I like comics, How 'bout you?

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Wed Dec 19, 2012 11:16 am

Hound wrote:Spidey fans are so prissy

He'll be back in time so enjoy the ride! Dan Slott hasn't let anyone down with his Spidey stories yet.

Can't believe people are sending him death threats by the way. What sad little worlds they must live in.

We are kinda. That's weird.

And yeah. Death threats. Against the guy who wrote a story you don't think you'll like. The hell?

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Wed Dec 19, 2012 2:53 pm

"Tell me a story, Mr Marvel writer man. But woe betide you if it doesn't pan out exactly how I want it to. It may be your story, but I'm the one who's paying you, therefore it has to be the story I want it to be."

PAH.

Slowly catching up with Marvel Now.

Thor is amaaaazing. Fantastic Four/FF I'm not feeling so far, though it's mostly set-up. Iron Man I'd love if it were drawn by somebody not called Greg Land. Avengers Arena is great fun, all the more for being completely shameless in acknowledging what it is. Really liked the first issue of Cable & X-Force. Enjoyed Hulk #1 and Deadpool is lots of fun. Thunderbolts #1 was just set-up so I'll reserve judgement until I know what these characters are actually gonna be doing (a bit like F4/FF). Avengers & Cap are filed under similar "let's see where this is going" headings.

Although I'm almost certainly going to drop most of them and switch to trades after the first arc is done. Except for the X-Men stuff, because I'm a whore.

Yeah. I'll be dropping Fantastic Four and keeping X-Men Legacy. Don't judge me.

Nowhere Men #1 was good and interesting. I think #3 of Happy is out today, so I should probably actually read the first 2.

Post by **Best First** » Wed Dec 19, 2012 3:25 pm

today is an onslaught of favourites for me;

New X-Men
Thor
X-Force
MTMTE
Thor
Ultimate Spidey

and a bunch of other stuff but those are the highlights.

Hubcap · Post by **Hubcap** » Wed Dec 19, 2012 7:41 pm

I was only reading the X-Men and the Avengers titles but it's been nearly 10 months since I picked up anything from Marvel now and I've not missed any of them a single bit.

Probably because I'm reading over half of the books DC is putting out and just don't have time to get to anything by Marvel.

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Thu Dec 20, 2012 6:45 am

I remember my last "big" comic purchase came shortly before I left the US. My boss was selling off his comic book collection from the 1970's and 1980's and my roommate was acting as the broker. So, anything I bought sent a cut into my friend's pocket and buttered up the boss. So it was win/win.

Among the stuff I snagged was a 70-something issue run of Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man.

I had the time of my comic book collecting life reading that run. The original owner was the type who'd buy a book, read it once, then bag and board it. So everything was as close to newsstand fresh as it could possibly be. Every issue contained a nearly self-contained story (but with larger themes spread throughout) and took 10-15 minutes to read. And, since Marvel was always set in modern New York, it was like travelling back in time. It was amazing watching Marvel characters deal with the 80's...in real time. Every now and again, all of those little dangling threads would come together into something big and then the process would start all over again.

But one major event didn't lead directly into the next one. Heck, there wasn't even a big, world-changing event every year or so. Characters lived and breathed in the status quo.

You know who I feel bad for? Comparing those comics to today, I mean. I feel bad for the Watcher. He used to show up every few years. If the Watcher was there, you KNEW some stuff was going to go down. For HE is the WATCHER, and he is FORBIDDEN to interfere! Only during the most important of turning points in the history of the Earth will the Watcher reveal himself.

But, jeez! In the 70's and 80's, to the Watcher, the Marvel Universe must have been like fine cinema. New movies come out all the time, but truly epic productions are few and far between, but damn if the Watcher (who is FORBIDDEN to INTERFERE!) is going to miss such a silver-screen jewel. But now, the Marvel Universe is like a late night YouTube bender. What's going on over here? Oh my gosh! Captain America's body has been taken over by the Red Skull! Oh, no! Wolverine's body has been taken over by DEMONS, while Wolverine's soul is trapped in the afterlife! What's this? The Mighty Thor in the body of a FROG? (Oh, wait, that's old news.) The Avengers are trying to protect a New York under seige at the same time the X-Men are laying waste to...wait? Is that New York? Are the Avengers fighting the X-Men? Again? Is Civil War still going on? Maybe it's that other one? Are the X-Men really Skrulls? Better check on the Fantastic Four, the good ol' FF. Wait?!?! Those are two different groups now? But they have the same members? How is that even... Youtube by way of a Clockwork Orange.

Poor Watcher. Tasked with keeping up with so many different, but at the same time uniquely epic, super heroic goings on, but is powerless to do anything about the insanity. For, though he bares witness to even the most intimate goings on of the Marvel Universe along with the world-changing events, he is POWERLESS to INTERFERE!

Oh my God, you guys! I'm the Watcher!

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Thu Dec 20, 2012 9:29 am

Best First wrote:today is an onslaught of favourites for me;

New X-Men
Thor
X-Force
MTMTE
Thor
Ultimate Spidey

and a bunch of other stuff but those are the highlights.

My comics bill yesterday was just shy of £70. For a week's worth. Erk. Marvel's fortnightly release pattern really is taking the ******* piss.

But yay for Uncanny X-Force finishing (though boo for it finishing) as that'll shave one thing off the list. Oh, what's that? There's a replacement title starting next month? Bah.

But at least Saga's still brilliant.

bumblemusprime · Post by **bumblemusprime** » Thu Dec 20, 2012 2:49 pm

By the way, I don't think I posted my review of praise for Saga and anger for Before Watchmen:

http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.co ... rticle=061

Ozz · Post by **Ozz** » Thu Dec 20, 2012 3:04 pm

Brendocon wrote:My comics bill yesterday was just shy of £70.

Which is exactly why I asked if anyone would like to sell their digital codes.

You'd have comics cheaper or more for the same price. Plus, I'd have them faster, but that's neither here nor there.

I think the amount of stuff released yesterday was only due to this month's being basically a three-Wednasday month, though.

Post by **Best First** » Thu Jan 03, 2013 2:48 am

Just read the first 3 volumes of Fear Agent (on the slightly sheeite Dark Horse App)

It is amazing. Read it. And the blow smoke up its ass on your Orsan Scott Card blog.

Also read Spidey 700. Thought it was quite good (ignoring the frivolous back up chuff). Clearly not going to be the eternal status quo so actually intrigued by what happens in the interim (a la Dark Reign where some of the fun was down to the fact you knew it would end).

Anyway: FEAR AGENT.

bumblemusprime · Post by **bumblemusprime** » Thu Jan 03, 2013 5:19 am

Best First wrote:Just read the first 3 volumes of Fear Agent (on the slightly sheeite Dark Horse App)

It is amazing. Read it. And the blow smoke up its ass on your Orsan Scott Card blog.

Also read Spidey 700. Thought it was quite good (ignoring the frivolous back up chuff). Clearly not going to be the eternal status quo so actually intrigued by what happens in the interim (a la Dark Reign where some of the fun was down to the fact you knew it would end).

Anyway: FEAR AGENT.

Got it. Fear the smoke up Orson Scott Card's ass?

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Thu Jan 10, 2013 6:41 am

After having it spoiled for me (since I wasn't going to read it, anyway) I read Superior Spider-Man 1. And I have some...thoughts...

I can't remember another major comic book story arc that readers have, so far, so completely predicted in advance.

Marvel: This is going to change the character forever. Doc Ock's final revenge plan will leave you shocked!

Fans: Does Doc Ock switch bodies with Spider-Man? That's kind of what the preview cover seems to suggest.

Marvel: There's still time left before the end, who knows who will be the Superior Spider-Man?

Fans: Will it be Doc Ock in Peter's body, influenced by his memories into becoming a hero and viewing himself as "superior" to Peter Parker?

Marvel: This is a new beginning for the character. But the shadow of Peter Parker will hang over the new Spider-Man for years to come.

Fans: Peter's still in there, influencing Doc Ock's actions in his body, isn't he?

I wonder if maybe this doesn't have more to do with Marvel wanting to market this storyline as some huge status-quo shake-up than with Dan Slott's writing. I mean, it's a pretty simple story. It's been done before, but the hook for this is interesting.

...except that it was sold as "THE DEATH OF PETER PARKER AND A NEW BEGINNING FOR AN ALL-NEW SPIDER-MAN!"

And the whole "Peter is dead and gone doesn't even last through the FIRST ISSUE of the new series.

I'm reminded of One More Day and Sins Past. Two stories that could have been a good fit for JMS' Amazing Spider-Man run, but were changed by the powers above until they were unrecognizable as the stories originally written.

Maybe Dan Slott came up with the body swap story, and Marvel went and turned what was supposed to be a three-to-six issue arc into a "landmark event."

But, hey, the incentive cover for issue 700 sold on ebay for more than 1,000 USD the other day. So, I guess, success?

Post by **Best First** » Thu Jan 10, 2013 10:44 am

Yeah when i said "Clearly not going to be the eternal status quo" i expected a bit more than 23 pages of not being the status quo.

I could be wrong but it's gone from being a fun idea to feeling like a wasted opportunity.

But again, i did end up reading the 14 issues leading up to 700 on my ipad so again in that sense a success for Marvel.

I thik you may be right about it being a story that has essentially been hijacked to fit into the line wide relaunch.

KingMob · Post by **KingMob** » Fri Jan 11, 2013 6:13 pm

The tone was all over the place in Superior, I came away not sure what the writer wanted me to to think.

The opening action sequence is just annoyingly grimey and trying to be badass.
Then there's the whole 'people are bad and stupid' section with the Horizon cast. Max is manipulated and bought off, no-one minds that Peter is acting like a douche (because 'superior' people get to do that and people who feel inferior don't have the cajones or status to call them on it?).
Then there's the rape-trigger section when the viewpoint character just stares at a woman's tits, a woman he intends to deceive into ******* him.
Then the bit where Otto reveals he's a Batman fan and beats the villains with prep-time. Was it supposed to be funny? Some of the imagery was funny, but the section was so po-faced.
And then a ghost popped out.

I just don't even.

Hound · Post by **Hound** » Fri Jan 11, 2013 8:00 pm

I really enjoyed Superior Spiderman. The only Spidey title I've read properly is Ultimate.

Spidey fans are just impossibly hard to please it would appear

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Fri Jan 11, 2013 9:16 pm

I'm twelve volumes into Invincible. This is perhaps my favourite superhero comic since Ultimate Spidey.

Allen the Alien is fantastic. That cutaway issue was phenomenal.

And Atom Eve. I mean you would, wouldn't you.

Vols 13-16 are being delivered tomorrow.

It's so amazing that I've barely even noticed that Uncanny Avengers just doesn't come out. John Cassady's a fantastic artist and all that, but how the hell does he get work?

Iron Man would be great if it didn't have Greg Land on it.

All-New X-Men is just lovely. And look - there's a new volume of Uncanny starting, written by Bendis! But drawn by Bachalo. Meh.

Still, Young Avengers soon. Gillen and McKelvie FTW.

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Tue Jan 15, 2013 10:34 pm

Brendocon wrote:And Atom Eve. I mean you would, wouldn't you.

Less so the girl who appears to have eaten her.

But still probably yes.

I am up to date in trades! Dinosaurus. Genius.

bumblemusprime · Post by **bumblemusprime** » Wed Jan 16, 2013 1:44 am

There with you, but I'm so tempted to go single issue with Invincible.

Atom Eve: still hot even with a little junk in the trunk. And can ya blame her?

Post by **Best First** » Wed Jan 16, 2013 9:19 am

Brendocon wrote:
Allen the Alien is fantastic.

Yes

And Atom Eve. I mean you would, wouldn't you.

Yes

It's so amazing that I've barely even noticed that Uncanny Avengers just doesn't come out. John Cassady's a fantastic artist and all that, but how the hell does he get work?

Wide eyes and short memories.

Iron Man would be great if it didn't have Greg Land on it.

Yes

All-New X-Men is just lovely.

Very yes.

And look - there's a new volume of Uncanny starting, written by Bendis! But drawn by Bachalo. Meh.

The correct response is Yay.

Still, Young Avengers soon. Gillen and McKelvie FTW.

Double Yes.

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Wed Jan 16, 2013 7:50 pm

Brendocon wrote:I am up to date in trades!

I was up to date in trades! Until I discovered that vol 17 is now out.

So I have bought it.

So I will be up to date in trades! As soon as I've read Saga and ANXMen (I'm totally going to start calling it AngstMen in my head now) and some other less good comics.

Post by **Best First** » Fri Jan 18, 2013 8:24 am

AngstMen is my new favourite thing - it's bloody ace.

Loved the Kitty/Jean exchange.

Got Invincible and Fables Trades to look forward to when i get home hopefully.

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 6:41 pm

I have been reading Morning Glories. Have you? You should be, it's totally your thing.

I've just read the third trade and now have to get really irked because it'll be about two months before the next one's out. Why do I have to binge on good comics that there aren't dozens of volumes of? I'll have to compensate by reading some more Brubaker/Phillips collaborations.

Yeah, I searched the board first so I know that if any of you are reading this, you're not talking about it. So here's a synopsis:

It's a bit like Lost (no, wait! come back!), but instead of an island it's a boarding school. And instead of the crash survivors you've got the new students. And instead of the others you've got the faculty. And instead of a smoke monster you've got, well a ghost monster thing. And instead of Damon Lindelof, you've got the nagging suspicion that it's being written by somebody who's thought it all through first.

But it's good. Real sinister lurking Twin Peaksy mystery stuff, driven by actual character and the like.

I'm a fan.

Bumblemus Sprunk should read it all and then write a column or something.

Post by **Best First** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 8:29 pm

I will look into it.

Meanwhile the last Fables trade made me weep a little. Sad face.

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 9:49 pm

For the sake of clarity, that "you should be reading Morning Glories, it's totally your thing" was directed at ALL OF YOU.

Cubs in Toyland is total and utter sadface. The sheer inevitability of it. The "yeah, they want us to think they're going to do that, but they won't, they won't, they totally won't, they... oh."

Post by **Best First** » Wed Feb 06, 2013 9:33 am

yep and total yep.

bumblemusprime · Post by **bumblemusprime** » Sun Feb 10, 2013 1:39 am

New column is up, on the Hobbit & Martian Chronicles graphic adaptations: http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.co ... rticle=062

Post by **Best First** » Sun Feb 10, 2013 8:55 pm

New issue of Avengers was bloody ace.

Hound · Post by **Hound** » Sun Feb 10, 2013 8:58 pm

I think I'm enjoying New Avengers more than Avengers at the moment.

Fearless Defenders was ******* great fun. I only picked it up as Dani Moonstar is going to be in it, but it's definitely on my pull list now.

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Mon Feb 11, 2013 7:11 pm

I HAVE DROPPED BOTH AVENGERS AND NEW AVENGERS.

I have my finger on the pulse.

Post by **Best First** » Mon Feb 11, 2013 8:06 pm

Ooh, if Moonstar is in it i'll grab that as well.

Also New X-Men. Gets better every issue

KingMob · Post by **KingMob** » Thu Feb 28, 2013 5:54 pm

In another Death's Head update, you're gonna want to skim the latest issue of Avenging Spider-Man if you're not reading it.