By Andrew A. Smith
Tribune Content Agency
In the month of October, Marvel Comics produced 17 first issues of new series. What th-? Here’s the dillio:
Over the summer, Marvel canceled its entire line after a huge, climactic crossover destroyed its superhero multiverse. Yes, that happened. Marvel then immediately re-launched its characters as inhabitants of “Battleworld,” a quilt-like collection of bizarre baronies overseen by Dr. Doom, who had everyone convinced he was a god.
OK, that’s just bizarre -- too bizarre to last, and it didn’t. After lots of drama, Battleworld is now expanding back into the familiar Marvel Universe (we don’t know the hows and whys yet), with a few tweaks here and there. Beginning in October, and stretching over the next few months, the largest comics publisher in North America is re-launching all its titles in context of the new status quo.
But all that background is tangential to the central question with each of these books, which is: Are they good? Let’s take a look at October’s re-launches:
DOCTOR STRANGE #1: I confess to having a soft spot for Marvel’s top magician, because – if for no other reason – his complete lack of combat skills made my younger self feel like becoming Dr. Strange was a possibility. It was too late to get myself rocketed to Earth from from the doomed planet Krypton and gain super-powers, I was too short and thin to ever become Batman, I never got bitten by a radioactive spider. But the Li’l Capn was a precocious student, so studying a bunch of ancient mystic tomes to become the Master of the Mystic Arts seemed do-able!
Dr. Strange never sold well enough to headline a title for very long, so in recent years Marvel writers have made upgrading the Sorcerer Supreme something of a project. And it appears to have worked, if for no other reason than Dr. Strange the movie, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, will premiere in 2016.
Also, there’s this new comic book, which is very, very good. It’s got the same creative team that made the late Wolverine and the X-Men book one of Marvel’s best, writer Jason Aaron and artist Chris Bachalo. Strange, formerly something of a loner, is more integrated into the Marvel Universe, having as his best friends (and drinking buddies) other magical characters like Scarlet Witch (of the Avengers), Dr. Voodoo (formerly Brother Voodoo) and Shaman (of Alpha Flight).
Aaron has wisely addressed two other aspects of Dr. Strange previously ignored, such as his ability to stay alive in a fight and his sex life. His combat skills have been upgraded (he carries around a battle-ax now, which is odd but strangely cool-looking) and he’s something of a ladies’ man. The latter gets him into all kinds of self-created trouble, as it ought.
But perhaps the greatest testament to this book is that my wife read it and immediately said “where’s the next issue?” She generally dislikes Marvel’s output, which she dismisses as “fight comics.” But this first issue, comprised in equal parts of the weird and the mundane, hit all her buttons.
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #1: You’d think with such a hot property on its hands, that Marvel would keep this now-familiar team exactly as it was in the movies. You’d be wrong.
Instead, the Guardians are now led by Kitty Pryde of the X-Men, as Star-Lord has been forced to take over his royal duties on Spartak. Ben Grimm – “Thing” of the Fantastic Four – is also a member, as his own team has disbanded and he’s always wanted to be an astronaut. Supervillain Venom is now “Venom: Space Knight.”
There are other cute things to mention, but really the bottom line is that “Guardians of the Galaxy” continues to be a fun, irreverent thrill ride that refuses to play by conventional rules.
HOWLING COMMANDOS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. #1: There’s really nothing new about monsters in comic books fighting evil or other monsters (sometimes of their own volition, sometimes not). DC Comics has its “Creature Commandos” and comics history is littered by concepts like G.I. Robot; Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.; Legion of Monsters; G.I. Zombie; and so forth.
But this book stars Dum Dum Dugan, familiar from the Sgt. Fury and the Howling Commandos comic book and the Captain America movies, who has recently discovered that the real Dugan has been dead since 1965 and the current version is really just a sophisticated robot called an LMD (Life Model Decoy) that thought he was Dum Dum Dugan. So now this “ghost robot Frankenstein,” as he refers to himself, has accepted that he’s not technically Dum Dum, but acts and thinks like Dum Dum – who is/was a funny and decent guy. So he/it is leading a team for S.H.I.E.L.D. made up of various monsters to make the world a better place – because that’s the kind of thing Dum Dum would do.
Howling Commandos of S.H.I.E.L.D. is really Dum Dum Dugan’s book, even though he’s dead. Which makes it both poignant and wryly amusing.
Not enough? Well, there’s also the monsters! Ever seen a zombie wield a rocket launcher? It works just about as well as you'd expect.
Those are my top three, but here are some more worth sampling:
* AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #1: Peter Parker is now a wealthy CEO, but he employs a lot of his old friends and adversaries, so it’s sort-of familiar. The best part, though, is the return of Dr. Octopus – as the mind of a killer robot! Da da DUMMMMM!
* ANT-MAN: Mildly amusing in the way the movie was. But now Scott Lang is running his own security company in Miami, abetted by a host of D-list heroes and villains from Marvel’s long list of D-list characters.
* CAPTAIN AMERICA: SAM WILSON #1: The new Captain America, who was the old Falcon, breaks from superhero precedent by announcing his political persuasions. Interesting from a real-world perspective, and a lot of trouble for Sam.
* “KARNAK” #1: The Inhuman who can find – and exploit – the flaw in anything is now something of a nihilistic monk who takes on assassination jobs for S.H.I.E.L.D. to fund his monastery. He is one weird dude, and not entirely likable, but there’s no other book in the world quite like this one.
* UNBEATABLE SQUIRREL GIRL #1: The quirky rodent-tailed superheroine has more quirky adventures with her quirky crew of pretend superheroes.
The rest of October’s launches didn’t do much for me, which is too bad – some of them used to be among my favorite titles. They include Angela: Queen of Hel #1, Avengers #0, Contest of Champions #1, Iron Man #1, New Avengers #1, Spider-Gwen #1, Spider-Man 2099 #1, Uncanny Avengers #1 and Uncanny Inhumans #1.
They are not by any stretch bad comics, and are generally worth sampling. Or, y’all could just wait and see what new first issues November will bring!
Reach Captain Comics by email (capncomics@aol.com), the Internet (comicsroundtable.com), Facebook (Captain Comics Round Table) or Twitter (@CaptainComics).
Replies
Ah Captain, bouyed by your newer list of newer no. 1s ...I thought I'd comment her also...
DOCTOR STRANGE - now i'm a fan and I felt he deserved his own title back for years! (I even stuck with his book when he was drawn like a John Lennon tribute (!?)...but I'm a little concerned that Bachalo's art can run away with him in it's zany-ness - comprised in equal parts of the weird and the mundane, - hits my buttons too I hope.
GUARDIANS of the GALAXY - although i'm warming more to the 'original' Guardians3000 title - I've always liked this book - I kind of think it does what Claremont's X-Men used to do in the early days - I love Flash Thompson as venom and I actually quite like the idea of the Thing on the team - I remember MTIO - he can function quite well without the rest of those darned '4'....
HOWLING COMMANDOS OF SHIELD - hell yes! Again as long as it doesn't decend into farce I just love this concept. Kind of marvel's version of 'Justice League Dark'?
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN - for years I've been lamenting the lack of 'adult' Peter Parker/Spider-Man which this seems to be trying to do - leaving Miles Morales to be the 'teenage' Spidey, Peter can become an adult among his peers can he?
I'm not convinced being sucessful and surrounded by an entourage is quite the Spidey I want to read though...
ANT-MAN - I'm into this very late ( I've only JUST seen the movie) but I think i might like this. Looks solid enough as a concept and as a character - seems to be well recieved....guess I'll be picking up a trade or Kindle version and checking it out.
CAPTAIN AMERICA SAM WILSON. - Similar to the female THOR, I feel this is a doomed/finite concept and eventually there will be a reset button - I quite liked Sam as the Falcon and do not really see what he has gained (other than the shield) from the name-change. Not sure of the overt political angle for the book either - valiant but will it be entertaining?
KARNAK - hurrah! My favourite Inhuman gets his own title --but appears to be completely different to any presvious version even though there appears to be story links to his recent 'death' etc. How long will the opening creative team stay on the book may dictate how long I stay on board.
UNBEATABLE SQUIRREL GIRL - too cutesy - and the Captain Says it's okay to not like cutesy!
Thanks Cap.
I, too, read the John Lennon Dr. Strange. All of it. I think it damaged part of my brain.
Your reaction to Amazing is the same as mine: OK, yes, it's about time Parker grew up! But, uh, do I really want to read this? I mean, adulthood is kinda boring. So is success. Hrm.
Karnak and Howling: Great starts, and if they can maintain the tone, good books. But can they?
I think the major reason Dr,. Strange has never truly caught on is his lack of a supporting cast over the years. Usually it's been one person--the Ancient One, Wong, Clea--and that's not enough, not to mention that all three of those characters have essentially been ciphers.One of the things I'm enjoying with the new comic is that they're actually giving Wong a purpose and a personality, something that's been sorely missing for around 50 years or so.
I think I said something similar elsewhere, Randy -- three problems with Strange, IMHO, were his lack of personality, his lack of integration with the larger Marvel U and his lack of supporting cast. This series seems to fix all three.
You're right especially about Wong!
My theory is the heart of character popularity is a strong connection between the reader and character. Either the reader wants to be the hero, or the reader sees himself as like the hero.
Wolverine: a manly superhero, not too constrained by moral qualms. Someone who struggles through to victory. The best at what he does.
Conan: a manly hero, even less constrained by moral qualms (but still with a code). The best at what he does. (All the most popular superheroes are the best at what they do. Dr Strange is the best magician, Green Arrow the best archer, Batman the best detective, Hal the greatest Green Lantern.)
Spider-Man: smart, trickly and capable, an underdog who wins. Early on, a bullied geek. Later, a young man trying to build a life. Has a cool look, scary but not too scary.
Superman: the most powerful superhero. Fun when he's mischievous with his powers, or uses them effectively and is manly and sure of himself. As Clark, a schlub on the outside but Superman on the inside, which us schlubs can identify with.
Batman: the non-powered hero who is the most driven, the smartest, most physically capable, and the most versatile in his crime-fighting methods.
Captain America: the most idealistic hero, the best physical fighter, someone who can triumph by his courage and determination against overwhelming odds.
the Hulk: embodies the anger and frustration we feel sometimes, and when he's angry, he's the strongest one there is.
Iron Man: supergenius playboy. Not always as morally pure as he should be but neither are we. And like us he feels a bit guilty about it.
Thor: the strongest hero in the Marvel U (the Hulk is partly an antihero), a good guy but also a guy with emotional range so the reader can identify with him (when he gets angry at his father, frustrated in love etc.). Actually, this sounds less convincing than my other examples.
I like strong supporting casts, but I'm not sure they're essential. On the one hand, all the series I like have them. Doesn't that prove they are? But I think what is most central is the happy centre, the hero.
Hmm...my personal pet theory is that a supporting cast is essential to the long term survival of any series. I don't think Superman does nearly as well without Perry White, Jimmy Olsen and Lois. I don't think Spider-Man works without Aunt May, Flash Thompson and J. Jonah Jameson, and I don't think Batman works as well without Robin, Alfred and Commissioner Gordon. I think Wonder Woman has been missing Steve Trevor, Etta Candy and the Holliday Girls since the 1940's
The hero is absolutely essential as well, but if he/she doesn't have a quality group around to talk with, confer with, etc. it's just not as interesting. Heck, it's 50% of why sidekicks exist; to give the hero someone to talk with (the other 50% being to tell us all how awesome the hero is).
If I look at comics featuring newer solo heroes over the last 20 years or so that I've enjoyed, I can definitely pinpoint the supporting cast as a major factor. One of the things DC totally got wrong with the most recent incarnation of Blue Beetle was minimizing Jaime's supporting cast, which was a huge reason to read the comic in his initial run. I'm enjoying the current Silver Surfer run if only for the inclusion of Dawn Greenwood, who brings a breath of fresh air to the entire concept.
If I think in terms of heroes with limited supporting casts--say for instance, Hal Jordan--I'm generally looking at a character that's always had a hard time selling on a steady basis and that frequently hovers near cancellation. If I see a character that's doing well, odds are really high that he/she has a quality supporting cast that pulls the interest of readers who might not buy the comic otherwise.
Anyway, that's my theory.
Luke Blanchard said:
This must be why I like team books - the heroes ARE the supporting cast.
I've said before that I thought Amazing Spider-Man was best in the late 1960s, when it had an intact supporting cast second to none in comics. Then, of course, writers started killing them off or turning them into villains or whatever. Adios Gwen Stacy, Captain Stacy, Ned Leeds, Norman Osborn, Harry Osborn, Flash Thompson and John Jameson. Peter probably married Mary Jane to keep her from being written out! I'll always love Spider-Man, but without his supporting cast he's only half the character I'm interested in.
I've said it before....
Amazing Spider-Man works best as a finite series ending when Peter and Not the clone died in #150/151 (!)
Intellectually, that's a pretty good argument. Emotionally, though, it would make me sad if Peter Parker was dead!
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