Comic Books

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/18705354

Some debates among superhero fans will never be resolved. Superman vs. Batman. Iron Man vs. Captain America. DC vs. Marvel. But if there’s one thing everyone seems to agree on, it’s that 1986 is the most important year in comic book history. The argument why is simple — that one year saw the release of several groundbreaking comics:

1. Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, an epic story about an elderly Batman who comes out of retirement to save Gotham City in the face of American decline.
2. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon’s Watchmen, a meticulous deconstruction of the entire superhero genre that’s also just a damn-good comic.
3. Art Spiegelman’s Maus, which retold the story of the Holocaust to terrific effect in comic book form.

...

But before Gibbons and Moore could deconstruct the entire superhero genre with Watchmen and change comics forever, they had to take on the most iconic superhero of them all.

Released in 1985, “For the Man Who Has Everything,” is a Superman story unlike anything that came before (or after). The comic traps its hero in an alternate universe where his home planet of Krypton was never destroyed and he never left for Earth. Instead, Kal-El (aka Superman) lives a simple, fulfilling life with his wife and children, but what should feel like a utopia quickly gives way to social upheaval and violence. Moore and Gibbons imagine a version of Krypton that reflects the worst of our own society: crime, drugs, riots, xenophobia, police brutality, and a Ku Klux Klan-esque rally all quickly overwhelm Superman’s vision of a perfect life.

In just 40 pages — while also fitting in a B-plot where Wonder Woman, Batman, and Robin fight an evil alien — “For the Man Who Has Everything” tells a powerful allegorical story that still resonates.

...

“For the Man Who Has Everything” paved the way for the sort of social and political commentary we now take for granted in mainstream superhero stories. Without this one comic (and the deluge of instant classics that followed a year later) today’s superheroes would be a lot less interesting. But to understand how this shift was even possible, we have to go back to a time when a generation that grew up on comic books finally got a chance to make some of their own.

A new studio called WeirdBunch Entertainment, which aims to make Marvel-like content with a Middle-Eastern flavor, is being launched by a group of industry execs with offices in Saudi Arabia and Los Angeles.

WeirdBunch brings together prominent Saudi puppeteer, producer and podcaster Ammar Al-Sabban, who worked on the Arabic adaptation of “Sesame Street”; Marvel comics writer B. Earl; Keith Fay, who is a former director of original series at Cartoon Network; and Saudi entrepreneur and financier Abdullah Al-Sabban.

The first original IP being announced by WeirdBunch is titled “The Legend of Soloman,” created by Ammar Al-Sabban and “featuring Saudi Arabia’s first superhero family,” as a statement puts it.

...

“The Legend of Soloman” will feature a collection of four issues within the comic book series and wrap with a full graphic novel compilation. WeirdBunch says it is in the process of “finalizing studio, creative and publishing partnership deals” that will make the comic-book series available worldwide.

WeirdBunch traces its origin to 2021, when Ammar Al-Sabban and B. Earl met at the Jeddah Book Fair in Saudi Arabia, where Earl was appearing on a comic book panel.

New list is up! Not toooo many for me this week.

From The World Of Minor Threats Barfly #3 - Ayyy Shiteater is back! This series is pretty good

Batman And Robin Year One #1 - Batman eh? Ok.

Batman Full Moon #1 - Werebatwolfman? Or Bat V Wolf? Guess I gotta find out.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles The Last Ronin II Re-Evolution #3 - Turtles for adults is soooo gooood. Need more!

Falling In Love On The Path To Hell #5 - Well y'all already knew this was on the list, I can't shut up about this series.

Epitaphs From The Abyss #4 - Last one was ok, I'll get this one. Creepshow is so much better though.

That's it for me, what're you picking up?

I originally read both classic Marvel and DC before I tried reading indie comics again (Dark Horse, but since starting using Hoopla I read a lot of Spawn from Image Comics) before feeling like switching comics again: I’m vaguely debating over reading the Big Two again.

While I have a Marvel stigma going on because I’m not happy with them in their current form I’m also familiar with DC more because they a have a much better legacy than Marvel in my opinion unless there are comics from both companies that I can read without a stigma.

Overall, I don’t know where to begin with the Big Two now that I changed my mind again.

For DC, I may read Batman or Superman but I don’t know where to begin for either one.

For Marvel, I don’t know where to start and I currently have a stigma for them because of their movies becoming more dominant.

Where should I start rereading the Big Two?

cross post

Marvel wikia retcons its first appearance as xmen#101, but phoenix force isn't in this issue, phoenix is. At some point between its publication and now the story must've changed to involve a cosmic god, but I wonder if before then phoenix's origin was intended to be an extreme version of fantastic 4's origin beyond just an homage.

I just started reading xmen#125 and once again in a flashback this is how the event is described:

Her body was consumed by the intense radiation. But her mind refused to die. Driven by her love for Scott Summers, she achieved her full potential as a psi --becoming, briefly, an entity of pure thought-- before finally reforming as Phoenix.

So when does phenix force actually bocme a thing? Were there any other out of universe (as I'll reach the in universe ones eventually) explanations of the phoenix's power before then? Shouldn't the wiki at least mention if a part of an article is a retcon?

Edit: I think it appears first in xmen 153, where Kitty pryde tells colossus's sister a bedtime story loosely based on the xmen. In the story Jean's soul manages to defeat Phoenix.

NOTE: I am currently reading the Hellboy series if any other comic or publisher or Dark Horse themselves might have something.

New list is up! Come and get it! Let's see, for me...

Minor Arcana #2 - Jeff Lemire rules. Minor Arcana is good so far.

Groo Minstrel Melodies #2 - I didn't know Groo was still around until issue #1!

Batman Gotham By Gaslight The Kryptonian Age #5 - Been pretty good so far.

Life #2 - I'll be honest I still haven't read #1, I'm slacking.

Space Ghost #6 - Space Ghoooost! Can't wait until he gets booked on the talk show. Looks like Moltar is about to show up!

Geiger #7 - Super FalloutMan has been good, I'll keep going

Precious Metal #5 - I'm a little behind on this too but it's ok, I like the art a lot.

Looks like that's it for me this week, what's on your lists?

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/20577317

I think we all owe The Marvels an apology...