I have been living in the late '80s recently (actually I have been commuting back and forth), and it occured to me that I have read almost the entire First Comics series Crossroads over the course of various discussions. I read issues #1-2 as part of my Sable discussion, #4 as part of Grimjack, and #5 as part of Dreadstar. It struck me that #3 is the only one I have left to read and that I might as well go for it. Then I got to thinking about one of my boxes labled "Miscellaneous New Universes" and that I might as well dip into that as well. My thesis will be that, in the '90s, one of the problems with the comic book field is that publishers were no longer content merely to publish good comic books, they wanted to launch entire universes. I think I have pin-pointed where this trend began, and I will identify it when I get to it. First, though, on to Crossroads.
Crossroads was a series of "done-in-one" stories in which characters from various First series met for the first time. ("Across infinite space and time, parallel lives meet at the Crossroads.") The beauty of this series is that each issue was entirely self-contained; one need not buy any issue of the connecting series nor even the entire crossover series itself in order to get a complete story. Each issue was done by a different writer/artist team, and Steve Rude provided the covers for all five. One character from each issue would carry over into the next, then "hand off" the series to the next character, and so on. For example, Jon Sable was the common character in issues #1 and #2. In issue #1 he met Whisper, and in #2 he met Badger. Of the three, Sable was the character most based in reality. Whisper wore a costume, but was still "realistic"; the Badger could be.
The Badger carried over from #2 to #3, where he met the comic relief character from American Flagg!, Luther Ironheart. In #4, Judah Macabbee met Grimjack (the "Luther" connection is there, but its tenuous), and in #5 Grimjack met both Dreadstar and Nexus. As I have written elsewhere, #4 and #5 blend seemlessly with Grimjack and Nexus and Dreadstar, but it is not necessary to have read the regular series to follow Crossroads or vice versa.
NEXT: Total Eclipse
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I say, does that commute to the 80s have off-ramps to other eras as well?
A map would be appreciated.
TOTAL ECLIPSE:
Total Eclipse bears several similarities to Crossroads: it is a five-issue, square-bound crossover series from 1988 which spotlights the publisher's most popular characters/series. All of the covers are drawn by the same artist (in this case, Bill Seinkiewicz) but, unlike Crossroads, the entire series is written by a single writer, Marv Wolfman. [We have been discussing some of Wolfman's concurrent work for First Comics in the Sable, "Return of the Hunter" thread (well, some of us have).] The main artist is Bo Hampton, whose work at the tume I knew primarily from some fill-in work he did on Marvel's Moon Knight (this is decades before I bought the Lost Planet collection), but certain chapters are illlustrated by the artists associated with the main titles. Unlike Crossroads, Total Eclipse tells a single story rather than five individual ones. Another difference is that the crossover series ties much more closley to the ongoing ones.
At the time, I wasn't buying just too many Eclipse comics: Miracleman, Scout, Sabre, Detectives, Inc., Ragamuffins and Eclipse Monthly come to mind. but this wasn't my first rodeo, even in 1988, so I decided to go in "cold" in order to see what the author of DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths could do with a similar concept at another company. The main story concerns Zzed, Eclipse's version of DC's Vandal Savage. (Although Zzed predated Vandal Savage, Vandal Savage is better known.) Zzed's immortality is tied to the universe, and in order for Zzed to die (which he desires to do), the universe must die as well. The first issue dealt primarily with characters from Airboy, Strike! and Prowler, none of which I had read at the time. Total Eclipse did inpire to buy up all the backissues of Strike! and Prowler (there weren't that many), but it would be a few years yet (six, IIRC) before I bought all of Airboy at a quarter sale.
Each issue has a backup feature tengentially related to the main story, but which is not strictly necessary to follow the main narrative. Issue #2 rolled in New Wave, Liberty Project, Aztec Ace and Miracleman. As I indicated, Miracleman was the only one I was reading at the time, and I didn't read Aztec Ace until the collection was published (by Dark Horse) in 2022; I still haven't read New Wave or Liberty Project to any great extent, although I did buy a few backissues of each at the time. Issue #3 rolls in some solo features (such as Mr. Monster, Beanworld, the Masked Man, Ms. Tree, Destroyer Duck, Radio Boy and the California Girls), some in short sequences, some in individual panels. In issue #4, Zzed becomes "Dr. Eclipse" and a main character dies. Issue #5 folds in the Adolescent Radioactive Blackbelt Hamsters and what has been described (by Eclipse) as Marv Wolfman's "most intricate plot to date" (I'm not sure of that) comes to an end. Every time I re-read this I get more out of it, and next time I hope to enjoy it more still
UP NEXT: Unity - "Time is Not Absolute"
I had never even heard of Crossroads until I saw it the shop about a month ago. I bought the set, but have yet to read it.
Crossroads is similar to Total Eclipse in that the more you bring into it, the more you'll get out of it (although I do think Crossroads is much easier to approach "cold"). If/when you do get around to reading it, I'd be interested to read your thoughts here.
UNITY:
My thesis will be that, in the '90s, one of the problems with the comic book field is that publishers were no longer content merely to publish good comic books, they wanted to launch entire universes. I think I have pin-pointed where this trend began, and I will identify it when I get to it.
This is it. Eclipse and First simply started as independant publishers; the whole concept of a "Universe" came later. But Valiant Comics was launched with a Universe in mind. Jim Shooter tried this kind of thing once before, in 1986, with Marvel's "New Universe" with somewhat less-than-successful results. He took the lessons he learned from that experiment and rolled out the Valiant Universe more slowly and more deliberately. The Unity series (#0-1) crossed over with eight different Valiant titles over a period of two months for a total of 18 chapters in all. The eight titles in question had anywhere from zero to 14 issues under their respective belts, for a total of 42 comics leading into the crossover. It was after Unity that publishers began debuting not merely new titles, but new universes.
NEXT: Malibu Comics' "Ultraverse"
BREAK-THRU:
By 1993 the shine was off the Valiant Universe and my interest in it was beginning to wane. When Malibu Comics debuted their new "Ultraverse" I ignored it completely... until the intra-company crossover series Break-Thru. Like Valiant's Unity, Break-Thru was two issues, but instead of art and covers by Barry Windsor-Smith, it was by George Perez. (George Perez was the draw for me.) The series itself was written (scripted) by Gerard Jones, with Mike Barr, Steve englehart, Steve Gerber, James Hudnall, Tom Mason, George Perez, James Robinson and Len Strazewski all listed as "contributing writers." Me, I approached Break-Thru in much the same way I approached Total Eclipse: "This is not my first rodeo."
I have often said that that one can experience something for the first time only once, but I haven't read Break-Thru again... until today. Having read it just once, 30 years ago, it is almost like reading it for the first time again. In 1993 I approached it with no personal investment in the characters whatsoever, and I feel the same way today. (This must be how muggles/mundanes experience the Marvel/DC universes.) Unity crossed over with eight different Valiant titles, the longest-running of which had 14 issues, for a total of 42 comics leading into the crossover. In comparison, Break-Thru crossed over with 11 different titles, the longest-running of which had 6 issues, for a total of 43 comics leading into the crossover.
Break-Thru may not have had much of an impact on me initially, but I wanted it to, so I quickly went out and bought the 43 issues preceding it. (What can I say? I'm a tool.) After I finished reading the 43, I went back and read Break-Thru #1-2 a second time (I guess I have re-read it prior to today), and I enjoyed it much more the second time around. I liked it well enough that I continued to buy most of the Ultraverse titles until... I don't remember why I stopped. They were bought out by Marvel, I guess? Anyway, the comics weren't bad (just look at that list of "contributing writers"), it's just that I haven't gone back to read any of them since.
NEXT: Comics' Greatest World
Wow. Some complex feelings coming my way here.
In each of these cases - Valiant, Ultraverse, Dark Horse's "Comics' Greatest World" - I found out about the shared universes after they had been let go already.
I liked early Valiant and I still love Unity, but it is undeniable that many books lost their direction after that event. It happened quickly with Harbinger, more slowly with Solar. That line really suffered from the acquisition by Acclaim.
The Ultraverse... might as well have ended once Marvel bought Malibu. Most of the pre-acquisition books had some artistic merit to them, and I think Break-Thru is actually a lesser specimen of that era, despite George Perez art, the debut of the Entity From the Moon and some interesting character dynamics. Godwheel and some other stories of the time were still interesting, but not much published after was worthy. The whole universe was sort of edgy, with lots of very serious lasting consequences for the main characters. But after Black September very little was any good anymore. Mantra, in particular, suffered greatly. And I don't think I will ever understand why they were pushing Siren so strongly.
I first learned of the CGW from Dark Horse by way of "Will to Power", which was a fascinating read. But it was a swan song of sorts. "Out of the Vortex" was finished just after that, "Catalysts" was no more, and "Agents of Law" was not really enjoyable despite being the last refuge for some good characters from Catalysts and Division 13. Law made an intriguing antagonist, but a lousy protagonist, particularly with no payoff as it ended up being. I wanted to see Grace and the Vortex Man crawling out from the wreckage, not Law having his way with Golden City.
I liked early Valiant and I still love Unity, but it is undeniable that many books lost their direction after that event.
That's around the time Jim Shooter was forced out.
That line really suffered from the acquisition by Acclaim.
For you, Luis (and for anyone interested in the Valiant/Acclaim universe), I strongly recommend the article "VALIANT DAYS, VALIANT NIGHTS - A Look Back at the Rise and Fall of Valiant" by Ryan McLelland. It was first brought to my attention by former member Mike Williams (Culture Vulture). I just reread it recently and it is excellent. I agree with everything you said about the Ultraverse, and I think you remember more about "Comics Greatest World" than I do. I read the initial 16-week introduction, but I recall very little about it. I'll be refreshing my memory soon.
COMICS' GREATEST WORLD:
Valiant released Unity 15 months in, and Malibu released Break-Thru seven months in, but Dark Horse didn't wait even that long. When they decided to launch a new super-hero universe they got right to it with "Comics' Greatest World," a 16-issue weekly event. Dark Horse decided to build its super-hero universe around four cities (like "Metropolis" and "Gotham"): Arcadia, Golden City, Steel Harbor and Cinnabar Flats. Each city had four titles each which were released during the months of June, July, August and September. Some of these proved popular enough to spawn their own series, some did not, but I no longer recall which was which (at least not entirely). Each of comics was 16 pages, no ads, and a cardstock cover for a buck. Each issue had a one-page prologue sequence by Mike Richardson and Lee Weeks tying the new "universe" together.
Unlike the "Ultraverse," I wasn't motivated to collect any of the series that spun out of the "Comics' Greatest World" event. That's not to say they were bad; some of them were quite good. I was simply burned out on the "Universe" concept by that time. I did enjoy the 16 one-shots, though. I wish a forum such as this existed back then to discuss them in real time.
ARCADIA: Week One
X:
Writer: Jerry Prosner
Artist: Chris Warner
Cover: Frank Miller
Prologue: A UFO lands in the in the Nevada desert in 1931.
Arcadia is a business town, not all of it legitimate. X is a vigilante who uses lethal means. The story introduces the main characters: Police Commissioner Anderson, Detective John Wellman, and Gault, the leader of the S.W.A.T. team (which Wellman refers to as "Anderson's lap dogs"). Throughoput, a pair of etherial aliens onserve the scene. The end of the story, after both regular police and S.W.A.T. are unsuccessful in capturing X, sets up week two as Wellman calls Lieutenant Timothy and tells him, "It's time to take the dogs out for a walk." X, I know, went on to an ongoing series.
NEXT: Pit Bulls
Each of Dark Horse's four "cities" had a distinctive logo of its own, but that was let go at the end of CGW (and it was a quick end; I don't think the line could be said to have lasted more than two and a half years). I believe that Barb Wire, Ghost and X ended up being the characters with the most staying power, although some others were seen sporadically.
Plenty of plot threads were left dangling, including an appearance by Nexus in the last issue of "Out of the Vortex".
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