Comments on: Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #142

By: M-Wolverine

M-Wolverine — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 07:19:24 +0000

The last post kind of leads to the point I was going to make. Death and such is a cheap and easy way to create shock value, but only creates DRAMA if used sparingly. If you have a major character like Jean Grey die, it means something. But if you’re just offing as many characters as you can knowing they will be brought back right away, it doesn’t mean anything. And if fans get upset that you’re killing “their characters”, that’s natural, because it’s most often done now by people who don’t card about the character they’re offing (which if the writer doesn’t feel anything for the character, how will the reader?).

Geoff Johns defended the JLI purge in that generations change and everyone has characters that mean something to him or her, so that’s life. But I couldn’t help wondering how he’d feel if in ten years someone killed off his pet character, Stargirl, in some horrific way (or had the really bad taste to do it in a plane crash), since he based her on his dead sister. She’s probably less important than most of those JL characters, and isn’t really ever going to support her own book. So all the justifications for killing her are just as valid. But it’d be just as lazy writing; and I bet he’d object then. I thought we learned a lesson with the Scrourge that while there may be a few bad characters, it’s mostly bad writing.

I’m not a Fables reader, but have heard good things. And I have to say the idea of a villainous Peter Pan is a wonderful concept, and one that seems right there in his characterization. And seems like a better choice than the one they came up with (if I’m judging the link right). Not that how it played out couldn’t/didn’t work; just that the original plan seems a stroke of genius to me.

By: Harry Manback

Harry Manback — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 06:49:36 +0000

While I agree that, if comics are supposed to be set in a “real world” type environment, then awful things like murder and rape very well must occur, as they so often(sadly) do in our world; I wanted to add that, Brian, your response to the poor way that dbats stated as much, was awesome.
On that first note, though, why DO fans seem to get so upset(in the wrong way) that these things happen to the characters they enjoy? If they’re going to happen, then they must, by definition, happen to a character that at least SOME people like. People claim to want more realistic comics, and I think the grittiness adds to the realism, certainly; it’s a sad fact, but we live in a pretty rough world. So, as long as it’s approached well, and well-thought out, why do people take it like such poor sports? I understand being upset, it’s SUPPOSED to be an upsetting event, but it always seems more that it’s because it happens to a character THEY enjoy, more so than because of the harshness of the situation. I think that, when a major, intense, hateful event such as that takes place in a comic(as long as it’s not overused), it hits you hard, makes your head swim, fills you with anger…all signs of great writing, being able to make you feel something. It gives the affected characters a MAJOR conflict, as well, and conflict is what makes for storytelling. Just something I’ve always wondered about.

By: Michael

Michael — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:59:58 +0000

I must add I can never get too worked up even if someone is “out of character” because many different editors and writers are going to be handling all these characters in different ways, thats comics! And there will be thing that people see as “revisions”. Regardless of what came after DC felt the need to use two central characters from that era to kick off a big series/crossover etc so they must have thought some people cared about them.

Wonder if there were some new readers who were like “Who is this Lord guy” when reading him as a main villian. I mean I know they gave backstory in Countdown and all but just saying.

By: Michael

Michael — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:49:16 +0000

As someone who loves the giffen/maguire/demattis etc era of Justice League, one of my favorite “runs” ever, I wasnt so much “outraged” because Max was evil before!!!! That concept of Max Lord being evil wasnt anything new really (whether possesed or not hes always been a prick!)

And they always used to mix in some serious stuff it wasnt all BWAHAHA ..the big Despero story was pretty intense, as was the Gray Man and others.

As much as I love the original run and collected everything until the end I was let down by the 2 “minis” just seemed to be going back to the well nothing terribly wrong with the stories but just werent the same.

By: Fred

Fred — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 23:18:22 +0000

“So, when you guys are watching the news and there is a story about a woman getting raped, do you fly into your school-girl hissy fits?”

Do you have any comprehension of the difference between the news and what is supposed to be entertainment?

And I know full well that there are many dramatic books and even comics that are meant for adults that deal with themes like rape and murder but mainstream comics with solid histories of being meant for a general audience are not a place for an in your face “I’m gonna shock you” storyline especially when it turns conventions around 180 degrees for no other reason than an attempt to increase sales.

By: Mychael

Mychael — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 04:50:47 +0000

Don’t forget Rocket Red.
He’s dead too.

By: MarkAndrew

MarkAndrew — Thu, 29 May 2008 23:06:24 +0000

The stupid.

It burns.

Ow.

By: Desert Son

Desert Son — Thu, 29 May 2008 22:57:09 +0000

So, when you guys are watching the news and there is a story about a woman getting raped, do you fly into your school-girl hissy fits?

OMG!!!! I DON’T NEED RAPE IN MY NEWS!!!!!!!

By: Episode 44 - We Love the Loonies

Episode 44 - We Love the Loonies — Wed, 14 May 2008 06:00:48 +0000

[...] Who was the Advesary supposed to be? [...]

By: Sabian que...??(educando al soberano) - Página 16 - psicofxp.com

Sabian que...??(educando al soberano) - Página 16 - psicofxp.com — Fri, 02 May 2008 04:42:49 +0000

[...] la cambio a ultimo momento cuando se entero de lo que estaban por hacer en DC con esos personajes ACA esta el [...]

By: Brian Cronin

Brian Cronin — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 08:44:14 +0000

Yeah!

You Sue Dibny fans out there should be PLEASED she was raped and murdered! That was awesome for fans of Sue and Ralph!

And you sniveling Blue Beetle fans, if he wasn’t shot in the head, then he’d be alive, and who wants that? Show a little more gratitude, why don’t you!!

And sure, there was that popular mini-series featuring the characters right before they were killed off, but who wants to actually read new comics with Sue and Ted Kord? There’s always reprints of old stuff, nerds!!

By: dbats

dbats — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 08:27:29 +0000

What a collection of manchildren we have reading comics today when they can’t take someone getting shot in the head or an implied rape in their reading. I hope you clowns were as upset when the flesh melted off Barry Allen’s bones way back in Crisis.

Oh, and nobody cared about the JLI in the ten years prior to Countdown to Infinite Crisis. You guys that were fans of that era should be grateful for the renewed light on those characters. It probably got you some trades of the old stuff published, not to mention a successful “Booster Gold” series.

By: wwk5d

wwk5d — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:08:18 +0000

Winick is VERY overrated. I can’t stand much of his work, unfortunately, he tends to write stories featuring some of my favorite characters…and writes them. So. Badly.

I think Didio also needs to go…he prob noticed how Marvel was getting critical acclaim and sales for it work in 2001-2004, and thought, “Hey, let’s make our comics ‘edgy’ like Marvel! We’ll make them dark and sadistic and retcon half our already-convoluted history by making it MORE convoluted and…” shut up, Didio.

Him showing McGuire the art of Beetle getting shot was a level of tackiness even JQ has yet to reach.

By: Fred

Fred — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 18:45:09 +0000

I just started reading Fables on the basis of this page. Thanks for not revealing the Adversary.

I guess what would drive me nuts about Maxwell Lord becoming a bad guy (if I were still reading comics on a regular basis) would be the scene back in the day where the Martian Manhunter probed his mind and gave him a JLI communicator indicating the Jonz found him to be … trustworthy

By: The Four Color Media Monitor

The Four Color Media Monitor — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 22:11:47 +0000

Winick never took part in the 1988 Jason Todd poll

Judd Winick is an overrated writer whose dialect in interviews may be even more alienating than his own scriptwriting in comics. Now, Comics Should Be Good revealed just a few weeks ago that the whole claim made on Newsarama 3 years ago that he’d vot…

By: KalEl el Vigilante

KalEl el Vigilante — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 18:43:32 +0000

Personally, I always suspected Max was evil. Not that kind of Bondesque, omni-controlling evil, but a bad person. About if there was any need to rape Sue, turn the League into either manipulators, helpers in manipulation or “I don’t want to hear about it” cowards or killing BB… well, my opinion is quite different. Personally I haven’t still read anything past The Omac Project (I’m from Spain and it’s being released now, here) but I’ve been told that the final “abuse” on the Golden Age, Earth-2 spirit is despisable.

By: Ununnilium

Ununnilium — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 19:56:22 +0000

Huh, that’s interesting. I remember reading back in the day about him saying that that ending wasn’t a rebuttal to Identity Crisis/Countdown. Or perhaps that was Giffen.

Also, wow. Peter Pan as Adversary… I’m really glad that didn’t happen in the actual comment. It seems like it would’ve been the most annoying kind of deconstruction; straight-up changing “innocent” to “evil”.

By: John Chidley-Hill

John Chidley-Hill — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 14:26:32 +0000

I’ve got two Urban Legends for you, which, oddly, revolve around D.G. Chichester.

1) I heard that he was going to make Matt Murdock the mayor of New York City, but it was ixnayed by Marvel’s editors because it would make it too tough on continuity (y’know, back when that mattered)

2) In the Shadowlines books, there is a character who has the same powers and look as Terror Inc., both of which were done by Chichester. I’ve heard that they weren’t just supposed to be alternate versions of each other, but the same character, who somehow made the leap to the mainstream Marvel Universe. Any truth to that?

By: fit2print

fit2print — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 13:54:20 +0000

I vaguely recall that, in the late 80s, Walt Simonson was to have followed up Frank Miller’s “Born Again” storyline in Daredevil with a brief story arc of his own. Or was it John Byrne’s six- or seven-issue run on the Incredible Hulk that he was to have followed? It’s all a bit hazy.

Urban legend or figment of my imagination?

By: Rene

Rene — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:28:05 +0000

Back in the 1990s there were many fans who started to promote the idea that ALL superhero comics should be dark and cynical and gritty. I didn’t like it.

And in reaction to that, many other fans promote the idea that ALL superhero comics should be “fun” and optimistic and hopeful. I also don’t like it.

Why don’t we promote diversity of taste and tone? Unpredictability? Constant change? Why lock ourselves into these patterns? The comic book industry is already too limited, why limit it further campaigning for a similar tone to all books?

I never really understood the notion that a story’s outlook (meaning, whether it’s cynical or hopeful) has anything to do with quality. I also don’t understand why “dark”, “adult” things can’t be considered “fun”.

Particularly, I don’t have any problem with the Avengers (or any other character) being light-hearted in a decade, and dark and cynical in the following, and then reverting to light.

Let different writers have the opportunity to express different views.