I picked this book up on a whim, to have something to read while I was in the gym. The only Doc Savage story I ever read was a issue of Marvel Two-In-One where the Doc sort-of "teamed up" with Ben Grimm. Never read any Spirit stories at all. So, I'm approaching this as someone who isn't a big fan of either of those characters, but who knows a little about them.
The plus side: The art is OK. I got the J.G. Jones cover, which has Batman (though he doesn't appear in the issue). Savage and the Spirit on it, as well as a mildly amusing joke. The interior art is done by Rags Morales, who is his usual pedestrian but reliable self.
The minus side: The story, while a passable adventure, is not really all that enthralling. A guy is running through the jungle until a robot pokes his eye out, just like your mom always warned you would happen. Clark Savage, Sr., has died a mysterious death, and Savage fils missed the funeral because his was off having one of his "special" times. Doc has the body exhumed, only the body isn't there. A reporter has it in for Savage for some reason. A crooked cop tips the Spirit off to an upcoming crime. Someone tells a drunk called Mr. Sunlight that someone else has escaped from someone else named "Colossi". Meanwhile, Colossi is off in the jungle slaughtering natives. Meanwhile, the Spirit goes to the crime and beats some guys up who really didn't seem to be doing much, and then meets what appears to be Blackhawk.
In other words, it's just a standard comic book adventure, with nothing having the impact that you would think a meeting of these kinds of characters would have. Perhaps it would have more meaning for folks who are already fans of Savage and the Spirit, I see nothing much in it to draw in people that are not.
Will I go on reading it? Probably, if I still remember in a month that I was interested in it.
Reservations about Batman aside - They definitely should have used the Shadow instead - I'd be very interested in this.
Period setting. Massive pulp/comicbook Icons. Toned down superpowers.
It sounds like there was nothing 'Wow' about the first issue. The Spirit beating people up, just because that's what pulp heroes do sounds like putting the 'noir' genre conventions before sense or plotting.
There'll probably be an arc of Batman turning away from the gunplay anyway, thinking about it now.
I wonder will they meet any 'Lords of the Jungle' when they get there? I think copyright law allows them to use him if they don't put his name on the cover. Or something like that.
First Wave is a man's man's world, isn't it? (White men, at that, Dr Savage's fine tan not withstanding.)
Someone tells a drunk called Mr. Sunlight that someone else has escaped from someone else named "Colossi".
That would be John Sunlight, the only villain from the old pulps who managed to make two appearances. All the rest of Doc's enemies either died or were surgically "rehabilitated." I was hoping they'd avoid the temptation of using him for the comic, but I figured they couldn't resist. I don't find it to be a good sign that they played that card so soon, either.
I can't argue about the story -- I'm enjoying it, but wasn't wowed -- but I'd never think of calling Rags Morales's art "pedestrian." It's some gorgeous stuff, to my eye -- I just wish he was given fewer talking heads, and some more interesting things to draw!
It’s funny… I was all set to buy this series based on the b&w preview DC has been running recently (it looked to me to be very much in the style of b&w Marvel mags of the ‘70s), but as soon as I saw it in color… that it was in color… I lost all interest. I’m not at all a fan of the way almost every artist since James Bama’s has far-too-literally interpreted the description of Doc’s “skull cap” of hair. He has normal hair, people! He keeps it slicked back, but it does become tousled from time-to-time. Rags Morales depicts a more-or-less happy medium between the two extremes, but I much prefer the depictions by original Street and Smith cover artist Walter Baumhofer.
Before I even left my LCS yesterday I overheard that Batman, although on the cover, was not even in the first issue. Figs, if you’re looking for a Batman/Tarzan crossover, DC/Dark Horse published a period piece a couple of years ago that wasn’t too bad.
Rich has already pointed out the significance of John Sunlight, but like this issue, the very first Doc Savage pulp likewise begins with the death of Clark Savage, Sr.
You won’t find issue #21 reprinted in Essential Marvel Two-in-One Vol. 1, but DC will be releasing a tpb collection of Marvel’s color Doc Savage series, solicited for May 26 release.
As for who’s interested in it, I don’t know if it would necessarily apply to fans of Doc Savage or The Spirit. Maybe it would, but I could easily see hard-core fans being purists. This series is a curiosity, certainly. Please keep this discussion going throughout the life of the series. I may decide to tradewait.
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How many people does Batman shoot?
Yee haw!!
The plus side: The art is OK. I got the J.G. Jones cover, which has Batman (though he doesn't appear in the issue). Savage and the Spirit on it, as well as a mildly amusing joke. The interior art is done by Rags Morales, who is his usual pedestrian but reliable self.
The minus side: The story, while a passable adventure, is not really all that enthralling. A guy is running through the jungle until a robot pokes his eye out, just like your mom always warned you would happen. Clark Savage, Sr., has died a mysterious death, and Savage fils missed the funeral because his was off having one of his "special" times. Doc has the body exhumed, only the body isn't there. A reporter has it in for Savage for some reason. A crooked cop tips the Spirit off to an upcoming crime. Someone tells a drunk called Mr. Sunlight that someone else has escaped from someone else named "Colossi". Meanwhile, Colossi is off in the jungle slaughtering natives. Meanwhile, the Spirit goes to the crime and beats some guys up who really didn't seem to be doing much, and then meets what appears to be Blackhawk.
In other words, it's just a standard comic book adventure, with nothing having the impact that you would think a meeting of these kinds of characters would have. Perhaps it would have more meaning for folks who are already fans of Savage and the Spirit, I see nothing much in it to draw in people that are not.
Will I go on reading it? Probably, if I still remember in a month that I was interested in it.
Batman doesn't show up in the first issue.
Period setting. Massive pulp/comicbook Icons. Toned down superpowers.
It sounds like there was nothing 'Wow' about the first issue. The Spirit beating people up, just because that's what pulp heroes do sounds like putting the 'noir' genre conventions before sense or plotting.
There'll probably be an arc of Batman turning away from the gunplay anyway, thinking about it now.
I wonder will they meet any 'Lords of the Jungle' when they get there? I think copyright law allows them to use him if they don't put his name on the cover. Or something like that.
First Wave is a man's man's world, isn't it? (White men, at that, Dr Savage's fine tan not withstanding.)
That would be John Sunlight, the only villain from the old pulps who managed to make two appearances. All the rest of Doc's enemies either died or were surgically "rehabilitated." I was hoping they'd avoid the temptation of using him for the comic, but I figured they couldn't resist. I don't find it to be a good sign that they played that card so soon, either.
Those tough guys played for keeps!
or were surgically "rehabilitated."
Interesting. This was years before Squadron Supreme, too!
Before I even left my LCS yesterday I overheard that Batman, although on the cover, was not even in the first issue. Figs, if you’re looking for a Batman/Tarzan crossover, DC/Dark Horse published a period piece a couple of years ago that wasn’t too bad.
Rich has already pointed out the significance of John Sunlight, but like this issue, the very first Doc Savage pulp likewise begins with the death of Clark Savage, Sr.
You won’t find issue #21 reprinted in Essential Marvel Two-in-One Vol. 1, but DC will be releasing a tpb collection of Marvel’s color Doc Savage series, solicited for May 26 release.
As for who’s interested in it, I don’t know if it would necessarily apply to fans of Doc Savage or The Spirit. Maybe it would, but I could easily see hard-core fans being purists. This series is a curiosity, certainly. Please keep this discussion going throughout the life of the series. I may decide to tradewait.
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