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Post by kirby101 on Sept 19, 2018 10:02:33 GMT -5
Do you Remember When a shining silver beacon of hope against the darkening skies 1st burst upon Earth? No, not the Silver Surfer but a man who chose to give up his biological body and humanity in the interstellar fight for good against evil in his Bionic armored form as ROM Spaceknight. in leaving his home on Galador to destroy the villainous Dire Wraith’s that spread across the Galaxies infesting and destroying worlds. He came across the Cosmo’s alone at first in his struggles but finding a friend here in Earth girl Brandy who helped restore his faith in all of humanity and within himself. Quickly ROM meets other heroes here on Earth while fighting the Wraith hordes and eventually other knights came to us from Galador as well. Here science fiction and fantasy merged as shapeshifting forces seeking to hide itself while destroying us from within is fought by a single brave warrior. What starts as a simple 50’s science fiction movie plot of a strange visitor and an alien invasion became a classic comic series based upon the cheap plastic toy. ROM the comic is a far stronger memory to most than the undersold and limited action/figure toy ever was and continues to be fondly remembered even today. At the time we lucky readers found ourselves eagerly anticipating each month’s issue from Bill Mantlo and Sal Buscema. We couldn’t wait to see what new horrific struggle would confront our fave shining silver coated warrior (sorry Surfer) as he fought for Earth and his own humanity. This was epic comic book story telling which you were uncertain how it was going to end and wondering how ROM can ever succeed against enemies capable of such magical/scientific capabilities which combined for overwhelming odds. ROM became one of those must find every issue during my youth in high school. Each issue was exciting, and you never knew what MU hero or villain might pop up during ROM’s struggles against the vile alien Dire Wraith’s. Rom is our shining knight clad in armor, fighting monsters bent on conquering our world for their own evil desire. A lone cyborg warrior battling against overwhelming odds refusing to give up hope of one day winning the war and removing his Bionic’s once and for all for living out his life in peace once more in his own body. Loved Rom. Loved the Sal Buscema art, loved it with Akin and Garvey (though Sal hated that). Loved the Ditko art in the later books. I think that since it was a toy without the larger following like Transformers, they were able to build a very cool comic around him.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 19, 2018 10:57:55 GMT -5
I never read an issue of Rom. Or the Micronauts. I just had zero interest in toy tie-in books. I'm not saying they were bad or good. I don't know. I just know that they weren't getting my money.
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Post by EdoBosnar on Sept 19, 2018 11:54:14 GMT -5
I thought Rom was a really good series. I picked up the first issue out of curiosity - I was only vaguely aware that there was a toy, which I'd never seen being sold anywhere at the time - and was pleasantly surprised, it had a solid premise, the story was good and the art, of course, was quite nice. I followed it pretty regularly for about the first 20 or so issues (at about that time I started cutting back on a lot of comics). Now I'd really like to revisit the entire series. Wonder if we'll ever see some kind of reprint edition.
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Post by brutalis on Sept 19, 2018 13:55:32 GMT -5
I never read an issue of Rom. Or the Micronauts. I just had zero interest in toy tie-in books. I'm not saying they were bad or good. I don't know. I just know that they weren't getting my money. You were missing out. Many of the best late 70's earl 80's Marvel stuff was tie-in related stuff. While many didn't last overly long and were more like a mini-series it was Rom, Micronauts, and G.I. Joe along with Star Wars (following in Conan's steps) that all went the distance and then some. Other were shorter lived yet still fun like Shogun Warriors, Godzilla, Logan's Run, Battlestar Galactica, John Carter and Tarzan. The good stuff would last a year or more depending on the writer or artist at the time. Mantlo on ROM made good use in utilizing other MU heroes as a selling point while still allowing ROM be the true hero in the fight against the Dire Wraiths. That much of the story of ROM vs the Wraiths took place on the fringes of the MU away from New York City helped to give the comic its own identity while still overall connecting to the greater Marvel Universe.
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Post by EdoBosnar on Sept 19, 2018 14:23:43 GMT -5
Yeah, what brutalis said. Micronauts in particular was outstanding - the first big story arc, i.e., roughly the first dozen issues, were a case of Bill Mantlo and Michael Golden firing on all cylinders. As to the some of the other titles mentioned, I currently have Marvel's complete Logan's Run, BSG, and John Carter (omnibus), and I truly hope the Tarzan: Buscema Years omnibus finally gets published early next year (I've had it on preorder from Amazon for about a year and a half, the publication date keeps getting pushed back).
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Post by beccabear67 on Sept 19, 2018 20:23:04 GMT -5
I bought Rom (from the start) and Micronauts (from #11) for the longest time, it was decent sci-fi at times. Rom well into the Akin & Garvey inking era and Micronauts just a little past a mini-series and the restart at #1. I remember Sal Buscema doing Rom and Hulk and wondering how he managed. I guess that's the first time I realized someone could do more than one regular comic title a month like that, and then I saw John Byrne was doing three at once, although sometimes one would be breakdowns I guess. I was about equally in awe of both as I'm sure people were as in awe of Kirby in the '60s. I wouldn't say Bill Mantlo was the greatest writer but he had a solid average (batting average?), along the lines of Gerry Conway. Never awful, usually something to think over in a story, and every once in awhile a three base hit? Not great on the sports metaphors, sorry. I'm glad Rocket Raccoon brought Mantlo some enjoyment while recuperating as best as able from that stupid accident.
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Post by brutalis on Sept 27, 2018 8:30:22 GMT -5
With thoughts of ROM it brings to mind for me that Sal Buscema was the embodiment of MARVEL, which is how I Remember When he was the most prolific breakdown artist of his time. His was the phone # editors called when issues were running behind, just plain late a week befor printing or were needing an artist to fill in as one artist left until a new artist took over. He was the always faithful company man who almost never said no to a request. His art was seen more times in a month in various series than many artists might ever see print for the entire year. Always dependable, always capable and always turning it in on time made Our Pal’ Sal a beloved artist for a lot of us youthful readers in the 70’s and 80’s.
Anyone growing up during the 70’s and 80’s would know Sal’s Hulk and Spider-Man as being "the" version in our minds. You may also appreciated his Defender’s work or even earlier Avengers issues or remember many of those fill in issues he provided upon short notice helping other series to survive or in some cases to thrive. I adored the enthusiasm and sense of fun in Sal's Nova and Rom, Spaceknight that he worked on. Perhaps your fave Sal art comes from his later tenure doing art for Walt Simonson’s Balder and Thor issues. Sal always popped up unexpectedly in various comics and was a prominent artist for us reader’s in the olden days. You knew with him on board for any issue whether it was a fill in or not that you were getting a solid comic book even when his breakdowns were finished by lesser inkers. But not even a bad inker could take away the energy and skills of the younger Buscema brother’s pencil.
Sal Buscema seems to pale in the looming shadow of his older brother John. The truth is that both were incredible artists who had different styles and skills which shined brightly for Marvel comic readers. I am glad to shave so much work from Sal in my collection to enjoy and pore over. He made any and every viilain, hero and supporting cast of characters look and act like they should on the printed page. That is a skill that very few can manage. So take a moment to remember and appreciate and recognize the one and only Sal Buscema!!!
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Post by brutalis on Oct 2, 2018 15:04:59 GMT -5
Great old minds must be on the same wave length as Prince Hal began thoughts on his early days of collecting comic books even as I was writing up similar speculation. Since this is a subject which has more depth and meaning we both will be doing some multiple part reminiscing. So then, are you able to Remember When the bug of collecting comics began for you? I was in the 4th grade when I began to notice comics. My dad was always working and didn’t notice but oh boy did my mother! It was a point of contention with her that I was wasting time and money on stupid comic books. I made certain to NEVER ask her for money to buy comics and only using my own hard-earned nickels and dimes from birthdays or on holidays. Mom quickly placed her own idea of limitations upon my comic purchases. She set upon a limit of 4 comics in 1 month and handed me one of those plain brown grocery store bags and said that was all I could collect. Right, tell a kid you are going to set limits and then expect the child to accept those boundaries or not rebel and go in the opposite direction of what you wish? Are you kidding?
Mom took every opportunity for tossing out my burdening collection whenever the chance arose. If I had left comics out in my bedroom or anywhere else in the house they were instantly trash bound and she never asked before doing so. The brown bag always remained out of sight in my closet. Any time spent reading more than a few issues my mother always inquired as to why I read such junk. That I enjoyed them was never a thought which crossed her mind as she never read comics in her childhood. Periodic inspections in search of comics in the clothes dresser or anywhere else other than the brown bag occurred weekly or more often if she felt the need. Dad was a 6 day workman trying to provide for our family of 5 so I don’t think he ever was aware of or involved and to this day I have never asked if he was. He never seemed to notice or care about my collection.
There was no ridicule or shame from family or friends as comics was an accepted part of life and always around during the 70’s. Go off to the barber and there were comics there. Go grocery shopping there were comic racks next to the magazines and magazine sized and/or treasury sized additions in with the magazines. At the check out line you found digests of all the Archie stuff. Comics were everywhere so you saw kid’s reading and trading them daily. Any day at school was a trade day and weekends were spent trading with cousins. Once I was home from school there were 2 sets of kids living behind me so I could trade out even more. So of course the brown bag was filling up quickly and annoying mom to no end.
I learned to place my comics in certain ways in that bag so I could know when mom had been messing with it. Also learning tricks on how best to maximize that bag, turning comics ends ways along the side of the bag, flipping comics from head to toe so the stapled ends will fir more comics together. Sliding comics into the back of books like the encyclopedia set for hiding 2-3 in them at a time. We had a back-yard storage room attached to the house where I was able to store cover-less and damaged comic books behind the shelves. Kept a few in the family car under the seat for whenever we rode. Stored a bunch at my grandparents who lived 3 blocks away. Made sure to let my friend down the street fill his tree house with some comics as well so the dreaded brown bag was never quite as full as it should be. Creativity is one of the greater skill sets a child learns very early on in life and my limited collection was important, so I became quite the creative hiding genius.
Mom was never hostile or violent about my comic books and yet she still got upset over them and I never really knew the reasons why. I never wanted to poke the bear and risk angering her enough to toss out the entire growing collection. A subtle game of hide and seek in my early youth was the only resource until I was older and into the junior high of 6th through 8th grade. Then a change came for me and mom in the game as I evolved from a childlike fascination of comics and was turning towards teenage growth and exploration. Part 2 will be about those changes. Watch for it as you think back yourselves…
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Post by EdoBosnar on Oct 2, 2018 16:35:35 GMT -5
Yeah, you and Prince Hal are really stomping down a very similar trail of late. Anyway, in my case, it was more the opposite as far my parents were concerned: my dad had no understanding or patience for my love of comics, and often threatened to cut me off and throw them all away when I was in my first few years of grade school, usually due to my middling grades. However, as my reading skills improved vastly thanks to comics, he kind of eased off (although he would never acknowledge that comics might have played a role in my academic performance). My mom, although mystified by my love for comics in particular, showed more understanding - I later learned that it was because she also liked reading.
By the way, I have to add that I really liked your tribute to the amazing Sal Buscema, and I'm sorry I didn't comment earlier. He's definitely one of my very favorite comics artists of all time, and deserves every bit of praise he gets.
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Post by brutalis on Oct 3, 2018 7:44:12 GMT -5
Yeah, you and Prince Hal are really stomping down a very similar trail of late. Anyway, in my case, it was more the opposite as far my parents were concerned: my dad had no understanding or patience for my love of comics, and often threatened to cut me off and throw them all away when I was in my first few years of grade school, usually due to my middling grades. However, as my reading skills improved vastly thanks to comics, he kind of eased off (although he would never acknowledge that comics might have played a role in my academic performance). My mom, although mystified by my love for comics in particular, showed more understanding - I later learned that it was because she also liked reading. By the way, I have to add that I really liked your tribute to the amazing Sal Buscema, and I'm sorry I didn't comment earlier. He's definitely one of my very favorite comics artists of all time, and deserves every bit of praise he gets. Thanks for the nod to Sal EdoBosnar as he was always a favorite of mine growing up. His art in any fill-in was always appreciated and many times better than the regular team. I believe Sal in many eyes is less liked because he was so prolific combined with poor inking at times. He found an art style that he was comfortable with which told the stories with clear and clean artwork that he learned to do really fast breakdown's as a way for supplementing his income because MARVEL asked it from him. He really is a consummate professional who gave his best effort every time and because he wasn't an overly stylized of flashy artist he never became the "star" his brother did. I think John Romita Jr is the new Sal Buscema. JRjr's art has evolved along a similar vein where he has minimized what is necessary in drawing the stories in a way he can do it fast and easily in a style which has become his own and vastly different from hid dad's which I think people all would he rather draw like. He has made his own identity and has no need of comparison to JRsr just as Sal B had no need to be like John B. They are unique and different from each other even though they are related, that doesn't mean they should duplicate or copy and they deserve recognition for being their own artists.
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Post by rberman on Oct 4, 2018 5:31:54 GMT -5
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Post by brutalis on Oct 4, 2018 8:39:05 GMT -5
I respect how Sal Buscema was the guy that Marvel could look to when they absolutely positively needed to be sure that a book's pencils would be delivered on time. But his stereotyped poses and expressions (the clenched fist, the head-over-heels punch, the impossibly trapezoidal mouth) began to grate on me over time. These types of artistic styling's don't bother me as most artists have standard poses/eyes/mouths and such that they fall back on and are noticeably their own. Byrne eyes, Ditko Hands, Kirby hands/faces and many times the "power punch", Heck poses, Cockrum costumes, Tuska poses, John B poses with a sword and these things are all uniquely individualistic and sometimes when buried under a heavy inker would allow me to figure out who the penciller was.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 4, 2018 8:55:52 GMT -5
Anyone growing up during the 70’s and 80’s would know Sal’s Hulk and Spider-Man as being "the" version in our minds. You may also appreciated his Defender’s work or even earlier Avengers issues or remember many of those fill in issues he provided upon short notice helping other series to survive or in some cases to thrive. I adored the enthusiasm and sense of fun in Sal's Nova and Rom, Spaceknight that he worked on. Perhaps your fave Sal art comes from his later tenure doing art for Walt Simonson’s Balder and Thor issues. Sal always popped up unexpectedly in various comics and was a prominent artist for us reader’s in the olden days. You knew with him on board for any issue whether it was a fill in or not that you were getting a solid comic book even when his breakdowns were finished by lesser inkers. But not even a bad inker could take away the energy and skills of the younger Buscema brother’s pencil. I considered Sal's Hulk and Spider-Man is my definite version and knowing that I did not know that he did Rom at all of which I'm shocked to learn this. I felt when he did Thor -- that art that he did with Thor was excellent and the teaming of Walt Simonson was superb. When, you mention this ... the teaming of Walt and Sal in Thor was excellent in more ways than one. I also like Balder as well too.
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Post by EdoBosnar on Oct 4, 2018 14:13:00 GMT -5
In line with MechaGodzilla's comment, I have to say that for me Sal is without question my pick for definitive Hulk artist.
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Post by brutalis on Oct 4, 2018 14:40:17 GMT -5
In line with MechaGodzilla's comment, I have to say that for me Sal is without question my pick for definitive Hulk artist. Count me as placing Sal as the #1 Hulk artist. His was the version I grew up reading and seeing the most of. A very strong 2nd place for Herb Trimpe's version which I like greatly. For the bronze I would go with Marie Severin The Kirby and Ditko versions while interesting and unique were always in a state of flux as though the character were still being formed and thought out.
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