Who's the Best... Horror Movie Remake?

Karen: Tis the season -for things creepy and scary. I was turning the dial on Sunday (well, clicking the remote, but you get my meaning) and I saw remakes of Frankenstein, and The Thing (actually that strange prequel to John Carpenter's remake...that's confusing), so I thought it might be time to toss out the question - Who's the Best remake? Or are you of the opinion that remakes stink?  And of course, are they really remakes, or just different versions from the same subject matter?

Who's the Best... Anthology Comic Series?

Redartz:  Good day to one and all! Today we consider a genre of comic close to many hearts (certainly close to mine, anyway): anthology comics. Books in which one was treated to a variety of stories, with different characters, different creative teams, all within a single issue. A given book may have contained just two stories (such as was found in classic series like Strange Tales, Tales of Suspense, and Tales to Astonish). Or it may have contained several stories, as with the dollar Adventure Comics, or Walt Disney's Comics and Stories. The stories sometimes shared a theme, such as sci-fi in Mystery in Space, or Batman Family stories in Detective. Story lengths varied, but you always got some variety for your comic coin. And after all, who doesn't enjoy a buffet?

 Following are a few examples to 'prime the pump':
 

 

Among my personal favorites were Adventure (a great line-up with Deadman and the JSA), Mystery in Space (some very nice stories by top talent) and the always fun Disney's Comics and Stories. What were your favorites? What were the best line-ups of features? Let's all get eclectic today... 

Who's the Best... Frienemy?

Doug: Friends, foes, sometimes even lovers (and haters!). What about characters who cross the line... and back?

Who's The Best... Class of Powers?

Martinex1:   The heroes and villains from Marvel and DC can be classified fairly easily according to their primary power sets.   I am sure there are more categories than I have listed below, but I find that most characters can be catalogued in nine groups.  Even if a character has multiple powers they will continue to rely on their core capability.  So which group is the best?   Do you gravitate to a type of hero with certain abilities?  Does one set have better intrinsic value or interest? How about costumes and visual depiction - is one group generally better than others?   Or is there a classification that I have not mentioned that you consider superior?

Outlined below are my broad categories and some pictorial examples to get the conversation going:

• The Blasters:   These are characters who use energy as a weapon.  Whether utilizing fire, heat, ions, sonic waves, or light rays - they have some method of hurling or sending energy forces at their opponent. More often than not technology and science play a role in their powers.
• The Flyers:   These characters rely on their wings, whether feathery or mechanical, to take to the air.  Many characters can fly, but for these flight is their primary power
• The Runners:   This group relies on speed, speed, and more speed.    They can run, hit, and even vibrate faster than the human eye.  
• The Athletes: Not always super-powered, this group consists of the fighters, martial artists, acrobats, gymnasts, and sportsmen.   Typically they are honed to the peak of human perfection.  They work hard to stay in shape but often take a beating.  These are the gold medalists of the spandex set.
• The Brains: This set sometimes has supernatural abilities like telekinesis and telepathy.   They may be manipulators of the mind.   Or they may simply be extraordinarily smart - they are the genius class and the thinkers.   It is the grey matter that matters here.
• The Muscle:  The characters in this group are super-enhanced.   Their strength goes beyond the norm.   They can bench-press a mack-truck if needed.   Typically their brute strength is their primary attribute.
• The Magicians:  Here are the sorcerers, wizards, warlocks, and witches.   They have abilities that don't adhere to the laws of science and physics.   These are the other-worldly, pan-dimensional masters of the weird.
• The Robots: Call them androids, synthezoids, droids, or robots - these artificial creations with human emotions are a science fiction trope.
• The Size-Changers:   Whether enlarging to 30 feet or shrinking to the molecular level, this group of giants and insects have a "growing" population in our comic kingdoms.



The Energy Blasters!

The Brain-trust!

The Winged Warriors!

The Speedsters!

The Mighty and the Muscled!

The Magicians!

The Athletes and Acrobats!

The Size Shifters!

The Artificials!

So is it mind over matter?  Or brawn over brains?   Is it the fleet-footed or those that take flight?  Is it the energy fiends or those that need energy drinks?   Size over substance?  The witches or the whip smart?  From you comic book lovers out there - who's the best in this power struggle?  


Share your own classifications, considerations, examples, thoughts, and opinions,

Who's The Best... Fantastic Four Substitute?

Martinex1: Over the years The Fantastic Four has not had as large a revolving door as other super-teams like the Avengers, but they have had their share of substitutes.   I have a particular fondness for the FF reserves as they are in a truly elite class.   The proxies are not the typical heroes or heroines either, as they tend to reside slightly outside the mainstream.  In your opinion, does one or the other rise above the rest?  Are any better than the originals?   So who is the best?  

Crystal the Elemental, Medusa the Inhuman,  Luke Cage; Power-Man,  Ms. Marvel the She-Thing, Ant-Man, She-Hulk or even much more recently Black Panther, Storm, or Spider-Man?   Who was the best?

Who's the Best... Captain America Cover by Mike Zeck?

Doug: Thomas F. is back with another Who's the Best? covers post. And he has some beautiful offerings for your consideration today.

Thomas F.: Talented penciler Mike Zeck got his start in the comics industry at Charlton Comics in the early Seventies. Most of his subsequent work, though, was for Marvel, with the occasional cover or one-page job in an anniversary issue for DC. Most of us are most familiar with Zeck’s artwork in the pages of Secret Wars, GI Joe, Master of Kung-Fu, and the highly successful 1986 The Punisher limited series which ran for five issues.

Incidentally, the first Thanos solo story, featured as the backup tale in Logan’s Run #6, was also penciled (and inked) by a twenty-seven-year-old Mike Zeck in 1977. As for why the story was included in the pages Logan’s Run #6, of all places—and not in The Avengers—tight deadlines was the official reason cited.
But for me, some of Zeck’s best work was in the pages of Captain America. During his popular run on the book, which lasted from 1978 to 1986, Zeck turned out some truly striking covers, many of which would make fantastic posters or pinups. I couldn’t help but notice that the cover of Captain America #277 is obviously a swipe of Neal Adam’s Detective Comics #395, from 1970.I’ve selected a dozen of my own favorite Zeck covers here. (If I had to choose just one, it would be a tie between #332 and Annual #8.)

Which do you like most, and are there any you feel I’ve left out?

  

 

*Doug: Apologies to Thomas and our readers for the less-than perfect lay-out today. You know I wanted those covers to be justified on the margins. But it just wasn't happening!