The GTXForums Comics Thread

[Zevious Zoquis]

Carried over from the old digs...

Yeesh, I forgot all about this thread I started! lol...

Anyway, Afterlife With Archie is currently one of the best comics going! Man is this book fun!
http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/2125/m0to.jpg

I also recently acquired the following:

The Sixth Gun Vol 1 OSHC - Oh my god is this book nice! Bigger than a Hellboy LE (which I now have all of and think they are great) and really well put-together.

The Amazing Spiderman Vol 1 Marvel omnibus - a huge book collecting the first 40 or so issues of Amazing Spider-Man. I'm really enjoying the trip back to the original stories. I'm now looking at getting the two original Fantastic Four Omni's.

'Tain't The Meat, It's The Humanity - a collection of Jack Davis' EC comics horror tales. Great stuff...

Along with Afterlife With Archie, I'm also following Hellboy In Hell, Black Science, and Sledgehammer '44.

yeah, I'm a comic geek now. :cool::assclown:


...Oh, and since I last visited this thread I've completely ditched the Walking Dead. Sold all 7 volumes of the hardcover collections. I got really sick of the outrageous violence/gore and utter humorlessness of the story. I also grew to really hate Kirkman's dialogue. Not a fan...

[sandydandy]

I haven't been a Marvel Comics geek in a few years now...been slowly phasing it out of my life due to crummy writing, my favourite writers being pink-slipped, and mischaracterizations of my favourite characters.

Recently I read that a few of my favourites will be returning - Jim Starlin, Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning (known together as DnA) are due to return to Marvel this year, to work on 'Infinity Revelations' and 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. I'm actually excited, and may pick up the hobby again at some point this year.

[Fiat500]

Man, I used to love Starlin. I haven't read him in ages, but I think of him now and again because if I'm going out and my hood is up, in my currently beardy state I look a little like Vanth Dreadstar.

I'm a little afraid of going back to his stuff though, since -1- I'm not in puberty any more and the space opera and melodrama might be too much, and -2- I fear time has not been kind to his overly dramatically posed drawings.

I remember getting a package of comics from a danish comic book shop, it contained a couple of issues of Starlin's Warlock reprints and a couple of issues of Frank Miller's Ronin, and a classmate remarked how he didn't like Miller's art, while Stalin's on the other hand was quality stuff.Heh. :)

Concerning current affairs, I am woefully out of the loop. Except for the ugly state of affairs between Alan Moore and Grant Morrison, two of my very favourite writers in any medium. That just saddens me.

[Rob]

"Masturbating on my doorstep"

[sandydandy]

Yeah Starlin is great. I was a late bloomer to comics, so I really liked his early 90's Marvel work. Haven't read any of his DC or independent stuff. Been meaning to read Breed 1 and 2, (which I have but haven't read), and I hear there's a third one in the works, or has been released already.

I don't know how much he has left in the tank at his age, but I'm just happy to see him back at Marvel...even if it's only for a one-shot graphic novel. He and Marvel parted ways almost 10 years ago in a very bad way, and he vowed to never work for 'corporate comics' again, (though he did have a couple of stints at DC in the last 10 years). He was bitter about it for years. Basically he had major a difference of opinion with his editor at the time, (Tom Brevoort), regarding the usage of Adam Warlock in his book, and was told to go fuck himself if he didn't like it. So he quit. Glad they mended fences.

I read some of his older stuff - Warlock, Captain Marvel, etc., and it's all top quality material. His 'Death of Captain Marvel' was written so well and personally, that it really resonated with people dealing with death in their own lives. I read an interview with Starlin where he said he was working through his own father's death at the time, and writing that story really helped.

He's basically the go-to guy when it comes to killing off characters, because he's so good at writing meaningful death stories in comics. Not like the shit you see today where characters are killed off erroneously and resurrected without second thought or explanation.

[Fiat500]

Well, it became fashionable and over the top after The Death of Captain Marvel (I think) as well, and I remember seeing a cartoon (by Kyle Baker) in Marvel's magazine about Marvel (don't remember what it was called) - Scott Summers answering the door at the X-mansion: "Kitty Pryde? She's dead, come back next week".

So it is not entirely new.

Starlin was hired in to do the death of then Robin Jason Todd in the Batman books also iIrc, although whether he lived or died was decided by voting among readers. Jason Todd has since been resurrected, of course.

Since Bucky was resurrected, I guess anything goes though.

Meanwhile, here's one for Matt, if he even reads this thread:

http://24.media.tumblr.com/467df1558aa9cd52e4faf92c5223824d/tumblr_mwbcpsGglv1r89a2ho1_500.jpg

Background (http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2014/01/artist-mimi-yoon-fires-back-in-powerpuff-girls-cover-controversy/)

[sandydandy]

It's gotten worse now. Writers don't even bother to explain how/why a character came back to life. Recent deaths I'm talking about, not a character that's been gone for 20 or 30 years...that's usually accompanied by a decent story. But for recent resurrections their only explanation seems to be, "he's back, and that's all that matters"...screw attempting to adhere to any sense of continuity, it's too much of a pain. These days they love to sing the mantra, "continuity is a good servant, but bad master", so they just ignore it.

Death in comics is a one giggle joke these days. Cheap and meaningless.

[Impreza]

Outside of my usual "capes & costumes" purchases I picked this up yesterday: http://www.darkhorse.com/Comics/23-608/Serenity-Leaves-on-the-Wind-1-Dos-Santos-cover

It picks up not long after the movie ends. So far it's just setting things up, but given that it's written by Joss Whedon's brother it's pretty sure to go all the places one would expect.

[Zevious Zoquis]

I snagged Black Science #3 and Sledgehammer #3 yesterday. Good stuff!

Also ordered a couple books from amazon. Incoming are the following:

http://images.betterworldbooks.com/078/The-Tomb-of-Dracula-Volume-3-Wolfman-Marv-9780785149835.jpg

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L00Njyxr28w/UYpo50lkTkI/AAAAAAAABbg/OKBQ53482Fc/s1600/sfahhc1.jpg

I found a copy of the first volume of Essential Tomb of Dracula at the local shop here for ten bucks and having heard that the series was pretty good stuff I grabbed it. Turns out it IS really good (70s Blade FTMFW!) stuff so I decided to grab the 3rd volume of the color collection. The Sgt Fury book was mostly just to get over the $25 line for free shipping, but I'm looking forward to it still. :)

[Jason]

It's gotten worse now. Writers don't even bother to explain how/why a character came back to life. Recent deaths I'm talking about, not a character that's been gone for 20 or 30 years...that's usually accompanied by a decent story. But for recent resurrections their only explanation seems to be, "he's back, and that's all that matters"...screw attempting to adhere to any sense of continuity, it's too much of a pain. These days they love to sing the mantra, "continuity is a good servant, but bad master", so they just ignore it.

Death in comics is a one giggle joke these days. Cheap and meaningless.

One of the things I really appreciated about Marvel's Ultimate line... people generally stay dead. Though, I haven't read since the death of Peter Parker, so maybe things have changed.

[overpowered]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDYyAAdtDfk

[Fiat500]

Alan Moore

Just when you think the old coot has disappeared round the bend. Of his own ass. Something like this (http://www.momentofmoore.com/post/80499695087/alan-moore-does-like-real-magick) appears.

[Zevious Zoquis]

Couple of recent acquisitions...

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t516/zevious_zoquis/Mobile%20Uploads/89209459-2B20-468E-A4B1-3BE6362EEFB8_zpsemml13rt.jpg

Also got notification that this puppy is finally on its way to me....
http://www.amazon.ca/Fear-Agent-Library-Edition-Volume/dp/1616551038/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_t_1_PXFX

had the thing pre-ordered for about a year!

[Rob]

OOOOOOH! I love me some Hellboy. Got a lot of arcs in individual issues that I need to re-read as it's been a good few years now.

Currently still up to date with The Walking Dead and Crossed: Badlands. Just took out a sub for the rebooted Rogue Trooper comic too and am working my way through the archive of Dreamscape Transformers comics before diving into the IDW TF output.

[Zevious Zoquis]

Yes! Volume 2 finally arrived! :)

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t516/zevious_zoquis/Mobile%20Uploads/A1F6D648-F2E3-47D2-85FE-3097E6AED810_zpszdnh9w1h.jpg

[Blerpa]

Red Y: The Last Man. Quite interesting, thought-provocative stuff. Must look out for more Brian Vaughn material, definitely.
Then I got to finally try Planetary, by Warren Ellis, drawings by John Cassadey, inks by Laura Martin. From a cultural point of view (and since in the past I played the Spirits of the Century pen&paper RPG inspired by it) it was really intriguing... drawing-wise quite a lot less so, and I must admit it lacks the punches of stuff from Garth Ennis, the poetry of a Gaiman but also the finesse of a Masamune Shirow. It was ok, but "as a comic" much less entertaining than I would have expected.
The almost parodistic rewrite of some iconic heroes of comic history didn't bother me since the focus was anyway on the main characters and on the philosophy behind the opera.

Friend of mine also gifted me with Iron Man Extremis hardcover story. Once again Warren Ellis at the pen, Adi Granov drawing. Honestly? Meh. I expected a grandeur saga, I got a diminutive local story. And the writing is quite mediocre, I have to say. Granov's realistic style is not of my liking, bit too stiff too, but that was minor gripe once the volume proved disappointing.

[Zevious Zoquis]

There's a comic shop here in "The Peg" called Comics America. The place is pretty nutso - just a huge jumbled mess of awesome geek paraphernalia from comics to toys to games. Everything is crammed onto shelves or piled on the floor creating a labyrinth of narrow aisles full of trip & fall opportunities. I love browsing around the place because the inventory is amazing but under normal circumstances the prices aren't great (hard to beat Amazon in that regard.) However, they have recently undertaken the task of trying to organize the store and in order to create space they've been having some nice sales to clear out inventory. This week its 50% off everything in the store! Sadly, I couldn't find anything really awesome that I was after - had hoped maybe I could pick up a good Marvel Omnibus but none of the ones I was interested in were in stock. So, since I couldn't leave without getting something - I mean 50% off!! (and it's off the US pricing no less which is even better) - I went on a bit of an EC Comics binge and nabbed these little beauties:

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t516/zevious_zoquis/Mobile%20Uploads/124B4740-ABBE-4D64-9B22-7C41EBE69D2B_zps9wqi8gvv.jpg

Not a bad little haul for $65 CDN. :)

[Alan P]

Right, figured I should ask in here. What animated movies from either Marvel or DC are worth watching? I know there's quite a few. Any recommendations?

[sandydandy]

I don't know about movies, but the X-Men animated series from the 90's was my favourite TV show for a long time. The serious and mature tone was appealing, and really made it different and unique from most other cartoons.

X-Men Evolution was ok...a little too kiddie.

Haven't watched any other Marvel/DC cartoons.

[overpowered]

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, available on DVD, Blu-ray and streaming services.

[Fiat500]

Yeah, and Year One as well.

DC has made animated movies based on several of their most well known stories:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_Universe_Animated_Original_Movies

All Star Superman, based on a story by your compatriots Morrison and Quitely is decent.
Batman Gotham Knights is made by Japanese studios, I thought it was pretty good.

I don't know if Marvel has made any animated movies, but I am entertained by their Ultimate Spiderman animated series.

Is this for yourself, Alan?

[Zevious Zoquis]

Speaking of The X-Men, I picked this up the other day - another 50% off deal at the shop near me. The cover price is $99.99 US/$112.99 CDN so since they go with the US pricing I got it for $50 CDN. Couldn't resist, especially since I think this one is basically OOP now and the prices will likely skyrocket once inventories are depleted...

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t516/zevious_zoquis/Mobile%20Uploads/02B5D747-1144-4415-BD27-D52C150CE1ED_zpsbhbcqtsm.jpg

I've got a few of these Marvel Omnibuses now. They are nice books. Not nearly as nice as the big Darkhorse hardcovers though. My Fear Agent and Hellboy Library Editions are just gorgeous books.

[Alan P]

Yeah, and Year One as well.

DC has made animated movies based on several of their most well known stories:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_Universe_Animated_Original_Movies

All Star Superman, based on a story by your compatriots Morrison and Quitely is decent.
Batman Gotham Knights is made by Japanese studios, I thought it was pretty good.

I don't know if Marvel has made any animated movies, but I am entertained by their Ultimate S,piderman animated series.

Is this for yourself, Alan?

It is indeed but if they're decent then my 12 year old may be interested also.

[Blerpa]

I've seen almost all of the DC Universal Animated Movies (I basically miss only the second Green Lantern one, Superman: Unbound and the last 2 Justice League movies).
They are usually 60 minutes movies and they are pretty much watchable in average. Some are better than others, like the All Star Superman, Batman Year One, Batman Gotham Knight, Red Hood (kinda), JL: The New Frontier (heralded as one of the must see of the catalogue).
IIRC Marvel doesn't do any animated movie but only series, usually for a younger audience. Friends of mine enjoy the Avengers series and the aforamentioned Ultimate Spiderman.
I was keen to see the japanese Ironman anime tv series, I've it waiting me to finish first a lot of anime and live action tv series before starting it.

Can I also suggest an anime series from Japan? Planetes. It is not about superheroes but about a distant future and a team of astronauts whose job is to recollect space garbage around earth orbit.
It has silly funny moments, romantic ones and also quite serious interior reflections. It is sweet.

[Jason]

Walking Dead 126 was anti climatic...

[Rob]

NO SPOILERS.

I'm acquiring it as I type!

[Rob]

I concur.

[Alan P]

Thank you Blerpa and Fiat500.

[sandydandy]

Any CBR members on here? I think I saw ZZ there. The owner, Jonah, has done a Kenji+1 and rebooted the forum.

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=52513

It's a bizarre situation. Kind of felt like a punch to the gut at first, but I agree with his reasons for doing it. That community was way too big, and too many people out of control. I do have a problem with his plans to delete the old forum in two weeks. It should stay up for historical reference.

[Zevious Zoquis]

Yeah I'm there. I don't see how the reboot changes anything or solves any of the problems they think it's going to solve. The forums were a wealth of great info and I personally never encountered any of the apparently rampant hatred, racism, sexism, or just general "bullying" (god I've grown to hate that word) that I've been informed the place was awash with two days ago although I tended to stick to the half dozen or so threads that really focus on things I'm interested in. But whatever. Onward and forward...most of the threads I frequented have been restarted in some form and the conversation continues more or less unchanged so yeah...huzzah for the reboot!

[sandydandy]

It's all a PR stunt, really.

The ugly incident with this Janelle woman originated at CBR, and clearly Jonah needed to do something to ward off pressure from critics, and probably from advertisers, to protect his company. Being a major outlet for the comics industry, they get quite a bit of traffic, (judging by their Alexa ranking), due to the many personalities associated with the site. Comic writers, editors, etc, have partnered up with CBR, and the site is a jumping off point for many new aspiring talents looking to break into the industry.

Taking radical action like this creates a certain perception of positive change...and perception is everything. Even though everyone knows it'll likely be ineffective in the long-run as the moderators will eventually loosen up on enforcement of the rules, and the trolls will creep back in.

[Zevious Zoquis]

Well, the ongoing 50% off sale at a nearby LCS has once again conspired to do damage to my credit card. This monstrosity is now mine...

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t516/zevious_zoquis/Mobile%20Uploads/EB3D483F-B2D8-4F57-A059-DA9B4A51AB75_zpsotlqzatj.jpg

$75 CDN. I just couldn't resist temptation as I doubt I'll ever find it for less.

...and OMG this book is outrageous! LOL. I get sorta giddy and light-headed just looking at it. Its a giant book, and none of that Marvel Omnibus thin wavy paper here - this is thick, heavy, lovely paper just like the Fear Agent books. Unbelievably nice!

A few more pics for those interested...

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t516/zevious_zoquis/Mobile%20Uploads/7F3F8BF1-1AA7-4691-B2BF-78828C607ACF_zpsifohl0gf.jpg

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t516/zevious_zoquis/Mobile%20Uploads/D348CDB9-E637-4E10-AFAE-5F0DB1AF29F2_zpskw19h2kq.jpg

[overpowered]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAg2m5UlBYw

[overpowered]

If you get this, then I'd feel sorry for you if I wasn't just as pathetic as you.

https://49.media.tumblr.com/1afa699d5eb8a33abbc0dd513ad4b2db/tumblr_nfudrvfA881teusl3o1_400.gif

[overpowered]

https://www.facebook.com/photo/download/?fbid=1055817781139579

[JoshInKC]

The reactions to this plot are largely ridiculous and insane.

[sandydandy]

Anyone still reading comics?

With Avengers: Infinity War coming up, I thought it would be the perfect time to read Infinity by Jonathan Hickman. The story was from 2013. It was a pretty good and solid story. Definitely very busy throughout. It was also a bit confusing, as I didn't really recognize a lot of the characters. The main reason for reading this was because I wanted to familiarize myself with Thanos' lackeys, the Black Order: Corvus Glaive, Proxima Midnight, Ebony Maw, and a couple of others. They'll be playing prominent roles in the movie coming up.

In a nutshell: The majority of the Avengers go off-world to deal with a big cosmic threat, leaving the Earth vulnerable. Thanos finds out about it and makes an incursion.

Thanos is written very 70's style...basically as a two-dimensional brute, who just wants to kill for the sake of killing. That was annoying, but expected. Most writers not named Jim Starlin tend to write him that way. They willfully ignore the years and years of character developments Starlin made for the character, and revert him back to a power mad killing machine. I would expect that for the Infinity War movie, because it's introducing the character to a new and more broad audience, but in the comics, where the character is already well fleshed out, it gets annoying when they do that.

I'm now going to read Starlin's follow up stories, which will be a breath of fresh air, as he's really the only guy who knows how to write Thanos. Well him and may two more guys, everybody else stinks.

[dodint]

Not comics, per se. But I've been looking for something to read that is really light to balance out the school stuff. I've been reading old comic strips online; Calvin and Hobbes, The Born Loser, etc.

Been using http://www.gocomics.com/

[Zevious Zoquis]

hey I forgot all about this thread. Wow...lol

[Yw-slayer]

Yup. I read them through Marvel Unlimited. Great deal!

[Alan P]

Anyone still reading comics?

With Avengers: Infinity War coming up, I thought it would be the perfect time to read Infinity by Jonathan Hickman. The story was from 2013. It was a pretty good and solid story. Definitely very busy throughout. It was also a bit confusing, as I didn't really recognize a lot of the characters. The main reason for reading this was because I wanted to familiarize myself with Thanos' lackeys, the Black Order: Corvus Glaive, Proxima Midnight, Ebony Maw, and a couple of others. They'll be playing prominent roles in the movie coming up.

In a nutshell: The majority of the Avengers go off-world to deal with a big cosmic threat, leaving the Earth vulnerable. Thanos finds out about it and makes an incursion.

Thanos is written very 70's style...basically as a two-dimensional brute, who just wants to kill for the sake of killing. That was annoying, but expected. Most writers not named Jim Starlin tend to write him that way. They willfully ignore the years and years of character developments Starlin made for the character, and revert him back to a power mad killing machine. I would expect that for the Infinity War movie, because it's introducing the character to a new and more broad audience, but in the comics, where the character is already well fleshed out, it gets annoying when they do that.

I'm now going to read Starlin's follow up stories, which will be a breath of fresh air, as he's really the only guy who knows how to write Thanos. Well him and may two more guys, everybody else stinks.
Have to say Thanos was written really well in the Movie. You understand his motivation which is more than can be said for most movie bad guys who seemingly just exist as a punching bag.

[sandydandy]

Have to say Thanos was written really well in the Movie. You understand his motivation which is more than can be said for most movie bad guys who seemingly just exist as a punching bag. That's refreshing to know. As you could probably tell, I'm a bit of a Thanos fanboy. Ever since 2004. Just love the character.

Can't wait to watch Infinity War!

[sandydandy]

Thought I'd resurrect this thread to talk about X-Men. Not the comics or eventual upcoming movie(s), but the 90's cartoon series.


I don't know about movies, but the X-Men animated series from the 90's was my favourite TV show for a long time. The serious and mature tone was appealing, and really made it different and unique from most other cartoons. It's coming back!

X-Men 97 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-Men_%2797)

This is actually old news. I first heard about it in late 2021 and simply couldn't believe it. Fall 2023 release on Disney+, which is just around the corner. I heard rumors about X-Men being re-launched a few years back, but dismissed it as being too far-fetched to be true. I even heard rumors way back in the early-00's that they wanted to continue it but never believed it, as 99% of the time when a TV series is cancelled it's gone for good. So obviously this was a pleasant surprise for me.

This series will pretty much pick up where the 1997 series left off, give or take a few years I'm thinking. The coolest part is they were able to bring back the iconic original voice actors, (sadly a couple of them passed away - the voices of Cyclops and Magneto). What I do find kind of weird is the girl who voiced Jubilee won't be returning to that character, instead she'll voice someone else. She willingly surrendered the role to an Asian voice actress. While I'm as woke as the next person and think it's a noble thing to do, it doesn't really make much sense here. This is a VOICE role. Plus she's the recognizable voice of Jubilee...unless her voice drastically changed like Al Pacino, since it has been 25+ years since she last did the character. I'm fine with it I guess as long as Jubilee doesn't suddenly have an Asian accent, which will make no sense for someone born and raised in America.

I've always loved the X-Men. This TV show, (and related video games also featuring those same voice actors), was very special to me, and served as my gateway into the comics. This team was always my definitive X-Men, and I really felt I knew them. I have the original series on DVD and still watch it every now and then, usually once every few years. I don't know what their plans are going forward storytelling wise, but whatever they do I'm sure it'll be fun. I'm almost 48 now, so not really picky. It was a different time in the mid-90's when I first watched this, being in my late-teens and into early adulthood, which is a challenging time for most people. It was nice to have this as an outlet. I'd suspect that's why it's a sentimental favorite for a lot of people.

I do hope they retain the mature and serious tone of the original series. That was what set it apart for me from the other kid's TV shows of that time. Yes it was a kid's show, but not a particularly kiddie one. Battling discrimination and bigotry was always the central and underlying theme of X-Men, and that's what made it easy for me, and so many others, to relate with it. We all know these issues are in no short supply in this day and age, in fact it's gotten even worse.

I don't know how these cartoon shows have evolved over the years and decades, but I doubt X-Men will have trouble finding its spot. I read somewhere that they won't face as many restrictions under Disney as they did with Fox Kids, so Wolverine is free to stab and slash away at actual flesh instead of just robots.

I remember we saw many cameo appearances in the original show - Dr. Strange, Thor, Spider-Man, War Machine etc. I hope we get to see more interaction with the more mainstream Marvel characters this time around. I guess they didn't do it last time because, aside from Spider-Man, the X-Men themselves were the most popular and mainstream characters in the entire Marvel Universe, as their books were the only ones selling at the time. Today it's an entirely different world thanks to the MCU, and they need to sell the X-Men again - this time to a new audience. I think bringing in previous fringe characters, (who are now household names believe it or not), will help greatly in that regard.

Overall I'm very excited!

[FaultyMario]

Bird Studio informed today that Akira Toriyama passed away last week at age 68.