tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post3921770109873424339..comments2024-03-19T10:41:35.976-05:00Comments on Bronze Age Babies: On the Wings of the Man-Bat - Detective Comics 402, + Alex Ross Does Batman '66Doughttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-51388383705539122712014-05-19T23:12:51.754-05:002014-05-19T23:12:51.754-05:00Thanks for the review! Great art. After seeing J.A...Thanks for the review! Great art. After seeing J.A.'s video, I do prefer the original colors. The recoloring here is not terrible though.<br /><br />Not a fan of the Ross painting here. Maybe it's after seeing the Adams/Giordano art-- Ross doesn't have their warmth or dynamism. Really like the drawings where Man-Bat is looking at the moon, then starting to fly, and the later panel where Man-Bat grabs Batman's wrists. Great angles, action, anatomy, inking throughout.Garettnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-49349585102532302832014-05-19T22:02:14.541-05:002014-05-19T22:02:14.541-05:00Can't go wrong with Neal Adams and Dick Giorda...Can't go wrong with Neal Adams and Dick Giordano! To me, the only other duo which compares is Byrne/Austin on the X-men. Hmm, gotta agree with Doug here - good thing Frank Robbins is plotting and not doing the artwork here! Truly legendary stuff.<br /><br />Ross's poster looks good. We rarely see the '66 TV version of Batman rendered in comics or posters - it's usually the darker Frank Miller version we see most of the time, so this is a welcome change. Robin looks like he has his hands full with Kato here! Personally, I think Kato/Bruce woulda really layed the hurt on Robin/Ward - in the comics and in real life!<br /><br /><br />- Mike 'Biff! Sock! Pow!' from Trinidad & Tobago. <br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-52332780730803720062014-05-19T21:05:27.302-05:002014-05-19T21:05:27.302-05:00Regarding my thrown out comics, yep, stinks, Doug,...Regarding my thrown out comics, yep, stinks, Doug, but at least it only happened the one time and before I got more seriously into collecting! To be fair to my dad, I don't think he did it to be mean, he just didn't seem to realize that they meant anything to me and I wanted to keep them. To him they were just one more box of stuff to get rid of while we were moving yet again. <br />As to Dr. O's comment, I certainly wouldn't regard the Man-Bat as "stealing" off the Lizard, but more of a variation of a riff, which the Lizard himself was, variations of ideas that go back to ancient mythology thousands of years old. Man-Thing & Swamp Thing were variation of the Heap which in turn was inspired by a Theodore Sturgeon novel, which in turn was likely inspired by folk tales about muck monsters. As long as the new creators can come up with sufficient differences to make the variations unique and tell good stories with them, that's all that matters to me.Fred W. Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07602124919964053532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-52594341691621945772014-05-19T15:45:58.480-05:002014-05-19T15:45:58.480-05:00I'm not a fan of recoloring. Here's a fan-...I'm not a fan of recoloring. Here's a fan-made "slide-show" of this issue if you want to compare the original colors to scans that Doug posted:<br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imqi6PFOl8wJ.A. Morrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15800901321134394272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-67885156476121567842014-05-19T14:48:04.009-05:002014-05-19T14:48:04.009-05:00Upon a re-watch of the GotG trailer, with my finge...Upon a re-watch of the GotG trailer, with my finger pointed squarely at "pause", I can report that Ronan the Accuser is indeed in the film. There's also a quickie of what looks to be the Infinity Gauntlet (at least it's a very large glove with some flashing lights around it) and there's another split-second shot of someone manhandling the Collector. Looks like fun!<br /><br />But I miss Charlie-27 and the gang...<br /><br />DougDoughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-11292096194861869982014-05-19T14:06:53.702-05:002014-05-19T14:06:53.702-05:00LOVE the Ross print.
Wow and WOW.
All four leads...LOVE the Ross print.<br /><br />Wow and WOW.<br /><br />All four leads never looked better. Wish we didn't have to look at over-the-top Roger C Carmel smack in the middle, but alas that's the episode they were in.<br /><br />Colonel Gumm was the ONLY downside to an otherwise spectacular team-up.david_bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00218727673816200051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-46553178056313342542014-05-19T13:45:14.296-05:002014-05-19T13:45:14.296-05:00The computer coloring lends itself to moody settin...The computer coloring lends itself to moody settings. It would look terrible on an upbeat book like Amazing Spider-Man. For this story, and for some of the Tales of Asgard stories, it fits.<br /><br />In toy news, I saw that the Marvel Infinite Series 3-pack exclusive at SDCC will be Starfox, Nebula, and Thanos (wearing the Infinity Gauntlet). Hmmm... movie tie-in?<br /><br />Doug Doughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-65681015465081034122014-05-19T13:33:05.473-05:002014-05-19T13:33:05.473-05:00Doug, I know I'm on record as saying I don'...Doug, I know I'm on record as saying I don't like Adams' recoloring of his older work (as in, e.g., the original Ra's saga), but it's not as bad here.<br /><br />And the new Guardians trailer is quite good; I love the songs they're using so far in the soundtrack ("Hooked on a Feeling" and the awesome "Spirit in the Sky"). These aren't MY Guardians, but man, this looks like it could be a fun movie - I just can't fin adequate words to express my delight that Rocket Raccoon is going to be in it.<br />And yes, that very well may be Ronan. I also spotted a brief glimpse of the Collector as well.Edo Bosnarnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-29744685603738748162014-05-19T12:50:13.149-05:002014-05-19T12:50:13.149-05:00As I've been saying over the past week, "...As I've been saying over the past week, "In other news...", <a href="http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=52902" rel="nofollow">here's the brand new trailer</a> to the GotG movie -- see what you think (is that Ronan the Accuser I spy near the beginning??).<br /><br />DougDoughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-58379054597074881222014-05-19T12:34:11.508-05:002014-05-19T12:34:11.508-05:00Oh, and Fred? You're one of those unlucky ones...Oh, and Fred? You're one of those unlucky ones with the thrown-out comics stories? That stinks!<br /><br />DougDoughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-37065187878784455452014-05-19T12:33:22.021-05:002014-05-19T12:33:22.021-05:00That issue is coming your way next Monday, Dave!
...That issue is coming your way next Monday, Dave!<br /><br />Osvaldo, I can see your point. Perhaps if the powers-that-be had stuck with Langstrom's envy of the Batman and played that up it might have distanced him from other characters who he might have resembled. I'd be curious to see if you have further thoughts after next week's review of Detective Comics #407 (the next Man-Bat installment).<br /><br />Any feelings on Adams's recoloring? I know we've dealt with that topic many, many times, but wondered if there were fresh thoughts specific to this story? I think it's quite tolerable given the subject matter/characters/settings. But at the end of the tale, as I've remarked before, one does think, "Man, that was just a whole lot of brown."<br /><br />DougDoughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-58746470567482294052014-05-19T12:24:56.041-05:002014-05-19T12:24:56.041-05:00Doug, you think you have a bad memory? I read thi...Doug, you think you have a bad memory? I read this (in BATMAN ILLUSTRATED BY NEAL ADAMS) about 8 months ago and remember very little. I do remember that the next issue had the wedding, though.dbutler16https://www.blogger.com/profile/00046066729353639991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-18265416343706040282014-05-19T11:54:49.626-05:002014-05-19T11:54:49.626-05:00I don't have much to add except that I have lo...I don't have much to add except that I have long thought of Man-Bat as a rip-off of Spider-Man's The Lizard.Dr. Oyolahttp://themiddlespaces.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-32301182495350449432014-05-19T09:36:24.110-05:002014-05-19T09:36:24.110-05:00No problem, David! We appreciate your loyal, daily...No problem, David! We appreciate your loyal, daily participation.<br /><br />Thanks, too, to Fred and Edo for their comments as well.<br /><br />And wait until next week when Frank Robbins pulls a stunt we'd normally attribute to that Zany Bob Haney!<br /><br />DougDoughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-24170704667011937062014-05-19T09:34:47.113-05:002014-05-19T09:34:47.113-05:00Ditto on Frank Robbins stories. I thought he was a...Ditto on Frank Robbins stories. I thought he was an unsung hero in returning Batman to the more traditional pulp crime/gothic stories in the early '70s. Pretty insightful, creative plots, which much like O'Neil on GL/GA, Robbins helped greatly carve a more distinctive personality on the Bat books for the Bronze Age from the more generic Silver Age mold. I suspect Robbins would have made a far better and distinquished name for himself in the Bronze Age if he hadn't picked up a drawing pencil on his Batman and (later) Captain America stints, although I acknowledge his loyal fanbase on the Invaders book. <br /><br />Another classic Adams cover here, probably one of the best. It's a cover that NEEDS to be bought in VF+ condition and matted. Just a beauty.<br /><br />(Sorry, had to delete/repost to further define Robbins' excellent writing qualities..)david_bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00218727673816200051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-41834808782280944132014-05-19T07:17:45.361-05:002014-05-19T07:17:45.361-05:00Good rundown, Doug. I'd like to see more revie...Good rundown, Doug. I'd like to see more reviews of these, as the only Man-Bat story drawn by Adams I'd ever read was the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tt03D8n4Ofc" rel="nofollow">Power Records version</a>, which is, I think, a mash-up of several of these Man-Bat features.<br /><br />Edo Bosnarnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-67765896596569311322014-05-19T06:41:21.405-05:002014-05-19T06:41:21.405-05:00I don't have this particular issue but I do re...I don't have this particular issue but I do remember reading a Batman story featuring the Man-Bat a kid during this time-frame (my dad threw out a bunch of my comics in 1972 when we moved from Long Beach, CA, to Salt Lake City). My memories of the story itself are vague but I did like the concept. Funny that about a year later for the 100th issue of Amazing Spider-Man, Lee closed out with Spidey himself becoming more spider-like with 4 extra limbs and in the next issue faced off with his own bat-themed nemesis, Morbius, which led in turn to another confrontation with Spidey's original scientist into animal-monster-man, the Lizard!<br />Back to the Bats tale, simply beautiful cover by Adams and his usual great work within. I've a hunch that the Man-Bat was his idea, particularly as this didn't come out too long after he'd co-created Sauron over in X-Men. The Man-Bat seems such a natural to conjure up as part of Bat Man's rougues gallery but with the Marvelesque touch of making him sympathetic, seeking a cure for his condition, rather than an all out evil and insane villain.Fred W. Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07602124919964053532noreply@blogger.com