tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post1595354408952051838..comments2024-03-19T10:41:35.976-05:00Comments on Bronze Age Babies: Marvel and DC: Side-by-Side in 1982Doughttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-36098147519164731032011-04-28T19:18:00.847-05:002011-04-28T19:18:00.847-05:00Ah, Karen, very clever to bring the good Kree capt...Ah, Karen, very clever to bring the good Kree captain back as a Skrull! All things considered, the Skrulls appear to have been used in more interesting and devious ways over the last half of the "Marvel Age" than in the first half, even sometimes as means for a convient cop out ("oh, of course, this character would never have behaved this way -- it was a Skrull all along!").<br />As for 1982 overall, I was still a Marvel zombie that year but within the next year or two I started buying several DC titles (Swamp Thing became my new favorite) as well as a few independents, such as Cerebus. I remember picking up a couple of Swords of Cerebus collections in October 1983, and then wrecking my car while driving home. Fortunately no one was hurt and I had something amusing to bide my time with when I finally got home.Fred W. Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07602124919964053532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-8948248829896150162011-04-28T17:59:35.658-05:002011-04-28T17:59:35.658-05:00I re-read The Death of Captain Marvel last year, a...I re-read The Death of Captain Marvel last year, and it was still good. To have a semi-major superhero die if cancer seems mundane and surprising, but it allowed all of us to relate to this cosmic character, as almost anyone is touched by cancer. I thought this was a very poignant comic, showing how he copes with death.<br />I loved Contest of the Champions back in the day. I loved that just about every Marvel superhero was in it, and I loved the introduction of a bunch of international superheroes. I still vaguely remember some Irish female superhero. Was her name Shamrock? Anyway, I thought it was cool at the time, but haven't re-read it in many years, so I'll have to do that sometime soon.<br />The Great Darkness Saga is one of my all-time favorite story arcs, and I guess I'll leave it at that. Long live the Legion!<br />Finally, Camelot 3000 was very good, but unfortunately, I've somehow misplaced it, so I've no opportunity to re-reading it without spending $$.dbutler16https://www.blogger.com/profile/00046066729353639991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-33322892348290943802011-04-28T07:55:37.839-05:002011-04-28T07:55:37.839-05:00William:
Loved your comments on the 'Death of...William:<br /><br />Loved your comments on the 'Death of CM'. I generally agree with the depressing tone of revealing his slow decline. <br /><br />Contrasting with the silliness of the clone stories involving Gwen's return, you feel this is Marvel actually getting serious about closing a chapter on a hero or character, perhaps before he sank more into oblivion. <br /><br />The Starlin art was spectacular, the deluxe format was exquisite, and in that fashion, it was a creative Bronze success for Marvel. Granted, it was a less-adventurous route than trying to reinvent/reimage CM once again. <br /><br />But it was, despite a one-shot special, as Fred said: A lovely, tender send-off to a good friend.david_bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00218727673816200051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-54450597827353308212011-04-28T05:48:22.403-05:002011-04-28T05:48:22.403-05:00This was a good year for me – I think my comics re...This was a good year for me – I think my comics reading/collecting peaked in 1981/1982. And I loved Marvel Fanfare when it came out; I agree that the series eventually fizzled, but those first 7-8 issues were really good (and there was occasionally some good stuff afterward).<br />Interesting comments here on the Brood. While I agree that the concept was blatantly derivative, once this story gained momentum X-men became interesting again. This stands in stark contrast to Claremont's apparent stumbling from one (bad) story idea to another since Byrne had left the title (that tepid Dr. Doom/Arcade story, Belasco/limbo, Dracula – need I go on? Seriously, I think the only issues I really liked during this period were Annuals #4 & 5).<br />As for the Wolverine mini, I dutifully followed it, but was not particularly impressed. The whole ninja angle seemed a bit off, and I'm assuming that Miller influenced this direction, as he was rather preoccupied with ninjas over at Daredevil. This also pretty much officially marked the beginning of Wolvie's meteoric rise at Marvel. . .<br />And I remember all the hype around Camelot 3000, and never understood it then, nor the high regard still accorded to the series by some fans. Granted, the art was lovely, but the story was pretty uninspired and, I thought, ultimately kind of boring.Edohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09628404633602220079noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-45596251225657671702011-04-27T22:33:56.410-05:002011-04-27T22:33:56.410-05:00Regarding the Death of Captain Marvel, I pulled ou...Regarding the Death of Captain Marvel, I pulled out my copy of The Art of Jim Starlin: A Life in Words and Pictures, and he says that he batted around a number of typical heroic deaths for the Captain. But then he began thinking about his father's death from cancer six months earlier and that shaped the story. Editor in Chief Jim Shooter loved the idea and that was that. <br /><br />Apparently Marvel approached Starlin about killing off the Captain, not the other way around.<br /><br />Fred, they recently DID bring back Capt. Marvel -but it turned out he was a skrull, so who cares, right?<br /><br />KarenKarenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17032477453891087135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-82026970482372888632011-04-27T20:49:03.966-05:002011-04-27T20:49:03.966-05:00Regarding Captain Marvel, it was actually in issue...Regarding Captain Marvel, it was actually in issue #34, where during his fight with Nitro, Mar-Vell was exposed to the nerve gas that would cause the cancer that would kill him. Ya think even then Starlin meant that cover blurb "Introducing Nitro -- the Man Who Killed Captain Marvel"? Sounds like the usual over the top cover hype, but still .... As to the graphic novel, I enjoyed it because it was such a different type of story and seemed to really come from the heart, especially knowing that a large part of the inspiration for the story came from the death of Starlin's own father. Sure, CM still had lots of story potential, yet the truth was he was one of Marvel's 2nd tier characters who had been underutilized for several years and somehow this story suited him -- enough people cared about the character to make his death meaningful, but his popularity was at a low enough level that it seemed credible that Marvel Comics wouldn't undermine the story by bringing him back to life. And, unless I missed something, nearly 30 years later he's still dead. Then again, they brought Bucky back to life about 40 years after Stan & Jack told us he had been killed during WWII.Fred W. Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07602124919964053532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-84948763651745079412011-04-27T19:07:17.659-05:002011-04-27T19:07:17.659-05:00Have to agree with William; Amazing Spiderman was ...Have to agree with William; Amazing Spiderman was having a very good year. Roger Stern is still one of my favorite writers and his recent stories in the book were a treat.<br /><br />If you'll all forgive a moment's backtracking, I wanted to comment on the wonderful Justice League #200 (cover dated Mar 1982). A great cover wrapped around a fun story with a fine array of creative talent. Still love the scene where Green Arrow and Black Canary are blitzed by the Batman...<br /><br />During this period (late 70's to mid 80's) DC really seemed to go all out on it's anniversary issues. This doesn't have the same impact now with all the re-numbering; although I did enjoy Amazing Spiderman 600 a year or so ago.Redartznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-58608032583593673822011-04-27T18:39:14.986-05:002011-04-27T18:39:14.986-05:00William,I'm guessing that Starlin did that ret...William,I'm guessing that Starlin did that retcon after #36 because he didn't care for the way the series was handled after his departure. Maybe he felt like Mar-Vell "belonged" to him, but that's just my guess, I've never read any interviews where Starlin discusses this.J.A. Morrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15800901321134394272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-29669952117471735222011-04-27T17:53:57.020-05:002011-04-27T17:53:57.020-05:00Wow! 1982 was one heck of a good year for me comic...Wow! 1982 was one heck of a good year for me comics wise at least. Stern and Romita Jr. were doing some of my all time favorite Spider-Man stories in Amazing Spider-Man, John Byrne was really starting to roll on the Fantastic Four, Frank Miller was reaching the pinnacle of his epic run on Daredevil and over at DC, Wolfman and Perez were kicking some serious butt on New Teen Titans. Man! I tell you, every one of those books and creative runs were some of my all-time favorite comics. (At least until Byrne replaced the Thing with She-Hulk in the FF).<br /><br />I agree with Karen about the Wolverine mini-series. I liked it O.K., but I didn't love it. At the time, I actually thought it was a little boring. I really dig ninjas and stuff like that, but for me it didn't really fit Wolverine very well. I think that direction was a bit of a mistake for the character, IMO. I liked him better as more of the Canadian cowboy, tough guy, barroom brawler that he was in the Cockrum/Byrne X-Men days.<br /><br />Marvel Fanfare started strong, but fizzled out pretty quick for me. Loved the first couple of issues though. I believe Michael Golden did the artwork on both of them, if I'm not mistaken. That's reason enough to buy them right there.<br /><br />I know a lot of people hold it in some regard, but I wasn't a fan of the "Death of Captain Marvel". I mean it was pretty well written and all, but I've always felt that it's a waste to just kill off a good long-standing character for the sake of one story. I always really liked the character and thought he still had some great potential for future adventures in the MU. Plus I didn't like the retcon aspect to the story either, wherein it was revealed that Mar-Vell had been slowly dying since issue #36 of his own mag. Gee, thanks for sticking that depressing bit of information into an already depressing story. So now, on top of never getting to read any new stories with the "real" Captain Marvel in them again, I can also no longer enjoy ANY of the stories that came after issue #36 without thinking the whole time about what a bummer it is that Captain M doesn't know he has cancer. I mean, so what if he survives that battle with the Super Adaptoid, he'll be dead soon anyway. What fun!<br /><br />All kidding aside, thanks for reminding me what a great year for comics that 1982 was. In fact that year may have been the apex of comic greatness for me.Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16988016825582035390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-19184220356129023102011-04-27T16:15:40.867-05:002011-04-27T16:15:40.867-05:00Sorry,I didn't notice you two commented on the...Sorry,I didn't notice you two commented on the JLA-JSA team-up until after I posted!J.A. Morrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15800901321134394272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-40948911658988249242011-04-27T13:11:04.569-05:002011-04-27T13:11:04.569-05:001982 was a big year for me as a collector. Sorry i...1982 was a big year for me as a collector. Sorry in advance for going off here!:<br />Some other memorable highlights:<br /><br />I remember it being a pretty good year for Spider-man titles. In ASM, Stern & Romita Jr gave us 'Nothing Can Stop The Juggernaut' and a Cobra/Hyde 2-parter. In 'SSM' we saw the beginning of a Doc Ock vs. The Owl story, and Deb Whitman was(mercifully for her)written out of the book. <br /> <br />Byrne's FF kept going, with Galactus and Gladiator showing up. <br /><br />Daredevil followed up Elektra's death with 'Child's Play', guest starring the Punisher, and Black Widow returned with a new costume. <br /><br />J. M. DeMatteis brought back Over-mind & Squadron Supreme in the summer of that year. <br /><br />I've said before I wasn't a big DC fan,but I've always loved 'Crisis On Earth Prime'. JLA and JSA battled Per Degaton and the Crime Syndicate! Here's a nice write-up of that saga:<br />http://rzero.com/books/Crisis-EarthPrime.html<br />Not a great year,but a good one.<br />Once again,I'm surprised those "year by year" books didn't mention some of the above. <br />I agree about the Brood, they were both unoriginal and overused in the early 80s.J.A. Morrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15800901321134394272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-44395366139872448002011-04-27T07:14:54.159-05:002011-04-27T07:14:54.159-05:00I bought 'Death of Captain Marvel' just a ...I bought 'Death of Captain Marvel' just a few years ago. It has a moody darkness to it, but otherwise, loved the idea (and gorgeous Starlin art on deluxe paper). <br /><br />Loved the character, but it felt like a good move.david_bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00218727673816200051noreply@blogger.com