Static: No Shock That It Is Good

Looking back upon the early issues of Static (from 1993), I think it was actually a rare example of a book being HURT by being too good, at least the long-term success of the book. The early issues of Static had SO much care and SO much attention to detail put into it that the later issues just could not compare (or, in the alternative, they could not compare FAVORABLY).

Dwayne McDuffie was meticulous in his design of the beginnings of Milestone Comics, and it really showed. Meanwhile, he was aided by Robert Washington III, whose ear for dialogue was great, a new-to-comics John Paul Leon (who, in case you did not know, ROCKS) and the wily veteran inker Steve Mitchell, who brought Leon's pencils to more of a superhero-style of art to produce a very fine comic book.

Static had a great set-up, which basically was a redo of the standard comic book cliche since the success of Amazing Spider-Man, which was "Spider-Man for the current times." Previous attempts in this direction were Nova, Speedball, Firestorm and Darkhawk. Static, though, actually pulled it OFF! Static was a Spider-Man comic if Spider-Man was a black kid in 1993. Like Spider-Man, part of the biggest appeal of Static (after, in both cases, the fact that they were fun, down-to-Earth heroes who had a lot of funny jokes) was the supporting cast.

I do not know who exactly created the supporting cast, but whoever did it did a great job. Frieda Goren, Virgil "Static" Hawkins' best friend (and his everlasting crush) was a great sidekick, especially how their relationship was not a romantic one, but a platonic one. Nice touch. Also, the gang member Larry who was a real friend to Virgil (Virgil tutored him) and also managed to not come off as a gang stereotype. Meanwhile, Rick, the gay friend, was also handled quite well. And that is just SCHOOL! Virgil's mother and sister were also great characters, who helped ground the book in reality, but reality that we ENJOYED (not like reality when we grimace at how realistic the pain in a comic is, but smile at how realistic the interactions between the characters are).

Static #1 and 2 were, by far, the best two issues of Static, with #2 being my personal favorite. They used the unique idea of having a bully who picked on Static in the past be the villain he is fighting in this issue (which is not too weird of a coincidence, as the whole Milestone conceit was that one night, during a big gang "rumble," the gang members were all gassed...and the gassed killed some and gave some super powers), and the villain kicks Static's behind! It is a drastic way to end the first issue, with Virgil getting a thrashing (and Freida learning his secret identity), but it sets up the origin issue of #2 well, and makes the eventual victory by Static ever more satisfying.

#3 is a fun, action-packed issue.

#4 already ties Static directly into another title, as he meets Holocaust, the former Blood Syndicate member. This is a good issue showing Virgil dealing with temptation.

#5 was an issue about Black/Jewish relations (Freida was Jewish, natch) that, at the TIME, seemed really good. Now? It reads a bit after-school special, but not TOO much. It holds up a lot better than other comics like it from more recent times.

#6 and 7 were the first issues without McDuffie, and there is a noticable drop-off. I don't know if McDuffie was even involved in writing #1-5, or whether he was just credited with the plot, but in either event, when he STOPPED getting credit, the comic also got worse, which was a disappointment.

However, it was still a fine comic. Just not as good as the early issues.

Then again, few comics ARE.

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Comics Should Be Good Roundtable: Local #1 by Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly.

Hello and welcome to the first Comics Should Be Good roundtable! Recently we received preview copies of Oni Press’s upcoming Local #1, a twelve-issue series written by Brian Wood and drawn by Ryan Kelly. Rather than post a handful of separate reviews, a couple of us at CSBG will share our opinions on the book, pointing out its strengths, weaknesses, and whether or not it’s worth your comic-buyin’ dollar.

Local #1 comes out on November 9, 2005. Each issue will be thirty-two pages, printed in black-and-white, with a cover price of $2.99 US/$4.50 Can. If you want your local comic shop to pre-order it, now's the time.




Harvey Jerkwater: According to Oni, each issue of the series will tell a self-contained story set in a different town in America. The first issue is in Portland, Oregon and features a character who will appear in all of the stories, Megan McKeenan.

Gentlemen, I ask you flat out: is Local #1 a good read? Is it worth three bucks? What grabbed your attention? Where did the book fall short?

Greg, you spent years in Portland. Did it capture the flavor of the town at all?

A very short version of the plot: A girl and her boyfriend sit in a car outside a pharmacy in Portland. He pressures her to fill a fake prescription for morphine. She considers it. Things move from there.

Though my overall impression of the book was positive, I couldn't shake the strong resemblance to Run Lola Run. The story wasn't identical, but the similarities were enough to make the influence obvious: stories of petty crime retold and "rebooted," a girl and her boyfriend living on the edge of society, the boyfriend a criminal and a screwup. That oddball structure was the core of Run Lola Run as well as Local #1.

Beyond that, the book was well done. I was particularly pleased by Ryan Kelly's art, which not only struck an appropriate balance between realism and cartoonishness, but employed angles and layouts in a way that added strong effect to the story.


Greg Burgas: Okay, I just read the sucker, so I'll respond.

Why didn't I like this as much as I wanted to?

I also didn't mind the ripoff of Run Lola Run. It's slightly jarring, but not enough to drag me out of the story. Fine.

Ah, Portland. I loved that aspect of it. Nob Hill Pharmacy is at 21st and Glisan (unless I'm misremembering, but I don't think I am) and it's quite a long run to Union Station, but I suppose the three panels in which Megan (we never actually learn her first name, of course) runs it could happen. Oni is in Portland, so they would know to check these things out. Corvallis is spelled wrong, and I never met anyone who called I-5 "Route 5," but that's probably because I never spoke to the right people. I love when people actually get details about the city right. Pigtale does this pretty well, even though I'm not buying the book anymore.

Anyway, I don't know why I don't like this more. The stories Megan sees in her head are fine, but both characters seemed a little stereotypical. Maybe I'm tired of guys being total jerks and girls being plucky heroines, which seems to be the trend in these kinds of comics. To compare it further to Run Lola Run, what's-his-name boyfriend does stupid things, but he's not a jerk. Lola is a plucky heroine, but she's not perfect. Megan seems way too together to be with the stupid loser in the first place. Maybe we'll learn more about her as the series progresses and why she was with him, but right now, it doesn't seem right.

So that's my initial thoughts about it. Dog pile on. I may chime in if something someone says sparks something in me. Chiming in is good.


Harvey Jerkwater: Greg, I know what you mean. I too wanted hard to like Local more than I did. The book gets the little things right: picture angles, framing, dialogue. That’s great. But something about the book isn’t quite right.

The best way I can explain my misgiving it is that the book reminded me of cake made from a box of store-bought mix: Add one half pound of popular foreign movie to a cup of photo references from Portland and a half a stick of minor epiphany, then season with a dash of “girl power.” Blend until lumps disappear.

Like cake from a mix, it’s decent, even pretty good in some ways. But you’ve had better, and you can find better.

I suppose what prevented me from embracing the book was its cleanliness. It wraps up too neatly, with a Lifetime Movie of the Week for Teens ending. The heroine realizes her junkie boyfriend is a loser, ignores his semi-abusive ways, and ditches him. It’s supposed to feel human and triumphant. I found it mechanical.

The story wasn’t messy enough to feel true. Local #1 is, in its heart, a simple morality tale: “Be strong, girls! Ditch that loser boyfriend and live your own life!” Her decision was simple and easy. Of course she left him; there was no reason for her not to.

I would have been more absorbed into the story had they muddied the waters a bit. Dirty it up. Roughen the clean edges.

How about having her love the guy, making her betrayal hard? She seemed to barely tolerate him.

Or maybe having her scared of him? In the comic, he’s only fearsome in one of the four versions, and her final reaction shows she was never all that scared. How about making him a genuine threat?

Or maybe she hates him but can’t bear to be alone?

Or maybe she craves approval and can’t bear to let anyone down, so she’s torn about going through with the crime?

Instead the situation in the book was black and white: he’s an asshat, she’s scared of being dragged down, she walks away.

What’s killing me is that I don’t hate the book. It’s pretty good. I want to love it. Its heart is in the right place and it tries. But it doesn’t quite reach me.

Brian, I’ve read you on another site saying you really enjoyed Local. What’s your take on Greg and my lukewarm reactions?


Bill Reed: Yeah, alright, so I've never seen Run Lola Run, but the story still felt tired to me. Like you other guys I really wanted to love this, but came out of it thinking it was just decent. The narrative device of the protagonist (Megan, right? Yes. Megan.) rerunning various outcomes of the same situation in her head was interesting once but started to bore me after I realized the entire issue was going to be like that.

Okay, so this first issue is all set-up for her travels throughout the country, which will lead to the local locales that Local is about, but I thought this issue kinda missed out on the whole "local" bit. I'm sure there's more to Portland than a pharmacy and train station, but I wasn't feeling the city, which is one of the major points of this series, right? Setting is very important in this book and we didn't get enough of it with this debut issue. Future issues will probably use more with the locales, I imagine. At least, I hope so.

I, too, thought Ryan Kelly's art was scrum-diddly-umptious. I've seen many other bloggers compare the style to that of Paul Pope's, and I agree: the art is what would happen is Paul Pope and Jim Rugg (of Street Angel fame) had some mad love child. And I think it fits the tone of the book; it's a little expressionist but still down to earth at the same time.

No one except me ever mentions this kinda thing, but I also enjoyed the lettering (given to us by Hope Larson and Bryan Lee O'Malley). Yes, I'm a geek for aesthetic fonts.

Oh, and I can never remember: Is this book supposed to be ongoing, or is it just 12 issues like its spiritual predecessor, Demo?


Brad Curran: It looks like I liked the issue a little more than the rest of the respondents, although less than Ian Brill and some of the other folks who have been quoted at the Local Blog. I found it to be a good self-contained story, but it didn't bowl me over, so I can't provide any hyperbolic praise for it, either.

The similarity to Run Lola Run occurred to me within the first few pages of the story, but I thought it was pretty slight (that said, I barely remember anything about that movie beyond Franka Potente's bitchin' red hair). It wasn't a huge distraction or anything, though.I liked the narrative device of her running through different scenarios in her head before choosing one. I also liked the way Kelly illustrated the end of the "fantasy" scenarios. The images of Megan against a stark white background are the most striking in the comic.

Speaking of the art, it was probably my favorite part of the book. Kelly uses close-ups to great effect, shows a great range of facial expressions, and his layouts kept the story moving nicely. He also made good use of the splash page, which is nothing to sneeze at giving the page restraints he was up against. The Paul Pope influence jumped out at me pretty profoundly, especially the way he draws Megan, but being reminiscent of Paul Pope is no bad thing. It also has to be said that his work is a lot less abstract than what I've read of Pope.

That said, there's something about the story that keeps me from unabashedly loving it. The only thing I can come up with at this point is that, despite the fact that her emotions are well rendered by Kelly, Megan comes across as a bit of a flat character. She has a good deal of attitude and shows vulnerability, but we don't know anything about her other than that she doesn't want to crawling back to her parents. Now, I'm not going to fault Wood for not doing a lot of characterization or anything. He and Kelly do tell us some things about her during the course of the story, which is very impressive considering the lack of exposition and interior monologue. Still, I didn't really connect with her as a character, which did make the resolution a little hollow. I had a similar reaction to the stories in the comic the aforementioned Mr. Brill compared this one to, Optic Nerve. It's a well-done comic, and I liked it well enough, but it doesn't resonate with me emotionally.

Still, it's a nice change of pace from what I've been reading lately, and I'm all for more self-contained single-issue stories. I've become more fond of monthly serialized comics than I used to be, but I still think that there's a lot of value in the "done in one" comic that's not being utilized, both in the superhero genre where it used to be the standard and comics as a whole. If the single-issue format is going to continue to be prevalent, and prices aren't dropping below the $2.99 benchmark any time soon, I think the self-contained, "book length" comic is a use of the format worth pursuing. So I'm all for more series like this and Warren Ellis's Fell, which I enjoyed quite a bit, which has the advantage of being a denser read, Ben Templesmith's insane art, and featuring a liquor enema as a key plot point. There are some things you just can't compete with, and I would say those are three of them.

So, to answer Harvey's questions directly: Local is a good read, I'd say it's worth $3 if you're looking for a single-issue comic with a beginning, middle, and end, Kelly's art grabbed my attention the most, similarities to Pope and all, and it fell short in really making me care about its lead character. I'm not sure if I'll be buying further issues, which is one of the down sides of the self-contained format for an ongoing. I'm less likely to buy every issue of a series if the "What happens next!" factor isn't there. I will at least give subsequent issues a look, which I may not have done otherwise had I not been cut in on this little experiment. If nothing else, I got my first preview comic (secondhand as it was) out of the deal, which was nice.


Brian Cronin: Well, y'all can go to hell, because I really liked it.

That was facetious on my part, as I do not actually want any of you to go to hell.

Except for Brad, naturally.

In any event, I really enjoyed the art on this issue. No one else mentioned this, but I thought Ryan Kelly's art was very similar to Paul Pope's. I am pleased with myself to make such an original connection, and I am ashamed that none of you saw it in the art.

Regarding the whole "local" thing without it actually utilizing much of the local flavor, I will admit that there certainly is something to be said there on that point, but if you look at what Wood has to say about the flavor of hometowns, I think he is really looking more about what small towns and hometowns MEAN to people, about how they influence people's decisions and the like.

In addition, I think that Wood is attempting to convey the fact that a "big" story does not always have to occur in a "big" city, that even normal towns can play host to great human drama, which I think we see before us in Local #1, for what Megan McKeenan does in Local #1 is, to me, quite impressive. The title tells us "ten thousand thoughts per second," (which, by the way, sounds like way too much...I think per hour would be cooler) and that is how Megan has lived her life to this point. Ten thousands thoughts per second…and no action. In this issue, we happen to catch Megan at a moment in her life where she changes that equation, where she goes through all the scenarios and decides to go with one that involves her taking control of the life that, up until now, she only controlled in her dreams. Remember how Hamlet was a "native" in his mind, but to wrapped up in his mind so as to not do anything until it was too late? There, you can see how much effort it takes Megan to escape from that same path.

Hamlet claimed, "Frailty, thy name is woman!" Well, Hamlet, this woman is actually DOING something..so back off.

So yeah, I liked it, and I think this comic (and this 12-issue series) is worth your three bucks.


Harvey Jerkwater: Groovy.

That wraps up the first ever Comics Should Be Good Roundtable.

I’d like to thank Oni Press for sending us review copies of Local #1. We hope that we get the opportunity to do this again sometime.


Comics Should Be Good: Dammit, we care about comics.

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You Know How I Like To Hype Sabrina the Teenage Witch?

Well, this Tuesday, I am moderating a chat with Sabrina artist/writer, Tania Del Rio at Comic Book Resources. If you are one of the fans out there who have been caught up in the super cool job that Ms. Del Rio is doing on Sabrina, please stop by on Tuesday, September 27th at 6pm PDT/9pm EDT! It should be fun. Click here for more details!

What I bought - 21 September 2005¹

As a homage to the greatest comic book in the known universe (even though I didn't buy it), today's installment of "What I bought" will be written in the style of said comic book. So why waste time?

Dr. Blink, Superhero Shrink #2 by John Kovalic and Christopher Jones
$3.49, Dork Storm Press

Heh. These boys, they get it. Wonder Boy #5? Or is it #8? They. Get. It. Wonder Boy. Stupid mascot. Stupid. Nocturne used them up and spat them out. Spit. Bunch o' retards. This guy, this Jimmy Hogan. What a dick. Serves him right that he's washed up. Can't get girls. Nocturne got girls. Funny. Fun. Ny.

Dr. Blink. Jealous of someone else's success. Probably should kill him. Instead, rants. GodDAMN. Pussy.

Musn't let anyone see how clever I think this book is. Musn't. Hardcore, that's me. Kill my landlord, kill my landlord. But goddamn - this is funny. Bit pricey.

Girls #5 by Jonathan and Joshua Luna
$2.99, Image

Stupid pre-ordering. Would have stopped getting this except for that. Would have punched a hole right in that stupid comic book shoppe nerd's face because he still ordered it for me even though the first four issues sucked. Goddamn. Stupid retarded nerd.

Lots of talking in this issue. Lots. Explanations. Kind of stupid. Last page. What. The. Fuck?

Naked chicks. Lots. Listen, Luna Bros. When all your characters are retarded jerks, naked chicks don't pick up the slack. All. Of. Them. Are. Retards.

The naked chicks should punch holes in all the women. Put them out of their misery.

Gødland #3 by Joe Casey and Tom Scioli
$2.99, Image

The. Shit. Aliens, weird villains, heroic heroes, nasty bad girls. Enough pseudo-science to make it buzz, not enough to overwhelm. Kirby-esque, still. Who cares? Packed. Packed. Packed with information. Enough. Enough to satisfy even the goddamn retards. Yeah, you. And you. Buy it, retards! Buy. It!

(Why am I talking to the readers like this? This is wrong. They should buy this book because of its excellent art, its wild story, its cool villains and deathtraps and everything that makes comics great. Why? Comics publishing is a war. This book deserves to be a player in that war. So I should convince them using reason. Yes, reason.)

Buy it, retards!

The Goon #14 by Eric Powell and friends
$2.99, Dark Horse

In the letters column, there's a picture of a female reader eating hot wings off a plate balanced on the butt of a stripper while another stripper places her boobs right next to the reader's face (not on them, next to them).

What are you still doing here? Go buy it! Sheesh.

Seven Soldiers: Mister Miracle #1 by That Guy and Pasqual Ferry
$2.99, DC

Yeah, right. Heh. Like I'd read this. Pussy Brit and his pussy artist friend. What artsy-fartsy shit is he coming up with today:

"Pythagoras Jones and his Rubicon Cube crossed the threshold into the 45th Dimension, where girls ride Big Wheels upside down and each dog holds a doctorate. PJ plugged himself into the Cube, which hardwired his brain so that he could think like Apollonius of Tyana and run like a centaur. He chewed thoughtfully on a bezoar while madmen danced the polka on their hands in front of him. Suddenly he knew: the Second Secret of the Grassy Knoll, which was that the real target was Jackie, who had fucked the Dung Beetle God on an altar of dried tobacco leaves just the night before."

It's all crap, retards. Put it down and pick up something manly. Don't be such babies. Grow some 'nads.

Supreme Power: Hyperion #1 by J. Michael Straczynski, Dan Jurgens, and Klaus Janson
$2.99, Marvel/MAX

The government is scared of Hyperion. So they draft soldiers. Soldiers. In this war. To fight. Fight.

Goddamn. Lots of talking in this one. Stupid retards. Someone in this book needs a bitch-slapping, and it ain't Hyperion. Smart guy could use one. Bitch who can manipulate reality could use one. Quick your blubbering, radiation boy! The team assembled, they go off to fight Mark Milton. Boy scout. Tool. Angry tool. Wants to get revenge on those who wronged him. Revenge is like sex. Law of the jungle. Kill or ... you know.

Five issues. Wait for the trade. Just like the rest of the series. Slow.

And remember, for those who want to criticize my choices:

I'm the goddamn Greg Burgas!²

¹ No, I'm not going to talk about how groovy the 1990s were. I started collecting comics in 1988, so most of my comics are from the Nineties, so of course I think they're cool! And not just the high-brow crap either, and not the kitschy crap like SuperPro (which I've never read, so Bill doesn't have to get on my case - although I did enjoy Sleepwalker for a while). I'm talking MacFarlane's Spider-Man - admit it, you bought it, sheep! - and the "X-Tinction Agenda" and "Knightfall" - all the biggies! I bought 'em all. Excoriate me later. That's right, I used "excoriate" correctly in a sentence!
² I'm ripping off Shane Bailey with that statement, as he coined it in the comments to this post. I loved it. We should all refer to each other like that from now on.

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Sebastian O - O Boy!

Often, it really seemed that one of the few things keeping the 90s from being really bad was, well, Grant Morrison.

Think of the 90s.

Okay, now think of the 90s with Morrison's JLA, Doom Patrol and Invisibles (not to mention his various mini-series).

Not so good, eh?

Sebastian O is the type of series that Morrison seems to be able to produce without even breaking a sweat, the three-issue mini-epic, like Sea Guy, We3 and Vimanarama.

Sebastian O is about a fop who was unjustly imprisoned, and escapes to wreak vengeance upon the man that turned on him. It is set in a Victorian England that has extremely advanced technology.

Sebastian O is basically like Oscar Wilde, if Wilde kicked people's ass. Morrison comes up with plenty of clever lines for Sebastian, mocking the very oddity of the series itself, stuff like "One must always dress in finery when committing acts of treason."

Steve Yeowell's art perfectly captures the era. Lord Theo Lavender's plot of a world set in Virtual Reality evokes the Matrix, and the ending of the comic is priceless. Sebastian O, when it all comes down to it, is just a guy who wants to hang out, have sex with some good looking guys, and get high. He does not really care about Lavender's plan, he just has to get revenge on him. Once that is done, everything else can go to hell.

It is a very fun series, with lots of colorful characters.

The one thing that the CURRENT (2004) edition has that makes it even BETTER, though, is that Morrison adds a delightfully interesting timeline of Sebastian's life up until the series starts. Really fun stuff.

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Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #17!

This is the seventeenth in a series of examinations of comic book urban legends and whether they are true or false. Click here for an archive of the previous sixteen.

Let's begin!

COMIC URBAN LEGEND: Steve Ditko does not use the original art that Marvel has returned to him, except sometimes as CUTTING BOARDS!

STATUS: True

The beginnings of this situation happened back when Marvel was caught up in the whole "not returning art to the original artists," using the argument that Marvel not only paid for the production of the art for the comics, but for the art itself. In any event, after some time, Marvel eventually relented, under the following condition - it would give the artists back the art, but it would be as a GIFT due to Marvel's generosity. They still believe that THEY (Marvel) own the work fair and square, but would allow the artists to have the work itself.

Well, Steve Ditko did not like that arrangement.

As a result of this (and other factors I am sure, like not wanting to look to his past and hell, probably some other stuff, damned if I know), Ditko basically just let the art pile up, and actually used some of his old work as cutting boards!!

The story appeared in an issue of Wizard a few years back (thanks to Linda Burns at Ditkoland, for transcribing this last year):

There's simply no way to separate the fact from the fiction, no way to determine which Ditko is the real Ditko. One story about him contradicts the next, which-in turn-contradicts the next.

Take for example, one of [Comic publisher and restorer, Greg] Theakston's last visits to Ditko's studio. While embroiled in a conversation, the historian noticed a piece of illustration board leaning up against a wall, slashed to pieces.

"He'd been using it as a cutting board," Theakston said. "I looked a little bit closer and I detected a comics code stamp on it."

He asked Ditko to turn the board around, a request met with a deadening gaze from the artist.

"I didn't think he was going to do it," the historian recounted. "It looked like a 'Screw you' look."

Slowly, however, Ditko reached out and flipped over the board. It was a page of original art from a late 1950s issue of Journey Into Mystery, a splash featuring a hard helmet diver. Theakston couldn't believe it. Not only was Ditko not displaying, preserving or prizing this piece of original art, he was using it as a cutting board.

Theakston quickly offered Ditko a deal: "Steve, I will go down to the nearest art supply store and buy you a cutting board that will mend itself-a plastic cutting board that's so smart that when you cut on it, it mends itself-and you'll have the finest cutting board on the block." "Nope," Ditko replied, twisting the artwork-turned-cutting-board back around.

Theakston pleaded. "Steve, geez. That's worth a fair amount of money. At the very least-damn, Steve-it's an artifact. It's an important piece of publishing history in terms of comics."

The artist turned and pointed to the drapery-obscured window next to Theakston's chair. "Lift that curtain up," he said.

The curtain, the historian estimated, was about 18 inches off the floor. He pulled the drape aside and saw a stack of original artwork from Marvel standing roughly a foot-and-a-half high.

"Can I look at these?" Theakston excitedly asked.

"No."

The writer was dumbfounded. "I was sitting next to a hundred thousand, two hundred thousand dollars, maybe, worth of Ditko artwork and he was cutting it up without letting people look at it."

For whatever reason-Theakston feels Ditko may have thought Marvel was wrong for returning the pages-the artist seemed to attach no particular affection to his early work.

"He would rather not have people think of Steve Ditko's best work as being Spider-Man from 30 or 40 years ago," the historian said. "He wanted to be represented not by what he had done, but by what he's doing-he wants now to be his best time.

Amazing, isn't it?

COMIC URBAN LEGEND: Robert Loren Fleming is dead.

STATUS: False

This is a weird little urban legend (which was suggested by reader MarkAndrew), and has been making the rounds for at LEAST the past couple of years (as I remember reading it at the time, and worrying about it, then, until I found out it was false).

In any event, just recently, in the comments section on the super duper blog, Snark Free Waters, Dan Coyle (who will always be Dan Boyle to me...hehe), asked "Wait, Robert Fleming's not dead? I could have sworn I read an article around the time Ambush Bug returned in the pages of Lobo Unbound referring to him as "the late Robert Loren Fleming."

Apparently, this comment in Lobe Unbound, coupled with Mr. Fleming not doing any big mainstream comic work, was cause to believe the claims in the comic book.

Mr. Fleming himself showed up later in the comments section of that fantabulous comic blog, Snark Free Waters, to state, "Fleming here, back from the dead... ....p.s.: Those bus crashes really smart!"

So it was all just a joke by Keith Giffen.

Good thing, too, because Robert Loren Fleming is a fine writer. It would be a shame to lose him too soon.

COMIC URBAN LEGEND: The first Marvel/DC crossover was The Wizard of Oz.

STATUS: True

A lot of people generally think that Superman vs. Spider-Man, in 1976, was the first Marvel/DC crossover, but in fact, the first crossover happened a full year earlier!

Both DC and Marvel had been trying to obtain the rights to publish an adaptation of the Wizard of Oz, and ultimately, the decided to just publish the book TOGETHER.

It was this spirit of cooperation, I presume, which led to the other, more memorable, crossover a year later.



Marvel AND DC Presents...wow, we really AREN'T in Kansas anymore!

Well, that's it for me this week!

Feel free to tell me some urban legends you have heard, and I will try to confirm or deny them!

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Rick Remender Chat Transcript!

Please note that, had Rick known it was going to be transcribed like this, all fancylike, he would have been more erudite. Not that he was not transplendent ANYways, but he would have MORE effervescent had he known. Still, enjoy the chat transcript here.

Remember what I said about the 90's Marvel gems?

Marvel Team-Up #15, baby! December.
Rock on, Rob Kirkman.

Comics of the 90s: If Someone Asks You If You’re a God, You Say Yes!

Superhero comics have a nasty tendency to eat their own. New titles have a hell of a time gaining traction, but the old titles face boredom and staleness. What’s a comic company to do?

Reinvention!

The Tom DeFalco/Ron Frenz team on The Mighty Thor did their best Lee/Kirby homage for years, but the stories had grown stale. (I’m pretty sure sales weren't great either.) Thus came…Reinvention!

First, they "fused" Thor to a human host, an architect named Eric Masterson, thereby returning the old “alter ego” problems of yesteryear.

The fusion (and accompanying rules about transformation) brought back fears of the Thunder God reverting to “normal guy” at bad times: “Forsooth, if I cannot retrieve mine hammer before sixty seconds elapse, my form will revert to that of a mere mortal!” It also allowed the writers to indulge in a bit more soap opera: Masterson had to explain absences, romance the ladies, and keep a job.*

This bit didn’t work all that well—the godly romping of Thor didn’t really affect the human host, aside from messing up his schedules. The human host’s life didn’t affect Thor overmuch either.

So the Reinvention kept on rolling.

As punishment for killing his evil stepbrother Loki, Thor was banished from Earth forever. (Or as long as “forever” lasts in Marvel Comics.) Rather than leave the world defenseless, the gods bequeath Thor’s powers to his human host.

This was groovy.

Thor is often a lame superhero. He’s tremendously powerful but lacking in personality. He’s not science-fictiony, he’s not much for soap operas--he’s a big ol’ monster-basher.

The two great runs on The Mighty Thor, the Kirby era and the Simonson era, didn’t treat him like a superhero with a weird speech pattern. Instead they played up Thor’s godhood and farted around the Fabled Halls of Asgard, throwing Frost Giants and oddball magic at him. And yea, those stories did rocketh.

DeFalco and Frenz applied this knowledge and jerked the formula around a bit.

The Eric Masterson Thor had two engines driving it: the plot, Quest to Find the Banished Thor, and the recurring theme, Eric Ain’t a God. The book not only had Hoo-Hah Action a-plenty, it had the contrast between an ordinary man and the role he’s forced to play. Not only did this make the character of Thor more interesting, it enhanced the stature and exoticism of the Norse Gods. The towers of Asgard seem taller and the gods more impressive when there’s a lone human in the middle of it all.

Wisely, DeFalco and Frenz didn’t string out the storyline too long. Eric was able to defeat a revived Loki, save Asgard, generate a bit of romantic tension with Thor’s longtime goddess girlfriend, and finally rescue the long-exiled Thor.

Schweet.

Since this was the nineties, they couldn’t let the storyline rest. Oh no no. The Powers That Be gave Eric Masterson a newfangled magic mace, the ability to transform into a Thor clone, and a new series: Thunderstrike.

Thunderstrike was okay, but lacking the contrast between the mortal man and the god whose shoes the man has to fill, it wasn’t nearly as much fun.**

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*An odd footnote to comic history: DeFalco and Frenz made Eric Masterson a little different than the normal would-be superhero alter-ego. Masterson was in his late thirties, divorced, and had a son. He had to deal with his ex’s second husband, custody issues, and running his own architecture business. For a superhero comic, that’s a bold departure.

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The Black Hood - Superhero Musical Chairs

The Black Hood was introduced to comic readers through cameos in all the !mpact titles, as the character travelled across the country and encountered different heroes along his travel, until he came to his ultimate destination.

The Black Hood was basically a Punisher rip-off. He spoke in gravelly tones, he got "justice" by shooting the bad guys with his guns (of which he had a lot) and basically he was the perfect "anti-hero." This all led to the pages of Black Hood #1, where Black Hood finally came face to face with the big bad guys he was tracking all the way to Seaside City. It was here that the second-in-command of the mob he was tracking went and, well, killed him.

Shot him right in the head.

So the Black Hood was dead.

!mpact Comics did stuff like this a lot. They tried as much as possible to be "different," to shock and surprise the readers. In many ways, it reminds me of the Ultraverse. Remember Exiles? That was an Ultraverse title where a group of basically mutants all banded together to form a team. Well, the last issue demonstrated that they were not at all cut out to be a team, as everyone was killed except for a couple of characters. Ultraverse pushed it as "See? In the Ultraverse, you never know WHAT to expect!" They even solicited Exiles #5 and 6 to trick even the retailers. Well, !mpact did stuff like that as well, and one of them was the idea that the Black Hood, who the reader followed from title to title, finally gets his own title - and promptly is killed in the first issue.



Of course, the twist is that the Black Hood is the hero, NOT the person who wears the Hood. So two local kids that the Black Hood had brought with him to locate the bad guys come across the hood, and one of the kids puts it on to save his friend (as the bad guys who killed the Black Hood did not take kindly to the idea of witnesses being around). Seventeen-year-old Nate Cray finds himself kicking the butts of the mobsters and dodging gunfire with ease. He is the NEW Black Hood!

So the series continues, as Nate gets used to the idea of being the Black Hood, until he is so disgusted at what the mask is forcing him to do (the mask makes the wearer a bit more vicious in the dispensing of justice) that he gets rid of the mask, which is found by the man who killed the other Hood in the first issue!! This man becomes the third Black Hood in this title, using the mask to get revenge upon his boss (who the man feels has betrayed him). Ultimately, he gives the Hood back to Nate, as he no longer has any need for it (and the mask tells him it wants to be with Nate).



The definite stand-out in the series is Rich Burchett's artwork. His design work, as well as just his artwork, was just utterly top notch. Mark Wheatley's writing was good, but not as good as the artwork.

#1 was good, with the nice hook at the end.

#2 and #3 lagged a bit, but had some nice interaction with a possible love interest for Nate.

#4 and #5 were the worst, as we get introduced to a "out of nowhere" film-making desire of Nate's, which leads to an odd discussion with his mother, which reverts to a whole 'nother NICE discussion with his mother, which directly proceeds the introduction of a super villain, Ozone. Ozone's POWERS were cool (he can open up tiny holes in the ozone layer, sending direct sunlight burning down like lasers), but his background and visuals were VERY weak. However, the scene where Nate is disgusted at how happy he is to (seemingly) have killed Ozone was priceless. Really showed Nate's mettle.

#6 was a nice issue showing how the #2 mobster guy, Horton "Hit" Cofffee, is being driven nuts by his boss. The whole issue is basically driving him to become the Black Hood, which he does, to take down his boss. That leads to #7, which is a rhyming issue telling the story of the mobster's use of the Hood while also the background of his boss, who he is trying to usurp, and DOES by issue's end.



#8 has Neil Vokes art over Rich Burchett breakdowns, which is weird to see. In any event, it is a funny issue, as Hit Coffee has now become the big boss man, so he no longer needs to be the Black Hood, so he wants to drop it altogether. However, in #6, in his first act as Black Hood, he took along a witness to one of his crimes, and he just wants the guy gone. But Hit is not a totally vicious man, so he doesn't want to KILL the guy. So he keeps leaving objects around to let the man escape, and he watches him on monitors, screaming, "ESCAPE!" But the man is scared, so he doesn't. Funny stuff. It turns out, though, that this man is Nate's best friend's dad. So the two of them try to save the father. Hit gets involved, but really only to push them TOWARDS saving the guy, because he wants him gone. Like I said, funny, clever stuff.

At the end, Hit gives up the hood to Nate.

That is where we leave off.

The art on this comic is great, and the story is pretty good as well (except for the Ozone disaster). So I would recommend this comic.

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Judging (DC's December) Books By Their Covers

DC's December Solicitations are up, so now is as good a time as any for us to make prejudgements based just on the covers (as we all love to make prejudgements, don't we? And DC's covers are at least detailed enough that we CAN make prejudgements based on them!).

Let's begin!

Jock makes it so simple to describe his covers. I just have to say, "Will Jock ever NOT draw a cool looking cover?"



Of course, it tells us nothing about the plot of Batman #648...but still. Nice cover.
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Now THIS it the kind of cover you end a year-long storyline with!



It just screams, "CONCLUSION!"
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Chris Weston is such a pro.



Look at the level of craftmanship involved in this Legends of Dark Knight drawing. Top rate.
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This cover annoyed me.



Because it is obvioust that Alfred is not a bad guy!!!

You just got finished lecturing about how there is a new Clayface, and then you believe that Alfred really is a bad guy?! Batman, how dumb ARE you?!?!
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This is a very strong cover. Is this by Hampton?



Very striking visual.
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ANOTHER in a line of Pat Lee covers...



where it looks like he put JUST enough ass into it to make it look like something, but not enough to make it look really good.
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A small does of Tim Sale goes a long way...



I think it works here on this Batgirl cover.
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This is what I would term a "good drawing"



but not a "Good cover." Sean Phillips should draw the interiors of Gotham Central.
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Woah!



Adam Hughes drawing a very nice cover here. Too bad it has Zatanna in it, which means it is an Infinite Crisis tie-in.
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YES! The Shadowpact guest-starring! SWEET!



That was sarcasm.
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I'd understand not having Byrne do the covers if Jurgens was, like, knocking these otu of the park...



...but this cover is basically just "okay."
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Thank GOODness that Lupe gets her revenge!



Question: Anyone reading Adventures of Superman LIKE Lupe?
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The idea of Aquaman having a Day of Vengeance tie-in is unsettling to me.



However, that cover is awesome.
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This cover is as good as this title has been...



Which is bad.
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Another entry in "good drawing"...



..but not "good cover."
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Playing to strengths!



George Perez likes drawing lots of things!

Also, what is up with DC and the Amazons? Every chance they get, the Amazons get screwed over!
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COVER THEME MONTH!

Split decision!





I missed Hard Time.
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FINALLY!



Someone got my "bring Hellhound back" letters!
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Seriously, any time I see a character I like show up, I get worried.



But they wouldn't mess with Buddy, would they?

WOULD THEY?!?!
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This is a really good cover by Thibert.



He should pencil more.
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What were the odds...



that Fatality, of all Green Lantern villains, would last this long?
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Once again, James Jean saddens me with his great work on such unworthy comics..



Yikes.
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Daniel Acuña is such a nice find by DC.





I like the JLA cover better than the Outsiders one.
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I wonder if Murphy Anderson...



...wonders about the ethics of mind-wiping villains?

Showcase rules!
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Hehe...seriously, what is he doing?



Why is he doing this to me? It is TOO funny!
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I wish Joe Bennett would draw like this on Birds of Prey.



Nice piece. JSA Classified has done well by artists so far.
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He's been working on this for YEARS...



So I hope it ends up looking good. The cover is nice. I like how it is being solicited as JLA Classified. I guess "Classified" is the new "Unlimited"...hehe.
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FINALLY! They started to draw the Thunderbolt as menacing as he SHOULD look!



FINALLY! Thank the lord for Alex Ross' JSA covers!
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Clever move by Kitson...



No one can mock his character drawings if he does them in silhouette. Nicely turned.
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I like Saiz.



This IS a Saiz cover, right?
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"Johns, NOOO!! PLEASE, leave us be!!!"


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Another example of "Good drawing"...



...not a "good cover."
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Man, DC will miss Yu.



I hope they won't have to miss Diggle, too.
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Glenn Fabry has been amusing the heck out of me with these covers.



He continues the streak this month.
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Is it just me, or does this look like Deathblow?



Still, a Dixon/Manhke war comic sounds good to me.
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SEVEN SOLDIERS COVERS!!





Nice portrait-easue covers.

Too bad that Ferry art is ONLY the cover.
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John-Paul Leon is good.


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Fine cover by Jean, but a little too laid back, I think.



He can do such amazing things with his art, I'd like to see it.
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Heh.



Now THAT's a nice way to end a run...hehe.
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They sure know how to draw a reader in, eh?



Nice cover. DMZ is shaping up to be a hot book.
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I would love to see all the Solo covers lined up.



I bet it would look awesome.

Teddy Kristiansen is a nice choice.
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It took Captain Atom to bring the gang back together!



Should we thank him or hate him?
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Loeb is at least good at picking good artist to work with...



Nice cover for his last issue.
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MY TOP FIVE COVERS OF THE MONTH!!!

#5 Call me sentimental, but I just love this cover.


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#4 I'm no big Alex Ross fan, but this cover is quite good.



It really captures the moment, and the use of the Legion of Doom in the background is quite good.
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#3 They're not making it easy on Luke Ross, are they?



First the Quitely cover, now this awesome Manco one. Poor Ross.
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#2

Matt Wagner is good.



That is a very strong cover.
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#1 Ordway is SO good at drawing classic heroes.



What a nice piece.
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Okay, that's it for me, folks!

Feel free to share YOUR prejudices!!

AND your top five choices!

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