Martinex1: Sometimes even a Super-Hero needs a little humor in his day. So this time around, If I Had A Buck... focuses on the various heroic forays into comic book comedy. And I am not talking about battles with jokers, tricksters, and jesters!Just for fun I threw in a couple non-spandex funny books too.
Some are ironic, some filled with parody, some just have humor on the cover, and some are loaded with jokes on every page. Did you like this type of book or did it turn you off? Share your thoughts.
A special thanks to Redartz for his search and contribution to the cover selection. And of course accolades to the Mike's Amazing World of Comics site for the extensive archives.
Make your selections and let your fellow BABsters in on the joke. Four comics for a dollar. It's a small price to pay as we all know laughter makes the world go 'round.
Hmmm, lots of interesting stuff here, some of which I had at one point (like that great all-humor issue of What If?) and some I'm curious about (esp. Death's Head). However, if I really ever came across this batch of issues in a quarter bin with only a buck to spend, I'd just snap up Inferior Five, Showcase with Angel and the Ape, Strange Tales and Not Brand Eechh. Can't beat the price for a batch of 1960s comics!
ReplyDeleteAlternatively, I'd just go for high page count, in which I'd again get Not Brand Echh, both issues of What If and Fred Hembeck Destroys the Marvel Universe.
Great subject for a 'buck' treatment, Martinex1! There's a lot of fun in that quarter box today, and some excellent comics. That X-Men issue with Kitty's story is wonderful. Still think of Nightcrawler as a "Bamf"...
ReplyDeleteAmbush Bug was quirky enough that I bought every book who's cover he appeared on. The Bug must have been a personal fave of Kieth Giffen...
Speaking of Giffen, that run on the "Bwa Ha Ha" Justice League is a blast. Worth picking up the whole batch just to see Batman flatten Guy Gardner...
The Avengers and Marvel Team Up issues are classics too. Love the image of Peter Parker caught on the audience cam with the caption "superhero in his spare time"...
But for my choices today, how about four I don't have: Captain Hero, Captain Carrot, Fred Hembeck and Impulse. A few laughs sound real good this morning!
The "Guy Gardner on Ice" issue of JLA about killed me.
DeleteFantastic Four, Howard The Duck and Uncanny X-Men - also Strange Tales because I'd love to read the Torch and Thing meet the Beatles. But what about the issue of Marvel Team-Up where Aunt May becomes the herald of Galactus ? (Can't get much funnier than that - and there was also a comedy back-up story in an issue of What If circa 1982 where Aunt May receives the spider powers rather than Peter). And no mention of Deadpool ? I find Deadpool's "breaking the fourth wall" routine where he knows he's a comic-book character to be very amusing.
ReplyDeleteHumor mags REALLY stretch me as a comics reader. I just never found them to be very funny. So if I had a buck, I'd most likely stick to the superhero books that were humorous -- the MTU, the FF issue with She-Hulk on the cover.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I would like to read the run of Not Brand Echh..., and I feel like Inferior Five bears looking into.
Doug
Doug, I understand your perspective and wonder if it is true for a lot of our readers. I had a lot of hesitation around these types of books. In fact the Avengers and Team-Up pictured remained gaps in my runs for a long long time. I much preferred action and these cover themes turned me off.
ReplyDeleteNow when I was a little older I really enjoyed Impulse, She-Hulk and some others. I think the art definitely helped She-Hulk and I think Impulse was good because the comedy was entirely character based. I chuckled at the What If humor issues because some of their parodies and satire were suitably whacky and spot on.
But I wonder if there is a steady reluctance to see your favorite heroes acting goofy.
I really had to age to appreciate it. A lot falls flat but some is terrific.
Now you have me thinking about clarifying my thoughts - for me and for everyone else.
ReplyDeleteI like humor in the superhero genre. I can recall as a child laughing aloud while reading Amazing Spider-Man; later, I thought Bendis wrote some wonderful banter in the very early issues of Ultimate Spider-Man. I loved the Bwah-ha-ha Justice League. Again, a smiley take on those characters (and the new ones really infused some light opposite Batman's dark).
But I never found funny animal comics to be particularly amusing, nor did I ever find books like Archie (for example) to contain knee-slapping gags. But I always wanted to like that sort of stuff, but never really could. I didn't buy books like that, but was always willing to thumb through someone else's copies, or at a garage sale stop to take a peek, etc.
So while I cannot declare any sort of fandom of the out-and-out humor mags, I do enjoy a laugh within the parameters of my own comic book tastes (I love a well-written Ben Grimm, and Hawkeye).
Hopefully that's better than what I'd written above.
Doug
I actually agree Doug with about some of the humor comics, like funny animal or Archies. I had a phase where I almost exclusively read those two, and I can say that they rarely contained laugh-out-loud humor. That never dissuaded me from reading them, though. Archies just have/had this specific charm to them, while the best "funny" animal comics are, say, the Disney ducks when done by someone like Carl Barks - those are usually just straight-up adventure stories which often have humorous or satirical aspects.
ReplyDeleteI think I agree with Doug on this one; comics like that never make me actually laugh out loud, they're just sort of vaguely amusing. As for my four picks, I'd go with Justice League (which tried too hard to be funny sometimes, but the overall stories/art were good no matter what); Captain Carrot (which I liked way back when); Captain Hero (Redartz mentioned him the other day and I actually have this particular issue in a digest reprint); and maybe Ambush Bug (because I've never read it)
ReplyDeleteMike Wilson
Of these, I like the Hembeck stuff...especially his earlier indie stuff.
ReplyDelete...but if also nominate the early run of Cerebus the aardvark. That was some serious funny...until it just got serious.
Edo- good call on the Barks Ducks books. A lot of metaphor to be found there, but also a good read.
ReplyDeleteDoug- as a longtime Archie reader, I can vouch for Edo's take on those as well. Those comics seldom prodded outright laughter from this reader, but just kind of grew on me like acquaintances becoming friends.
Now Hembeck, he can break me up. Also, Angel and the Ape starred in some pretty entertaining stories. Particularly a four- issue series from about 1990, drawn by Phil Foglio. A lot of humor, and a lot of heart. One of the stories that puts the 'comic' in comic book; and that's a pretty good thing...
Don't know how I missed this one, but I will play anyway.
ReplyDeleteI will take:
Marvel Team-Up (loved that issue)
Justice League International (still my favorite Justice League series)
What If (the best issue ever)
She-Hulk (John Byrne, nuff said)