COMICS!!! |OT| March 2020 | According to Ireland, St. Patrick threw all the snakes out of ComicERA. He missed some.

[SeanShards]

I don't think it's a lost cause at all. The problem, to me, has been the fixation on the star writer and letting them loose at the expense of the universe around them, because it inevitably ends with a big fat reset. Once I clicked to that is when it became really hard for me to enjoy modern superhero comics.

For sure this doesn't mean the comics have to constantly cross over and reference one another, but the ongoing adventures of the characters and their status quo shouldn't be in a constant state of upheaval.

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For me, a big thing I would do (I am not a writer) is I would try and introduce more characters to supporting casts who are not superheroes. I feel like that's a big issue. You can't tell stories with new characters without CROSSOVER TEAMUP OMG and, tbh, it kinda sucks.

 

[Weiss]

Imagine if Dwayne McDuffie didn't have to bend to what was happening to the JL in other books? We might have a legendary run rather than a giant missed opportunity.

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Conversely, imagine if Mark Millar wasn't allowed to ruin the Marvel universe for a solid four years.

 

[Deleted member 64377]

I'm so glad that Taylor keeps taking jobs like Injustice and DCeased.

 

[Lashley]

I'm so glad that Taylor keeps taking jobs like Injustice and DCeased.

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Yeah, hes dope

 

[Sandfox]

"letting writers play with their favourite characters" should be the major aim of superhero comics.

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But then we wouldn't have a Flash book.

 

[Astro Cat]

Spoiler

I'd need to reread, but it's still super whack that they're allowing other people to make decisions for other people regarding what they remember. Though it's just another thing that will go horribly wrong, as all memory manipulation tends to go lol.

The sacrifice thing popped up in X-Men #3, Krakoa needs physic energy at the equivalent of 2 mutants. So they spread that energy consumption among the population, and Selene is the manager of that. I'm probably misremembering part of it but that's the gist iirc.

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It's super fucked. And will end terribly. I just assumed since he was the only one to hear her request he just lied to her. Which again is fucked. Especially after his suicidal talk in 8 where he was begging her to do just that.

I must've missed that in X-Men 3, but good to know. Another Krakoa rule that seems destined to end horribly. Most of them will except "everyone fuck!".

 

[SeanShards]

But then we wouldn't have a Flash book.

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Williamson will be in the bunker writing another anniversary issue of Flash while the bombs are dropping.

THEN
NOW
FOREVER

 

[Weiss]

For me, a big thing I would do (I am not a writer) is I would try and introduce more characters to supporting casts who are not superheroes. I feel like that's a big issue. You can't tell stories with new characters without CROSSOVER TEAMUP OMG and, tbh, it kinda sucks.

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Yeah like, remember how refreshingly normal it was when Kamala Khan burst onto the scene and suddenly it was like having a modern take on Silver Age Spidey?

Now she's everywhere and has her own alien costume and shit's gone weird and she kept showing up in team books.

"letting writers play with their favourite characters" should be the major aim of superhero comics.

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I disagree with this on a fundamental level.

It's super hard to come into cape comics nowadays as a writer without some deep abiding love for the character you're writing, but you're a writer first and foremost. You're here to tell stories fitting for the characters, not yourself.

 

[whatsinaname]

"letting writers play with their favourite characters" should be the major aim of superhero comics.

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What do you do when every writer's favourite comic is Batman and wants to do a redefining run and change up the status quo?

 

[SeanShards]

What do you do when every writer's favourite comic is Batman and wants to do a redefining run and change up the status quo?

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[Deleted member 64377]

You're here to tell stories fitting for the characters, not yourself.

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Characters are just tools for expression. It's what you use them to express that matters. Thoughts, feelings, values, etc.

 

[Eleriu]

I've heard mixed things about King's Batman. It's a run you either like, don't like, or are meh on.

And my IST order (Morrison's Batman Omni vol.1 and Sunstone vol.1) has shipped which is most likely going to be my last one until the virus decides to chill out. This means The Omega Men deluxe edition releasing next month will have to wait sadly. :<

 

[Sandfox]

Williamson will be in the bunker writing another anniversary issue of Flash while the bombs are dropping.

THEN
NOW
FOREVER

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I wouldn't be surprised if he like Wally better though and DC ain't letting him do crap.

 

[Deleted member 64377]

until the virus decides to chill out

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[Weiss]

Characters are just tools for expression. It's what you use them to express that matters. Thoughts, feelings, values, etc.

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These aren't our characters, though. They're officially somebody else's toys, and the next bloke on the job has to make an interesting little show out of it.

I think I'm getting away from my main point, that the phenomena of the star writer hurts more than helps. That these guys with the clout to write whatever they want do so with no regard for how it fits into the neverending second act of superhero comics. They tell their story, reset everything and move on, and I can't think of a more damning reason not to read a series than the foreknowledge that everything that it made me feel won't matter once it's over.

I think that's why you see so many D-list revivals nowadays, like Jimmy Olsen and Omega Men. Because nobody is ever going to retcon them to hell to fix the iconic depiction of Jimmy Olsen.

 

[Eleriu]

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Ha ha. If only Dr. Mario could solve this for us.

 

[Freezasaurus]

Ha ha. If only Dr. Mario could solve this for us.

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If he did, Trump would still take credit for it. That fucking orange cunt.

 

[SeanShards]

Ha ha. If only Dr. Mario could solve this for us.

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[Porl]

I had been meaning to make this post for a while so thanks BKatastrophe for bringing it up.

When it started, I loved king's batman from the very beginning. And I really liked all of the arcs, even war of jokes and riddles, up to the Cold Days arc. To me, that stretch of 53 issues is just some amazing comics.
But then i started not liking the following issues as much, they felt like they lacked something, i ended up disappointed after finishing them, i don't know but it wasnt the same. And it made me think of the whole run in a much more negative light. There were still certain parts i really liked and some issues i loved, but i felt really down on the series as a whole.

But now that it's over? I miss it. It was something special, and there really just isn't anything similar to it. It went on for so long, it just became kind of a habit, every 2 weeks there was always a batman issue i could read. Comics without King's batman aren't really the same. For all its faults, i honestly just really enjoyed it, and I miss it. I'm going to be really happy when Batcat finally releases.

 

[Deleted member 64377]

These aren't our characters, though. They're officially somebody else's toys, and the next bloke on the job has to make an interesting little show out of it.

I think I'm getting away from my main point, that the phenomena of the star writer hurts more than helps. That these guys with the clout to write whatever they want do so with no regard for how it fits into the neverending second act of superhero comics. They tell their story, reset everything and move on, and I can't think of a more damning reason not to read a series than the foreknowledge that everything that it made me feel won't matter once it's over.

I think that's why you see so many D-list revivals nowadays, like Jimmy Olsen and Omega Men. Because nobody is ever going to retcon them to hell to fix the iconic depiction of Jimmy Olsen.

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I'm very old and I feel like at a certain point you just realize that none of this matters except that you felt something. Maybe that's not true for others, but that's my experience. A lot of the things I got caught up on when I was younger, I later found to be superfluous.

 

[Weiss]

I'm very old and I feel like at a certain point you just realize that none of this matters except that you felt something. Maybe that's not true for others, but that's my experience. A lot of the things I got caught up on when I was younger, I later found to be superfluous.

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It's just a difference in how we approach fiction, especially disposable pop fiction like superhero comics that were never meant to have lifelong fans.

Immortal Hulk makes me feel things, that one page in particular I like to trot out nearly had me weeping like a child, but the important thing is that what it made me feel can't be taken away. The stories it told are uniquely molded in such a way that they're enriched by the endless nature of the Marvel universe (Ewing's Loki: Agent of Asgard, despite being caught up in crossovers, was really good at this too). That's different to me than, say, telling a bunch of cool stories then closing the door once you're done so the next guy can do his thing and etcetera.

 

[Teenage Fansub]

Of course the next bloke has to make an interesting show out of it. Runs need enticing hooks. You can't just depend on the whales who'll just pick up the next issue no matter what.
I'll drop your ass right away if I don't get the feeling that there'll be a compelling, distinguishing point to the run ahead.

edit: And that doesn't have to be a world shattering Snyder type thing. Getting those one after the other can of course get exhausting. Let's look at Priest and Venditti's JL fill-ins. Both relatively low-key, but I felt a purpose to the first and nothing in the second other that perfunctory superhero comics filler.

 

[Vic_Viper]

Finished The Hot Zone, now im watching a Korean film called The Flu.

 

[Weiss]

Of course the next bloke has to make an interesting show out of it. Runs need enticing hooks. You can't just depend on the whales who'll just pick up the next issue no matter what.
I'll drop your ass right away if I don't feel there'll be a new, compelling, distinguishing point to the run ahead.

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Not my point, my dude.

I'm just not a fan anymore of stories that only matter for as long as they last. Like, my favourite superhero comic of all time is probably Impulse, that ran for 89 issues and changed hands and writers and mostly lived in its own corner doing its own thing while being a part of the DCU.

Maybe it's because I read it long after it was completed but the main reason I kept going was because it was just a damn good comic and I wanted to know what happened to Bart and his friends next. It ended, and then Geoff Johns ruined Bart basically until Bendis showed up for his Young Justice series, but there was never any point where it stopped mattering to me. There was no point where a writer showed up, Thanos-snapped the entire preceding work, and then said "okay this is Impulse and this is his status quo and it's what matters until I say so."

 

[Deleted member 64377]

At a certain point you're just expending energy fighting against the nature of what this thing is, wanting it to be what it will never be again, and you're going to eventually get exhausted with that and stop reading.

 

[Weiss]

At a certain point you're just expending energy fighting against the nature of what this thing is, wanting it to be what it will never be again, and you're going to eventually get exhausted with that and stop reading.

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Well yes. That's why the only ongoing superhero comic I read is Immortal Hulk.

I'm picky.

 

[BKatastrophe]

Can I say though, that James Tynion is an ensemble cast expert? You forgot it was a solo Batman book, didn't you? Because it isn't just about Batman; it's about Catwoman, Harley Quinn, Riddler, Penguin, Joker, and also Deathstroke snuck in there?

Same with Al Ewing. He's so much of an ensemble book writer that he turned Immortal Hulk into one and no one noticed, with his multiple personalities and the Shadow Base crew.

But then we wouldn't have a Flash book.

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The ether

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Damn this got me

 

[Teenage Fansub]

I do like the end of runs to feel like some sort of conclusion. I want to be able to jump off and still feel satisfied with the chunk of story I got.
And along with that, I don't like new writers having to mop up. It doesn't need to be a complete deck clearing, but I want to jump on someone's first issue and not feel like I'll need to do back reading or feel like the first few issues are skipable till they can actually start telling their own story.

 

[bluexy]

I'm a big fan of King's Batman and the main reason I don't think it's brought up is pretty simple. It's not done. We can all look at Aaron's Thor run and rather conclusively say either you liked the post-Jane Thor stuff leading to the end or you didn't. It's not developing any further. It's what it is. King's Batman, whether you liked what it was up until now, still has its biggest story left to tell. Of course, if you hated everything so far you're not going to read what's left. But for anyone still open to what King's doing we can understand Bat+Cat has the potential to be great, has the potential to define King's Batman legacy.

It's worth waiting to find out what happens before making any kind of definitive statement regarding King's efforts as a whole. As opposed to Aaron's Thor.

 

[tim1138]

But then we wouldn't have a Flash book.

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and nothing of value would be lost

 

[Deleted member 64377]

Can I say though, that James Tynion is an ensemble cast expert? You forgot it was a solo Batman book, didn't you? Because it isn't just about Batman; it's about Catwoman, Harley Quinn, Riddler, Penguin, Joker, and also Deathstroke snuck in there?

Same with Al Ewing. He's so much of an ensemble book writer that he turned Immortal Hulk into one and no one noticed, with his multiple personalities and the Shadow Base crew.

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Johns did this with his Flash book. I was mostly into that as a team book about villains. So what you just said made me really excited about this Batman book. (That, and his great Detective run.)

 

[BKatastrophe]

The reason I found it so interesting is because I never read it, but yet every other week I just felt that was always one of the biggest conversational dominators, so to see some of this stuff about King's Batman is satisfying from the perspective of "so what the fuck did any of you think about it anyways after all of that?"

I still won't read it, but this is my catharsis.

Johns did this with his Flash book. I was mostly into that as a team book about villains. So what you just said made me really excited about this Batman book. (That, and his great Detective run.)

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I'm waiting for him to bring back the First Victim. This is my closure goddamnit!

and nothing of value would be lost

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Like, I'm with you, but also, I don't want to stop?

This is like Outsiders but less actively toxic, because Outsiders is more visually impressive but also more offensive and just messed up. Flash is boring, but still pretty and well put together. I really feel like Williamson is writing Barry the best way possible.

Which is why Barry is the worst major superhero of all time and I stand by this. Fuck Barry Allen. He is my least favorite major comic book character of all time. Y'all hate Joker and Batman Who Laughs? Fuck off. You all know Barry is worse and don't pretend otherwise.

 

[Vic_Viper]

Just thought this was funny

 

[Naijaboy]

So I went over the Coles Disaster in Outlawed:

Spoiler

Viv... isn't exactly the best case to put up to Outlaw young superheroes. It could theoretically be argued that her emotional state was due to a malfunction. Likewise, Power Man was also at fault for an uncoordinated strike that hit Viv instead yet he hasn't gotten nearly as much scrutiny.

The biggest offense if of course the response itself. Basically banning all under-aged superheroes and worst yet leaving the enforcement to the military. A more enticing idea would have been to force all under-aged superheroes to have a guardian superhero registered under the US government (while keeping their identities intact). That would at least keep the tension between the old guard and the new upstarts while hamstringing the younger folks. Imagine a teen superhero having to wait for their mentor while a bank robbery in progress. And of course anyone outside of the Tri-State area would have been out of luck. Instead, you've got an overly broad us vs them conflict with one side leaned heavily in favor just like every other hero vs hero conflict Marvel has conjured.

Again, it's not that there shouldn't be an argument against supervision. The Champions did screw up here and should have coordinated for the Avengers for backup. But this ain't it.

 

[bluexy]

 

[Freezasaurus]

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Hm. What publisher are we looking at for this?

 

[bluexy]

Hm. What publisher are we looking at for this?

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first guess would have to be image, but him calling it a library does insinuate it could be dark horse.

 

[Messi]

Hm. What publisher are we looking at for this?

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Library makes it sound like Dark Horse



To
Me
My
X-Men

It's a print of The Maker

 

[Freezasaurus]

first guess would have to be image, but him calling it a library does insinuate it could be dark horse.

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X-Ray Robot is Dark Horse, so that would be my guess.

 

[Vic_Viper]

IS the real Prof. X stuck in that giant black pit??

 

[Freezasaurus]

To
Me
My
X-Men

It's a print of The Maker

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Quickest 😄 to 🤮 ever.

 

[bluexy]

X-Ray Robot is Dark Horse, so that would be my guess.

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yo, good call! definitely leaning toward dark horse then.

nevermind the fact that for a reason i'm not clear on hardcovers are such a rarity at image.

 

[shacklesmcgee]

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Now, this just might be me but....

that's a penis

 

[Messi]

Beastars is one of those things where the anime is beautiful and the Shonen Jump just isn't. Shows great though, love the animation, characters and music so far.



Sad Sack Legoshi is my guy.

Main character is Haru tho.

 

[mreddie]

So I went over the Coles Disaster in Outlawed:

Spoiler

Viv... isn't exactly the best case to put up to Outlaw young superheroes. It could theoretically be argued that her emotional state was due to a malfunction. Likewise, Power Man was also at fault for an uncoordinated strike that hit Viv instead yet he hasn't gotten nearly as much scrutiny.

The biggest offense if of course the response itself. Basically banning all under-aged superheroes and worst yet leaving the enforcement to the military. A more enticing idea would have been to force all under-aged superheroes to have a guardian superhero registered under the US government (while keeping their identities intact). That would at least keep the tension between the old guard and the new upstarts while hamstringing the younger folks. Imagine a teen superhero having to wait for their mentor while a bank robbery in progress. And of course anyone outside of the Tri-State area would have been out of luck. Instead, you've got an overly broad us vs them conflict with one side leaned heavily in favor just like every other hero vs hero conflict Marvel has conjured.

Again, it's not that there shouldn't be an argument against supervision. The Champions did screw up here and should have coordinated for the Avengers for backup. But this ain't it.

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Funny enough, the solution to what you said is gonna be the case considering the New Warriors and Power Pack books.

Also, Poor Viv, she's gotten killed 6 times now.

 

[Freezasaurus]

Beastars is one of those things where the anime is beautiful and the Shonen Jump just isn't. Shows great though, love the animation, characters and music so far.



Sad Sack Legoshi is my guy.

Main character is Haru tho.

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What the fuck is this shit? I was on the Beastars train since day one.

Also the art style in the manga has a sketchy quality to it, but I don't really mind. The story is solid. My only complaint is that the new volume ends right where the anime did, so I gotta wait for the next volume to get new story.

 

[Messi]

What the fuck is this shit? I was on the Beastars train since day one.

Also the art style in the manga has a sketchy quality to it, but I don't really mind. The story is solid. My only complaint is that the new volume ends right where the anime did, so I gotta wait for the next volume to get new story.

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Am I wrong? I flipped through the Jumps and it looked not great. Maybe I was wrong?

Is there a second cour coming. I thought I heard that. Its odd that it's up to date with the current book releases in English.

 

[Deleted member 64377]

nevermind the fact that for a reason i'm not clear on hardcovers are such a rarity at image.

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Isn't that entirely up to the creators with Image? Like, I think all of those kinds of calls, and even calls about how the singles are handled, all come down to what the creators want to do, with the more expensive options taking more money out of their own pockets ultimately.

 

[Freezasaurus]

Am I wrong? I flipped through the Jumps and it looked not great. Maybe I was wrong?

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I know what you're talking about. Some of the art has a bit of a sketchy quality to it, but it's not consistently drawn that way. A lot of the art looks rather good.

 

[Messi]

I know what you're talking about. Some of the art has a bit of a sketchy quality to it, but it's not consistently drawn that way. A lot of the art looks rather good.

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It's got a Demon Slayer thing going on. Some bad art some great art. Unlike say Dr Stone or One Punch Man that is consistently great.

I checked, a season 2 was greenlit. I was confused by No Guns Life having a second cour this year. Apparently its next month???