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Saw this new product in an email promotion from Amazon:
The Marvel Creator Collection No. 1: "Back to the Savage Land" Barry Windsor-Smith at Marvel Vol. 1
I've said before that I've long thought DC did a better job at putting out books highlighting some of their great creators, whether artist or writer. With series maybe Marvel will finally step up their game.
Yeah, I ordered it.
Two weeks ago, on this thread, I mentioned that I couldn't bring myself to finish my newly acquired Iron Man issues, as I had found them disappointing. Since then, I started playing a superhero-comic-themed game called Sentinels of the Multiverse: Definitive Edition. I spent a lot of time with that game; it was fun. (It certainly beat the heck out of Marvel Legendary.) And it put me in the mood to read a superhero comic, though not any particular title. So I picked up Iron Man from where I had left off, finishing issues 154 through 156, leaving only one issue - 157 - unread. They were a far cry from the greatest Iron Man stories of that era. I expected that they would be. I only mention it now because you - Aberzombie - also mentioned two weeks ago that you got Iron Man issues from the 100s. Maybe you've read some of them recently and have your own opinion you might like to write about.
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I was reading, bagging and boarding some of the old Marvel G.I. Joe comics I acquired awhile back, and couldn't help but recall the glory days of my youth, when the cartoon was on TV and the toys were everywhere.
Then I went further back to the even more glorious days of my earlier youth in the 70s, when the 12" Joe action figures were super popular. Brother No. 3 and I had several of those, along with the action accessories. Hell, I had the capture opter.
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Been meaning to mention, awhile back I picked up the two-issue limited series X-Men and Alpha Flight from 1985. I hadn't been collecting X-Men at the time, so wasn't even aware it existed.
I came across it in the drawers my comic shop dedicates to collected series. Mostly just miniseries, but sometimes they'll have an entire ongoing series if the run was short enough. For example, they've got all the issues of the old Mark Shaw Manhunter run.
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Been meaning to mention, awhile back I picked up the two-issue limited series X-Men and Alpha Flight from 1985. I hadn't been collecting X-Men at the time, so wasn't even aware it existed.
I remember reading that limited series at my friend's house in the '90s. I liked the beginning of it. Instead of having a foe attack the heroes, the story seemed to take the opposite approach. A wonderful, lucky break seemed to happen, bringing a promise of healing and a new hope to Xavier's dream of peaceful co-existence. But of course, everyone knew that it was too good to be true. And I felt much less interested in the story when Loki took over. I was never a fan of Loki, nor of much of anything else connected to Marvel's Thor for that matter.
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Months ago I set aside my ROM Marvel volume three collection to read through some other stuff. Then I kind of lost track of it in the pile of reading materials on my little side table. I picked it up again the other day and read through a few more of the issues contained therein. Such an underrated series. The writing was top notch. And they had some great artists on that series.
Part of me kind of wishes Marvel would have the rights back. Then I recall how much of a dumpster fire modern Marvel is, and I think “Nah, just let the Energon Universe people have it.”
Once Rom left Earth near the end, the art IMO wasn't as good. I think they slacked off on it.
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Been meaning to mention, awhile back I picked up the two-issue limited series X-Men and Alpha Flight from 1985. I hadn't been collecting X-Men at the time, so wasn't even aware it existed.I remember reading that limited series at my friend's house in the '90s. I liked the beginning of it. Instead of having a foe attack the heroes, the story seemed to take the opposite approach. A wonderful, lucky break seemed to happen, bringing a promise of healing and a new hope to Xavier's dream of peaceful co-existence. But of course, everyone knew that it was too good to be true. And I felt much less interested in the story when Loki took over. I was never a fan of Loki, nor of much of anything else connected to Marvel's Thor for that matter.
This series is one of the few I kept actually looking for the opportunity to buy whatever the format.
I had bought and loved the french version when it first came out in my late teenage years, but nearly all of my collection then was lost to a fire some years later.
It seems that I wasted my money on all those Iron Man issues. It turns out that my friend's Iron Man collection is way more extensive than I had realized. I should have looked into that a long time ago. But once I found out, I borrowed dozens of his issues.
In this thread, I've expressed the opinion that David Michelinie's stories in the late 1970s began the Golden Age of Iron Man (which continued into the late 1980s). When I read my recent acquisitions, I found one letter commenting that Bill Mantlo began the good Iron Man run, and David Michelinie (his direct successor) continued that tradition. I felt intrigued. Should I say that the Golden Age began with Mantlo?
So last week, I started reading Mantlo's issues, including numbers 78, 86, and 87. I read 95 through 97, for which Mantlo scripted Gerry Conway's plots. (We talked about Conway in April on the occasion of his death.) I started reading the long "pure-Mantlo" run which began in issue 98. I covered from that issue through the end of 109. I should mention that issues 103-108 formed a big story arc, which read to me like early drafts of later, better stories, which used many of the same basic plots. I thought it important - if I were to make the comparison to the great Iron Man issues of later years - to read at least one major multi-issue epic, as I feel the greatest issues of the series were parts of such long sagas.
So, with 15 (or 18) Mantlo issues under my belt, I now feel qualified to call my opinion an informed one. And I've come to the conclusion that Bill Mantlo had his moments - I couldn't have read so many issues if they weren't at least SOMEWHAT good - but the greatness of the series was yet to come.
Well that was disappointing.
Three months ago, as I eagerly ordered 22 issues of Iron Man from David Michelinie's and Bob Layton's first run, I felt some disappointment that I couldn't include issue 117 with Bethany Cabe's first appearance, nor 118 with James Rhodes' first appearance. But the issues from before Demon in a Bottle were a bit too expensive by my standards. And 118? Forget it! It costs WAY too much! I tried to console myself by reading about Stark's first meeting with Rhodes, in a flashback story in 144, but it wasn't the same.
So I was very much surprised to learn that my friend had such a huge - indeed, complete - collection of that Iron Man run, including those two stories with the first appearance of each of those characters. It seems that back in the mid-2010s, those issues weren't nearly as valuable. He got issue 118 for only $4.94!
So this week, I read those stories. But 117 didn't do much with Bethany Cabe, presenting her only as a pretty face and a romantic interest for Tony. That issue didn't hint at her great heroic ability.
And if 117 wasn't much to speak of, 118 was just plain disappointing! That issue shows Rhodes for only 2 panels! Tony prepares to take his jet-copter to an airship for a SHIELD meeting, Rhodes prepares to pilot the copter, and Stark tells him "That's okay. I think I'll take her up MYSELF this time." And that's it! Rhodes doesn't even get to show us his piloting skills in that story, let alone any heroics! What a humble beginning for a character destined to become so prominent and important!
To someone wanting to get into Iron Man comics, I would recommend starting the way I did, with a Demon in a Bottle collection, reprinting 120-128. If you liked that, I would also recommend reading issue 129, with its satisfying aftermath. But don't bother getting the prelude in 117-119. The flashbacks in 120 will suffice.
During the last 2 months, as I read various issues of Iron Man - those that I recently bought, and those that my friend loaned me - I've been using this thread to describe what I've been reading, giving many of those issues reviews ranging from negative to lukewarm. It's high time I gave an issue a POSITIVE review. And at last, I can write one, for Iron Man #202.
For over a year, I've been raving about Denny O'Neil's Iron Man run, from issues 160 through 201, but that's misleading. O'Neil also wrote issue 158 (which I never even borrowed) and issues 203 through 208. Danny Fingeroth was the guest writer for 202, but so what? O'Neil was still the regular writer.
So yesterday, I read issue 202 with low expectations, just in case it had anything important for the story when O'Neil resumed the job. And I felt surprised at how much I liked it, even though it deviated from the ongoing plotline. The issue made me chuckle, while still keeping the situation looking serious. The characters were... interesting, even if they weren't as fascinating as in my favorite issues. And the capabilities of the new and improved Iron Man suit were impressive, and the story used those abilities in ways that I found plausible... by comic book standards, anyway. (That has not been true of all the Iron Man issues I've been reading lately.)
So I was all ready to write a message like this one yesterday. But before I did, I thought I would just read the letters in issues 203 through 208, which talked about issues 195 through 202. And when I did...
Oh my god.
OH MY GOD!!!
One letter that I read...
OH MY GOD!!!
I have to write a whole separate post just about that!
But - darn it! - I have to go to work now.
So... months ago, I ranted in this thread about my disappointment at the revelation - in Iron Man issue 198 - that the woman in the shadows wasn't Indries Moomji, but Madame Masque. One reason I disliked that aspect of the matter was that I didn't get it. In issues 198 through 201, Madame Masque, Bethany Cabe, and Obadiah Stane said, thought, and did things that made no sense to me. What was that whole subplot all about, anyway? I thought that maybe if I knew more about Madame Masque I might understand the matter better, so I read a bunch of older stories about her, and concluded that she was pathetic and uninteresting. I didn't care about her. And she wasn't the right woman for Stark.
Yesterday, and this morning, I was reading the letters in issues 203 through 208, which talked about issues 195 through 202. I sometimes find readers' views to be interesting.
And when reading the letters printed in issue 207, I found that someone figured out the big implied secret that I had missed. It explained everything! I re-read a lot of scenes in issues 198-201, and it all made sense! I haven't yet read issues 203 and 204, which - I feel safe in assuming - will officially reveal the secret, but yes, I'm sure of it. The truth is that...
Well, that changes things, doesn't it? I don't care about Madame Masque, but I love Beth! I look forward to finding out what Beth does.
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I read another 6 issues or so of Iron Man, and although I appreciate getting the continuity that set the stage for the Armor Wars / Stark Wars, I grew tired of Iron Man, and for that matter, of superheroes in general. When I went to the library last week, I checked out comics of four DIFFERENT genres - that is, not the superhero genre. For instance, I got a hardback reprinting a 6-issue James Bond story called Vargr. I enjoyed reading it. I haven't seen a James Bond movie - or, in fact, ANY spy movie - since the 1990s.
"And get a proper holster, 007. That floppy chamois leather thing will kill you one day."
"A hard holster would spoil the line of my suit."
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...and - since I would regard the Golden Age of the X-Men as having begun when Chris Claremont became the regular writer in 1975 - the Sentinels' first appearance in that era.
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Forgot to mention, while I was in my comic shop this weekend, there was a couple talking with the manager about a collection the brought in: lots of Conan, Eerie, and some other horror stuff.
However, the collection also had all 100 issues of New Mutants. I have most of that run, but am missing 17 issues. If things go well, I won’t be missing them much longer.
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I saw that someone has done a documentary about Bill Sienkiewicz. That might be something worth seeing. I think it's being called That Polish Guy: The Bill Sienkiewicz Documentary.
And it reminds me...I recall Sienkiewicz putting out a book about his art years ago. I think it was called Revolution. I didn't buy it at the time, but am maybe thinking about hunting it down now.
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Reading through some more old Captain America comics, and I’m realizing something. Gruenwald introduced the Bar with No Name, a place where criminals could hang out. There were multiple bars in multiple cities. And I don’t think Gruenwald ever revealed the name of the owner. So I wonder if the ever had a particular owner in mind.
I have X-Factor Annual #1. I got it during the height of my X-Men fandom, over a quarter-century ago. I remember the basic premise of that annual. The team busted up a Soviet installation that was experimenting on mutants, and in the process, had to face off the Crimson Dynamo, a high-tech-armored enemy of Iron Man. That annual came out in 1986. In 1988, Iron Man - in the 229th issue of HIS series - fought the Crimson Dynamo and permanently disabled that villain's armored suit. I read that a few times in my Armor Wars trade paperback.
And Iron Man issues 200 and 201 finished the 42-issue Stane Saga, about which I've been ranting and raving on this thread for years, and which I've read twice. Issue 200 presented the final battle with Stane, and 201 wrapped it all up with a kind of an epilogue. And I've talked about a bunch of issues shortly after those, just last month on this thread. I'm not even bothering to link to my comments on them; just scroll up on this page.
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Picked up some back issues yesterday. There were a handful of Iron Man issues from closer to the end of volume 1. Nothing really special there.
And then there was Detective Comic 236, from back in 1956. It’s marked as a key issue because it had the debut of the Bat-Tank. Anyway, it was in decent condition at a 5.0.
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Although I love the character, I’ve never been a big collecter of Spider-Man. Except the old McFarlane series. I collected that. Yet I did have a handful issues of his other books, including ASM.
So, I’ve been toying with the idea of getting more ASM. The old stuff, of course. That first volume. Today I started down that road. Only picked up four issues, but thought it was a good start: #’s 83, 123, 152, and 154. I’ll pick up more as time goes on.
I think the Spider-Man story was never better than when Stan Lee was writing it in the 1960s. I sometimes reflected that one major reason I was always a bigger fan of DC Comics than of Marvel was that I reached a discriminating age in the 1980s, after DC had managed to improve tremendously. Had I been alive in the 1960s, coming of age at THAT time, and seen Spider-Man and the X-Men when they first started, while the best DC series I might have found at the time might have been that of the Legion of Super-Heroes (in the pages of Adventure Comics), I might have become a bigger fan of Marvel Comics instead.
Well, I base that on having read the first 3 volumes of The Essential Spider-Man, which got as far as issue 68. By the end of that, I was starting to feel that Stan Lee had run out of good ideas, and his writing was growing unconvincing, which is why I never got volume 4. So I can't speak to issue 83.
But I DID read a reprint of "The Night Gwen Stacy Died", the story originally presented in The Amazing Spider-Man issues 121-122, which so drastically changed the whole history of comic books. I've seen even DC's comics show the tremendous influence of that Marvel story. I've been thinking about it quite a bit in the months since Gerry Conway's death. I expect issue 123 must have shown one heck of an aftermath.
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I remember those! They were referenced when Murlon when on his alt. Spider-Man killing spree. Since everything took so long to happen, he left in disgust.
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I got lucky on back issues yesterday. The store had someone bring in a box of back issues, and they were going through a stack when I arrived. I noticed one of them was Wolverine #8 (with that sweet grey Hulk cover), which is the only early issue I was missing. So now I own that finally!
That box also had some Captain America issues I was missing as well...#'s 282, and 402-408 (the arc that introduced Capwolf). So, more off the gap list!!!
I also picked up some stuff the store had already: ASM #122 (death of the Green Goblin) and Captain America #101.
So a good day!
I also picked up some stuff the store had already: ASM #122 (death of the Green Goblin)...
Whoa! I read my friend's copy of "The Night Gwen Stacy Died" and "The Goblin's Last Stand", but those were reprints... in Marvel Tales, I'm pretty sure. An original Amazing Spider-Man issue 122 (which first presented that second story I just named) must have cost you a pretty penny.