Doug: It's beginning to run a little dry around here in the Ideas Department. Since we went to the guest posts back in the summer the ol' Suggestion Box (anchored via a link at the top of this page) hasn't been used much. That's fine. However, if you have an idea for a post and don't feel like writing it up yourself, then please submit said idea today. We (and all of our readers and conversationalists) will appreciate it at some future date! Thanks in advance.
If DC had published a line of b/w magazines like Marvel's Dracula Lives, Savage Sword, POTA, etc. which features would you have liked to see? And by what creative teams?
ReplyDeleteWho's The Best: Grease or Saturday Night Fever ?
ReplyDeleteA Good Question: What is your personal Silver Age/Bronze Age line of demarcation?
ReplyDeleteHB
(PS-- like both of your offerings, Colin J and Dougie!)
HB, it seems like that topic has come up a few times before here, naturally, but I don't think there's anything wrong with another round of discussion.
ReplyDeleteColin, I think we should add Urban Cowboy to that list, for a perfect trifecta of popular trend-setting Travolta vehicles.
Dougie, that's a really cool suggestion - it's actually got me thinking...
Thanks, everyone (so far)! And please keep it coming.
ReplyDeleteIf we get enough, we may dedicate an entire week to these suggestions. Which should also tell you how dry the Doug/Karen well has become...
Doug
Perhaps the golden age of comics podcasting has passed, but there is still a lot of great existing material to explore.
ReplyDeleteHow about favourite comics podcast together with favourite comics podcast episode complete with links?
Best original cast SNL character(s).., again from 1975-1980.
ReplyDeleteAnd with 'Star Wars' fever raging back in 1978, helmed by the still-hot comic genius of Buck Henry along with notable movie star Richard Benjamin fresh off Westworld, why was 'Quark' so miserably terrible..?
(NOTE: BTW, it's still a favorite vintage show of mine..).
Has the Bronze Age comic retailer view ever been discussed here?
ReplyDeleteIt would be interesting to get their perspective on the transition from wholesale to direct market, along with buying trends during the 70s and 80s. There must be some great stories out there somewhere.
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ReplyDeleteI'll second Edo's comment about the Silver Age/Bronze Age. And I'm also curious about your line of demarcation for the Bronze Age/Modern Age.
ReplyDeleteI'll third it. I know we've discussed what we've thought about the 'ending' of the Bronze Age, and some ramblings on the beginning, but I'm up for it.
ReplyDeleteEspecially which major comic company holds that honor of 'demarcation' over the other.
I know we have talked food, but has favorite cereal, favorite cereal related memory (toy inside; mail in prize; commercial) been covered?
ReplyDeleteAlso, a favorite music, album, band, or performer that you think nobody else likes. I hear a lot of great music suggestions here but wonder if there are any outliers that nobody has heard of or you perceive as not being mainstream or popular but you have a fondness for them?
I am also curious about local television, favorite local programming, and local shows from our childhood?
I'd be interested in a discussion of the short-lived Atlas Comics line in the mid 70s. They managed to attract an amazing level of talent, which they promptly seemed to waste: Ditko, Adams, Toth, Heath, Chaykin, Buckler . . . I think a creator's rights approach helped them get these heavyweights (and to-be-heavyweights).
ReplyDeleteI'm also endlessly interested in some of the Big Two's B-listers from that period: the Black Panther (particularly the Panther's Rage arc, by Don McGregor); Deathlok; Killraven; the Challengers of the Unknown; some of the lesser Kirby titles like Omac . . .
You guys have done great -- next week shall see the fruits of thy labors!
ReplyDeleteDoug
Hiya,
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot of great material out there that was produced by the small independent companies that we rarely touch upon that might make a good subject for a post. First, Pacific, Valiant are just a few of the companies that I was reading at the time.
To be honest, reading a lot more than the Big Two at the time.
Seeya,
pfgavigan
How about, "Did you ever create any of your own Superheroes or villains, when you were a kid?" And if so, what was their story, name, powers, costume, etc.
ReplyDeleteI personally had my own entire superhero comics universe called "Superior Comics". If we do the discussion someday, I'll give with some details.
I think it would be real interesting to hear what crazy (or not so crazy) ideas some of you guys might have come up with.
William, yep, I created a bunch of my own heroes and villains, and also remixed the Marvel and DC universes, and sometimes come up with great plans to integrate them, and also mix in my own creations. That *would* be an interesting discussion.
ReplyDeleteI love the ideas upstream, so consider them seconded, third-ed, etc. One other idea, though it might involve some guest columns -- how about 5 or 10 favorite covers from the person posting, around a specific idea or theme? (10 Favorite BA covers...that I owned; OR ...with two teams facing off; OR ... featuring monsters; OR ...featuring animals... (sort of like Comic Buyer's Guide used to do. I actually did one on animals there in one of the print issues before the mag sadly ended.). It was a fun feature, and I'd love seeing the favorites of Doug, Karen, or any of the BAB folks hereabouts, regardless of the "topic" chosen!
ReplyDeleteLoads of great potential topics here; looking forward to seeing them show up in long form! Martinex1- love your suggestion about local programming. A lot to cover there, no doubt.
ReplyDeleteA couple more for consideration:
Comic creators' work in other media ( such as Kirby and Gerber in animation, for instance)
Dungeons and Dragons/role playing games; or even favorite board games...
I'll second PFG's suggestion about independent comics. To me they were a major part of the Bronze Age.
ReplyDeleteAnd I like Dougie's idea about B+W magazines at DC. There would've been some cool ones!
ReplyDeleteI would be glad to see any of the above suggestions enacted upon. How about the following (and I apologize if I somehow missed these in past years or if they are just bad ideas)...
ReplyDeleteSaturday morning live action shows like Land of the Lost, Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, Shazam, Krofft Supershow, etc.
The 70s fascination with cars/trucks in mainstream entertainment: Canonball Run, Smokey and the Bandit, Convoy, CBs, BJ and the Bear, Knightrider,Dukes of Hazard, U.S. 1, ...
Under appreciated comic book artists and writers (no Kirby, Byrne, Lee, Claremont here...).
Discuss examples when comics taught you something that school and life didn't..
Discuss second tier teams like Alpha Flight, Outsiders, Doom Patrol, Ultraforce, Force Works, Eternals etc.
Under appreciated heroes and villains. If you were in charge who would you give a title to?
Worst plot developments ever (for me YJ hitting the Wasp) and how you would have changed it.
And finally... Comic team ups or relationships we would like to see (Beast and Tigra, Commander Rann and the Wasp, Fixer and Ultron)
In and of itself...today's challenge was fun.
There have been some really good suggestions. A few that I want to add are more along the lines of column suggestions (?), anyhoo I think Karen & Doug could make some of these work.
ReplyDelete"Upon Further Review": I know we often discuss movies when they first come out, but what about when they're released on DVD. Sometimes, subsequent viewings shed a different light on our opinions. Also, when there's different versions/updates of older movies. I don't like the final version of "Aliens". I think the added scenes actually distract from the theatre version. The Bat-Man DVD collection.
Also, to jump on Martinex1's suggestion, not just bands, but what about older TV series, TV movies, documentaries or independent movies? My wife watches Chicago Fire and I started thinking with Chicago PD and the new Chicago Med, didn't they already do this with Third Watch? Third Watch was a really solid show that I liked.
"Rave on Wednesday": What's going on that you really like? Find an awesome "micro brew" line? Great burger? Find a penny with the head up?
"Throw a tantrum Tuesday": Find a lot of kids standing in your yard? Still mad about "Maximum Clonage"? Everything you want for Christmas over $200? Still trying to find the Panini Books everybody is raving about?
Now a few to Karen for Take 5. Top 5 Eighties One Hit Wonders. Top 5 musicals to films to musicals (no, just kidding). Top 5 Cliffhangers. Top 5 origin stories.
One specific question for discussion: If you had super powers, would you want to have been born with them or acquire them by accident?
That's it, I'm done.........
(Time flies, doesn't seem a minute
Since the Tirolean Spa had the chess boys in it
All change, don't you know that when you
Play at this level, there's no ordinary venue)
Martinex1, my favourite cereal is honey bunches of oats! Hmm, great ideas for discussion floating around today; Doug & Karen should have no problem for posts in the future!
ReplyDeleteB/W DC mags? Now that would have been interesting to see. A b/w Batman feature or a JLA/JSA story would have really been great.
- Mike 'discussion concussion' from Trinidad & Tobago.
Yeah, I'm having trouble resisting a late-game breakfast cereal tangent right here, even-!
ReplyDeleteMust. . . resist. . . the sugary. . . sweetness. . .
HB
Here are a few topics I'd like to read everyone's thoughts on ...
ReplyDelete- Favorite cereal-type premiums, such as Crater Critters from Apple Jacks, Archies' jalopy from Bit-O-Honey, Spider-Man ring from Spider-Man vitamins, etc. (Just saw that Martinex1 beat me to this one!
- I know that there have been discusions of the Thing and his different artists, but I would like to read opinions on if he should be shown with teeth or not. The way Kirby would do it was only show them when great effort or anger was involved. A friend of mine feels that the Thing needs to have teeth to seem more realistic for modern audiences. For me, showing teeth makes him look ridiculous - especially if the proportions are off. He looks like a 'have a nice day' meme of a cat with human teeth. Even Buckler has redrawn FF 159 showing the Thing's open mouth now with teeth and I don't like it.
- Opinions on the Disney movies of the '70s, like the Kurt Russell Dexter Riley movies or the Dean Jones movies, such as Snowball Express. I was still a 'tween/young teen and enjoyed these, but figure they probably don't hold up well for today's kids. I'm planning on showing them to my 11-year-old twin niece and nephew next time they visit.
- david_b - I was a Junior in High School when Quark was on and I remember thinking it was hilarious!
Always enjoy lurking on this site. Thanks to everyone for helping me relive some fond memories every morning!
Man, on the topic of Quark, I re-watched the entire series a few years ago, and despite the cheesy costumes, sets and effects, I found that it largely help up quite well. Really solid satire of '60s/'70s SF movies and TV shows...
ReplyDeleteWhen are we gonna get a new header? :)
ReplyDeleteIf I had a question I could ask fans would be:
ReplyDeleteWhen one of your teachers discovered that you liked comics how did they react?
Back in 1973, when I was in fourth grade I had a very devoutly religious teacher (it was a public school ironically) who went into a tirade when she caught me discussing Super Friends with one of my fellow students. She started yelling and ranting at me that super hero comics were trash and pornography. She claimed I'd become a babbling idiot who would only look at "picture books" for the rest of my life. She was a complete nut. However she attempted to make an example of me.
My mother went to the school and could not convince the principal that she was wrong. When
I went to take out a science fiction book out the the school library; I was reminding by the librarian that she spoke to my teacher. Consequently, I got another lecture how all science fiction is trash and I should stop reading it.
As a consequence, my grandmother and my mother encouraged me to build my own library. My parents purchased books for me when they could afford it, thereby bypassing my overzealous teacher. It was because of comics I started to read books. When teachers start dictating what students can and can't read, a child is quickly going to lose interest. Just because I don't want to read "Alistair Cooke's America" doesn't mean I won't become an avid reader.
I can understand if I was reading this book for a homework assignment. But I wasn't. I just wanted to have some light reading over the summer.
Have had a post on Team-Ups or Crossovers we'd like to see?
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