Comic Book Plus Forum
Comic And Book Related => Comic Talk => Topic started by: gregjh on July 13, 2021, 03:29:10 AM
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This series has been mentioned on the forum before but to my knowledge, no detailed reading or review has taken place.
Project Superpowers is a modern resurrection of the Golden Age heroes, almost all of whom are reviewed in my fizzfop reading corner (also on this forum). The writers cleverly decided to incorporate the ending and massive effects of very real wars which so defined these characters in the first place as the reason for their fall into obscurity. The series must have been at least reasonably popular as it spawned many spinoffs.
The first issue is actually available legally free on Amazon
(https://amzn.to/3xHSRJy (https://amzn.to/3xHSRJy)). The more I enjoy it, the more issues I will buy, read and review. As always, feel free to join me or not.
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I actually reviewed and nitpicked the series over on NitCentral (http://nitcentral.philfarrand.com/cgi-bin/discus/discus.cgi) but I'll repost my reviews here.
By KAM on Tuesday, December 29, 2009 - 12:39 am:
Project Superpowers Chapter One Writers Alex Ross & Jim Krueger - Artists Stephen Sadowski, Douglas Klauba, Carlos Paul & Alex Ross - Dynamite Entertainment - Color
This collects stories from Project Superpowers #0-7
Being a fan of comics I've had an interest in various comics, including Golden Age characters from publishers other than DC & Marvel, so Project Superpowers interested me because it's roster includes those Golden Age characters who have fallen into the public domain. Not quite the same as reading the original tales, but I was interested in how it would turn out.
Pretty good, actually.
The basic story is that during World War II it was discovered that Hitler had Pandora's Box (an urn actually). It's believed that in the thousands of years since Pandora opened it all the evils & hope she had released had been drawn back into the box until Hitler found it & opened it causing both his rise to power & the birth of superheroes & it was further believed that if the heroes could be drawn into the box that evil would go as well, so the Fighting Yank secretly captured most of his fellow heroes & 60 years later was told that what he did was wrong.
Breaking the urn, he & the Green Lama discover that Dynamic Man & Dynamic Boy don't want the heroes returned, but the heroes are returning around the world changed by their time in the urn.
By KAM on Saturday, May 08, 2010 - 1:09 am:
Project Superpowers: Chapter Two, Volume One Writers Alex Ross & Jim Krueger - Artists Edgar Salazar, Stephen Segovia, Alex Ross, Jae Lee, John Cassaday, Lucio Parrillo, Stephen Sadowsky, Mark Texeira, Michael Golden - Dynamite - Color
This collects stories from Project Superpowers: Chapter Two #0-6
Mysteries are deepening, some people aren't who they seem to be, some returning heroes are being brainwashed to fight against other returned heroes, while others misunderstand what is going on.
Not a bad continuation of the story, but not as good as the first collection. Unfortunately with so many characters around a lot of them get short shrift & some don't even get properly identified.
Better as part of the overall storyline, but I wouldn't recommend it as a starting point.
By KAM on Monday, July 26, 2010 - 12:31 am:
The Death-Defying 'Devil Volume 1 Writers Alex Ross & Joe Casey - Artists Edgar Salazar, Andy Smith, Alex Ross, John Cassaday, John Romita Sr., Steven Segovia & George Tuska - Dynamite - Color
This collects stories from The Death-Defying 'Devil #1-4 & Free Comic Book Day Edition
'Devil tracks down the terrorist organization the Claw & its connection to The Claw that Daredevil fought in the 1940's, meanwhile someone who believes 'Devil to be an impostor gains superpowers & tries to fight him.
Brings back heroes Silver Streak (whose book Daredevil first appeared in) & The Ghost (who first appeared in Daredevil's original comic) & one of the Little Wise Guys (Daredevil's sidekicks).
Not bad, it does fill in a few holes I encountered in Project Superpowers Chapter 2 & sets up some interesting mysteries. (One hopes TPTB actually have answers to these questions they keep bringing up.)
Masquerade Volume 1 Writers Alex Ross & Phil Hester - Artists Carlos Paul, Jean Diaz, Manny Clark, Alex Ross, Frank Cho, John Romita Sr. & George Tuska - Dynamite - Color
This collects stories from Masquerade #1-4
The story starts after WWII & fills in the backstory of Miss Masque & her interactions with other heroes & family, up to her imprisonment in Pandora's Urn & release when she becomes Masquerade & finally answers a family mystery that had plagued her.
Not bad. Not essential to the overall Project Superpowers storyline, but it does flesh out the character more.
Black Terror Volume 1 Writers Alex Ross & Jim Krueger - Artists Mike Lilly, Alex Ross, John Romita Sr., Greg Land, George Tuska & Tim Sale - Dynamite - Color
This collects stories from Black Terror #1-4
Not bad. Is actually important to the overall Project Superpowers storyline as is fills the space between the original PS collection & "Chapter 2". Introduces the Liberators (heroes who are siding with the corrupt President West), the Inheritors (the former sidekicks & kid heroes banded together) & the heroes taking over the White House.
By KAM on Thursday, November 03, 2011 - 4:43 am:
Project Superpowers: Meet The Bad Guys Writers Alex Ross, Joe Casey & Jim Krueger - Artists Alex Ross, Jonathan Lau, Mike Lilly, Carlos Paul, Jackson Herbert & Doug Klauba - Dynamite - Color
This collects stories from Project Superpowers: Meet The Bad Guys #1-4
The Green Lama fights a new villainess called Bloodlust. (Ho-hum. She comes off like a '90s bad girl.)
The Fighting Yank deals with the Revolutionary, a directionless spirit of America. (A potentially interesting character, but future appearances will tell.)
Samson fights the god Dagon. (Seems to owe more to the H.P. Lovecraft version of Dagon than mythology.)
Scarab and the Supremacy. (More information on the world's shadow government, but not as much as I was hoping for.)
Not bad, but not essential to the series.
By Keith Alan Morgan on Sunday, May 13, 2012 - 11:07 pm:
Project Superpowers: Chapter Two Volume Two Writers Alex Ross & Jim Krueger - Artists Alex Ross, Edgar Salazar, Stephen Segovia, Jonathan Lau, Stephen Sadowski, - DC Comics - B&W
This collects stories from Project Superpowers: Chapter Two #7-12
A number of questions are answered, several plotlines come to a finish, and even a reason for the existence of superheroes is given in this volume.
A nice wrap-up to what has come before.
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Project Superpowers is primarily concerned with the Better/Nedor stable. These are still PD and always were, so anybody can use them and many have. There are still some new ones out there, some of them mentioned elsewhere on CB+.
I found Project Superpowers very disappointing.
I much prefer what Alan Moore did with those characters in his 2 Terra Obscura miniseries.
https://comicvine.gamespot.com/terra-obscura/4050-11144/
https://comicvine.gamespot.com/terra-obscura/4050-11145/
Scrounge,did you review this one? I would like to read that.
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No. I'm not a fan of Moore's work so I haven't looked up his other stuff.
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I've always been interested in Project Superpowers and Terra Obscura but I haven't read any of them, sadly. They are still in my to-read list.
My passion for Public Domain superheroes came from Alex Ross' wonderful art for Project Superpowers. I was already a Golden Age fan, but I just knew Marvel and DC's heroes. Those drawings made me interested in those characters and I started researching about them, and that's how I stumbled upon this site.
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I'm in agreement with Panther in preferring what Moore did with characters. My main complaint with both iterations is the treatment of The Black Terror, a superhero I discovered many years ago and loved his great costume and daft adventures. I now have a few ga comics in my collection. Exciting covers, good art later on, but even at the start I found the adventures highly entertaing. Whereas in Dynamite's books and Moore's work, The Terror isn't the Terror. Computer simulation or a bloke with a big sword and a galleon.
I won't go on another rant about Dynamite except to say that the idea of the urn seems familiar. Oh, yes, A.C. Didn't they do something similar, but first?
Not enamoured of Dynamite.
The fascination with Mr. Ross and his work has somewhat passed me by. I understand why it's popular. However, it all looks very samey and a bit lacking in emotion. As if the figures were taken from photos. No bad thing, I suppose - Jean Claude Claeyes springs to mind. But to appreciate The Black Terror go to our Better/Nedor/Standard section:-
https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=968
The earlier issues are pretty much basic superhero art of the time but the adventures are good fun. Have a read then go to say # 24. By this time, The Terror doesn't exhibit the super strength and invulnerability of earlier issues - mind, he might have been invulnerable but a bang on the noggin was always enough to lay him out - but many stories are drawn by Jerry Robinson and Mort Meskin and they are really well done. George Roussos supplies some stories also. Some of you might find them old fashioned looking but i much prefer them to anything done by Mr. Ross. But then, I am a grumpy old man.
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The fascination with Mr. Ross and his work has somewhat passed me by. I understand why it's popular. However, it all looks very samey and a bit lacking in emotion. As if the figures were taken from photos.
Yes, they are and I wish more Artists would do that or work with models which he also does and many serious artists do.
for one character he used his Father for a model. For the original Captain Marvel he uses photos of Fred MacMurry! I don't fault him technically as an artist, but I'm in agreement with Paw. After a while there is a sameness - something static - about his work. I think the work of his I like best were his covers for ASTRO CITY. I think particular work inspires and brings out the best in creative people.
I miss that series.
Cheers!
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I think the dynamic art of the interiors and the art of the covers for a comic must not be confused and compared. Alex Ross is a great cover artist, probably the best hyper-realist comic book artist, but he doesn't work (or at least he's heavily limited) concerning the interiors.
Making a comparision between the interior art of a Golden Age comic and the cover/static art of Alex Ross is a bit forced. They are completely different types of art, and Alex Ross grew up (artistically) in a completely different environment.
I think that comic book art can't be considered all the same, there are different categories and types of art for different parts of the comic (covers, interiors...) and different eras.
Alex Ross is, in my opinion, a great artist. Not every artist must focus on dynamism and emotion, and Alex Ross mostly focuses on static poses and making the characters as much realistic as possible but still keeping the retro charm of the original costumes. It's not something that many artists could achieve: managing to make superheroes look like they were real, without reimagining completely the costumes to make them more plausible in the real world.
On the other hand, I love Golden Age art too: Jack Kirby, Mort Meskin, Basil Wolverton, Bob Fujitani, Irv Novick. I would put all these people in my list of favourite artists, including more recent ones and Alex Ross, because every artist is unique after all, and every artist tries to convey a different aspect of what he's drawing.
This was just to say that it's not a fair comparision to put Alex Ross against other artists that operated in different historical periods, with different techniques and with a different aim.
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Good points well made Fra. However, we all have preferences and mine is that I prefer the Robinson/Meskin version of The Black Terror. To me it just looks better. But I was going on as much about the treatment of the character as the look. I don't particularly like how he's portrayed in the Dynamite version. I should be able to accept that this is really a different character but I'd rather not.
I'm also not sure that you can't compare artists in different periods. Hal foster with Hans G Kresse - discuss.
Mr. Ross did grow up in a completely different age but that doesn't stop Alan Davis doing amazing active covers and big movement interiors, with humour. Now there's a difference
Perhaps I just got very bored with Mr. Ross's sequential art. Covers are lovely, for a while, then they all look the same. It is all a bit staid. Only my opinion, you understand.
This is another good discussion on CB+ ;D
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Sure Paw, I completely understand :D
I just wanted to point out my opinion that there's some good art from every era, and that there are different types of art: dynamic art, static art, etc.
For example, I don't like Alex Ross' design for the Black Terror too (I find the sword and glowing eyes a bit unnecessary), but overall I tend to appreciate his art a lot.
After all, de gustibus non disputandum est.
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I think the dynamic art of the interiors and the art of the covers for a comic must not be confused and compared.
Well, A professional artist is going to do just that. Yes, Cover art is a discipline in itself, which is why some artists specialize in it. But an artist learns by looking at the work of others, so doing so is quite valid.
A creative person, Writer, Musician, Artist,Actor needs to look at the work of others to learn and grow and create her or his own vision.
Don't know if you have ever seen a visual artist's studio, but if you do you will find shelves of books and illustrations for reference.
Examples.
Neal Adams was probably the premier cover artist for Superheroes in the 70's and he also was clearly the primarily influence on the interior art of comics even up to the present day.
Jack Kirby was a master of covers composition, as I have pointed out elsewhere. Steranko demonstrated on some of his covers that he had learned from Kirby.
Will Eisner's Spirit Splash pages and covers are unique and masterly.
Wally Wood.
Steve Ditko
Michael Kaluta's covers for the Shadow are superb, but I don't think he was an appropriate artist for the interior stories and he did a lot of them.
[if you can find them - they are not on CB+, Bob Powell's Shadow covers are amazing too.]
[My memory is being triggered as I write!]
Don Heck's Face covers for comic media are to my eyes, amazing.
https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=814
These guys also did different things.
Alex Ross's concern is primarily for heroic anatomy, as in Greek or Roman statuary.
Neal Adams is concerned with dynamic motion and hitting you in the face to get an emotional reaction.
Kirby was concerned with how to direct your eyes - to and around the cover. The cues are subliminal.
CB+ is a smorgasbord of cover art.
Have a look at the Dell painted covers - mostly done by superb artists who also worked on covers for the Pulps. If Dell was still in business, Alex Ross, I'm sure would be working for them.
Carl Barks was also a superb cover artist.
This was just to say that it's not a fair comparison to put Alex Ross against other artists that operated in different historical periods, with different techniques and with a different aim.
I don't think is about 'putting Alex Ross against other artists' really. But I also don't think Alex Ross has much to worry about.
I enjoy a lot of Alex Ross's Work, how could you not? But just not all of it.
Cheers!
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This is what I was trying to remember. This is the new EXCITING comic book by Antarctic press, which is the latest depiction of these characters.
See what you think.
Exciting Comics
https://comicvine.gamespot.com/exciting-comics/4050-117116/
There are also a couple here that may surprise you - they are not all Nedor/Better characters.
Cheers!
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We'll done AP. I will get hold of some as I'm always curious about how old character are handled.
Going back to the Alex Ross thing, I was doing some research for an article and found illos that reminded me that Sted and Mrs. Peel were drawn into a crowd scene by Mr. Ross in Kingdom Come. Now that is cool. I also remembered that in a Prisoner comic, the duo are part of a group at a graveside. And in a Doctor Who strip, Captain Britain is involved in a bar brawl and is holding Steed above his head while Mrs. Peel is tapping the good Captain on the shoulder. Great weird crossover stuff.
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This is what I was trying to remember. This is the new EXCITING comic book by Antarctic press, which is the latest depiction of these characters.
See what you think.
Exciting Comics
https://comicvine.gamespot.com/exciting-comics/4050-117116/
There are also a couple here that may surprise you - they are not all Nedor/Better characters.
Cheers!
I'm a fan of Antarctic press. I learned a lot about that, unusually, when their founders testified in a legal case of tortious interference. Are these also GA heroes rebooted? If so, that is my next read for sure.
I am done with Issue 0 and Issue 1 of PS, review coming soon.
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Oh yes, these are GA heroes rebooted, and not only Nedor heroes. One cover shows what looks like a female Crimebuster. I've managed to get the first few issues and while tgere isn't that same raw vibe of a real GA comic, I've quite liked the first 2 or 3 issues.
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As I head to the end of issue one of Project Superpower, I think it's time to switch direction. Speaking of "direction", that's what is lacking most in PS.
Issue 0 moved slowly but seemed like it might be building to something: it comprised largely of a flashback of Fighting Yank and some kind of betrayal he committed upon the other heroes of his age in order to win the war. It introduced (poorly), a new character called Spirit and suggested that Yank may be sent on some kind of pilgrimage. It was uninspiring, but suggested plot development.
Issue one, however, was just more of the same. It consisted mostly of an incredibly tedious, meandering dialogue of an old man reflecting upon his past without ever really having a point. Upon being reunited with Green Lama, the biggest news from Bandit's old friend was....Lama's meditation skills and his ability to see and hear the same dull spirits Yank has been conversing with the whole time.
I truly struggle to even guess what the writer was aiming for here. While I realize that nostalgic characters can always be renewed by new accomplices or by falling on hard times - The TV Show Cobra Kai is an example of this done absolutely perfectly - there has to be some kind of plot, end goal, adversity, injustice, hurdle, anything to keep the viewer engaged. While Yank's pilgrimage may yet have some kind of story arc contained within it, I was so dejected by the end of issue one that I just couldn't bring myself to keep reading and find out what it was.
So I will turn to Panther's suggestion of Exciting Comics for another attempt at Golden Age heroes making a come back. The only question is: Do I continue this thread or start a new one?
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Ah, zero issues, the red-headed step-child of comics.
They're seen more as marketing and/or preview to a series rather than an essential part of the story. Hence they generally only give you info that is also included in issue 1. So if someone misses the zero issue, well, you didn't really miss anything that's not in an issue with a "real number".
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Gregjh,
by all means continue the thread.
Fits right in with the concerns of CB+.
And I'm in complete agreement with your analysis of Project Superpowers.
Scrounge, 'The Red-headed stepchild of comics?'
I'm not a ginger, but sometimes I could wish I was. More iron in the blood.
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Going back to Antarctic's Exciting Comics "revival", I don't think they are very good. Some of the art looks like what we saw in many small press superhero comics way back. I found some of the stories disjointed and after a while I realised I wasn't warming to the characters. I won't be trying any more of the run. An interesting experiment but in the end, a bit duff.
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My two cents worth, I was not terribly impressed with the Project Superpowers or the Terra Obscura books. Both suffered from some of the same problems: Hero vs. hero storylines despite a plethora of villains to draw upon, and changes to the core characters. And, a personal favorite, the Fighting Yank, didn't fare well in either.
With Superpowers, somehow being in the urn resulted in costume changes and arbitrary power changes for the sake of the plot. The covers and Alex Ross character sheets were pleasant to look at. But, the various minis are all over the place and inconsistent in their treatment of the characters. The Black Terror series had potential but they decided to double down on the pirate theme which has nothing to do with the character and don't start actually delving into his secret identity or building a life for himself until its cancellation was already announced. I found the Miss Masque and the Owl minis to be better and more character driven though also flawed.
Terra Obscura read like Alan Moore lite in that for the female characters, a lot of emphasis and story revolves around their sexual lives along with a woman being sexually threatened by a "hero".
What I want and what seems too much to ask is is to see the golden-age heroes in something like Busiek's and Perez Avengers. Written and drawn on model, epic adventures and lives while saving the world from all manners of supervillain, alien and supernatural threats. With as few legacy characters and changes as possible except for places where it's already built into the character.
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Panther, I didn't invent the term "red-headed stepchild", it's an old term used for something unwanted. I've also come across the phrase "beaten like a red-headed stepchild" which, um, yikes! I'd assumed it was an old English saying, but maybe it's more American since you apparently never encountered it in Australia.
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I'd assumed it was an old English saying, but maybe it's more American since you apparently never encountered it in Australia.
Oh, I got it that it was a traditional saying, sounded vaguely familiar. Probably UK in origin. Since Red Hair, along with pale skin and freckles, is a Celtic characteristic, I would think its origin would be in Anti-Irish or Scottish sentiment. A veiled way of saying something much more scurrilous. The English language and its slang lends itself to that kind of creativity. And no, Scrounge, I don't, for a second, ascribe those kinds of sentiments to you. You used the phrase effectively in a purely contextual sense. I love language and was just bemused by the phrase itself.
Cheers!
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I've tread this territory before, but I think it still bears thinking about. There has been an awful lot of re-booting old public domain characters over the last several years. Almost always the character is completely reimagined. A different costume, or a different backstory, or different supporting characters, or different powers, or a different milieu. Often all of the above. Some revivals are slicker than others, but they always make me wonder, Why bother to use this character in the first place?
The overwhelming majority of PD characters are unknown outside a small circle of fans, collectors, and creators. I could understand someone hoping to get a leg up on commercial success if the rebooted character had leftover name recognition, like the Lone Ranger or Zorro (neither PD, of course). There remain a fair number of potential readers who remember the TV Hornet or the Banderas Zorro and might try out a comic featuring those characters. But anyone who isn't a comics nerd and remembers GA public domain characters is either dead already or will be before too many more years pass. There won't be a recognition bump. Your success will depend entirely upon whether the character is interesting and the story and art are any good. Just like any new character created from the ground up.
Some years ago I bought the first few issues of a revival of Amazing Man. The art and presentation were professional; the story was adequate though it included too many modern superhero cliches. However the rebooted character had almost no connection to the Golden Age version. Time period, costume, personality, cast, powers, everything had been rejiggered. Which is fine...BUT The character would have had the same impact on the market if he'd been called The Green Glob instead. All you'd lose were the half-dozen comics geeks who knew who Amazing Man was.
So why bother doing a revival at all? The only reasons that I can imagine are (1) The new creator thinks the character is cool, but too old-fashioned. He really believes he's working on the same character even after he's updated it beyond recognition. (2) The new creator thinks he can save time and development effort by using a pre-existing character. However he puts in so much effort reworking the character that he might as well have started from scratch. (3) A creator thinks a character would have great potential if only he were in charge. In his attempt to realize that potential the creator, who didn't really have that much new to say, reprises the Marvel/DC/Whomever ideas he grew up with.
I don't have an argument with people grabbing PDGA characters and doing whatever the heck they want with them. They're public domain, after all. I just don't see the advantage of using a PD character when the series you create has nothing in common with the original but the name.
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I completely agree with you, Cashryan
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Crash said,
Some revivals are slicker than others, but they always make me wonder
Big subject.
One
The Silver Age was the first industry revival,
DC just brought back the same characters, changed in minor ways. Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman never stopped and they were joined by the Justice League, Flash, Green Lantern, Green Arrow and the only new one was the Martian Manhunter.
Marvel tho. was a different kettle of fish.
With Kirby's imagination, Ditko's visual flair and Stan Lee's marketing chops and ability to read the potential audience, they re-imagined the characters and placed them realistically in the 60's. So The Fantastic Four had a different Plastic Man, an Invisible woman, a very different Human Torch and a revamped Monster created by the king of the monster books. And an insect character who was grounded by his humanity.
There was nothing original about the Marvel Characters, but the context for the reimagining of these concepts was very different and you could tell that the creators cared about their creations.
They didn't revive the Golden age, they created something new from the elements of the Golden Age.
They had always been professionals from an early age and they weren't fans in the sense that the next generation [spearheaded by Roy Thomas] were. I also believe that one crucial fact never recognised was that by the 60's most of them had worked for a minimum of 2 decades and were mature family men. They were grounded.
What do 'fans' do. They get fixated on the characters they 'worship' and they want to lose them in the universe/world of the character. They often do 'fan fiction' and do drawings without getting any training.
Many of the 're-booting' and 're-imagining' of PD characters are therefore long on enthusiasm and short on craft.
Generally there has been no 'book' - little time spent on developing a world for the characters to inhabit and a cast of characters to give motivation and relationship. So it's hard for a reader to get hooked in the work and to keep buying the book.
The new 'Exciting' comic doesn't concentrate for long on one or two characters and develop a coherent story-line. They introduce many characters and don't have time to develop them properly.
Look at Marvel.
They started with one book, the FF. A little later the went to two and introduced Spidey. Then they tried the Hulk, that made three. But the Hulk failed at first. Gradually the monster books changed and we had half book stories of Antman, Iron Man, Thor and The Human Torch. They were already stretched creatively and the Human Torch never took off in his own book. Antman became Giantman and then Goliath, Iron Man changed his suit. Marvel kept making changes to make it right. Adapting and learning. But steady and slow.
MLJ's the Mighty Crusaders. I read that off the stands and hoped for good things. But it was clear that the creators hadn't learned much and basicity tried to recreate the 40's. There was little evidence of good editorial thinking. And Paul Reinman was absolutely the wrong choice as the artist. Dead on the page.
The 70's breakaway Atlas comics? These book also lacked good and fun writing and - to me- showed no respect for their prospective audience. None of the concepts or characters 'had legs' Just disappointing.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but you better be good and understand the original if you are going to imitate.
So I guess three things.
Understand your Audience/Market and respect them.
Have a good grasp of what stories make sense in contemporary times. [In the 60's Vietnam war comics were not a good idea.]
Have a professional level of craftsman [person?] - ship.
It's not easy. Even Marvel have had a hard time reviving their own Golden Age characters permanently.
They have bought them back many times but always differently.
Cheers!
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Yet another excellent discussion on CB+.
However, all the well thought out points above fail to take into account one particular aspect, the fan/ reader with bad taste - e.g., me and the likes of me. I loved and still do, The Mighty Crusaders. The sheer joy at seeing another superteam made up of strange ( to me, anyway) heroes was exciting. Bear in mind that I had never seen these characters in their GA versions. And that I enjoy the obscure. It's always been a mystery to me the Iron Man's big, grey, bulky suit was changed. Ok, sales etc. but I still prefer the limitations an unweildy bulk of the original. And in keeping with the power limits on Marvel heroes at the time, the original armour fitted in perfectly imo.
Sometimes I've had chats with fellow fans as to why DC used the characters they did at the dawn of the S.A.. The Flash rather than Johnny Quick. No Roboman. None of Law's Legionnaires apart from Green Arow, till much much later.
While I have great appreciation of Ditko's Spiderman - I love those issues and gave up the title shortly after Ditko's departure, I wasn't as keen on the FF, and much preferred the early Captain America tales. Bear in mind again, I'd had no or very little experience of GA heroes.
The one title that really brought me into DC silver age heroes was Showcase with Green Lantern. I just loved everything about it.
Atlas? My Bad taste again? That imprint got me going as well and I still think there was some merit in some of the titles. The Grim Ghost appealed, I suppose it was slightly reminiscent of Nick Jolly. I know a couple of fans who have collected the entire run of Atlas titles, and I have them digitally.
Same with the Harvey superheroes, I and a few others of my acquaintance have all the titles as physical issues. And again, Southern Knights, and Justice Machine and Twilight Avenger, and so on.
It's all about superheroes and often even though the quality isn't up to the standard of some mainstream titles - Marvel and DC have put out some dire stuff - it still appeals to many dyed in the wool fans. Although Eclipse Comics is another that slips below my idea of readable. In any case, I can get my fix of sheer quality here via, Cole, Fine, Eisner, Raboy, Robinson etc.
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Paw,
It's all about superheroes and often even though the quality isn't up to the standard of some mainstream titles - Marvel and DC have put out some dire stuff - it still appeals to many dyed in the wool fans.
Oh absolutely! It's like a quest. You get hooked and then keep looking for the Holy Grail. And every once in a while you find it. May only be a single issue rather than a series, or an arc or a run.
the fan/ reader with bad taste - e.g., me and the likes of me.
Bad Taste? No, I think it's more like a drinker who can't get his favourite tipple and so settles for whatever he can get, to feed the desire. It's not as enjoyable but it will do.
You missed the Charlton heroes! I hoped for great things from then. Bought all the Superhero Charltons off the comic racks. Expected great things, but they lasted less than a year. And in the min-60's it wasn't Marvel that kept me reading comics after I was supposed to have 'grown up' and stopped. It was the Gold Key stable. Dr Solar, Space Family Robinson, Magnus. Marvel came later. Showcase? I even liked the Sea Devils and Cave Carson.
I don't fault fans for being fans! But They have helped 'graphic art' reach a high level of respectability but they can be very one- dimensional, one-eyed and intolerant too!
Cheers!
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Panther, you're so right. Charlton heroes, and I include Blue Beetle pre Ditko and I have all the Charlton "bad" ones, were great fun and PAM on Thunderbolt still excites. Lovely stuff. Solar and Magnus, particularly Magnus, are lovely to read. But there is also for me The Super Heroes, The Owl, and Nukla and Brain Boy.
Charlton also had a superhero trio who appeared in the back of Thunderbolt, The Sentinels. We are getting somewhat obscure here, and I love it.
Oh well, go for it. Mentioning Justice Machine has pushed me to naming some other slightly more obscure teams that I collected, and enjoyed. But despite the fact that The Elementals appeared in a crossover with Justice Machine, I never took to them. What did float my boat, or at least gave me one paddle, was Hero Alliance. Interesting but a bit derivative. Victor was their main man.
And, Justice Machine also crossed over with Thunder Agents, although this was after Tower went belly up and the quality wasn't nearly the same. Thunder Agents were exciting. Great ideas, well drawn, quirky and unusual at the time. I still go back and read the originals. Dynamo's trick of turning the belt on and crashing down through a building never ceases to amuse and thrill. A trick emulated by other heroes. No Man was a genius idea.
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After following the discussion here I've had to reevaluate some of my comments. I completely ignored the Fan factor--doing a project because you're young, enthusiastic, and just loving to do comics. How soon we forget our roots. Many of these revivals seem like fan projects with much fancier production and printing than was available back in my own fanzine days. In my earlier comments I took it for granted that all the revivalists have the same goal: to find commercial success. I was thinking about the indy comic boom of the 80s, when countless mildly-talented and totally-inexperienced creative teams were convinced their project was going to be the next Ninja Turtles.
Today all I hear about online and off is building your brand, growing your enterprise, leveraging your social media presence, all that entrepreneurial bizspeak. Behind it is the promise that no matter what your product may be, if you market yourself properly you can sell it to Hollywood for a zillion dollars, declare yourself a libertarian, start a financial empire, donate to the Republican party and learn how to evade taxes. There's so much of this crap in the air that I automatically assumed it's entrepreneurial greed that motivates these publishing projects. It may not be! Some of these guys may just be passionate fans pursuing their personal dream of making comics.
Despite my snobbery I also enjoyed, and still enjoy, off-the-beaten-path comics. Magnus and Dr Solar were two early favorites (at least the plainclothes Dr Solar; I never warmed to the superhero version). And Brain Boy! I'd love to do a Brain Boy story. Being me, I'd keep the character in period and keep his rumpled suit and skinny tie. Not to mention the original dark-skinned Maria. Matt and Maria were modern American comics' first mixed-race couple until one day she suddenly turned pink. She also lost that revealing evening gown, more's the pity.
The Mighty heroes and the Dell superhero series were latecomers. I was moving up to high school and the Marvel books were entering their golden era. Being an aspiring comic artist I was always moved first by the artwork then by the character. So much good stuff was coming out back then! Not just Kirby and Ditko and the rest of the Marvel team. Ballantine Books released paperback reprints of EC science fiction stories, introducing me to Wood, Williamson, and Frazetta. Alberto Giolitti, Gold Key's nameless "good artist," was turning out TV adaptations, spy stories, Turok, and supernatural short subjects. Russ Manning was busting Tarzan out of the park. I confess I took a snooty attitude toward many books because the art didn't meet my standards. Hence my disdain for Paul Reinman's Mighty Crusaders and anything Bill Fraccio touched. Similarly my passionate devotion to the Tower heroes cooled with the departure of Wood and Co. and the coming of Ogden Whitney and Chic Stone.
Yet I really dug Charlton's B-grade heroes (except Son of Vulcan; see above). Alongside the super crowd we had Tiffany Sinn (despite Jim Aparo having developed into a fine Adams-school artist, I'm partial to his quirky ad-agency Charlton style), The Sentinels, The Fightin' Five, Thane of Bagarth, Sam Glanzman's Hercules, Sarge Steel (loved his film-noir episodes), Wander (great series), The Tyro Team, etc. ad infinitum.
I developed a soft spot for Nukla (nice Giordano art), Super Heroes, and Neutro. Dracula/Werewolf/Frankenstein not so much. Not only because of Bill Fraccio, but also because I couldn't believe a writer who'd name his heroine Miss Ann Thrope had anything but contempt for his subject. Funny name, though.
In closing I confess that I myself committed the very sins for which I admonished the current revivalists. I was certain I was ready to turn pro--I wasn't--and I sent D. J. Arneson a couple of Werewolf sample pages. Because I knew I had better ideas than the ones he'd paid for, in those two pages I changed Werewolf's costume, killed off his wolf sidekick, redefined his job, and gave him a new headquarters. What can I say? It takes one to know one.
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For lovers of Superhero comics and Golden Age heroes in particular, a happy medium between Fan created and professional is Big Bang comics.
Clearly a fan project but the books look professional in their tribute to comic book traditions.Some professionals [like Eric Larson for one] sometimes contribute.
If you miss the Golden Age or the Silver Age, this is the place to go.
All available on the internet if you look.
https://imagecomics.fandom.com/wiki/Big_Bang_Comics_Vol_1
This list is just of the Title Big Bang, not the total output of the Big Bang collective. There are one shots and mini-series too.
The Sphinx character originally appeared in fanzines.
Detailed article on Big Bang and rundown of the characters. Just reading this is fun.
Read it over breakfast!
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/ComicBook/BigBangComics
These books are a lot of fun.
Cheers!
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So why bother doing a revival at all? The only reasons that I can imagine are (1) The new creator thinks the character is cool, but too old-fashioned. He really believes he's working on the same character even after he's updated it beyond recognition. (2) The new creator thinks he can save time and development effort by using a pre-existing character. However he puts in so much effort reworking the character that he might as well have started from scratch. (3) A creator thinks a character would have great potential if only he were in charge. In his attempt to realize that potential the creator, who didn't really have that much new to say, reprises the Marvel/DC/Whomever ideas he grew up with.
I will probably read and review the "Exciting" comics this weekend.
Very well said, and I think you've hit the proverbial nail on the head. It's essentially lazy or self-indulgent writing. There is no reason a character cannot be revived in a new generation whilst also retaining the original qualities and character that made him or her a hero. This has been done successfully in TV, Film and at least once in comics. That once is Dynamite Thor by Jon Del Arroz, who stayed true to the original by portraying the superpowers as a family legacy, though Del Arroz noted sales were below his usual numbers whenever he revived GA heroes.
(https://ksr-ugc.imgix.net/assets/028/156/970/10908bf4500334f588c042be8b26f783_original.png?ixlib=rb-4.0.2&w=680&fit=max&v=1582160003&auto=format&frame=1&lossless=true&s=4204db08a8d5270220de8da1a253fe5d)
(https://ksr-ugc.imgix.net/assets/027/834/417/6c9320296b3d295f5b90c39e3b48ca72_original.jpg?ixlib=rb-4.0.2&w=680&fit=max&v=1579731111&auto=format&frame=1&q=92&s=3d7874389e6cb4ba1b8ffb02ba9ed873)
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AP, how could I not have mentioned Big Bang????? Great fun and most of them well done. Thanks for reminding me.
I was thinking about superhero teams - as you do, and there was a French team, Mikros, that I used to enjoy and I see there are 2 collections available. Jean Yves Mitton is the creator:-
https://www.planetebd.com/comics/series/mikros/9013.html
They are entertaining comics.
As I was looking for Mikros, I stumbled on this illo and a page on Italian "neri" "heroes", well, villains, many of them, although Fantax is in there which I find odd. Here's the illo:-
https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VaU_IamL5wQ/Xsuk0Zc6_hI/AAAAAAAADlA/9Z2-ktrpAa4egYXBu24fIAgAve3ho5CYACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Fum_nero_italiano.jpg
and some examples. WARNING, many are of an adult nature:-
https://bdmagexhumator.blogspot.com/2020/05/sadik-scantrad-inedit.html
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Just discovering this delightful topic, and I must say I have to give it my two cents, but time flies, and it's 12.45 AM here, so my first message won't be long.
Mikros is not the name of a team, it's the name of the purple one in the trio of superheroes - the other two being Saltarella and Big Crab. Interestingly enough, their first crossover in graphic novel form with Photonik (another superhero from the same publisher - created by Ciro Tota) is about a gala where every superhero is invited, and among them are some well-known characters from the US public domain. This GN is called "Mikros/Photonik : L'ombre et la lumiere" and it aw released in 2013.
I'll have more to say as a writer of PD characters, but it'll have to wait until tomorrow.
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Memory is a fickle thing and mine let's me down at times. My wife and I spent many holidays in France over decades and I drove her daft searching for bookshops, comic shops, newsstands, always looking for comics. I now remember stumbling on Photonik and thoroughly enjoying it. Was it Editions Lug? I could be embarrassing myself here. Then I discovered the Mikros team.
Can't wait to read your two cents, Florian.
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Well, I know memory may let you down sometimes, so don't worry. :)
Mikros and Photonik were published by Editions Lug in the 1980s, in a magazine named Mustang - because it was cheaper for the publisher to change the content of an already existing title than to create a new one. Mustang was originally a pocket-size, black and white western title, and went on that way after the "Sup'heros" parenthesis. Mikros was relocated to Titans (alongside comics from Marvel - we're talking Star Wars here) and Photonik was relocated to Spidey (with reprints of the original X-Men).
Now, to the Project Superpowers and the PD heroes.
Reading an Alex Ross interview about Project Superpowers really got me to the PD side of the Force in fall 2007. I had already read a bit about Daredevil and the Claw, and I think that left a mark, but knowing they were public domain really fascinated me. Discovering all these characters in small pictures painted by Alex Ross really kickstarted my imagination. I spent the next few months in 2008 searching for references, and even subscribed to goldenagecomics.
I finally read the first Project Superpowers hardcover in 2009-2010, enjoyed it, then had to wait another few years to read the next series. Maybe four years ago, I decided to read the whole thing again, including Death-Defyin' Devil and Black Terror. My opinion changed a little bit. Technically, most of the characters used in PS aren't really fleshed out or out-of-character, as if the writer didn't read much about them, or only used them to copyright these new iterations, just because they're available.
That said, I still like it. One must simply keep in mind they're not grandpa's superheroes. The whole project is aimed at new readers and creating a whole shared superhero universe for a publisher that didn't have any to start with. And bringing back PD superheroes from the forties sure gets more coverage than creating all-new characters from scratch. It did indeed. And so, many imaginations were kickstarted in the way.
To be continued in part 2! ;)
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Just a few short comments for the time being.
Technically, most of the characters used in PS aren't really fleshed out or out-of-character, as if the writer didn't read much about them, or only used them to copyright these new iterations, just because they're available.
Agreed.
One must simply keep in mind they're not grandpa's superheroes. The whole project is aimed at new readers
But they were grandpa's superheroes! Literally, in that the characters in this re-imagining are the same characters who 'went to sleep' at the end of WWII and woke up, not having aged, in the 21st century. And nothing very much is made of this in the narrative. Which stamps it very much as a 'fan' project in my estimation.
Cheers!
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Yes, they were grandpa's superheroes, but the whole thing is that they are reimagined, not being given a kind of clear continuity, because they become so different they're not our old heroes anymore.
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And now, here's my opinion on PD heroes from a writer's perspective.
When I discovered Project Superpowers, my first wish was to have Daredevil, Black Terror, Green Lama and the Claw in my comic projects, because they looked good on Alex Ross' paintings. Back in 2007, I already had my fanzine project but still had to choose one comic to focus on (for those interested in the Forgotten Generation fanzine, I made a thread (https://comicbookplus.com/forum/index.php?topic=18108) that I absolutely have to revive.). After a short brainstorming with me and myself, it appeared I was more inspired by the Dark Fates project. Dark Fates is a story of magic, undead and paranormal creatures. While I was sketching the first designs, I decided to replace one of my characters (the Pumpkin King) with the Claw, because it looked better. I also had further plans including the Green Lama and a descendant to Fighting Yank, but decided to use an altered version of the Fantom of the Fair and Thomas Carnacki instead. I included the Ghost Woman later on.
My decisions were based on the fact that the PD characters already had a backstory that could help me enrich my own characters and universe. Well, except the Claw, because when I drew it from memory, it didn't look the same - it became a lovecraftian character called Tzuha.
That said, I had many other projects that were superheroic, and using PD heroes. I must admit I, in turn, had taken the habit of taking these characters and twisting them a bit too much. My primary example is Red Ann, from Black Terror. I think I read it in these forums that the character had a perfect happy ending to her story. And because I needed a female character for my comic Esprit Vengeur, I chose to expand her story beyond this happy ending in order to fit my agenda.
Cause here is the point: you may never write Batman or whatever big league character you want, but you can have the next best thing in public domain. It's quite tempting opening the toy box and playing with all these toys that already have a story of their own that you can feel free to perpetuate - or starting your own. That's pretty much what Jim Krueger and Alex Ross did with Project Superpowers. Can't really blame them for that. AC Comics readers - circa 2000, if memory serves - may remember some of their Fighting Yank comics that mimicked Fighting American, because they couldn't have the rights to Simon & Kirby's character.
So Project Superpowers has this toy box effect, as the writers always bring more toys to it and play with them to their liking because, well, they can. And so do the AC people. And so do every writer and artist who open the toy box, be they professionnals or amateurs. That's the magic. :)
(I think I got a little carried away)
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Well expressed.
Thanks!
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I'm pleased to see that this thread has been really productive.
Following my disappointment with Project Superpowers (PSP) I have taken up the suggestion of Australian Panther and started reading Exciting Comics by Antarctic Press (AP). For context, I like the graphical style of AP but I am unfamiliar with the original incarnation of Exciting Comics and their heroes so I won't be able to comment on the differences between the originals and the new generation.
The word I would use to describe issue one of exciting comics is....exciting! Each of the three stories: BlackJaq, Crimson Scorpion and Madam Mask starts with a cold opening. This works well. I believe that while it might be easy for a character that is well established, not only his or her self but also in their settings and companions may benefit from a slow, melancholy opening (like a lot of Batman stories, for example) this is far harder to achieve with less prestigious characters or characters that are being revived. The greatest writers may be able to aim this high but the rest perhaps shouldn't, this was an obvious mistake made with PSP in my humble opinion.
So in Exciting Comics we have a female hero battling mafia protection rackets in NY, an explorer seeking an ancient Egyptian artifact in Syria and a master criminal who appears to be led into a trap that forces her superpower upon her. Each story also ends on a cliffhanger, leaving me thinking "What happens next?!" rather than "Can I force myself to continue?" as I did with PSP.
Exciting Comics have got off to a good start, will it continue? More reviews incoming.
(https://i.ibb.co/5xYBdJ7/Capture.png) (https://ibb.co/5xYBdJ7)
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gregjh,
Exciting Comics is here.
https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=976
Enjoy!
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Re Reivvals of Golden Age Heroes, was just researching Centaur Publications and found this - which I was previously unaware of:- '
Revival
In 1992, Malibu Comics revived several Centaur heroes?which by that time had lapsed into public domain?as the superhero team The Protectors. Malibu selected R.A. Jones to revamp and write the series[4] Included were Airman, Amazing Man,[4] the Arrow, the Clock (as a retired mystery man, then the President of the United States, Brian O'Brien), the Fantom of the Fair, also known as Fantoman (renamed by Malibu as Gravestone), the Ferret,[citation needed] Man of War,[4] the Masked Marvel (renamed Night Mask), Mighty Man, Prince Zardi the Eternal Man, and the Shark (renamed Thresher),[citation needed] as well as completely original characters,[4] such as Arc and Aura. Several of these characters had short-lived titles of their own. AC Comics reprinted a number of stories featuring Centaur characters in their anthologies.[citation needed]
R.A. Jones was approached by a small book publisher, Westerntainment,[5] to do a prose novel about the Centaur characters with the idea that the story take place in their original time period. By December 2014, his novel "The Steel Ring" was available. A second book, "Twilight War", was green-lit by that time.[4] Those Centaur heroes in Ring were Amazing Man, the Clock, Ferret, Iron Skull, Man of War plus others. In October 2016, "Twilight War" was available. Centaur characters add for the second novel included Airman, the Arrow, Eternal Man and Phantom Princess. Each novel would take place in a different year of World War II. So at the time of the second novels release, Jones had planned to do a total of seven books in the series for each year of the war.[5]
I will have to track those down.
Full list of characters used:-
Airman
Amazing Man
The Arrow
Black Panther
Blue Fire
Blue Lady
The Buzzard
The Clock (at the Comics Magazine Co., character sold to Quality Comics but reprints of CMC stories appeared at Centaur)
Dash Dartwell
Dr. Darkness
Dr. Hypno
Dr. Mystic
Dr. Synthe
The Electric Ray
The Eye
Ermine
Fantom of the Fair/Fantoman
The Fire Man
Iron Skull
King of Darkness
Liberty Guards
Magician from Mars
Man O'War
Marksman
The Masked Marvel
Meteor Martin
Mighty-Man
Minimidget
Miraco the Great
Nightshade
The Rainbow
The Sentinel
The Shark
Scarlet Ace
Skyrocket Steele
Solarman
Speed Centaur
Super-Ann (Two characters of the same name)
TNT Todd
Vapo-man
The Voice
Cheers!
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As a hopelessly addicted superhero fan I bought all those Malibu series at the time. It never occurred to me that Gravestone had any connection with Fantoman. A look back is needed. Ferret always seemed more like a Badger clone to me. Was it Ferret #1 That had the bullet hole cover? That should be in a box somewhere.
Thanks for the info Panther. Now some research to satisfy my curiosity.
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OK guys strap in, it's time for Exciting Comics issue 2!
(https://i.ibb.co/px3Hwfh/Capture.png) (https://imgbb.com/)
The comic starts with a short note from the editor explaining he wants to bring back heroes of the past abut also give them purpose. This is a simple but important message and it carries well through all three stories.
Each story picks up immediately or shortly after its cliffhanger from, issue 1. Having said that, we start with Blackjaq who is apparently a few days in from her previous encounter with a New York mafia gang extorting local businesses. Without spoiling too much, Blackjaq has created some serious waves within the mob and her actions have caused three villains to punish some of their own members and, presumably, set off after Blackjaq.
This story, like all three in the series so far, is an example of excellent pacing. Despite the very limited space, all three authors have managed to balance action without character development. There's one particular set of panels I like where a tired, dejected Blackjaq is looking in a mirror. We see that she is far stronger than a typical woman but she's still human. She's hurt, she's unsure and she's desperately tired. These are the type of heroes we can relate to, they may have special powers but they are still ordinary, fallible, people for the most part. This is what makes them likable and investable for the reader or viewer and it is why progressive ideology is anathema to good storytelling.
The villains in this story are lifted from an obscure comic called Bulletman in the fifties and they are called Murder Prophet, The Griever and Black Rat. They are cheesy against the backdrop or a semi-realistic New York but cheesy in the right way, like the Suicide Squad or GOTG.
The Second story, Crimson Scorpion, picks up the second after the previous issue. Scorpion is still somewhere in a desert and under a temple. He is confused about what has happened but has no time to think about it as his military escort are under fire. His powers are slowly revealed to him in the heat of the moment and there's a significant event at the end that makes him realise the profound nature of his new powers. Another excellent balance of action and development and well drawn, too.
Finally we have Madam Mask, the granddaughter of Miss Mask. Again, this story continues immediately from last time around and the new mask receives an education not only about her family legacy but also on the benefits of her costume. She immediately puts those benefits to use. At the end of the story Mask becomes aware of why she has suddenly been placed in serious danger and is nothing to do with the family name or legacy.
Madam Mask could easily have been a lazy rehash of a million and one superhero tales of yore but instead the writer and artist made an effort to make it something better. The colouring and artwork is modern and stylish and the script, despite treading the "your ancestors were heroes" turf that is so well-trodden, is great. For example, there's one panel that made me laugh when Madam Mask is having he grandmother's life story told to her by a family friend. Madam Mask asks: "So my grandmother punched Hitler?!" to which the reply comes: "No, but she punched Himmler.". Later she is also told that Miss Mask fought a dragon, a villain called Pahaohologist and the Nazi Okkultek. This story also ends on a good cliffhanger.
In conclusion, Exciting Comics has really knocked it out of the park so far. They have combined excellent artwork, enthusiastic and clever writers with a respect for heroes of the past. This is one I'm going to stick with.
(https://i.ibb.co/ZLHJYkR/image.png) (https://ibb.co/ZLHJYkR)
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Continuing to look at revivals and reiterations of [not-just Golden Age but Old school superheroes]
There is a lot going on out there in the indy world.
https://indyplanet.com
If the covers [for the new titles] are any indication of the insides, the quality is reasonable.
Some new characters, Eternity Smith reprints?
Quite a few Golden age reprint books.
Big Bang comics still going strong.
Also here is a Canadian comic book wiki.
Note the Standard Comics Encyclopedia.
And also the Graphic novel and Anthology collections.
https://canadiancomicbooks.fandom.com/wiki/Canadian_Indie_Comic_Books_Wiki
If you miss the Silver age, try these guys
http://www.oniriccomics.com/titles/
Cheers!
Cheers!
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I went to the Oniric Comics site. An interesting personal story by the publisher/writer/artist. An impressive number of titles. However I couldn't find a way to preview any of them. The bio says all are free to read online, but how does one access them?
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I have since had a look at many of them.
First - the print and publishing quality is high. The books are a mix of new material, reprints and and one-page pin-ups. In the original art, lots of swipes, but all credited. They obviously revere Ditko and Kirby. As who wouldn't?
When I say a mix, I mean that the mix is often within a single issue. There are also reprints of French comics, , translated, mostly SF, which I was happy about because there is so much french stuff that is hard to get and then not translated. The reprinted stories are clearly lovingly selected and not just random.
Cheers!
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I've known Chris Malgrain from Oniric Comics online for a while now. He's been active for two decades and I've been following him since his first publications. I have a collection of his early comics in a volume named Oniric, with superhero, jungle and sci-fi stuff from the Semic era. Some may actually be available in English through Hexagon Comics/Black Coat Press.
He's a good friend of one of my artists, and he granted us with a cover which I haven't shown to the world yet. ;)
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Well it's late on a Sunday but I really wanted to link up with my favourite comic forum this weekend so I made time to buy, download and read the first story of Exciting Comics Issue #3. I personally prefer paper copies of comics but the reality of where I live means that shipping fees often cost me three times the price of the comic itself, so unless it's available on bookdepository.com, I have to go digital.
So as mentioned, I only read the first story today, the rest will come later.
And as you will know by now, the first story of this Exciting Comics series is Black J...no..wait...what's this? Apparently it's Ghost featuring Black Jaq.
(https://i.ibb.co/HzcPZ81/image.png) (https://ibb.co/HzcPZ81)
And who the heck is Ghost? I have no idea. It may be this guy https://1900hotdog.com/2021/08/golden-age-comics-captain-ghost-%F0%9F%8C%AD/ (https://1900hotdog.com/2021/08/golden-age-comics-captain-ghost-%F0%9F%8C%AD/) but I haven't properly checked yet.
In any case, it quickly becomes clear that the literal and visual tone will change this issue. The story opens as Ghost prepares for a special ops military jump while considering his backstory, which is very macabre. Black Jaq only appears towards the end of this very short chapter and when the two characters first interact, the body language is interesting.
(https://i.ibb.co/hFb925K/image.png) (https://ibb.co/hFb925K)
It would be easy to assume they are a couple but it's not made clear. The story ends with Black Jaq and Ghost discovering a massacre.
It would be unfair and presumptuous to say that EC has finally failed to score a hit, especially with just one short story to judge by, but I have to say this is the first time I've felt unsatisfied. The story opened up so many questions: Why is Ghost suddenly replacing Black Jaq? Does this mean the previous Black Jaq story has ended early? Are Black Jaq and Ghost romantically involved? If so, why did he not come to her aid against the NY Mafia? If not, why is their body language so close? Is it lazy writing or drawing? Why is Ghost suddenly working Special Forces? What is the drop he is suddenly involved with?
Also, without dropping spoilers, the back story for Ghost really didn't make sense to me.
Perhaps many of these questions will be answered in future editions, and I'll certainly be reading them. I'll also be returning to the FizzFop reading corner when Fizzfop actually makes some new videos. For now though, I hope the rest of EC #3 will be less of a sudden switch.
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The Ghost (II): 1941, Daredevil Comics #5 (Lev Gleason). Brad Hendricks had it a bit tougher than most heroes. Instead of starting as a star in his own strip, he starts out as an adversary against both Hitler and the monstrous Claw. He had no superpowers but he had the Ghost Plane to help even the fight. http://www.herogoggles.com/Heroes/G_heroes.htm
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The Ghost (II): 1941, Daredevil Comics #5 (Lev Gleason). Brad Hendricks had it a bit tougher than most heroes. Instead of starting as a star in his own strip, he starts out as an adversary against both Hitler and the monstrous Claw. He had no superpowers but he had the Ghost Plane to help even the fight. http://www.herogoggles.com/Heroes/G_heroes.htm
I was hoping to find some details of his Ghost Plane. There were several attempts to create invisible aircraft, both in WW1 and WW2.
There was a WW1 biplane skinned in "Isinglass" , the flexible transparent material used to make windows for touring car convertible tops. It looked like a ghostly skeleton of an aircraft.
During WW2 some Catalina Flying Boats were fitted with small lightbulbs along the leading edges of the wings, controlled by light meters aimed at the sky behind the craft. The light emitted being exactly the same level as the sky behind the craft enemy lookouts could not spot an outline so the eye was fooled. These planes had notable success in bombing Japanese shipping.
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There was a WW1 biplane skinned in "Isinglass" , the flexible transparent material used to make windows for touring car convertible tops. It looked like a ghostly skeleton of an aircraft.
Mica, or one of the other substances called isinglass? (Be funny if it was the one made from fish bladders.)
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There was a WW1 biplane skinned in "Isinglass" , the flexible transparent material used to make windows for touring car convertible tops. It looked like a ghostly skeleton of an aircraft.
Mica, or one of the other substances called isinglass? (Be funny if it was the one made from fish bladders.)
Mica I'm sure.
I suspect the experimental invisible biplane was the inspiration for Wonder Woman's invisible plane.
PS
While the old source I first read on this aircraft identified the covering as Isinglass the Wikipedia entry states they used "Cellon" a German manufactured form of cellulose acetate. Cellulose acetate had been around since 1865 and was used to make transparent coatings for playing cards and such. In the 1930's this material replaced the nitrate films used by the movie industry, being less likely to catch fire and IBM used it for the magnetic tape used by early computers.
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And so today I returned to Exciting Comics Issue 3 to catch up with the next tale: Crimson Scorpion.
As you may recall, this story has so far taken place in an Egyptian desert, within an underground shrine or temple of some sort as the protagonist, Professor Kocian discovers his powers by accident.
This part of the story takes place a few hours after the events of issue 2. Things are notably slower in this issue and the dialogue between the professor and his comrade quickly drops in to exposition and sarcasm. This gets worse as they return to their base. I won't divulge too much about the script to avoid spoilers but I will say that it dips so much from issue 2 that I had to go back to that issue and check the writer (David Furr) was the same person across all three issues. The artwork was interesting. The first time I saw this exaggerated lighting effect on one character, it caught my attention. By the time it was repeated for the third time, I was less impressed.
(https://i.postimg.cc/svc0TRQZ/image.png) (https://postimg.cc/svc0TRQZ)
Other images, such as the lead female character in a bath robe, I felt were slightly self-indulgent on the part of the writer and artist.
On a brighter note, the final two panels still had make looking forward to the next issue.
The next story in Exciting Comics 3 is...Mary Miracle. Hmmm, who is this? Never heard of her. Let's see how the story begi...
aaaaaand it's gone!
Yep, two whole pages of that story. I guess it's a trailer for the next issue.
So the final story is not Mary Miracle but Bureau of Alien Detection And Supernatural Sightings...you get it? Get it?
That was the final straw for me. I'll give Exciting Comics the benefit of the doubt and call this the first miss in the series. Review of issue 4 coming soon(ish).
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Well, greg, I got to #7 but it was a trial. After an interesting and not bad start, the stories quickly became poor stuff. I am curious to find out how far you get. Good luck.