market, as I don't know what's published in the UK versus what would be imported.
If it's like what I've seen in other reprinted editions I'm in full agreement with Adams on the colouring. I don't see it as being a purist, just a spontaneous reaction: I don't like the way it looks.
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Post by spoon on Mar 20, 2024 15:22:45 GMT -5
I bought the Visionaries TPB back when it originally came out. It's nice to have all the Adams X-Men issues in one book. It skips over #64, where Don Heck does one heck of an Adams impression on Sunfire's first appearance. I remember there was some controversy because Neal Adams did not like the new coloring that was done on the TPB. It sort of uses color to provide texture, like shading. Whether you're a purist on something like that is up to the individual. There's also an Epic Collection that covers #46-66. I'm speaking of what on the US market, as I don't know what's published in the UK versus what would be imported.
If it's like what I've seen in other reprinted editions I'm in full agreement with Adams on the colouring. I don't see it as being a purist, just a spontaneous reaction: I don't like the way it looks.
True. I just meant that it's up to confessor how much he just wants to read the stories versus a certain version of coloring. I think Adams's problem with it was both: he felt it change the art from what it originally was but also didn't like how it looked. I ended up buying the Epic Collection as well, so I have the Thomas/Adams X-Men stories with two different styles of coloring.
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Post by commond on Mar 20, 2024 17:14:48 GMT -5
Oh, OK....I was thinking that this was something that would've been resolved or answered during Claremont's run. In the next dozen or so issues, I think I assumed. Claremont is famous (or infamous) for dangling subplots, so something that is briefly teased in one of his issues could be resolved in the next issue or it could be years later. Or never.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
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Posts: 10,069
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Post by Confessor on Mar 20, 2024 18:17:04 GMT -5
I remember there was some controversy because Neal Adams did not like the new coloring that was done on the TPB. It sort of uses color to provide texture, like shading. Whether you're a purist on something like that is up to the individual. If it's like what I've seen in other reprinted editions I'm in full agreement with Adams on the colouring. I don't see it as being a purist, just a spontaneous reaction: I don't like the way it looks. I just meant that it's up to confessor how much he just wants to read the stories versus a certain version of coloring. Actually, revised modern colouring that differs considerably from the original comics is a bit of an annoyance for me. It's not the be all and end all, of course, but it is definitely a consideration. So, it's enough to make me think twice about possibly picking up the Visionaries collection. So thank you for flagging that guys. There's also an Epic Collection that covers #46-66. I'm speaking of what on the US market, as I don't know what's published in the UK versus what would be imported. All of the Epic collections are available over here in the UK. Not that I've bought that many, but I am in the process of replacing my Essential Daredevil TPBs with the Epic volumes. I really need that good old American comic colour!
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Post by spoon on Mar 20, 2024 21:54:45 GMT -5
There's also an Epic Collection that covers #46-66. I'm speaking of what on the US market, as I don't know what's published in the UK versus what would be imported. All of the Epic collections are available over here in the UK. Not that I've bought that many, but I am in the process of replacing my Essential Daredevil TPBs with the Epic volumes. I really need that good old American comic colour! I'd love to replace my Essentials with color TPBs or HCs, but I have so many Essentials that it would hard to justify on a large scale. Interestingly enough, one of the few I did get in color is a Daredevil (Going Out West). I also bought Wolverine Epic Collections and an Avengers Omnibus covering issues I already had in Essential format.
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Post by spoon on Mar 21, 2024 20:25:17 GMT -5
I'm reading The Action Heroes Archives vol. 2. So far, I've read Captain Atom #83-86. Steve Ditko handles the pencils (sometimes with other inkers) on these stories. He's also usually credited with plot or "concept." Dave Kaler scripts the Captain Atom stories while Gary Friedrich scripts the Blue Beetle backups.
The Captain Atom stories here tend to run about 18 pages. This allows for real plots and real villains rather than the duplicative simple stories that predominated in Archives vol. 1. We have the return of the Ghost, plus Punch and Jewelee, and Iron Arms. Captain Atom gets his power reduced, which is kind of funny because the extent of his powers was nebulous to begin with. An interesting subplot has some of public turning on Captain Atom because they finally realize he's radioactive. There's some cool visuals, like Cap walking through a wall and getting stuck. We also get the return of Nightshade and a new costume for Cap.
The backup stories are the first appearances of the Ted Kord version of Blue Beetle. It's fascinating that these came out only a year or two after a series of Dan Garrett Blue Beetle stories (which I haven't read). The stories don't avoid the change. Rather, Dan Garrett has gone missing and the scripting implies that Kord know more about it than he lets on about it. Is it possible to be nostalgic for a story you haven't read before? My twin brother collected the post-Crisis DC Blue Beetle series, so I read a lot of them. So based on that, I love these stories. I've read a couple of Chartlon Blue Beetle stories after he gets his own series, but I hadn't read most of these backups before. I love Blue Beetle aircraft/watercraft, the Bug. It's very cool see the panels that show the path the Bug takes to leave his headquarters. The post-Crisis version was apparently more reboot than continuation since it seems both versions had a take on Pago Island, although so far I just have hints of the pre-Crisis version.
The downside in this volume is the casual misogyny. One thorn in Captain Atom's side is a shrill angry female reporter. It feels like the Ditko-esque message is critical of the press criticizing men of action. In Blue Beetle, Ted Kord actually laments that he hired a woman to be his secretary.
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Post by Hoosier X on Mar 23, 2024 14:20:11 GMT -5
I got Action Comics #472, #473 and #476 in the mail a few days ago and I’ve read them already.
They are all great! (If you’re grading them based on the criteria for mid- to late-1970s Superman comics.)
#472 and #473 are parts two and three of a three-part arc that introduces Faora. And #476 is the conclusion of a two-part arc starting Karb-Brak and Vartox. It’s all Bronze Age Bonkers!
If I have time this weekend, I might go into more detail on the Metropolis thread.
And that’s it! I have read all the comics I bought recently!
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Post by spoon on Mar 23, 2024 22:20:26 GMT -5
I read Alien Worlds #2, the sci fi anthology series from Pacific Comics. It's been in my backlog of unread comics for a while. I decided to read it now in part because I enjoyed reading some of Bruce Jones's Ka-Zar comics. The cover feature is "Aurora" by Dave Stevens. The editorial implies that the story was drawn several years before (with Stevens credited for the story), so it sounds like Jones scripted the story years after it was drawn. The art is beautiful, whether it's the femme fatale protagonist or the alien sidekick. It's also something that was crying out for a follow-up rather than one and done.
The second story is "Vicious Circle" by Ken Steacy. I've read only a few Steacy stories, but it has his distinctive visual style. It concerns a space traveler who stumbles on a damaging, drifting spacecraft. It has a great twist. It's also wordless, except for sound effects. The drawback is that the lack of scripting leaves some confusion for me at the end. I think I know what's depicted by I'm not 100% sure. I think the final panel is supposed to be a conceptual draw like a splash page would be, rather than a depiction of a story event.
Finally, there's "A Mind of Her Own" both written and drawn by Bruce Jones. For someone I think of (in my admittedly limited knowledge) as primarily a writer, Jones is such a great artist. This story is somewhat horror-tinged with a twist. I saw the twist slowly creeping in, but that doesn't diminish the effectiveness of the story.
The house ads which run between stories rather than interrupting them rouse my curiosity about other Pacific titles like Ms. Mystic by Neal Adams and Edge of Chaos by Gray Morrow.
I also read Blue Beetle #1-2 and Captain Atom #87-88 from the Action Heroes Archives vol. 2, reprinting Charlton stories. Captain Atom #87 features a villain with the cheesy name the Fiery-Icer. The story in #88 is significantly better. It's a space travel story that has elements of hard science fiction in that it tries to grapple with the difficulties that extreme distances between planets would play in travel and communications. There's a cameo by two scientists named Andy Yanchus and Frank Justice. I know Yanchus was a color. It's ironic that his name is slipped into the story this way when there was a letterer credit but not a colorist credit. The lettering of this story (and several others in the HC) looks like typing, is in balloons that are too big, and is credited to A. Machine. So basically there's a credit for no actual human for lettering but not for the human colorist. The story has a Ditko-esque sort of moral toward the end, but the way the story plays out makes me question the ethical premise and its attitude toward life.
With Blue Beetle now in his own title and no longer a backup in Captain Atom, the page count seems a little light. It turns out that Nightshade was given the backup slot, but this HC didn't even bother to reprint those stories! That sucks. Is Nightshade not a Charlton action hero? Also, those stories were drawn by Jim Aparo. The silver lining is that I have one of the later issue, so I can at least read one of those Nightshade stories.
The Blue Beetle story in BB #1 has a solid plot, although there seems to be a retooling of Ted Kord's relationship to his assistant Tracey from the backup stories. The Ditko style of fight choreography really works well with Blue Beetle. The Blue Beetle story in #2 finally gives us the origin of this Blue Beetle with the adventure on Pago Island with the previous Blue Beetle Dan Garret. I read the post-Crisis version of the story of Pago Island many years ago, so it was interesting to see this version.
The backup stories featuring the Question are solid but not great, although the one in #1 is better than the story in #2. Vic Sage is portrayed as an incorruptible media figures (a counterpoint to the reporter Abby in Captain Atom's stories). He's very strident. He's like that friend who's so pushy in his political that even if his reasoning might strong on a particular issues, he might push people away with his style.
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Post by Cei-U! on Mar 24, 2024 1:32:54 GMT -5
Coloring credits are missing from those Charlton books (and from all comics of that period) because coloring was the last stage in production and the assignment was frequently made after the lettering was complete. It wasn't until the '70s that the process was streamlined sufficiently to accommodate colorist credits.
Cei-U! I summon the paint pots!
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 24, 2024 6:57:43 GMT -5
Coloring credits are missing from those Charlton books (and from all comics of that period) because coloring was the last stage in production and the assignment was frequently made after the lettering was complete. It wasn't until the '70s that the process was streamlined sufficiently to accommodate colorist credits. Cei-U! I summon the paint pots! I have to confess, I don't ever notice who colors or letters comics. And I don't think I ever saw a difference in the finished product.
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Post by Batflunkie on Mar 24, 2024 9:42:26 GMT -5
Elfquest (Marvel/Epic version) #23-#32
Really, I don't think I've ever gobbled up a book quite like Elfquest (well, maybe Transmetropolitan). The ending was perfect and rather bittersweet where the Wolfriders finally learn where the High Ones and The Castle In The Sky came from
While I'm glad that the Pinis continued the story (because tbh, I kind of wanted more), I think the original quest was wrapped up so beautifully that I can understand why many fans stopped reading (though not intentionally I think) afterwards
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Post by kirby101 on Mar 24, 2024 10:02:34 GMT -5
Coloring credits are missing from those Charlton books (and from all comics of that period) because coloring was the last stage in production and the assignment was frequently made after the lettering was complete. It wasn't until the '70s that the process was streamlined sufficiently to accommodate colorist credits. Cei-U! I summon the paint pots! I have to confess, I don't ever notice who colors or letters comics. And I don't think I ever saw a difference in the finished product. Charlton comics were often lettered by "A. Machine".
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