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comics
comet, the super-horse
This is not bragging, because the Internets can shame me. But I’m a pretty big comic nerd — again, not the biggest one by any stretch, but I’ve got more than my share of trivia nested away. And of all the thousands of characters out there, the two I know best are old Spider-Man and Superman.
This is all context for what follows.
How the fuck did this slide past me for the last 33 years?
I knew about Comet, the Super-Horse, sure. I knew that he was Supergirl’s pet horse pre-Crisis. (Not to be confused with Streaky, her per super-cat.)
But how in hell did these two sentences, quoted from Wikipedia, not register with me until today:
“Comet was Supergirl’s pet horse and while in his human form as Bill Starr, her brief boyfriend. Comet also had a brief romance with Lois Lane in her comic book.”
Re-read that shit a second time.
- Supergirl had a horse that could turn into a man.
- Supergirl dated him.
- Supergirl had a horse for a boyfriend.
- After they broke up (I can’t even type this with a straight face)
- The horse dated Lois Lane
- The horse dated Lois Lane
I thought it was pretty awesome when Superman fell in love with Supergirl, which was weird, sure — they are cousins. But this is a whole different level of insanity, even for Silver Age standards.
Comet was a playa — and Lois totally got Kara’s leftovers.
omfg.
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the doom patrol
I’ve read comic books all my life. Most of those tales are for other times. Today belongs to the Doom Patrol. I first discovered this series in 7th grade, on a summer trip to my aunt and uncle’s house in Iowa.
There wasn’t much to do at that age in the middle of the country. And then I discovered my cousin’s pile of these comics from the 60s. And, holy shit, my mind was blown. And then, a few years later, the title relaunched and 18 months later, Grant Morrison was writing it. This was about time I was in 9th grade or so and my mind was blown a second time.
The point is that I’ve a long history loving these comics. I don’t want to write all about them, that’s what Wikipedia is for. This is what you need to know:
1. they debuted in 1963 and ran until 1968.
2. the team was based around a bunch of misfits (not unlike the X-Men, though the Doom Patrol came first by a couple of months)
3. the team was a. Nile Caulder, the brilliant leader who was crippled in a wheelchair, b. Robotman (Cliff Steele), a racecar driver who lost his body and had his brain placed into a robot, c. Negative Man (Larry Trainor) the pilot whose body housed a “negative being” made of radio waves who could leave his body for up to 60 seconds and d. Elasti-Girl (Rita Farr) an actress who could grow and shrink her size.
4. Other characters included….man, I started typing and each sentence got more complicated and insane. Go to Wikipedia and dig. But let’s leave it at: any comic that includes super-villians of a brain in a jar and a French speaking super-intelligent gorilla as partners is the most awesome thing you might have ever read.
Don’t believe me? (This is all prelude for the awesomeness of the 4 links in the next paragraph.)
I submit for your approval, Matt Fraction’s list of awesome panels from the Doom Patrol. All 4 entries. And they are worth the read, my friends. Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4.
And as a footnote, you can pick up the b&w reprints on the cheap now — and here’s a review which only reinforces how rad of a comic this really is.
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QoS and Morrison
Ok, now this might be getting silly. This is a slight addendum to my other 2 reviews of QoS. ( review 1 and the second)
Nick sent me this review of Quantum of Solace, as I seem to be moving into defense for this movie*. Though if this guy’s biggest issue with the film is that it’s too realistic, I suggest he stick with Die Another Day.
The newest issue of Final Crisis came out**, kicked ass and I have some pull quotes:
Morrison on the style: “We had widescreen comics and decompression and super-compression. This is channel-zapping comics.”
And a review: “Throughout the series, Morrison has been using what I’ve been calling a “pointillist” style, where he shows a quick scene here, a quick scene there, all so you get an overlying sense of universal dread.”
The notion of this skipping around, the full picture never seen — and the notion of seeing reaction more than the action is something I like and expect to see more of.*** The Martin Amis interview I linked to a few days ago reinforces this in my head — I’m unsure what the true literary name for this style will be, but it is reflected in the internet, our consuming of media (where comments are nothing but reaction — online, we are never present for the actual event) and the whole 21st century/post postmodern movement.
Have you noticed anything like this in other pieces of media?
* I don’t love this movie. I think it is remarkable because I see stylistic and directional choices that are hanging out at the periphery at the moment. For now, it’s a perfect example in film of where I think we are going with film.
** Here is one other review of FC, which I really just ought to point out for the zillionth time that I am really enjoying. I’d tell you to run out and read it, except that it is prob too comic booky for you. I mean, unless you already are familiar with the New Gods. That might be a decent barometer. But from the first comment in this post: “I love the book, but the problems that people in my circle have come down to the extremely sudden start/stop of the scenes, the very loose connection from one scene to the next, and the general chaos of it all” Zing!
*** I’d be lying if I said that I don’t see some of it in my own novel as well, but I hate tooting my own horn.
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comics
Nerd alert!
I still read comics, as I have for most of my life. I know the first issue I bought (Web of Spider-man 13), but this was a natural course — my parents and grandparents had bought random issues for me for years, from the spinner racks in grocery stores. (See Stars Wars [I still love this cover], random cartoon issues and even a random issue from my father’s childhood.)
But I stopped buying as regularly a while ago, driven away by rising costs and frustration over how DC comics was marketing their books. I had quit reading cold before, back when I went to college; that time lasted about 3 years. This time it is likely I won’t go back to buying issues, opting for other ways to read issues. (I’ve been especially drawn to the DC Showcase phonebooks — cheap, easy and fun).
Ok, so what?
So I limit my comic nerdiness on here because I know almost no one who follows stories like I do. That’s ok: I’m posting these thoughts and links because I think there is a passing chance you’ll be amused if you have a passing interest or fondness for comics.
Want to hear someone rail against the latest Marvel crossover, Secret Invasion? (This is about #6, which is arguably the funniest review.) Done. In fact, check out parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. If you want to read all the review in order. (Bonus: a review of the new Marvel cross-over, Dark Reign. I’m throwing it to you as I love the reference to “super-hero board-room” genre. It’s totally Bendis and totally true. I’ll go one farther even — Bendis writes groups of people, usually heroes, sitting around talking. That’s his thing. His cross-overs are generally board-rooms, but I would say that his regular issues are more water-cooler.)
Or would you rather read a review of DC’s latest crossover? (I’m biased here, I love what Morrison has done with this series throughout; this might be my favorite comic in years.) I mean, where else can you read a review that says:
And yet: a certain energy still erupts.
I know exactly when it happens too – over halfway through the issue, with Evil Mary Marvel literally thrusting her leather-clad crotch into Freddy Freeman’s face, then Talky Tawny descending from the sky in a steam-powered jetpack, dressed in slacks and a checkered jacket while declaring things like “This is the quantum blunderbuss we confiscated from Professor Sivana’s son,” while an evil tiger-person in a Thundercats-style leotard waves a metal club and rides in on a giant mutant dog. This follows a ground war in the middle of a ruined city with human and animal superheroes and their capes and hoods and horns and tails and quivers of arrows riding motorcycles and jeeps while the sky fills with Supergirl and a Green Lantern and robots and things.
Even if you don’t know the sorted history of the Marvel family or why any of this might possibly matter, the sheer madness of a bunch of disparate elements swirled up like this is so overwhelming; it shows Morrison at his best.
Ok, ok.
Fine, you aren’t into current cross-over reviews. But can you at least dig the reminiscing about awesome covers to the GI Joe comic? Yes. You can.
And if you can’t, Keren wanted me to share this picture of an anteater with you.
Wow. I didn’t expect to just have a giant post about other people’s recent comic reviews, but so be it.
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3 links without much context
1. a restaurant menu based on breast milk
2. the issue of “locals” that is set in richmond, online for free. has a bunch of landmarks, esp around vcu.
3. the 2300 calorie milkshake. yes, for real.
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thoughts i’m trying to catch up on
- I didn’t realize initially that it was the Michael Phelp-ics, but I’m pretty burned out now. We watched some at the beach, but the Olympics have never been my thing. I do wish I’d followed the soccer a bit more though.
- Mike and I went to Daly City last night to pick up a new dresser and nightstand for me off of craigs list. Oh man. I had measured the car to make sure the dresser would fit in the backseat. Check. However, I made the fatal flaw that I’m sure everyone does at some point — I didn’t check to make sure the dresser would fit through the car door. The result? We look like idiots to these people, who send us up the street to the dollar store to buy string to tie the trunk to the dresser. We evenually get it all together after much amateur fumbling and I drive the 45 miles down the 280 sweating the entire time, convinced the string will break and something bad will happen. Nothing does and we make it home just fine. I have a dresser for the first time since moving to the west coast.
- This morning it occurred to me that the “Batman R.I.P.” (which I know Ben is reading, at least) by Morrison currently running in the Batman comic is a lot like the “Hush” storyline by Loeb from several years ago. Except that Loeb went low-brow and Morrison is hitting the high-brow notes. Also, “Final Crisis” is very, very good. I’m burned out on DC still, but if you have basic (or nerd-basic) knowledge of DC, “Final Crisis” should tickle you in strange places. Of course, if I say Mister Miracle, Seven Soldiers, Barry Allen and 4th World and you have a blank stare, you’ll need to hit up Wikipedia to fully appreciate it. (Also, bringing back Barry Allen is the single worst idea DC could do. I’d like to say it doesn’t actually raise my blood pressure, but it does. I am a nerd.)
- This post by the Portman’s bf, titled “In Which We Request You Not Tongue Our Balls” might be enough for me to wish the couple well. As much as I love the Portman, I’m not sure I can offer more than this post does. Yes, I may no longer be the perfect match for Natalie. The nerd in me is crying.
- Everything That Happens Will Happen Today is out. It’s David Brynes and Brian Eno’s first collab in 30-some years, the first since “My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts.” I need to listen to this one some more before I decide if I’m buying it or not.
- We were on vacation for Imperial Fleet Week this year. Looks like we didn’t miss a ton.
- And yes, I’m doing well. I haven’t fallen off of any cliffs, though I’m staying up too late, eating too late (last night dinner was at midnight) and generally driving myself to exhaustion. Debate may begin if this is a healthy coping mechanism.
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