Pop Culture Chronicles

Pull List / Reviews July 2011

Here is what I'm reading these days:

DC

Flashpoint # 3- I'm behind on this, but just read the latest issue. I was determined to stay away from any more big events, but I learned that this series will be the transitional point into the altered DC Universe. Here is where (I think) the changes in the time-stream will be explained. This issue by Geoff Johns was (not surprisingly) well written with good characterization, suspense, action, and witty dialogue. It was well drawn by Andy Kubert and Sandra Hope. It seems that the Flash is working to undo some changes in the time-stream due to events that were altered by the Reverse Flash. So Flash is in some alternate reality with Thomas Wayne, who is Batman, who did not die at the hands of a mugger, and whose son never became Batman. The two team up with Cyborg to release the captive survivor of a doomed planet whose rocket-ship was never discovered by the Kents, but landed in Metropolis doing fatal damage. The survivor was then taken into custody by the government who is conducting a "Project: Superman." Okay, I'm hooked. 

Justice Society of America # 52 - So we still don't know how Mr. Terrific lost his intellect, but now we know whodunit. Two issues to go before Mr. Terrific's own series is launched and the Justice Society is cancelled. I understand that in the realigned universe, characters who made up the JSA will still exist. But there will be no JSA. Superman will again be the first super hero in this altered continuity, which in a sense goes back to DC's roots. But it seems that the Golden Age of heroes is being retconned out of existence. The JSA has so often got the shaft when it comes to these reboots, relaunches, or whatever you want to call them. Following the orginal "Crisis on Infinite Earths" Golden Age heroes who had modern doppelgangers were retconned out of existence. The remaining JSA was banished to another dimension. So what happens to the JSA now? Will the earlier careers of originals like Jay Garrick and Alan Scott never have existed? Will the original Flash and Green Lantern ever have existed? We'll see. 

One plot in the current JSA arc that intrigues me grows out of one of Jay and Alan's WWII adventures. Will a retro guy like me ever be able to accept a JSA without the Golden Age backstory? I do hope the multiverse will play more of a role in the altered universe. I'd love to see the "Justice Society Infinity" team from "Justice Society of America Annual" # 1 return, with Superman and Batman of Earth 2 alive and well. Maybe they could have annual team-ups with the new JLA. Who knows?  

I'll review what I'm reading from Marvel soon.     

Creative Talents: Roy Thomas

In this new category of posts I'll be blogging about some of my favorite creative talents in comics through the years. I'll begin with one of my favorite writers of all time.

Roy Thomas- I first began reading Thomas when he was writing The Invaders for Marvel back in the 70s. Having always been a fan of nostalgia, even as a child, the World War II setting intrigued me. Plus, I love Captain America and the Human Torch. As a fourth grader I picked up my first issue and wondered what Johnny Storm was doing back in World War II. Then I discovered that wasn't Johnny Storm at all, but that Storm was not the original Torch.  

Reading this comic sparked my interest in all things World War II. I am by no means an expert, but Thomas, by integrating his vast knowledge of war history with comic history, has inspired me to learn more about both. I plan to get the trade collections of this series soon.  

Thomas later did All-Star Squadron for DC, in which his knowledge of war history was brought to bear upon DC's Golden Age heroes. Add retroactive continuity to the mix as Thomas filled in the historical gaps of DC's history and I was hooked. Thomas solved such mysteries as why some JSAers dropped out for a time during the Golden Age and why the original members have aged at a much slower rate than normal. Thomas added narrative reasoning to what originally might have been publisher expediency. 

Infinity Inc. and Jonni Thunder were a couple of other Thomas titles that I loved in the 80s. He was also responsible for adapting Conan the Barbarian and Red Sonja for comics. He has written nearly every notable character for Marvel and DC including some classic story-lines like the Avengers' Kree-Skrull War. 

Most recently, I hear that Thomas has been adapting classic literature for the Marvel Illustrated series. He is also editor of the comic fanzine Alter Ego, from TwoMorrows Publishing which focuses on Golden and Silver Age comics. The May and June issues will be Earth-Two companions. Thomas will be writing volumes for TwoMorrow's new series "American Comic Book Chronicles." He is one of the major comic historians of our time.  

Looking Ahead: Cool Retro-Related Stuff

As I continue my lifelong celebration of vintage pop culture, I've taken note of some new publications that are also refreshingly retro.

Batman / Doc Savage

This one-shot comic, scheduled for November 11 release, will team the Dark Knight with the Man of Bronze. The story is set in New York of the 1930s. While DC's multiverse consists of 52 universes, author Brian Azzarello has identified the location of this adventure as being in DC's 53rd world. A Doc Savage series will follow and his "world" will be populated by the likes of the Blackhawks, the Spirit, Rima, the Avenger, and possibly the Shadow. I can't wait! And BTW, in this world there are no super powers. 

Superman: Secret Origins

This six issue series by Geoff Johns and Gary Frank will retell the beginnings of Clark Kent in Smallville. I'm going to wait for the trade on this one so I can read the whole story at once. So now I've made myself a note.

Golden Age Marvel Comics Omnibus, Volume 1

This will reprint Marvel Comics # 1 and Marvel Mystery Comics# 2-12. I was excited until I learned that the cover price of this hardcover is $125. I guess I'll wait until it either comes out in paperback or makes it to my public library. I thoroughly enjoyed the 70th Anniversary reprint of Marvel Comics# 1. While much of the Golden Age stuff was obviously directed at small children, other stories are surprisingly good even by today's standards. And some of the art is very realistic. But I'll even read the campier Golden Age stuff just for the retro appeal. 

American Comic Book Chronicles

Each volume of this new book series from TwoMorrows will highlight a different decade of comic book history. The 40s and 60s will be covered in two volumes each. The volumes will not be released in order. The first volume, covering the 80s, is scheduled for 2010 release. These books promise to be comprehensive.

 

Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds (A Review)

Where do I even begin? What a great story! Now I remember why George Perez is my favorite artist of all time. Books with big team-ups have always been my thing and no one does the big team-ups like Perez. What I loved about the original Crisis on Infinite Earths was the consistent pencils of George Perez, unlike Infinite Crisis, which lacked such consistency. Perez draws my favorite artistic rendering of every DC comic hero. 

This series has to be the best crisis series since the original Crisis on Infinite Earths. It is full of surprises and the ending is by no means what I would have expected. The new mission for the Legion from Earth 247, the home earth of the third Legion, and the fate of Superboy-Prime were all most surprising. I hope we can see more of these characters. Superboy-Prime, the ultimate fanboy parody, had to be a loads of fun to write. I once took this character way too seriously and was even offended by him. Now I get the joke. But like an old timer pining away over the younger generation, I can say with a sigh, "He used to be such a nice boy."

On the downside, it took DC about a year to get all five issues out. By the time I got the latest issue, I had to review past issues in order to connect all the dots. This past weekend I read the entire series from beginning to end in a couple of sittings. This is probably the best way to read this story and make sense of it, so the forthcoming trade reprint should be very welcome. 

Long live the Legion! And long live the Multiverse!

For more on this series, see my previous review of the first issue.  See also Mark Engblom's April 4, 2008 post over at Comic Coverage, anticipating the release of this series. Be sure to catch our dialog on Suberboy-Prime in the comments section.              

Reviews: Final Crisis # 7

The series hasn't exactly been a thrill ride with all of its dark and profane themes, not to mention all the gaps and black holes in the "plot." Maybe this would make more sense if I had read all the tie-ins---but I doubt it. 

To its credit though, the final issue was better than I expected. My worst fears about the fate of the DC Universe did not happen. The Multiverse was not wiped out and the ending was more-or-less "happy." 

Of particular interest were the few glimpses into the new multiverse. We saw the Metal Men from Earth-44, a new earth on me. And who are these guys--a robotic Justice League? We see Overman of Earth-10, the Super-powered (former?) Nazi. And even Captain Carrot and his Zoo Crew make an appearance, rescued from exile on Earth-35. Aren't they actually from Earth-26? We also learned that Earth-31 (home of Frank Miller's "Dark Knight") and Earth-43 (home of the Vampire Batman) are unmonitored.

For that matter, are the Monitors doing anything at all now or have they vanished? I'm not sure. And what of Nix Uotan? What a surprise ending for him.

The climax of this story was the gathering of the Supermen of the multiverse. What a gathering! And they can only be assembled once. Maybe someone can find a way around that eventually. I actually counted over 52 variations of the original Superman on the two-page spread on which they all appeared. Does this mean some earths have more than one "Superman," or is there a reality outside the 52 universes, or did the artist just forget to count? 

I also wonder how much thought went into the drawing of these Supermen. Do each of them have their own name, earth, and back story or was the artist simply given free reign to draw multiple variations of Superman? If each of these guys have an actual origin and location it would be interesting to see more of them in stories that develop their respective characters.

My biggest disappointment is that about two years after the return of the multiverse, it hasn't been developed or explored too much. We haven't seen many adventures taking place on these parallel earths or featuring their characters. I hope that changes soon. 

The final two pages were the most intriguing part of Final Crisis. Who is the cave painter and could this mean what I think it means? Is he leaving a message for future generations to perhaps rescue a traveler trapped in time? Hmmm. I'm curious. Maybe Final Crisis wasn't a total loss, but IMO it could have been handled as a one-shot.      

Current Pull List (11/08)

Here is what I'm collecting and reading these days:

Marvel

Age of the Sentry Now this is just a fun comic! Set in the Silver Age with plenty of Silver Age spoofing. Hilarious, but great adventure for all ages. Watchdog is a great spoof of the super-hero pets like Krypto and Ace the Bat-hound.

Avengers/Invaders (Alex Ross co-plotting and covers) Nostalgia, time travel, and Alex Ross. What's not to like?

The Twelve The strength of this book is character development as obscure Golden Age heroes are re-introduced. The art is great too. This 12-parter is over half way to conclusion.  

Dynamite  

Project Super Powers (Alex Ross co-plotting and covers) The seven-issue first volume has concluded and I was going to check out after that. This series was just too chaotic and overcrowded. Unlike The Twelve  there wasn't much character development. Too many characters were coming out of the woodwork (or the urn) at once. The redeeming thing about this book was the Alex Ross "class photo" style character drawings in the back pages of most issues. I am undecided as to whether I'll collect volume 2, but my sheer love of the Golden Age keeps me coming back. Dynamite is creating a whole new superhero universe from public domain characters.  

Black Terror (Alex Ross co-plotting and some covers) I was prepared for disappointment after the fiasco that was Project Super Powers. Black Terror seemed very one-dimensional in that series. But if this book is any indication, it appears that the Super Powers spin-offs are going to be a lot bigger on character development. After one issue I'm beginning to care about the character. It helps that his background was developed and I am now more sympathetic with his plight to find Tim, his missing partner. I chose the Greg Land cover which I thought was awesome. 

It's clear now that the Project Super Powers universe is not our universe, but a world in which the "Super Powers" of nations have become corrupt and tyrannical (at least I don't think this is our universe) and so the heroes with super powers have been self-appointed to provide checks and balances. Interesting premise, but it would also have been interesting to see these Golden Age heroes in a setting more similar to ours, as Marvel has done with The Twelve. I can't wait for Masquerade and Death-Defying Devil to have their own books. 

DC

Justice Society of America (Alex Ross co-plotting and covers) This is the only ongoing title I am seriously collecting. The others are mostly limited series. If I only read one comic, this would be it. 

Now if Power Girl is not the Power Girl of the Earth-2 in the new multiverse, but the Power Girl of a now dead universe, there could be hope that the missing Earth-2 Superman could be found alive. Wouldn't that be cool. And I still wonder if there is hope of seeing a Golden Age Batman sometime. Did I pick up a hint in issue 20 or was it just my own wishful thinking?  

Final Crisis I really don't like this book, but I'm following it to see what, if any, sweeping changes come over the DC universe. Besides, I've got all the other crisis limited series so I'll complete the collection. But this one cannot hold a candle to the original Crisis on Infinite Earths which was far more intriguing, although I didn't like the outcome. 

This particular series shares the darker tone, grittier edge, bloodier violence and profane language (although often expressed as @#*#!%) of many of today's comics. This is also typical Grant Morrison, whose writing I enjoyed in All-Star Superman, but that's about it. His stuff is usually just too "out there" for me. You don't know what's going on until the end, if you even know then. Nor has much been revealed about the multiverse to this point. 

Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds Perhaps the only redeeming tie-in to Final Crisis, with original crisis artist George Perez and the best-current-writer-in-the- business, Geoff Johns. Some of the usual things I don't like about today's comics are present in this book as well, but the story, art, and multiversal storyline are excellent. 

A few things I'll note about my pull list: 

1) Alex Ross is connected with four of the titles I collect as co-plotter and cover artist. I am a huge fan of this man who provided the art for Marvels and Kingdom Come. He brought a new brand of realism to comics.         

2) Justice Society of America remains my only ongoing title. With limited series I can make shorter commitments. With the exception of JSA I may start waiting for the trades. 

3) Seven of the eight titles I'm currently reading have a large dose of Golden or Silver Age nostalgia. Another hint of my dissatisfaction with the direction of modern comics. But I'm not called Dr. Retro for nothing.          

Reviews: Navigating the Multiverse

Here are some reviews of Final Crisis tie-ins that I've read recently:

DC Universe: Last Will and Testament

This one-shot was a bit disappointing. The cover featured all the big guns, but we only got a page or two devoted to each. At least half the page count was the story of Geo-Force's vendetta against Deadshot. As with Countdown we get big guns on the cover and mainly C-listers inside. Is that bait and switch? 

The story was passable, but overly violent. The book also disproves the assumption that one can read Final Crisis without reading all the mini-series & tie-ins and still know what's going on. I've been reading Final Crisis by itself and I have no clue what big cosmic event the heroes are preparing for in Last Will and Testament. 

Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds 1

This is the only Final Crisis mini-series tie-in that I'm reading. I love it! My favorite current writer (Geoff Johns) and the greatest comic book artist of all time (George Perez) on the same book! 

And you don't necessarily have to be reading all the other Final Crisis books to get this one. Although some background information about Superboy Prime, Crisis on Infinite Earths, and Infinite Crisis might be extremely helpful. This story should help us navigate the future of the multiverse with three legions of superheroes from three different earths. And those unfamiliar with the Legion will find the introductions and power summaries of each member to be most helpful.

The tour through the Superman museum was refreshingly retro. If the story has a moral, then its assessment of human nature is definitely higher than mine, but Superman's proposed solution for dealing with the Superboy Prime threat is so classic! Why didn't I think of that? 

Final Crisis: Superman Beyond

The 3-D action sequences are an added bonus and you don't have to tear up the comic to remove the glasses. I like the combination of 3-D and non-3-D. But what I like best about this two-issue series is its attention to the multiverse. We're led on a journey through the space between the universes. 

We're also introduced to Superman's counterparts of several different earths. There is Ultra-man from an anti-matter copy of the earth. We also meet the Captain Marvel of Earth-5, described as a "simpler, kinder universe." Will this be a retro version of Captain Marvel, restoring him somewhat to his Fawcett roots? Then there is Overman, the super powered Nazi, now guilt ridden for having helped the Third Reich win World War II on Earth 10. Would he have fought the Freedom Fighters of that earth? And finally, there is Captain Allen Adam of Earth-4. 

We also get a glimpse of the Dr. Fate and Lady Blackhawk of Earth-20. I hear that the Dr. Fate of this world is like a combination of Kent Nelson and Doc Savage. Grant Morrison has reportedly created a lot of back story for this earth. I'm interested. 

Justice Society of America 18

The JSA fights well against the bad guys. A downside to Dr. Mid-nite's cure is exposed. So what can Gog do for Citizen Steel? I just hope Damage can keep his face. So there is a Michael Holt of Earth-2. How can he help Power Girl? Will he become Mr. Terrific? Will he become a widower like his New Earth counterpart? Is the Terry Sloane of this earth still alive? Next issue we get the JSA vs. Justice Society Infinity of Earth-2. Cool!             

Why the Multiverse Fascinates Me

I've always been fascinated by the concept of parallel universes and multiple earths. What if such places exist? What if there were another earth somewhere in which we all had counterparts who lived parallel lives with subtle differences? 

1) This enables us to ponder the "what if" questions. What if you had chosen to travel the road not taken? What if you had a doppleganger somewhere who married the counterpart of the high school sweetheart you rejected? What if your doppleganger chose another career path? Is there another version of you somewhere who is living the dreams you abandoned? Or perhaps your doppleganger is not as successful or as happy. 

2) What if you were born in another time? Maybe your doppleganger is older than you--born a generation or so earlier. The era of costumed heroes on Earth-Two began earlier than on Earth-One. So the Batman and Superman of Earth-Two had lived through the second World War, whereas their Earth-One counterparts had not yet been born. 

Had the first crisis not ended the original multiverse, would the Earth-One Batman's life had followed the same script as his Earth-Two counterpart who did everything first? Might the Earth-One Batman eventually have married Selina Kyle? Would he have become Gotham Commissioner? Would he have had a grown daughter who fought crime as the Huntress? Might the Earth-One Batman, like his Earth-Two counterpart, have died at the hands of a criminal? 

Might the Earth-One Superman have married Lois, as the post-crisis Superman did? A history of your older doppleganger's life may, or may not, be a prediction of your own future. An older doppleganger's history might also indicate how you would have fared if you had lived in an earlier era. 

3) What if all fiction is real? In the multiverse this is possible. In the Flash of Two Worlds story it was explained that on Earth-One Jay Garrick was a comic book character and the inspiration of Barry Allen who called himself The Flash. The DC comics writers were in touch with Earth-Two through their dreams, meaning the stories they wrote really happened in another universe. 

What if all fictional writer's imaginations were tuned in, unbeknownst to them, to parallel universes where their stories actually happened in reality? So while Wyatt Earp was Marshal of Dodge City in our old west, maybe there really was a Marshal Dillon on some other earth. And maybe there really is a Batman, a Tarzan, a Gomer Pyle, and a Cartwright family who lived on the Ponderosa. Cool!

4) What if you were born in another place? In the Elseworld's story, Red Son, Kal-El's spaceship landed on Soviet soil. Superman is an adopted Russian in this reality. In another universe, might your doppleganger be living in Germany, China, or Australia? 

5) What if we gave in to our darker side? Johnny Thunder's Earth-One counterpart was a bad guy in Justice League of America # 37-38 (Recently reprinted in the trade Crisis on Multiple Earths, volume 1). On Earth-Three, the Justice League's dopplegangers are criminals. I'm glad DC brought the multiverse back. The possibilities are endless.               

Review: All Star Superman

Grant Morrison, author of Final Crisis, also writes the twelve part series, All- Star Superman. In contrast to Final Crisis, about which I've been less than enthusiastic, I really love All-Star Superman. Since the story takes place outside the mainstream DCU, anything can happen. So is Superman really dead? One more issue to go! I hear it comes out this month. 

I also hear that at the NYCC it was confirmed that this series will indeed be limited to twelve issues. The creative team is busy with other projects and, IMO, no other team will do on this one. I especially cannot imagine anyone but Frank Quitely doing the art. We may, however, see a couple of All-Star Superman one-shots in the future. I hope so.

And I also hope that the All-Star Universe will be a part of the larger DC multiverse. Why settle for 52 when we can have MULTIPLE EARTHS?        

Justice Society of America Annual 1

This book has been out for at least a couple of weeks. Those who read this blog might be interested to know what I thought because I'm so retro and this story brings back Earth-2.  

First I'll comment on the art. It was great to have Jerry Ordway back from the original Infinity Inc. Wiacek's inks over Ordway's pencils made a good combination. The Earth-2 Huntress and Robin look just as they should. But Powergirl just doesn't look quite right to me. I guess I've grown accustomed to her Eaglesham/ Von Grawbadger look in the JSA mags where her facial expressions match her assertive attitude (I hope that makes sense). But in this story Powergirl just looked a little mousy to me. The JSA pinup was awesome. Another great "class photo" shot. The Alex Ross cover is beyond awesome.  

Some characters who are deceased on New Earth still have living dopplegangers on this revised Earth-2. They include Jade, Dr. Midnight (Beth Chapel), Wildcat II (Yolanda Montez), the Star-Spangled Kid, and the original Atom (Al Pratt). Jim Corrigan and Kent Nelson are still the Spectre and Dr. Fate. Now if all these folks can still be alive, then why not the Golden Age Batman?!?!?! Bring him back! Throw his remains in the Lazarus Pit or something! 

The Fury and Hector Hall are still active on Earth-2 after the apparent "physical" deaths of their New Earth counterparts in JSA# 80 (a subplot which ran now and then beginning in issue 74). I'm assuming that on Earth-2 the Fury is still Lyta Trevor, daughter of the original Wonder Woman. 

Of course after the "attempt" of Crisis on Infinite Earths to make the DC Universe tidier and more manageable, the Golden Age Wonder Woman was retconned out of existence and a Golden Age Fury was created to be the mother of the modern Fury. But sometime between Crisis on Infinite Earths and Infinite Crisis, DC decided that a Golden Age Wonder Woman was a good idea after all. So on New Earth she is now Hippolyta, mother of the current Wonder Woman. Is that all clear as mud? 

And on the revised Earth-2 Hector has never been Dr. Fate, but is still the Silver Scarab. And of course, in this altered reality, Robin and Huntress never died in the Crisis. So here the Earth-2 Justice Society is known as Justice Society Infinity, a conglomeration of members from both the original JSA and the original Infinity Inc. 

Some questions: 

1) Justice Society Infinity has had experience with parallel worlds before. Which parallel worlds? 

2) Now who is it that Helena Wayne has been in love with her entire life? Is it Dick Grayson?

3) Is the Powergirl whose been hanging out with the JSA on New Earth indeed the Powergirl of Earth-2 or the lone survivor of a deceased Earth-Two? Does the appearance of yet another Powergirl indicate that the revised Earth-2 has had its own Powergirl all along? And if that's true, could this revised Earth-2's Superman and Lois still be alive? 

This very important book is the culmination of over twenty years of DC history. It's also been at least three years in the making, picking up some threads from Infinite Crisis, JSA Classified, and the other JSA titles. I cannot wait to see the story continue in the pages of Justice Society of America.