Superhero Comics 101

[eldargal]

My brothers and I are thinking about extending our geekiness into one of the traditional avenues, namely superhero comics. Batman, Spiderman, X-men that sort of thing. Thing is we have no idea where to start there being so much stuff published.

So, advice? Where does one begin with starting an interest in comics?

[energongoodie]

DC just started from scratch with their 52 event so it is a prefect time to jump in with them but the first few titles are already going for silly money but their are 2nd and 3rd edition reprints available. I say give them a go. Marvel is boring me at the minute to be honest. I think there are only a couple of their titles I like right now.
The new spiderman with a new kid under the mask is just out aswell.

[Gotthammer]

http://www.comics101.com/

Seriously!

Other options are the various wikis, and checking out blogs and whatnot. With DC's recent reboot (http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/) it's a good time to get intotheir comics, though DC has become even more horribly mysogynistic and clueless recently (http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/09/22/starfire-catwoman-sex-superheroine/), so whether or not you want to get into their comics is another thing.

Asking around about good trade paperback collections/runs is a good way to geek out - I don't buy comics per se, but I do have quite a few TPBs. I recently got Amanda Connor's run on Power Girl and it's awesome, fun, funny and most importantly self contained.

Marvel's been pretty quiet lately, but they do have Chris, "Dr McNinja" Hastings writing Deadpool so that's always good.

[eldargal]

Eww, that DC stuff really is revolting. And people complain about Mass Effect oversexualising women.

I'm reading the Comics 101 (lol, really) stuff on Batman now to get some idea of where to start, thanks for posting that.:)

We're really all quite clueless, its embaressing. Thus far our only exposure to these has been a few comics gifted to us in the '90s and Batman: Arkham Asylum.:rolleyes: Oh and the Batman and X-Men animated series, and the Adam West Batman series of course. But they aren't comics.

Edit: So, after reading some of the 101 articles (on Batman thus far) I'm thinking we might start with Batman: Hush. I've also had Batgirl/Batwoman and Supergirl recommended, still figuring out where to start with those.:)

[Grailkeeper]

If you like Grim Dark then Judge Dredd has it in absolute spades.

One great comic book author is Garth Ennis: His work is very Dark but also hilarious I can't recommend preacher highly enough. If you want something more superheroy his latest work "The Boys" is great.

Dan Abnett has also done some comics in his time such as Sinster Dexter if you want something from soneone you know already.

The fables series is also very good

edit you want more 101 stuff- Marvel did a series called marvel ultimates that does starts off its characters again in a modern era with similar stories, its worth a look for entry level stuff.

[scadugenga]

If you want iconic---Definitely Frank Milller's Batman stuff-Dark Knight Returns specifically, and Alan Moore's Batman: The Killing Joke.

I got into the X-Men as a youngster (in the 170's+) and that was a good period to start. It got silly in the 90's. (much like the rest of the comic market at the time...)

Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, V for Vendetta & Watchmen were all fantastic.

Frank Miller's run on Daredevil was really good. As was Kevin Smith's (Clerks fame) take on both Daredevil and also Green Arrow. (Quiver has perhaps Batman's best verbal slam ever written.)

Miller's Sin City isn't "superhero," but it is fantastic. As is 300.

Joss Whedon's creation "Astonishing Xmen" was also very good--and very Joss.

Hellblazer and Sandman were two of my favorite DC titles.

Mike Grell's Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters

And, probably my favorites to this day: Matt Wagner's original Mage and his various Grendel runs.

The one caveat I have about The Boys is that it's written by Garth Ennis, who swore never to do a superhero comic. And well, he didn't. It's rapaciously violent, overtly sexual, and at times fairly misogynistic. For all that--it's really well written. However, probably not the best thing to start with. Or at all, depending upon your graphic/literary tastes.

Edit: EG--if you're going to start with Batman--Batman: Year One would probably be your best bet. But do try the others recommended as well.

[eldargal]

Thanks for the recommendations. We're hoping to start with a mix of the classic superheroes plus some X-Men and perhaps some of the teams like Avengers to begin with. I've also bought a couple of copies of Comics 101 for my brothers and I to read.

I'm not sure 300 would be a good bet, as a student of history and archaeology.:p I get cranky enough watching History Channel stuff.

So, currently looking for a super comics store in London, but the to buy list looks like:

Batman: Hush
Batman: Year One
Dark Knight Returns
Batman: The Killing Joke
Batgirl, Batwoman and Supergirl (DC52 series)
Astonishing X-Men

Just missing Spiderman and Superman for mainstream ones a far as I know.:)

[energongoodie]

Big boobed comic women are a win in my book.
Sorry.

[scadugenga]

Thanks for the recommendations. We're hoping to start with a mix of the classic superheroes plus some X-Men and perhaps some of the teams like Avengers to begin with. I've also bought a couple of copies of Comics 101 for my brothers and I to read.

I'm not sure 300 would be a good bet, as a student of history and archaeology.:p I get cranky enough watching History Channel stuff.

So, currently looking for a super comics store in London, but the to buy list looks like:

Batman: Hush
Batman: Year One
Dark Knight Returns
Batman: The Killing Joke
Batgirl, Batwoman and Supergirl (DC52 series)
Astonishing X-Men

Just missing Spiderman and Superman for mainstream ones a far as I know.:)

Oh, 300's just guilty pleasure reading, to be sure. :) Don't try reading it in any other light, or your brain will hurt...

Once you get through your Dark Knight fix--do give Mage a try. The original series is beyond fantastic.

And Astonishing X-Men may be better enjoyed if you have a bit of knowledge about the cast of characters beforehand. There's no origin-stories for the newcomer there. Just a FYI.

[eldargal]

Nothing wrong with big boobed women, the issue is with the way the women are depicted. They are supposed to be intelligent, independent strong women, so why are they talking like sluts in a 13 year old boys wet dream? Really, read the dialogie in the panels shown in that article, it is nauseatingly bad.


Big boobed comic women are a win in my book.
Sorry.

Well, I watched the X-Men animated series in the 90s, does that help?:p

Oh, 300's just guilty pleasure reading, to be sure. :) Don't try reading it in any other light, or your brain will hurt...

Once you get through your Dark Knight fix--do give Mage a try. The original series is beyond fantastic.

And Astonishing X-Men may be better enjoyed if you have a bit of knowledge about the cast of characters beforehand. There's no origin-stories for the newcomer there. Just a FYI.

[wittdooley]

Don't let anyone let you skip out on Grant Morrison's run on X-Men. It's probably the best X-Men run ever written.

[Grailkeeper]

Theres a few comic books shops around shaftesbury avenue- including a large forbidden planet. There's another directly across the road from the british museum. The owner there was quite helpful in pointing me to others.

Edit: I forgot theres an independent comic book shop quite close to china town, on the covent garden side.

[gwensdad]

If you follow writers, you might want to look into the new "Resurrection Man" (from DC) written by Dan Abnett. And one of the Superman titles is written by Paul Cornell (of Doctor Who fame).

[Drew da Destroya]

For Spiderman, I was always a sucker for the Maximum Carnage storyline. A large cast of heroes and villains, a cool overarching plot, and most of the characters don't need a huge amount of backstory (you probably know who Spiderman is, and probably Venom too. Captain America is also pretty self-explanatory).

For X-Men, while it's pretty confusing, I really liked Age of Apocalypse. However, I find that story works best if you're already pretty steeped in X-Men lore, so not so good as a first shot at the universe (seeing as it's an alternate universe with major tweaks and changes to established characters, with occasional side trips into other alternate dimensions). I've started Whedon's "Astonishing" run, and really like it so far.

For a short, Marvel-based story a bit less focused on overt heroes, you could check out Thunderbolts "Faith in Monsters". The art is good, the story is good (albeit not particularly self-inclusive), and I found that I really enjoyed the characters. "Widowmaker" was also good, and a bit of a more concise story.

[eldargal]

Not strictly speaking comics, but how does Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: The Animated Series fit into the DC comics continuity? Prior to this 52 reboot obviously.

[gwensdad]

Not strictly speaking comics, but how does Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: The Animated Series fit into the DC comics continuity? Prior to this 52 reboot obviously.

Not at all. They're their own continuity but very very fun. Actually, Batman:TAS is the same continuity as Superman:TAS and Justice League, which makes a very nice long run.

[eldargal]

I had intended to say 'how do they fit in or are they in their own continuity' but left that bit out by accident.:rolleyes: thanks for answering, I forget we had Batman: TAS on DVD. Going to go watch some more. Love the Art Deco style.

Edit: Ooh, how many of the comics have an Art Deco style to them, like the series, if any?

[gwensdad]

I had intended to say 'how do they fit in or are they in their own continuity' but left that bit out by accident.:rolleyes: thanks for answering, I forget we had Batman: TAS on DVD. Going to go watch some more. Love the Art Deco style.

Edit: Ooh, how many of the comics have an Art Deco style to them, like the series, if any?

besides the comic series based on Batman:TAS? I think (trying to remember right) the old Starman comics might have had that style.

[eldargal]

There was a comic series based on Batman: TAS?:rolleyes:

[gwensdad]

There was a comic series based on Batman: TAS?:rolleyes:

Part of their "kids" line but Batman and Superman TAS had their own books.

[eldargal]

Were they any good, or just for-children style stories?

[gwensdad]

Were they any good, or just for-children style stories?

Probably best stated as "aimed at children, but not dumbed down for children". I remember some of the writers for the show would do issues now and then.

[eldargal]

So the shopping list as it currently stands is:

Batman: Hush
Batman: Year One
Dark Knight Returns
Batman: The Killing Joke
Batgirl, Batwoman and Supergirl (DC52 series)
Astonishing X-Men
Plus: 52New Catwoman, going to give it a try 'cos I like catwoman despite mixed reviews abot skankiness. Also she has dark hair, bit of a dissapointment after the lovely animated series Catwoman.
52 Batman (just 'cos)

Maybe the 52 Superman and Detective Comics, not sure yet though. Advice?

[Faultie]

I would highly suggest Kingdom Come by Alex Ross and Mark Wade. It's a fantastic piece with near photo-realistic artwork for the most part. The storyline is great, with the complexity of Dark Knight Returns without the Reagonian depression it shares with The Watchmen. Plus, it gets you some Superman.

[energongoodie]

I would highly suggest Kingdom Come by Alex Ross and Mark Wade. It's a fantastic piece with near photo-realistic artwork for the most part. The storyline is great, with the complexity of Dark Knight Returns without the Reagonian depression it shares with The Watchmen. Plus, it gets you some Superman.

Seconded.

The new Catwoman is going to be good I think. The last page of issue 1 made me go :eek:

[eldargal]

I'll add it to the list, thanks.:)

Has the new 52 series improved any? I read about the earlier issues being criticised for having the heroines being a bit skanky, based on issue 1s from what I read. Is the new 52 Detective Comics any good?

[energongoodie]

I have read 39 of the 52, the others should be coming throught my door soon. I have enjoyed most of them.

Batman was excellent. Batwing had lovely art and being set in Africa gave it a different flavour scene wise.
I thought the art in Catwoman was excellent.
The ones I will definitely keep getting out of the 39 are: Batman, Justice League, Batwing, Catwoman, Detective Comics, Superboy, Red Hood And The Outlaws, Nightwing, Batman and Robin and Deathstroke. I suspect there will be some more when I get the next 13.

As far as skanky heroines....? Catwoman definitely. Starfire, yes. Other than that not so sure. Batwoman was tough and scary. Wonder Woman, Batgirl were as expected. Birds of Prey was a bit Girl power and dull.

When I get them all I might post a review on here, all though there are loads around I'm sure.

[eldargal]

Well I might have to pick up Birds of Prey too then, being a bit of a female chauvinist.:p

[gwensdad]

Well I might have to pick up Birds of Prey too then, being a bit of a female chauvinist.:p

Bit of an odd warning: da Gwen!mom used to LOVE Birds or Prey to an insane degree, but then fell out of love when the current writer started doing it a few years ago. (and she's a bit fanatical about all things Batgirl)

[eldargal]

About time I updated my quest for comic knowledge. I actually put in a big order with a comic store ages ago, like late year and promptly forgot about it. They did too apparently, until friday when I got a message telling me my stuff had arrived.:rolleyes: So I'm now the proud owner of:

Batman: Hush
New 52:
Catwoman 1-6
Batwoman 1-4
Batgirl 1-6
Batman 1-8
Batman & Robin 1-4

Some bits are still on back order or something, namely Batman Year One, Dark Knight Returns and Birds of Prey 1-9 and the remaining issues from the series' I do have. Oh and Killing Joke and Astonishing X-Men. While I was there I took the opportunity to buy some of the more recent Black Widow comic compilations.

Some itty reviews:

Batman: Hush.
This was really brilliant, I could hardly put it down. The story was compelling and the artwork was fantastic. The eponymous villain was also really creepy and genuinely engaging, and the denoument quite shocking.

Catwoman.
Really enjoying this series, I had concerns about poor female characterisation based on some controvery over the New 52 series but I've not seen it in this series. Catwomans psychology and self destructive tendencies were very well handled and the art is lovely, particularly some of the fight scenes. Really looking forward to getting the rest of these

Batwoman.
Enjoying the story, the format not so much. I keep finding myself reading things in the wrong order which I would put down to being a comci noob but I've not had this trouble with any of the others. I'm at a bit of a cliffhanger re: the fate of her sidekick so I'm looking forward to seeing how that is resolved. Also proud lesbian mainstream character = ftw, so not earns some brownie points right there. Found that the issue has been treated with great maturity and sensitivity, specifically it hasn't been treated as unusual orworthy of comment.

Batgirl:
This one is a bit odd. I'm enjoying it for the most part, but there are some jarring things with the way it is written. Some huge leaps/gaps of logic (accusing Batgirl of murder because she failed to stop a murder), a completely bonkers cop holding a grudge against Batgirl for months for said 'murder', concluding things about the second villain based on very little evidence. Also the villains have been a bit lacklustre. Still I'm enjoying Batgirls emotional struggles and I think the character has a lot of potential.

Batman & Batman and Robin I've not read yet.

Black Widow.
I've read the film tie in comics of Black Widow, they are ok, not great but not terrible. A lot of skanky dresses and fights with lots of cleavage which seems like a bit of fan service given what she was wearing in the films. I've only just started the compilations (BW: Name of the Rose) and it is shaping up very well, action, intrigue, conspiracy and much less decolletage.

[MaltonNecromancer]

Are you interested in comics in general, or superheroes in specific? Because I gotta be honest - as a long-standing fan of comics, it's worth knowing that 90% of superhero comics are absolutely not worth reading if you're after something beyond "Male Power Fantasy In Spandex Punches Stuff Until It Dies".

Comic superhero stories worth reading tend to be those that either deconstruct the concept, or else are written by what I suppose you coud call "comic auteurs"; that is, writers who specialise in comics as a storytelling medium, rather than novels, and who run their own creator-owned comics, rather than simply doing the same old intellectual properties that Marvel/DC/Whoever have been churning out for years.

If you're interested in just disposable superhero fun, there's honestly not a lot I've read that didn't make me want to give up the medium entirely. "The Twelve" by J. Michael Strazinsky is pretty good. "Iron man: Extremis" is very enjoyable. Any "Punisher" collection by Warren Ellis is excellent (though not for the faint of heart; the series "Born" features some absolute grotesquery, and "The Slavers" may be the most horrible story Marvel ever published - basically the author had read about human traffickers and got so angry that he had the Punisher kill them. It's well worth reading, but will leave you upset unless you're dead inside).

People worth reading:

Garth Ennis. He's a Belfast-bron writer who started out on Judge Dredd, before writing for DC. His comics are characterised by black comedy, foul jokes, absolute misanthropy, pure hatred of Christianity, and a general loathing for superheroes. On a good day, his work is excellent - his above meontioned run on "Punisher" will probably never be equalled. On a bad day, his work is childish and the jokes fall flat - I don;t particularly like "The Boys", because it's, well, lame. I know a lot of people like it, but it's just his 2000AD stuff redone for an American audience, so there's very little decent characterisation in amongst all the scatological "humour". His creator owned series "Preacher" is well worth reading for the characters, though it is frequently deeply unpleasant. Don't read if you're a Christian, as the Christian God is explicitly the villain of the piece.

Grant Morrison. His heartfelt, deeply humane run on "Superman" is the only time I've liked the character. Similarly, "Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth" is the only Batman story worthy of mention (including Alan Moore's "The Killing Joke", which is interesting, but all of thirty pages, so not really a read). His creator owned series "The Invisibles" and "The Filth" are amongst the best books I've ever read ("The Filth" especially), but be warned: they are very, very weird. Like most of his stuff. His impossible-to-find comic "Kill Your Boyfriend" is glorious fun. "We3" combines his love of animal rights and cyborgs and is brilliant. His run on "New X-Men" is also well worth anyone's time - it's a massive deconstruction of the whole X-Men mythos (where he points out that a series ostensibly about change never does).

Neil Gaiman. Just, seriously, read "Sandman". All of it. All ten books. It is the best thing I have ever read. I have yet to find anything remotely close to how good it is. I doubt I will.

Joss Whedon: His run on "Astonishing X-Men" is the best the comic has ever been. His work on "Runaways" is also brilliant.

Bryan K. Vaughan: "Runaways" is unashamedly my favourite pure superhero comic ever. His creator-owned series "Y: The Last Man" is also very good.

Warren Ellis. Very, very hit or miss. The stuff he wrote for Marvel during what he called his "Year of Whoredom" is dreadful (with the exception of the aforementioned "Iron Man: Extremis", and I suppose "NEXTwave", if you like that sort of thing. Which I don't). However, his creator-owned work is very strong. If you're after superhero stories of his, I recommend his "Fear The Superman" trilogy ("Black Summer", "No Hero", and "Supergod", of which I would say "Black Summer" is the best), as well as the "Planetary" series he did for Image. Other people will always recommend "Transmetropolitan" (Hunter S. Thompson fight Tony Blair IN THE FUTURE!!!) but I found it fairly weak, especially the issues after Ellis' father died (where he's obviously so cut up inside he couldn't be bothered with fiction, and frankly, that's fair enough. It does mean "Transmet" has a much stronger start than finish, though). I also love "Global Frequency". His run on "The Authority" isn't bad either, largely because he writes the titular groups of superheroes as the supervillains they actually are.

Gail Simone. Her work "Secret Six" is very hard to get hold of, but very good. She writes Bane as a badass, which is something he sorely needed.

Alan Moore. Don't bother with "Watchmen". Everyone'll recommend it, and it's kind of obvious, as well as very much a product of the 80's. Read "Top Ten" instead - there's far more female characters, and it's far more interesting. I guarantee you'll never see its central idea anywhere else ("What if there was a city where everyone was a superhero, from the hotdog sellers to the homeless?") Nice to read about some gay characters who aren't gay to get a quick headline and free press too.

NAMES TO AVOID:

Frank Miller. Did one good comic ("The Dark Knight Returns"). Spent the rest of his life attempting to destroy any credibility he had built up. Finally succeeded with "All Star Batman And Robin". Frank Miller is a lunatic, his comics are a joke that's been old for a decade. Give his stuff a go if you like, but be prepared to regret your wasted time.

Mark Millar. There are no words for how much I detest this guy. He's basically a 13 year old boy who's never done anything meaningful in his life, but boy oh boy has he watched a lot of movies! His work is uniformly misogynist, misanthropic, joyless, and cruel, but with a patina of style that people seem to embrace. Give his work a go - the "best" is probably "Wanted", which has some admittedly clever ideas, but altogether too much casual rape for my liking.

[eldargal]

Atthe moment I'm just aiming to get to grips with the various characters and settings with a bit of light entertainment so I'm aiming for the more mainstream stuff. As I get a handle on things I'll try and move into less mainstream areas, but its very much just about superheros at this point. See above re: light entertainment.:)

The New 52 Batgirl series is written by Gail Simone, she does the character brilliantly but some plot points and the villains are a little odd/bad.

I'm certainly trying to get Astonishing X-Men.

[MaltonNecromancer]

As a general rule, I would go for authors rather than titles. Marvel's event comics in particular are dire. "Civil War" was the only one that actually had an interesting central conceit, but was let down by a pack of writers who fundamentally disagreed over who the good guy was.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Comicbook/CivilWar

As always, TV Tropes delivers. I recommend you use them as a go-to resource on what to check out.

Oh, you might also want to check out Serena Valentino's work. "Gloom Cookie" and "Nightmares and Fairy Tales" are both excellent.

Edit: just realised no-one's mentioned "Misfits" yet. Best. Superheroes. EVAR.

[eldargal]

So, update time. Not that anyone cares or anything but whatever.:p It's late and I'm tired so sorry if I'm a bit brief/incoherent.

New 52:

Batman: Still enjoying this, as one of the DC flagships you can see they lavish a lot of attention on it. But I'm abotu five issues behind due to focusing on other comics. Enjoyed the Night of the Owls story line which I think concludes in in the last issue I have.

Batwoman: Easily my favourite comic. Once I got used to the way the pages were sometimes laid out and could focus on the writing and art more it really sucked me in. I've kept up to date with this one and I can't wait for issue 17 to arrive. I also liked how the overall story remained much more constant rather than shifting from villain to villain quite as much as some others.

Batgirl: I'm still enjoying this but I'm behind a couple of issues, it suffers a bit compared to Batwoman as I think Barbara Gordon is a little less interesting than Kate Kane (in my opinion) and while the writing is on a similar level the art is not. Almost every page of Batwoman is quite beautiful, whereas Batgirl, while drawn perfectly well, just isn't beautiful.

Catwoman: Seems to be very unpopular online, I don't mind it personally but it certainly isn't as good as some of the others. A shame really. I actually think this Catwoman is a bit dull, I think the animated series made her much more interesting with the socialite/catburglar dichotomy. The overly sexualised art is still a bit annoying too.

Birds of Prey: I have the trade paperback and a half dozen more issues, enjoying it quite a bit and I like the art

Sword of Sorcery: One of the newer additions to New 52, I absolutely love it but it has just been cancelled. I think it will end at issue 7 or something which is very sad. I recommend reading it though. Blonde heroines ftw.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/assets/images/covers/1348086867_cvr.jpg

I have a few other Batman TPBs and the new 52 Batman and Robin which I've not read yet.


Marvel
I've struggled to break into Marvel, I bought two Black Widow TPBs and one was rather good but the other was quite confusing. Why was she a young adult in WW2 and still in the modern era?! Confused...
But after a review from DC Women Kicking *** I bought the first issue of Fearless Defenders and really loved it. How can anyone not like a comic with a lesbian archaeologist kissing a Valkyrie (or the Valkyrie, whatever). Looking forward to issue 2 in a few weeks.
I've also ordered some of the new Journey into Mystery series now featuring Sif as the main character and Captain Marvel (now a woman) and am eagerly anticipating the new all-female X-Men comic in april, so starting to get to grips with Marvel I hope.

I'm focusing mostly on female superhero books, I figure that the men won't be going anywhere and I can pick up TPBs later if they come well recommended. But there seems to be a nasty trend of female teams/lead comics being cancelled quite a bit so I'd rather support them as much as I can.

http://i.newsarama.com/images/DEFEND2013001_DC11_02.jpg
http://www.tor.com/images/stories/blogs/13_02/xmen-usatoday-480x640.jpg

[Tzeentch's Dark Agent]

Not all of us can afford 50 comics a week.

[Deadlift]

If you have an iPad the xcomics app is quite good for downloading comics. I am currently enjoying the Walking dead series and Elephantmen comics. Dark avengers and Marvel civil war are good reads too.

[Brakkart]

Pretty cool list of titles you are following there EG. I've read most of those (the DC ones that is, I'm not much for Marvel). Regarding Batgirl the current run is good but it pales in comparison to the previous (pre-52) run in my opinion, where Barbara Gordon was still crippled from the Joker shooting her in Killing Joke, and served as Oracle (sort of an online info broker to the superhero community) as well as mentor to Stephanie Brown who had previously been the superheroine Spoiler, and became (with Bab's blessing) the new Batgirl. She is a lot of fun to read, and blonde too. Sadly her run was cut short by the New 52 reboot and Steph is in character limbo in the new continuity.

Batgirl Rising (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Batgirl-Vol-Rising-Comics-Quality/dp/1401227236/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361406159&sr=1-6), The Flood (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Batgirl-Flood-Bryan-Q-Miller/dp/0857684108/ref=pd_sim_b_1), and The Lesson (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Batgirl-Lesson-Comics-Quality-Paper/dp/1401232701/ref=la_B003VOD8J2_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1361406336&sr=1-2) are the 3 TPB's that were released of the run. Worth checking out.

I can also highly recommend anything written by Geoff Johns, especially his runs on Green Lantern, Aquaman and Justice League. Peter Tomasi's run on Green Lantern Corps is also very good and runs alongside John's GL series, with a couple truly great heroines in Soranik Natu and Princess Iolande amongst the cast.

[scadugenga]

There is so much good to be said about The Walking Dead.

[Chronowraith]

A few suggestions...

Katana (from the New 52 Birds of Prey) just received her own series. First issue was out last week and was surprisingly good (Katana has always been a mediocre character in my opinion).

The Fairest from DC Vertigo concentrates on the stories of the female fables. So far all of the stories have been fantastic. Overall I encourage everyone to read Fables, but from your comment about female books, The Fairest is better suited to your liking. It isn't superheroes... but it has fantastic writing.

Look at Orchid, written by Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello. This series just ended but was VERY well done.

As for Journey into Mystery... that series is awesome no matter who it centers on (the Loki storylines were particularly awesome). I wasn't impressed with Captain Marvel or Fearless Defenders personally.

Speaking of Female X-Men... I'm excited about the Kitty Pryde statue being released this summer (already preordered). She's been my favorite X-Men since I first started reading comics in the mid 80's.
http://myfigurecollection.net/item/127127

[eldargal]

Not all of us can afford 50 comics a week.

I'm only getting around ten a month.:p

Brakkart, I know the choice to de-cripple Barbara Gordon is quite controversial. I only found out about the Oracle thing when I played Arkham Asylum so I didn't really have a vested interest in it but I can understand why people would be upset. I know a lot of people want to see Stephanie Brown back in some capacity too. I'd be up for that, the more female characters the better.:)

I'll put those TPBs on next months buy list.:) I'm probably going to look at some of the Justice League stuff when I've caught up with Batman, Batman and Robin and Batgirl and perhaps when SoS ends. Maybe Green Lantern and Aquaman as well, though I'm mostly familiar with the latter through Family Guy poking fun at him.:p

Chronowraith, I've only read Katana in the Birds of Prey and she isn't my favourite, but I might give her solo series a go on principle. I'm glad the first issue was good, that is encouraging. I've been meaning to check out Fables, I like the tv show Once Upon A Time which is very similar apparently (so much so that some fans accused the show of plagiarism, though the author of Fables said that isn't the case). I'll add The Fairest to the list as well.

Fearless Defenders and Captain Marvel seem to be quite divisive, people seem to like them or dislike them. I liked Fearless Defenders as I said, the archaeology angle was nice and I really want to find out what happens next. Not read Captain Marvel yet, hopefully I will like it.

[Tzeentch's Dark Agent]

I can't even afford that! PS4 is coming bro!

[Mr Mystery]

I'm only getting around ten a month.:p

Brakkart, I know the choice to de-cripple Barbara Gordon is quite controversial. I only found out about the Oracle thing when I played Arkham Asylum so I didn't really have a vested interest in it but I can understand why people would be upset. I know a lot of people want to see Stephanie Brown back in some capacity too. I'd be up for that, the more female characters the better.:)

I'll put those TPBs on next months buy list.:) I'm probably going to look at some of the Justice League stuff when I've caught up with Batman, Batman and Robin and Batgirl and perhaps when SoS ends. Maybe Green Lantern and Aquaman as well, though I'm mostly familiar with the latter through Family Guy poking fun at him.:p

Chronowraith, I've only read Katana in the Birds of Prey and she isn't my favourite, but I might give her solo series a go on principle. I'm glad the first issue was good, that is encouraging. I've been meaning to check out Fables, I like the tv show Once Upon A Time which is very similar apparently (so much so that some fans accused the show of plagiarism, though the author of Fables said that isn't the case). I'll add The Fairest to the list as well.

Fearless Defenders and Captain Marvel seem to be quite divisive, people seem to like them or dislike them. I liked Fearless Defenders as I said, the archaeology angle was nice and I really want to find out what happens next. Not read Captain Marvel yet, hopefully I will like it.

Buy The Amazing Spideman.


Editor is a personal friend of mine. Though I think he does (or at least did) Batman stuff as well. I know I know, crazy DC/Marvel crossover in the real worlds!

[Chronowraith]

Chronowraith, I've only read Katana in the Birds of Prey and she isn't my favourite, but I might give her solo series a go on principle. I'm glad the first issue was good, that is encouraging. I've been meaning to check out Fables, I like the tv show Once Upon A Time which is very similar apparently (so much so that some fans accused the show of plagiarism, though the author of Fables said that isn't the case). I'll add The Fairest to the list as well.

Fearless Defenders and Captain Marvel seem to be quite divisive, people seem to like them or dislike them. I liked Fearless Defenders as I said, the archaeology angle was nice and I really want to find out what happens next. Not read Captain Marvel yet, hopefully I will like it.

I liked Fearless Defenders better than I thought I would (I"m a long-time fan of Valkyrie myself) but compared to the other books I read it was meh. Nonetheless, I give books until issue 5 to find their feet before making a decision to keep or drop. Captain Marvel didn't make the cut. I didn't mind most things that drove people away (artwork, the weird hair cut, etc) but the story was pretty awful. If you decide you really want to get into Captain Marvel you are welcome to the few issues I own. All they are doing is taking up space at this point.

Fables shares some similarities with Once Upon a Time but given I've only seen the show once or twice I can't really elaborate on that. Fables is my favorite continuing series though and has numerous mini-series spin-offs (including the super secret spy... Cinderella). I've been enjoying Fairest a great deal... the first story-arc was immersive, well written, and incredibly witty.

Justice League is another good book as others have mentioned and probably one of the best of the New 52 titles out there (I'd put Batman slightly ahead).

Also, do you read Wonder Woman? The New 52 is an interesting take on the character and while I thought the first story arc was really weak, the later issues have been more interesting.

[Wildeybeast]

Fables shares some similarities with Once Upon a Time but given I've only seen the show once or twice I can't really elaborate on that. Fables is my favorite continuing series though and has numerous mini-series spin-offs (including the super secret spy... Cinderella). I've been enjoying Fairest a great deal... the first story-arc was immersive, well written, and incredibly witty.

I've just picked up the first Fables book and I was instantly drawn in. I'm looking forward to reading the rest and would encourage everyone else to give it a go.

For anyone who is fan of the TV series I would recommend picking up Joss Whedon's continuation of the Buffy and Angel series. As you would expect from anything Whedon is involved in writing, it's cracking. The Angel series got a bit all over the place, but he seems to have fixed that by incorporating it into Buffy Series 9.

[YorkNecromancer]

Have you tried "Global Frequency" or "Planetary" yet? Both finished their runs years ago, both are excellent.

Also, have you read Whedon's X-Men run yet? I recommended it back when I was MaltonNecromancer, and still recommend it now.

[Chronowraith]

Other interesting reads would be Dan Abnett's run of Guardian's of the Galaxy (includes lesbian couple) as well as Abnett's Nova series from a few years ago. All of that comes to a head with the Thanos Imperative and later the Annihilators (Thanos Imperative is a great read, Annihilators is... meh).

[eldargal]

I actually didn't care for Buffy series 8, though to be fair I didn't read all of it. What I did read was insanely silly sometimes. I'm told series 9 is better? Or is expected to better, I'm not sure which. Thanks for the offer Chronowraith but I have the TPB on the way already.:)

I've been meaning to check out Wonder Woman but I keep getting put off by all the complaints about how her character is written. Like this:
http://media.tumblr.com/5a780c65c1df978b31de20b56ceda3b0/tumblr_inline_mil23dIguW1qz4rgp.png
You slap me on the bottom I'll break your wrist. You slap an amazonian demi-godess on the bottom you should be carrying your genitals to the hospital in a take away container full of ice as far as I'm concerned. Or end up as little smears on the floor, walls and ceiling.
Most opinions I've read seem to put Batman first too, though personally it's in second behind Batwoman. Oddly enough I've seen a lot less chatter about Justice League beyond that it is good, so it has sort of slipped under my radar.

[White Tiger88]

LOL thats a classic comic.................Why me laugh?

[eldargal]

It's so sad it is almost comical.

[White Tiger88]

It's so sad it is almost comical.

Dead those guys are.

[Brakkart]

You slap me on the bottom I'll break your wrist. You slap an amazonian demi-godess on the bottom you should be carrying your genitals to the hospital in a take away container full of ice as far as I'm concerned. Or end up as little smears on the floor, walls and ceiling.

Normally yes and not condoning him doing so, but the person who just did that is in fact Orion of the New Gods and he can go toe to toe with Superman and Darkseid. While WW could (and usually would swing for him for doing that) the resulting fight would level a good chunk of that part of the city.

[eldargal]

He still shouldn't just get away with it. I mean she's a demi-god for gods sake, and highly intelligent and all she can muster is 'what the...'.

[Brakkart]

He still shouldn't just get away with it. I mean she's a demi-god for gods sake, and highly intelligent and all she can muster is 'what the...'.

To be fair her righteous fury is interrupted by Zola's (the blonde lady with the crewcut) righteous fury. DC's Amazons are very good at holding a grudge (especially Diana and her mother Hippolyta), so I doubt Orion has heard the last of WW for doing that.

[eldargal]

Maybe, but it's not a good look, especially when you've had to put up with that kind of behaviour in real life. If Wonder Wome ncan't get that kind of basic respect what hope is there for the rest of us.:p

[Wildeybeast]

I actually didn't care for Buffy series 8, though to be fair I didn't read all of it. What I did read was insanely silly sometimes. I'm told series 9 is better? Or is expected to better, I'm not sure which. Thanks for the offer Chronowraith but I have the TPB on the way already.:)

It did get a bit silly at times, I'd agree, though stayed just the right side of ridiculous to be humorous. The end was pretty dramatic, if slightly confusing. The problem was they built things up even further than whole 'first evil' of season 7 and it was just too much. They have improved season 9 in a number of ways. They've done a sort of Buffyverse 'reset' which allows much more focus on character development and how they deal with their issues, which is where Buffy was always at its best, and less on big bad of the season. They've spilt Faith and Angel off into their own story arc which not only means Faith is regular character but gets Angel back to being obsessive redemption seeker and not whiny, whimpy Buffy-fancier. They've also brought in more adult story lines on par with the death of Joy and the attempted rape of Buffy. If that sounds good, give it a go, but you'll need to read the end of season 8 to make sense of what is going on (or PM me and I'll fill you in if you can't be bothered).

[eldargal]

Thanks but I can borrow them from my friend if need be.:) I'm feeling a little less cranky about 8 since I've been informed they seem to be hinting at undoing one of the things that really, really annoyed me (Giles). On the subject of Buffy, at a craft store somewhere I saw a pillow with a black sort-of-willow tree on one side and a red sort-of-willow tree on the other. So I bought it and called it my Willow/Evil Willow Pillow.:rolleyes:

I forgot, I bought the first Supergirl TPB as well, I enjoyed it though I don't get her costume. That stuff is impervious to all damage and light and flexible etc. so why does she have bare legs? Why not super leggings or something?

[Brakkart]

If you like Supergirl I can highly recommend the Superman/Batman: Supergirl (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Superman-Batman-TP-Vol-Supergirl/dp/1401202500/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361552089&sr=8-1) TPB which re-introduced her to the pre-52 DCU. It is so good they animated it as the excellent Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Superman-Batman-Apocalypse-Lauren-Montgomery/dp/B005EYTG1G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361551789&sr=8-1) which I have and it is simply superb. As well as Superman, Batman and Supergirl you also get Barda, Wonder Woman, Harbinger, Doomsday, Darkseid and the Female Furies too. They even have Summer Glau (River Tam from Firefly) doing Supergirl's voice.

[eldargal]

I'll check it out.:) Actually looking forward to the new Superman Unbound animated thingy with Stana Katic and Molly Quinn (Lois Lane and Supergirl respectively). I <3 Molly Quinn.

[Mr Mystery]

Still all about Marvel.

Social issues? Covered without getting preachy. All very 'what? You saying it doesn't happen?'

Though I steer clear of X-Men. Too many characters for me. Though their crossovers are cool!

[Brakkart]

I'll check it out.:) Actually looking forward to the new Superman Unbound animated thingy with Stana Katic and Molly Quinn (Lois Lane and Supergirl respectively). I <3 Molly Quinn.

Yeah I'm looking forward to that too, only recently read the TPB it is based off (Superman: Brainiac, another of Geoff John's excellent storylines) and the New Krypton and War of the Supermen ones that follow on from it. Would be great to see that entire saga animated but not gonna hold my breath for that to happen, as even truncated it would take 2-3 movies to do it justice. The upcoming Justice League: Flashpoint animated movie should be interesting as the comics of that storyline were really fun, Emperor Aquaman vs Queen Wonder Woman was awesome.

Speaking of Aquaman, he is worth checking out as while the comic is named after him alone, it is very much a double lead with him and his wife Mera (who is more powerful than he is). And she doesn't take any nonsense from anyone as seen in Aquaman #6 where she goes to the store to buy food for the dog she and Aquaman have just been given:

3697 3698 3699

[eldargal]

I like her, adding Aquaman to my list.:p

[White Tiger88]

I like her, adding Aquaman to my list.:p


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0P3YeLFotc

[FireHazard]

Only three small things I can really add to this thread:

1) If you have a Travelling Man store nearby, check it out. Their range is probably smaller than Forbidden Planet's but the prices are very reasonable and you can get a points card :)

2) Watch Robot Chicken's DC special.

3) DEADPOOL. Switch off brain, giggle childishly.

That is all :p

OK, more than 3 things. Marvel's Secret Invasion stuff was pretty good and if you like blonde heroines, Ms. Marvel is not so bad. DC wise, I'm a pretty much a Batfan and I can recommend the No Mans Land series and the Knightfall series.

[Wildeybeast]

Thanks but I can borrow them from my friend if need be.:) I'm feeling a little less cranky about 8 since I've been informed they seem to be hinting at undoing one of the things that really, really annoyed me (Giles). On the subject of Buffy, at a craft store somewhere I saw a pillow with a black sort-of-willow tree on one side and a red sort-of-willow tree on the other. So I bought it and called it my Willow/Evil Willow Pillow.:rolleyes:

I forgot, I bought the first Supergirl TPB as well, I enjoyed it though I don't get her costume. That stuff is impervious to all damage and light and flexible etc. so why does she have bare legs? Why not super leggings or something?

So she looks sexy? It's not like she's going to get cold or needs to worry about unsightly leg hair. She's a strong confident woman who wants to flaunt the fact she looks good. That or she is drawn by/for pervy men, read it whichever way you like.

I'm saying nothing about Giles at risk of spoiling it for you, though his story gets interesting in season 9. I assume you sleep on the evil side when you want dreams about flaying your enemies alive?

[eldargal]

It just seems a bit inconsistent when Supermans is full body is all. I mean skintight semi-transparent leggings would still be sexy. But it isn't like it is bugging me that much, it's really my only nitpick with the book.:) It isn't even that the costume is bad, I quite like it. No breast or belly window, not left unzipped to the waist and it doesn't inexplicably fall apart every issue.;)

[Brakkart]

So I came into some cash and decided to treat myself to some comic books from DC's old pre-New 52 continuity which are so good, I thought I'd add them into this thread as they come very highly recommended by me. All three of these books feature a very large cast of DC characters and follow on from one another, you can read them seperately, but it really does help to read them all and in sequence to get the best from them.

Identity Crisis (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Identity-Crisis-TP-Rags-Morales/dp/1401204589/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364207887&sr=1-1): Is a very clever murder mystery story that uncovers a lot of long hidden secrets amongst the members of the Justice League as they deal with a threat to their secret identities and those the identities are meant to protect.

Infinite Crisis Omnibus (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Infinite-Crisis-Omnibus-HC-Justiniano/dp/1401235026/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364208343&sr=1-2): This huge book (1424 pages long) collects together the mega-event that re-shaped the DC Universe including all of the tie-in miniseries that led up to it.

52 Omnibus (http://www.amazon.co.uk/52-Omnibus-HC-Grant-Morrison/dp/1401235565/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_y): This is probably one of the most ambitious projects any comic book company has ever tried to do. 4 writers and 1 overall concept artist penned a 52 issue series that was released weekly over the course of a year and they actually pulled it off! Another huge book (this one is 1216 pages long) it follows on immediately after the end of Infinite Crisis and details a year in the life of the DC Universe when the big 3 (Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman) were for various reasons absent and how other heroes filled the void. Think it of like a couple seasons of a TV series as there's certainly enough plot to fill that. Amongst the most notable plot threads is the one which introduces Batwoman to the DC Universe!

[eldargal]

Might pick up the Omnibus up, I want more of Batwomans story, she is fantastic. Unless it is just the Elegy series in which case I might just get it separately for now.:rolleyes:

[Brakkart]

Nah Elegy is seperate again, that's from her own series that spun out from her introduction in the 52 series. In 52 she is introduced as part of the year long storyline featuring The Question and ex-detective Renee Montoya of the GCPD (and also Batwoman's ex-lover!) as well as a plot featuring Intergang's attempt to take over Gotham in Batman's absence.

[eldargal]

Better get them both then, heh.

[eldargal]

So buying this, too:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/e0/Hiketeia.jpg/250px-Hiketeia.jpg
Wonder Woman showing Batman whose the boss.:rolleyes:

Edit: Poo, double post, thought I was editing lol.

[Brakkart]

Wow I've never even heard of that book, do let us know what it's like once you've read it EG.

[eldargal]

I only found out about it yesterday on DC Women Kicking ***.:) I'll give a review when I get it.

[eldargal]

So, my Big Bunch of Comics arrived this morning so I'm now up to date with Batwoman (utterly magnficient) and Catwoman (getting better), Fearless Defenders (still wonderful, added quite a bit of depth to Valkyrie in a very understated way) but anoyingly missing a few Batgirls, Batman, Birds of Prey and a few others which means I can't catch up with those. Should be here in a couple of weeks.

My Captain Marvel omnibus arrived and I really enjoyed it, the art style was a little different but she is a great character. Extremely well written.

My copies of Journey into Mystery and the latest Sword of Sorcery issues (still sad that one is being cancelled) also arrived but my geriatric cat has fallen asleep on them so I can't read them right now.

[Brakkart]

Maybe, but it's not a good look, especially when you've had to put up with that kind of behaviour in real life. If Wonder Wome ncan't get that kind of basic respect what hope is there for the rest of us.:p

To follow on from this, you might like how she resolves Orion showing her disrespect in issue #19 of her current series:

http://comicbook.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/13-04-17-1.png

Told you he hadn't heard the last of it!

[eldargal]

Yay! I like her style, I've done that myself.

[eldargal]

Excited, the new all-female X-(Wo)Men is out and my copy has shipped.

Also, I've been waiting for them to make a nice Batwoman collectible and I just saw this, 9.6" high:
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/images/products/out/large/DCC11641.jpg

[eldargal]

The first issue of the new all-women X-Men was the No. 1 selling comic for May, outselling Batman #20, a run which usually sees monthly sales of 135k a month. So huzzah! It's extra amusing because a lot of internet geek misogynists predicted it would bomb and between sales like that and pretty much universal positive reviews that doesn't seem like it's going to happen any time soon.

Really impressed with Marvel at the moment. Captain Marvel has been great, Fearless Defenders has been great, Journey into Mystery starring Sif I struggled with for a bit but now adore and putting some of it's best onto an all-female cast and then having it do spectacularly is really encouraging.

[Gotthammer]

I wanted to put a reference to masturbation in one of the scripts for the Sandman. It was immediately cut by the editor. She told me, “There’s no masturbation in the DC Universe.” To which my reaction was, “Well that explains a lot about the DC Universe."

Well played, Gaiman, well played...

[eldargal]

Ha!

[Mr Mystery]

Was recently given a copy of Watchmen as a birthday present from my colleagues....

And in an uncanny twist, its every bit as good as the hype.

I recommend giving it a read.

[eldargal]

kind of cranky though, above mentioned comics (Fearless Defenders, Captain Marvel and Journey into Mystery) aren't telling particularly well and may end up cancelled.:( It's a shme because they are a lot better than some of the rubbish that is selling 3-4 times more and not just because they are female centric.

[Brakkart]

Was recently given a copy of Watchmen as a birthday present from my colleagues....

And in an uncanny twist, its every bit as good as the hype.

I recommend giving it a read.

I'd recommend giving it more than one read. I re-read it at least once a year and have done for about 20 years now. I STILL find new bits that I had not noticed before each time I read it. Amazing book.

[Brakkart]

kind of cranky though, above mentioned comics (Fearless Defenders, Captain Marvel and Journey into Mystery) aren't selling particularly well and may end up cancelled.:( It's a shame because they are a lot better than some of the rubbish that is selling 3-4 times more and not just because they are female centric.

Really, that sucks. Here's hoping the new X-Men bucks that trend then. At least DC's female centric titles seem to be selling well, well most of them.

With regards to women reading and liking comics, I've been enjoying watching Think about the Ink on YouTube lately which is hosted by Grace Randolph who is not only an avid fan of comics (and she knows her stuff!) but writes them as well. Her Supurbia book is very well written and went from an initial limited series to an ongoing title.

Her channel can be found here and is as she says in the intro to her videos "the weekly program for avid comic book readers and those that aspire to become so": http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWfQmYcecGWGUJuEfuiybOQ

[eldargal]

Well, Fearless Defenders and Captain Marvel are fluctuating around the 20k sold a month mark which isn't catastrophic but Marvel seem to be fond of cancelling female lead titles if they go below 20k a month. Fearless Defenders is also under 20k but seems to have been around that point, bar a few issues, for years and they let it run so I'm not so sure what's going on there. I don't claim to be an expert though, just reporting what I've read.

Nice video, shall have to watch more. Re Catwomans 'fridging' why is no one talking about the fact her eyes are blue and Selina Kyles are Green? Bah.:rolleyes:

[eldargal]

My copy of the new Wood/Coipel all-female X-Men arrives yesterday and it is really, really great. Really. Recommend checking it out, anyone who thought the all-female thing was just a gimmick is dead wrong, the story was great and the art was beautiful. Most of the characters in this were just names to me or vague recollections from the 90s cartoon but this one issue made me love most of them on the spot. Except Storm, who really didn't get as much page time a I expected.

Also received Journey into Mystery #652 which is also great and I really don't understand why this only gets 18k sales a month while other, more mediocre comics get two or three times that. There is this wonderful scene where Sif and two thirds of the All-Mother turn up at Jane Fosters clinic unannounced:
http://25.media.tumblr.com/7dd9d879f9979c3354d6b3cda09c96e9/tumblr_mn7zn0JAlK1rx1i90o1_500.png
And Sif and Jane (aka Thor Love Interests #1 & #2) have a very amusing chat:
http://25.media.tumblr.com/127edb939715fadde3e2dce61d3b92aa/tumblr_mn7raeGAbX1ryctvko1_500.png
http://24.media.tumblr.com/244560cbd37bba62e9f559479299624f/tumblr_mn7my4KA0w1rm2hhlo1_500.jpg

[eldargal]

And Journey into Mystery has been cancelled (http://immonen.ca/post/52948322930).:(

[Brakkart]

Nice video, shall have to watch more. Re Catwomans 'fridging' why is no one talking about the fact her eyes are blue and Selina Kyles are Green? Bah.:rolleyes:

Glad you liked it. Yeah her eyes being the wrong colour was the first thing I noticed too. what with the JLA having a shapeshifter on the team and answering to Amanda Waller of all people (she's like the go-to woman for underhanded US government operations in the DCU) it is way too obvious that it's not actually Selina but an imposter.

Shame about the comic Journey Into Mystery getting cancelled. Can't say I ever read it and pretty sure its not one of the titles my local comic store carries on the shelf, but going by the page you posted it seemed kinda fun.

Have you read Batgirl #20-21 yet? I love the New 52 version of the Ventriloquist. Previously he was very much a joke villain, but the new female version is anything but and is seriously creepy.

I'm looking forward to September which is Villains Month for the DCU, when all the regular titles will be taken over for the month by many of the best villains DC has to offer, in what is basically the villains version of last years #0 issues that told the heroes backstories. This also ties in with the 7 part series that starts that month called Forever Evil written by Geoff Johns which shows what happens when the bad guys win. DC has an amazing list of villains and I'm really looking forward to this, and hopeful that as with the #1 and #0 issues of the New 52 that they will be collected into an Omnibus.

The next DC Omnibus release that I know of though is out in November and is Grant Morrisons mindbending time travel crossover 1 Million, which features a great story linking the modern day JLA with their 853rd century counterparts. the series is called 1 Million btw as the 853rd century is 1 million months after the publication date of Action Comics #1 which introduced the world to Superman. The regular trade paperback of this is rather poor as while it contains the 4 issues of the 1 Million mini series, it lacks huge chunks of the story that took part in the various tie-in titles. The forthcoming Omnibus edition however includes the entire saga and for me is a must buy.

[eldargal]

There is some speculation is that it's Selina Kyles friend Holly Something who hasn't been mentioned in New 52 I don't think, at least not in Catwomans solo comic. I hope not as I think killing off another of her friends to provide her with some angst is almost as bad as fridging a female character for male angst.

I've read a lot of people saying they think it was hamstrung by keeping the old numbering. Journey into Mystery had low sales so they hoped to revitalize it a bit with Sif and a great team but by starting with issue 646 or something it made it difficult for it to stand out. I think there is something in this, I never would have picked it up had it not been recommended but I knew enough to pick out some of the other other female lead comics by myself. I'm hoping they will surprise everyone by announcing the same team is working on an 'Adventures of Sif' comic.:rolleyes:

I've read Batgirl #20, still waiting on 21 to arrive. I agree the new Ventriloquist is extremely creepy and very effective as a villainess. Speaking of Batgirl, do you know what this apparently newish yet high numbered 'Batman and Batgirl' comic is?

That does sound nifty.:) Hope they do something nice with Harley Quinn, like give her a slightly less revolting costume.

[Brakkart]

I've read Batgirl #20, still waiting on 21 to arrive. I agree the new Ventriloquist is extremely creepy and very effective as a villainess. Speaking of Batgirl, do you know what this apparently newish yet high numbered 'Batman and Batgirl' comic is?

The Batman and Batgirl issue is actually an issue of Batman and Robin, however owing to Robin currently being dead and Batman in mourning for his son the title has been going through a period of being named Batman and ...... (fill in the blank). I know that Catwoman, Red Robin and Nightwing have been the co-star in recent months. I actually really like the idea of a Batman & guest star team-up comic as the idea has so much potential not just for starring other members of the Bat family, but also lesser known characters in the DCU.

[eldargal]

Ah that makes sense. I need to catch up on Batman and Robin, I have most of the run but missing a few key issues which I'm having trouble ordering so I've not read anything after issue 5 or something.

also, do you know if New 52 Power Girl is a lesbian? I stumbled accross a forum thread while looking for a particular panel of a Supergirl issue and for some reason a bunch of fangirls were arguing over whether or not Power Girl and Huntress were a couple. I don't want to have to buy Worlds Finest and Power Girl (is there a new 52 power girl comic?) to find out.

[Brakkart]

Power Girl is not a lesbian. She and Huntress have a female version of what would be termed a bromance going on as both are refugees from another version of Earth (Earth 2 where they are Supergirl and Robin respectively) and are stranded on "our" Earth currently. Power Girl is essentially in a long distance relationship with the Mr. Terrific of Earth 2. There is not a standalone Power Girl comic at the moment, she shares the World's Finest title with Huntress which is a pretty decent book actually.

[eldargal]

I suspected as much, it seemed odd that more of a fuss of it hadn't been made on some of the female superhero orientated websites I visit if that were the case. I've had several people recommend Worlds' Finest to me recently so I ordered the TPB.:)

If I understand it correctly, Power Girl is Supergirl (Kara something-el) from an alternate universe (earth-2) which was destroyed with her and Huntress trapped in the 'real' DC universe?

Did I mention how much I love the Commissioner Gordon vs Batgirl theme in the latest issue or two of Batgirl? Really hope they continue with that. My favourite episode of the Batman Animated Series was when Batgirl died fighting Scarecrow, falling from a building and landing on Commissioner Gordson car and just being able to say 'Dad...' before dying and then Gordon went nuts and hunted down the Bt family.:p Getting similar sort of vibe from this but obviously with significant differences and extra dramatic irony.

[Brakkart]

If I understand it correctly, Power Girl is Supergirl (Kara something-el) from an alternate universe (earth-2) which was destroyed with her and Huntress trapped in the 'real' DC universe?

Did I mention how much I love the Commissioner Gordon vs Batgirl theme in the latest issue or two of Batgirl? Really hope they continue with that. My favourite episode of the Batman Animated Series was when Batgirl died fighting Scarecrow, falling from a building and landing on Commissioner Gordson car and just being able to say 'Dad...' before dying and then Gordon went nuts and hunted down the Bt family.:p Getting similar sort of vibe from this but obviously with significant differences and extra dramatic irony.

Okay close but not quite there. Power Girl is indeed Kara Zor-El from Earth 2. Huntress is Helena Wayne from Earth 2 where she is the daughter of Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle and trained by both parents (who are, or were, married) to be Robin. Just like Earth 1, Earth 2 suffered an invasion at the hands of Darkseid and his Apokolitian hordes (as depicted in the first Justice League TPB of the New 52 era). The difference is that in Earth 2, Darkseid invaded many years later and in far greater force and as a result of that battle Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman were killed in battle and Supergirl and Robin were caught in the opening of a Boom Tube and an explosion at the same time, cue weird dimension warp and they arrive on Earth 1. They are both believed to be dead on Earth 2 which was not destroyed and did repel Darkseid's forces, well most of them anyway. Once they realised that they were on another version of Earth and that there already was a Supergirl and Robin there and not wishing to have to answer awkward questions, they created new identities for themselves and became Power Girl and Huntress both to fight crime and to try and figure out a way back to their own Earth.

Also yeah it is a pretty fun story to follow. I'm not at all a fan of James Gordon Jnr, I think the character is kinda lame, but I do like the fallout from his "death". I like how her mum knows that Babs is Batgirl and Jim doesn't, which adds another level to the awkwardness entirely. Will be interesting to see how this plays out.

[eldargal]

Ah, well that makes sense. Also puts a scene at the end of Supergirl 18 where the secret identity of Power Girl is watching video footage of Supergirl and denying to a lackey that they look anything alike. I know a lot of people were cranky when Helena Wayne basically retconned Helene Bertinelli (sp?) out of existence. Or something. Seemed to lose a lot of female characters actually.

Yep, really looking forward to how this story goes. I didn't care for James Jnr either, looked forward to him getting his comeuppance but the way it was handled and the ongoing tension is masterful in my opinion.

[eldargal]

I was able to pick up a copy of Worlds' Finest TPB yesterday rather than wait to order it which was nice. Enjoyed the story, nice to get two not ridiculously sexualised* female characters in a book together that are good friends and also being badass. Now to oder issues 6-13 or what ever it's up to.

*Apart from Power Girls miraculously disintegrating uniform.

[Brakkart]

I was able to pick up a copy of Worlds' Finest TPB yesterday rather than wait to order it which was nice. Enjoyed the story, nice to get two not ridiculously sexualised* female characters in a book together that are good friends and also being badass. Now to oder issues 6-13 or what ever it's up to.

*Apart from Power Girls miraculously disintegrating uniform.

Glad you like it and Power Girl's uniform coming apart is sort of a running gag that's been with the character for almost her entire history. She is kinda renowned for enjoying a good fight.

DC today announced a forthcoming title (launching in October) that I think I'm gonna like, an ongoing Superman/Wonder Woman monthly! About time WW got a second monthly title and it should be interesting to follow the DC's power couple in their own book which is being written by "Swamp Thing's" Charles Soule and drawn by Tony Daniel. Pretty solid comic credits there so I'm looking forward to this. The front cover for issue #1 is pretty awesome:

http://www.comicbookresources.com/assets/images/articles/1371487847.jpg

[eldargal]

A lot of people are cranky that it continues the SM/WW romance though.:p

[Brakkart]

Meh sod em I say. Pretty much every possible permutation of Superman & Lois Lane has been done to death since the 1930's. They have been a dating couple, done the love triangle thing (Superman/Clark/Lois and other variations), been married, got divorced, had kids, grown old together, had one or the other be widowed and even become gods together! Time for a change and I like the dynamic of these two being together, not just how it affects them but also how it affects the world around them. As Batman points out to Superman in Justice League #20 the reason this relationship worries Batman is that he has a counter measure for every member of the League except Wonder Woman, who has no weaknesses and that in the event of her going bad, it would require Superman (or someone on his power level) to stop her. The New 52 is about telling new stories and DC have said that from the start.

[eldargal]

I can see where they are coming from, though I do think the Superman/Lois Lane thing has been done to death. I just don't think Wonder Woman hitching up with Superman especially when she is being shown as being submissive to him is a particularly good thing either. It's real fanboi logic, instead of having them find regular human mates and exploring all the issues that would bring they throw together to two invulnerable, super strong goodie-goodies.:rolleyes:

[Brakkart]

I'm not so sure she is being shown as being submissive. She initiated their relationship after all. Granted she doesn't have Clark's knowledge of "Man's World" and in Justice League I like where he is teaching her how his secret identity works and why he has it. There's a great scene in a restaurant when they are there as Clark and Diana and shes amazed that nobody knows who they are. In a sense he helps to humanise her. As to finding regular human mates, as you say Superman/Lois has been done to death and so has Wonder Woman/Steve Trevor. I like what they have done with Steve in the New 52 and would in fact prefer him in charge of things than Amanda Waller (a character I loathe). There have been hints of Superman and Wonder Woman having feelings for one another for decades, but hints is all there have been. I'm interested to see how they actually work as a couple.

Not only that but imagine the villains that this title will feature. I mean Supes has a pretty decent Rogues Gallery, but WW's is a bit lackluster really. Granted she has loads of Greek mythological critters, characters and gods to tangle with (though a lot of them see-saw between being allies and enemies) and also Cheetah of course but beyond them it's a bit sparse. To challenge one of these two is a tough ask for a lot of foes, to challenge both together... should be lot of fun to read!

[eldargal]

Some good discussion about the SM/WW romance here (http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/53356998178/that-time-wonder-woman-and-steve-trevor-did-it-in-the). I have to admit the tweets are rather distasteful:
http://media.tumblr.com/38b9e6d180fd424ad48f5ee8a1ea8f04/tumblr_inline_momxp7yOF01qz4rgp.png
Really, you're the new writer for a feminist icon that ws created to deliberately subvert male domination in the superhero genre and you talk about her like you're speculating on the love life of a school cheerleader. No that doesn't smack of disrespect at all...

I mean I don't claim to be an expert on WW but even I know she loved Whatsisname becuse he was good and decent and not like how she was told men were on her matriarchal island. Now he's the first c*ck she saw, blargh. There is also something to the idea that DC aren't comfortable with Wonder Womans lover being a male who us physically weaker than her. I mean they pick the one male on earth who is as strong as her to be her bf. Boring, let's see some tension in her life as she and her partner struggle to find out how a mortal and a super woman (ha) can make a life together. But no, we get Superman and Wonder Woman together because they'r both so awesome. As the linekd article notes, it does smack of Women of Kleenex (http://www.pwhitrow.com/blog/entries/2009/07/07/man-of-steel-woman-of-kleenex/).

[Deadlift]

Less romance more action. Just re-read world war hulk for the umpteenth time. Now I'm starting a Venom story arc, he's the good guy:)

[eldargal]

I'd rather they focus on them fighting than this obsession with getting Wonder Woman ******* Superman in a comic.:rolleyes:

[Deadlift]

I'd rather they focus on them fighting than this obsession with getting Wonder Woman ******* Superman in a comic.:rolleyes:

The story arc before world war hulk has him being blasted off to space to get rid of him, he lands on an alien world, blah blah blah. But then gets married. His wife is badass x 100. Won't spoil it but it doesn't end well. I think you would like it.

[eldargal]

Sounds nifty.:) IS there more than one Venom in Marvel mythos? apparently 'Venom' is guest starring in Fearless Defenders later in the year 'cos he is Valkyries ex-bee eff.

[Deadlift]

Basically the venom symbiote has bonded with various people, hench different story lines etc. The one I'm reading at the moment had him bonded with an ex soldier who has lost his legs. He bonds with Venom to become a "good" venom. However he is in control of the symbiote most of the time. Well until **** hits fan. Then venoms unleashed in all his baddassery. There is also "Anti-Venom" and as most know "Carnage" too.

[Bitrider]

I have always liked the 'behind the scenes' of events. The training of the soliders before the war rather than the actual battle scenes, the build-up to an event, etc. The comic Damage Control (http://marvel.com/universe/Damage_Control) shows you what happes after the superheroes do battle. Who cleans up the place, who pays for all that damage?

It's good clean fun. :)

[Ze_Shoggoth]

Basically the venom symbiote has bonded with various people, hench different story lines etc. The one I'm reading at the moment had him bonded with an ex soldier who has lost his legs. He bonds with Venom to become a "good" venom. However he is in control of the symbiote most of the time. Well until **** hits fan. Then venoms unleashed in all his baddassery. There is also "Anti-Venom" and as most know "Carnage" too.


Isn't he Ravage not Venom? It was some time ago when I read that one.
The new 52 ... Oh gosh where should I start on that train Wreck

Good titles - suicide squad ( though Harley is really not done justice there)
Arrow ( tv series tie in )
Threshold - only for the Larfleeze story in the back other then that avoid .
Worlds finest - powergirl is much weaker than her pre 52 counterpart ( charecter wise)

Bad titles - batman inc , WW , and most of the others

Cat woman is so so I really would rather her be less slutty and more anti hero

May I recommend aphroditie ix ? And Red Son

It's just restarted and is a great read.

Soul fire - Michael turners baby it has gone down hill since his passing but still worth it .

[scadugenga]

For an interesting break from the trad superhero comics, I recommend Strikeforce Morituri (if you can still find them...series is from the mid-late 80's.)

Basic premise: near future Earth has been attacked, and mostly beaten by an alien invasion. (Yes, pre all the current sci fi series out there.) Earth scientists have come up with a process to enhance humans to superhuman potential.

The problem?

It generally kills the human within a year.

The story follows the people volunteering to undergo the process and strike back at the aliens. Good stuff.

[Kirsten]

not really a super hero but I love the Punisher Max series, need to get some of my own.

[Deadlift]

Isn't he Ravage not Venom? It was some time ago when I read that one.
The new 52 ... Oh gosh where should I start on that train Wreck


Referred to as Venom thoughout the 5 comic story Arc, it's the one with Flash Thompson.

[Brakkart]

So all this chat about comics got me all nostalgic for when I actually used to get titles monthly rather than just buying TPB's. So with that in mind I went and signed myself up for a couple monthly titles at my local store namely Superman Unchained as it has just launched and the forthcoming Superman/Wonder Woman title too. Got SU #1 today and it is pretty good. Scott Snyder seems to have a pretty good handle on the Superman characters, the banter between Clark and Lois was great and Jim Lee's art is as amazing as always and showcased in this issue at least (not sure if this is an ongoing thing or just for the #1 issue anyway) in a 2 sided mini poster of 2 of the pages of the comic where Supes is tackling a Space Station that is falling to Earth! Having recently read the entire New Krypton/War of the Supermen story arc (10 TPB's long!!) which features Lois' alien hating dad General Sam Lane as a primary antagonist it was cool to see him again in this new title.

Also got a TPB in the post today one of 3 I've ordered from the Book Depository (I highly recommend them as a company, cheaper than Amazon generally, great range and the books arrive well packaged and in a timely manner. I rarely buy books from anyone else these days). This one was GI Joe: Cobra - The Oktober Guard which was okay but I think the title would profit from a better artist as the storyline is great but the overall quality suffers I feel from art that is kinda vague. The premise deals with the Joe's covert op's team coming up against both Cobra and also Russia's version of GI Joe: The Oktober Guard who make their first appearance in the IDW continuity (they were created and first introduced back in the 80's by Larry Hama during Marvel's original long running Joe series). I think the story needed another issue or two really (and much better art) as after reading it had I not already known these characters I don't think I'd be any wiser as to who they are, which is a shame as they featured in some very memorable stories back in Marvel's run.

The other two TPB's should arrive tomorrow hopefully and are JLA: Salvation Run which features a large group of DC's villains who are exiled to a remote planet to serve as their prison (as they are forever escaping prisons on Earth) and their efforts both to get home and to try and work together to do that as without heroes to fight they inevitably turn on each other. My other title is Supurbia by Grace Randolph which after being impressed with her knowledge of comics on her Think About The Ink webshow I decided to give the book she writes a try as it has pretty solid reviews.

[Brakkart]

So JLA: Salvation Run showed up today and Supurbia didn't, which means it'll likely arrive tomorrow and I get a parcel 3 days running. Win! Already read Salvation Run cover to cover and will likely do so again later on as it is very good fun. Having rounded up the various supervillains of the world the US Government (via its covert ops organisation Checkmate) has decided to do away with the lot of them as prisons are not effective to keep them under control. To that end they use Apokolitian tech to open Boom Tubes to a remote planet which is habitable and apparently safe and they drop the various criminals there in groups to fend for themselves. They provide them only with their costumes and weapons, nothing else. The planet though is not safe, it was just made to appear that way when Checkmate looked the place over. It is in fact a deadly wilderness populated by all manner of techno-organic creatures that seem to evolve whenever defeated and come back better than before. The criminals are loosely organised into two camps, one led by Lex Luthor who is adamant he can build a device to get them back home to Earth, and the other led by the Joker who are resigned to their exile and determined to embrace the inherent chaos of the place. There is also a much smaller third group led by Vandal Savage who intends to build a utopia in the only safe region on the planet under his "benevolent" paternal leadership.

It is very well written and the art while not spectacular is good and it is easy to tell the various characters apart which is important with such a large cast. There is some very good humour in this, such as the hunting party that returns with a great big dead lizardlike thing hung on a pole over their shoulders and announce to the camp "Coming up, roast... whatever this thing is. Get it while its hot".

My only gripes with it really are that the faction some characters side with are very out of character for them (Giganta siding with Joker's group when she's a pretty brilliant scientist and not at all crazy being a shining example of this) and some characters who don't really seem to belong there, the best example of which is Catwoman who was (and remains still) far more of an anti-hero than an actual villain and certainly not a threat to society like the rest are.

[Kirsten]

hehehehehehe

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/dd380/KirstenIGMB/comic_zps99adc355.jpg (http://s1216.photobucket.com/user/KirstenIGMB/media/comic_zps99adc355.jpg.html)

[Wildeybeast]

So JLA: Salvation Run showed up today and Supurbia didn't, which means it'll likely arrive tomorrow and I get a parcel 3 days running. Win! Already read Salvation Run cover to cover and will likely do so again later on as it is very good fun. Having rounded up the various supervillains of the world the US Government (via its covert ops organisation Checkmate) has decided to do away with the lot of them as prisons are not effective to keep them under control. To that end they use Apokolitian tech to open Boom Tubes to a remote planet which is habitable and apparently safe and they drop the various criminals there in groups to fend for themselves. They provide them only with their costumes and weapons, nothing else. The planet though is not safe, it was just made to appear that way when Checkmate looked the place over. It is in fact a deadly wilderness populated by all manner of techno-organic creatures that seem to evolve whenever defeated and come back better than before. The criminals are loosely organised into two camps, one led by Lex Luthor who is adamant he can build a device to get them back home to Earth, and the other led by the Joker who are resigned to their exile and determined to embrace the inherent chaos of the place. There is also a much smaller third group led by Vandal Savage who intends to build a utopia in the only safe region on the planet under his "benevolent" paternal leadership.

It is very well written and the art while not spectacular is good and it is easy to tell the various characters apart which is important with such a large cast. There is some very good humour in this, such as the hunting party that returns with a great big dead lizardlike thing hung on a pole over their shoulders and announce to the camp "Coming up, roast... whatever this thing is. Get it while its hot".

My only gripes with it really are that the faction some characters side with are very out of character for them (Giganta siding with Joker's group when she's a pretty brilliant scientist and not at all crazy being a shining example of this) and some characters who don't really seem to belong there, the best example of which is Catwoman who was (and remains still) far more of an anti-hero than an actual villain and certainly not a threat to society like the rest are.

Would it not have been easier and cheaper to just shoot them all?

In other news, after it was short listed for the excellent Stan Lee Excelsior awards to pick up vol. 1 of the New 52 Supergirl, which was pretty good. However, I'm hoping some can explain to to me what the New 52 meta is all about. I'm getting that it's a reboot, but the why and how eludes me.

[Brakkart]

So the last of my trio of newly bought TPB's arrived in the post yesterday and the best one was saved for last. Credit to Grace Randolph, not only does she know a thing or ten about comics but she can write them too. Supurbia is... how do I describe it, think "Desperate Housewives meets The Justice League" and if you can picture that you're about there. There are some truly delicious twists on the standard hero tropes though, such as Sovereign, the Superman-alike character being all noble and such in public, in private though he is an arrogant b*st*rd with a severe god-complex who is keeping a former supervillainess (who swears she has reformed but old habits etc) as a housekeeper with benefits. As one of the other wives puts it "Oh she's doing hard time, between his sheets!" It is really good fun and I'm looking forward to the next volume now and I'm sorely tempted to add the monthly comic to my order.

[Brakkart]

Would it not have been easier and cheaper to just shoot them all?

In other news, after it was short listed for the excellent Stan Lee Excelsior awards to pick up vol. 1 of the New 52 Supergirl, which was pretty good. However, I'm hoping some can explain to to me what the New 52 meta is all about. I'm getting that it's a reboot, but the why and how eludes me.

Yes it would have been easier to shoot them all but as most are serving life sentences and are not on death row, it would also have been immoral and illegal to do so. They do explain that in the story and the exile is done without the knowledge (for the most part anyway) of the hero community or the public.

As for the New 52 the basic idea of it was to restart the DCU off from fresh without the "burden" of its 20+ year continuity as a way to entice people to get into the titles as they all started over with new #1 issues. A good idea in theory but in practice it didn't quite work out like that. Had they actually done a full reboot of the universe then while they would still have hacked off loyal fans they would at least have a solid foundation to build anew from. They know this because they did once before back in 1985 with a maxi-series called Crisis on Infinite Earths which did away with all previous DC continuity and started with a clean slate which they then built the pre-New 52 DCU from.

However certain of DC's writers have a lot more sway than others and they weren't anywhere near finished with their ongoing sagas so some titles were only soft rebooted (that is most of the backstory was still assumed to have happened only a few details had changed) most notably Batman's titles (the extended family got more heavily rebooted especially Batgirl and Red Robin) and some weren't rebooted at all, only the issue numbers changed and the story from before continued on without missing a beat (the various Green Lantern titles). As a result of this the DCU's current continuity is a complete mess which has angered long term fans and alienated new ones trying out these titles as the backstory is all over the place and many characters that were beloved are in limbo having not made an appearance as yet in the New 52 era and their previous stories largely retconned out of continuity. Furthermore the expected sales increase has dwindled away after a promising start and if anything sales are now lower than they were before the reboot happened.

[Wildeybeast]

Yeah, that does sound a whole big mess of stupid. A classic example of a business not having enough conviction in their reform to follow it through properly. Thanks Brakkart

[Brakkart]

No problem Wildey, happy to help explain things. I will say that while the DCU continuity is a mess right now, it has not stopped there being some damn fine stories in the New 52 era. Sagas like The Court of Owls and Death of the Family (Batman family titles), Rise of the Third Army and Wrath of the First Lantern (Green Lantern titles), Throne of Atlantis (a Justice League/Aquaman crossover), H'el on Earth (Superman Family titles) and pretty much the entire runs of Wonder Woman, Batwoman, Aquaman and World's Finest are as good as anything DC have ever produced, but since the reboot there does seem to be a fair bit more miss than hit these days.

[chicop76]

I only read one comic and it's the Thanos title which is out now. I think it's ok since it retcons his past, but it keeps true to his character which he comes off as a good person, but events make him evil. Through out his character history he has been bad, neutral, and somethimes work for good. He comes off evil, but seems to have an inner good deep within. Not saying it's a good ideal to plead to his good side. He has no problems in killing half the universe without a hestitant thought, but he doesn't act without purpose. What's good about the series he is trying to be good, but it simply not working.

I stopped really reading since 94 and picked up during civil war and stopped during secret invasion.

My problem with Marvel now they or the last few books I read, do a good job of building up a story and also get you interested in characters you would normally not care about, like the Skull Queen. The problem I see is they don't know how to really end big events or story. Basically all that work to go back to how things were before or a reshuffle, or kill/ cripple proffessor X again. I mean how many times are you going to kill Jean Grey and bring her back. Also once you feel invested into a character they kill them off.

Here is a list of characters from Marvel they killed of.
Adam Warlock: they brought him back and changed him to the magnus with no explanation and as soon as he became the Magnus kill him off. He would had been a good regular for Guardians of the Galaxy and he would had helped with the back story a lot with the GotG movie. One of my likeable characters killed off cause he is basically an extremly smart and powerful doctor strange and can actually go toeto toe with Thanos, due to smarts.

Black Bolt: killed him off. Actually was one of my favorites and very powerful. He couldn't talk cause he would and can level a city just with a whisper.

Moon Dragon: heck why not. Unless youread comics you didn't know who she was.

There are more, but for the most part they kill off less read characters to make a threat more meaningful. They advanced they're 20 year old side story and kill them off. If you kept up wih said character it will piss you off.

An example would be like superman went to go visit his planet and he died in a stupid manner like a piece of krptoninte just randomly hit him in the head killing him. Yeah most of the Marvel Deaths was like that. Besides Black Bolt most of them was very anticlimatic.

The reason I liked marvel or used to was they have the knack of having their hero's ctually be believable. Most of their characters come off as regular people with super powers. The villians come off as. I have to power to do whatever I want so I do it. You still get stupid story lines, but you can relate to the goals and concepts overall.

Marvel stands fo I Marvel at their work.

Supposdly they have an all girl X-Women team now. It has Psylocke, Storm, Phoenix, Jubliee off the top of my head.

Heroes for hire was a huge female orientated comic.

The only strong females in marvel I can really think off is in X-Men and in Fantastic Four, well Sue Richards you just don't mess with her. Everyone else just don't really. Mrs. Marvel can be said for Avengers, but she has too many issues.

Than we have DC.

DC= Dumb Comics

I will start off the only DC comic I only really collected was Batman. Sadly I think Batman is probably the best comic out there.

The problem with DC is you either good or you bad. If you are good you are to the extreme, and if you are bad it's the same. DC chacaters are hard to relate too simply because some character come off too good or too bad. A lot of DC character come off as crazy.

Batman works, because he is a normal man and although he is really intelligent he has a lot of emotional weight that hampers his intelligence. He still have a strong moral fiber, a lot stronger than most marvel heros, well all. Captain America is the only one that comes close.

Another problem is power level. In DC you are either retardly power or have little or no powers. Not too many inbetween people. Flash for example can run way faster than he should, superman is over the top, etc. ( the new 52 I heard toned down superman). Any way Arvel characters like Quicksilver can go as fast as Mach one which is still fast, but not out there fast. You have a lot of inbetween with little over the top or characters with no powers.

I always said all of Marvel can defeat all of DC, but if you said only what majority of the characters the public knows and no Phallax or Infinity Gauntlet. Than I would go with DC hands down vs Marvel. Heck Superman, Flash, Batman and Greenlantern can take on all of known Marvel and win.

Also I noticed, but not read the John Carter comics. It's based on the old Jon Carter books with a huge focus on his wife. In the books she as basically naked, so in the comic she is basically naked. I think however it might be a good read since the John Carter books inspired a lot of strong women in fiction. George Lucas have said the John Carter books princess was the inspiration for princess Leia which she was not a helpless damsel in distress and was fully capable od saving herself. It inspired flash as well, but not the girl soo much.

[chicop76]

Would it not have been easier and cheaper to just shoot them all?

In other news, after it was short listed for the excellent Stan Lee Excelsior awards to pick up vol. 1 of the New 52 Supergirl, which was pretty good. However, I'm hoping some can explain to to me what the New 52 meta is all about. I'm getting that it's a reboot, but the why and how eludes me.

Fans got tired of hearing about the superboy punch that changed reality. Basically with so many writters stories started to conflict.

The Red Hood is one and Wonder Woman is another.

To solve the problem without using the super boy punch that ultered reality they decided to recon everything.

The biggest problem with that was they just finished a big batman storyline and a big green lantern story line. They just went through the trouble of making Jason Todd, darn too many robins. I mean Dick Grayson into Batman and the whole white lantern story line with all the differant ring factions.

[Psychosplodge]

http://i40.tinypic.com/10dgttz.jpg

[Mr Mystery]

Look out! It's the Lame League! :p

Nice models though. Shame they're DC.

[eldargal]

Gail Simones run on Red Sonja is starting soon with a bunch of alternate covers by female artists. My favourite:
http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/ma/may130986.jpg

DC Women Kicking *** has an excellent interview with Ms Simone about the series here (http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/55266444606/gail-simone-talks-about-her-red-sonja-hitting-the). Always been a big Conan fan and Red Sonja too though the costume is still off-putting.

You can see the other variant covers here (http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/47480460998/simones-red-sonja-gets-more-variants)

[Kirsten]

is she drunk in that pic?

[eldargal]

Probly a little, but she's putting it on mostly, see her eye, she's waiting for the men to pounce so she can obliterfry them.

[Kirsten]

either that or 'ugh why now, I am far too drunk' :p

[eldargal]

It was quite controversial until people pointed out one eye is open and she is looking, as much as she can, in the mens direction. Being too drunk won't stop her beating the snot out of the men though.:p

[scadugenga]

A bit of a digression, but I loved Sandahl Bergman's Valleria in the original Conan movies. Strong, unafraid, and easily Conan's equal.

Pity she didn't get to play Red Sonja. She would've been spectacular in that role...much better than Brigitte Nielsen.

[chicop76]

Gail Simones run on Red Sonja is starting soon with a bunch of alternate covers by female artists. My favourite:
http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/ma/may130986.jpg

DC Women Kicking *** has an excellent interview with Ms Simone about the series here (http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/55266444606/gail-simone-talks-about-her-red-sonja-hitting-the). Always been a big Conan fan and Red Sonja too though the costume is still off-putting.

You can see the other variant covers here (http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/47480460998/simones-red-sonja-gets-more-variants)

Red Sonya: ummm. Everyone always runs away from me. Thinks back when she saves a drunk lady.

* Sonya proceeds to drink and pass out near camp fire*

Bandits #1 : " is that Red Sonya."
Bandit#2: " Yes it is! Runnnnnnnn!"
Bandit#3: "Wait. She is drunk and passed out. We can rape her and than kill her. We will be legendary and famous(Anime always give being famous a reason to do something)".
Bandit#2: " Remember Joe and Bob. She beheaded them both and burn down their homes. I heard she lay traps now a days and lure bandits to their doom."
Bandit#1" Look at that body. We have a chance for fun and you want to run. We rape her and kill her."
Bandit#2: " I guess so, I still think it is a bad ideal. We might be punished by the sex god roth. Vic had died cause he decided to rape and plonder the village near the swamp. He started swelling up and puked blod till he died. Not all women are good women."
Bandit#3" Look I am going down there. This is a once in a life time experiance. If I am smitten by a curse, than I laugh at it ,because I will be famous for having my way with that witch and slaying her. I will have a statue made in my honor and I will live on. Tell me. It's 3 vs a drunken sleeping witch. What can go wrong."
Bandit#2" I guess so. I did warn you if we all die though".
Bandit#1 " enough let's go!"

* Bandits approaches Sonya*

* Sonya thinks to herself. " boy I thought they will never come"

* 15 seconds later Sonya is covered in blood with 3 heads in her hands laughing wildly."

[eldargal]

It's Red Sonja, Red Sonya is a different character.:p

[eldargal]

http://media.tumblr.com/b34d892290778fff91e83257bcf28f94/tumblr_inline_mptzvzFmgW1qz4rgp.jpg
http://media.tumblr.com/d1621a3173eb8cbd77cbc8e0f2a0055a/tumblr_inline_mkyfaep2Ic1qz4rgp.jpg
http://media.tumblr.com/043fc6375e42b4156f65f3c48045c56f/tumblr_inline_mkyfcaoa7R1qz4rgp.jpg
http://media.tumblr.com/0b65fb5f72f7be5889e4512978c4370b/tumblr_inline_mj3sceBA2E1qz4rgp.jpg
I think I might need to get all the variants.

[eldargal]

http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/ma/may130989.jpg
'nother one. At first I thought the peac ocks were weird tentacles which was kind of odd.

[Gotthammer]

I really like the 2nd one, but the 4th one with the ravens is fantastic! Would be great as a poster type dealie.

Also, how to carry Batman (http://miharu-work.tumblr.com/post/35983576486/how-to-carry-batman):

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mdoql0OLqu1rpi8lio1_500.png

[chicop76]

http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/ma/may130989.jpg
'nother one. At first I thought the peac ocks were weird tentacles which was kind of odd.

I think someone has been looking at too much Hentai.

[Kirsten]

[IMG]http://media.tumblr.com/043fc6375e42b4156f65f3c48045c56f/tumblr_inline_mkyfcaoa7R1qz4rgp.jpg


http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/ma/may130989.jpg
'nother one. At first I thought the peac ocks were weird tentacles which was kind of odd.

someone has an obsession ;)

[eldargal]

The only good tentacles are crispy fried tentacles! Peac ocks are nice though, not sure why I mistook them for tentacles.

[Psychosplodge]

I've seen enough hentai...

http://i41.tinypic.com/538oqp.gif

[chicop76]

The only good tentacles are crispy fried tentacles! Peac ocks are nice though, not sure why I mistook them for tentacles.

I actually had that. It's pretty good. Having flashbacks of Korea.

[Kirsten]

I've seen enough hentai...

http://i41.tinypic.com/538oqp.gif

or enough cheap made for tv horror films...

looks hilarious

[eldargal]

I actually had that. It's pretty good. Having flashbacks of Korea.

I have fried tentacles all the time, I think they are dusted in cornflour or something to get crispy without being fully battered. Squid and calamari mostly, don't think octopus lends itself to crispy frying. Get little baby squid where they seem to just fry the tentacles in one clump and they are insanely delicious.

[eldargal]

http://media.tumblr.com/e9c83b7eb8ffd3768fdb564f5865c8e5/tumblr_inline_mq2sreHvXI1qz4rgp.jpg
So many of the Batwoman covers are just wonderful.

[chicop76]

http://media.tumblr.com/e9c83b7eb8ffd3768fdb564f5865c8e5/tumblr_inline_mq2sreHvXI1qz4rgp.jpg
So many of the Batwoman covers are just wonderful.

Who is this batwoman. Is it Spoiler or Barbra. At least it's not as bad trying to keep track of how many children Batman molest, I mean how many Robins are out there.
1. Dick Grayson
2. Jason Todd
3. The one with the staff
4. Spoiler
5. The other girl in the kingdom come series who is the first robin to become batwoman
6. Damien Wayne

That's all the robins I am aware off.

[eldargal]

Batwoman is Kate Kane, you're thinking of Batgirl who is Barbara Gordon/Cassandra Cain/Stephanie Brown.

[chicop76]

Batwoman is Kate Kane, you're thinking of Batgirl who is Barbara Gordon/Cassandra Cain/Stephanie Brown.

Ok. Who is Kate Kane and Stephanie Brown. I would think Cassandra Cain would be Batwoman. Also is Barbara still oracle and still messed up from The Killing Joke.

[eldargal]

Kate Kane is Batwoman.:p The Kane family are one of the old Gotham families I believe, Bruce Waynes mother was a Kane. Cassandra Cain is no relation and she isn't in the New 52, fate unknown. Barbara gordon is no longer Oracle but back to being Batgirl.

[chicop76]

Kate Kane is Batwoman.:p The Kane family are one of the old Gotham families I believe, Bruce Waynes mother was a Kane. Cassandra Cain is no relation and she isn't in the New 52, fate unknown. Barbara gordon is no longer Oracle but back to being Batgirl.

K. Guess I have to look into the Kane thing.

No Cassandra Cain :(. That's the second female robin ever. How they are going to write her out.

The orignial batgirl is back, so they omited the killing Joke???

[eldargal]

Nope, she had surgery to repair the damage and is back s Batgirl. Cassandra Cain (who was Robin and later Batgirl) and Stephanie Brown are missing presumed ignored. Apparently some of the senior DC editors hated them.

[chicop76]

I got them mixed up. Brown was spoiler/ robin/ batgirl.

Cain was the crazy kickbutt kung fu girl.

[Brakkart]

Cassandra Cain was never Robin. She is the daughter of one of the world's best assassins Cain, who raised her to be a killer. When she actually killed her first target (aged 10!) she freaked and fled and went into hiding. She turned up in Gotham years later during the No Man's Land saga where she worked for Oracle as a spy on the various gangs activities in return for lessons in how to speak as Cain never taught her language, instead she could read body language to an almost supernatural degree. She is a phenomenal martial artist and has fought Lady Shiva to a standstill on more than one occasion (Shiva as it turns out is also her mother). She became the 3rd Batgirl (with Barbara Gordon's blessing) after the name & outfit were taken away from Huntress/Helena Bertinelli who had been using it as the symbol of the Bat was more effective than her own costume. Cassie later passed the mantle of Batgirl on to her best friend Stephanie Brown (formerly known as Spoiler and briefly known as the 4th Robin before her "death"), she did this without Babs approval and it took Steph a while to win it.

The other female Robin is from the Elseworlds future tale Dark Knight Returns where she is one Carrie Kelley, who has now somewhat oddly turned up in the New 52 as a friend of Damian Wayne's. She is not however (as yet) Robin or even a superhero. In the Elseworlds universe she later becomes Catgirl.

The third Robin (the one with the staff) is Timothy Drake who is now known as Red Robin. Of the various Robins, he is by far the most like Bruce in temperment and ability to the extent that Ra's Al Ghul refers to him also as Detective, a honorific title he refers to Batman by.

[Psychosplodge]

Twilight Quinn?

http://i39.tinypic.com/2vw5ues.jpg

[Psychosplodge]

I suppose SDCC (http://wilwheaton.tumblr.com/post/56076519989/maxistentialist-booty-creed-get-real-with) falls under this thread?

The comments underneath provide an interesting outlook :D

[eldargal]

Vaguely related to comics, the next DC/WB superhero film will apparently be Superman/Batman (http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/comic-con-2013-superman-batman-movie-will-follow-man-of-steel/#/0). New actor for Batman, hoping this means a reboot from the abysmal and thoroughly overrated Nolan films.

Edit: apparently the Nolan films are 'in their own universe' which with any luck is on the verge of heat death.

also, Karen Gillian will be appearing in Marvels Guardians of the Galaxy. She is also bald, which for some reason has created a stir:
http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02623/Karen-Gillan_2623430b.jpg

[eldargal]

Also presenting one of the greatest panels from a New 52 book I've read:
http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_md78hpHaC51qdw7uzo1_500.jpg

[chicop76]

Vaguely related to comics, the next DC/WB superhero film will apparently be Superman/Batman (http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/comic-con-2013-superman-batman-movie-will-follow-man-of-steel/#/0). New actor for Batman, hoping this means a reboot from the abysmal and thoroughly overrated Nolan films.

Edit: apparently the Nolan films are 'in their own universe' which with any luck is on the verge of heat death.

also, Karen Gillian will be appearing in Marvels Guardians of the Galaxy. She is also bald, which for some reason has created a stir:
http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02623/Karen-Gillan_2623430b.jpg


Only bald white chick I know in that story line is Moon Dragon. I am still mad they do not have Adam Warlock.

Batman/Superman would be cool. I liked Nolan's Batman Begins, I try to pretend the other two didn't happen.

The problem I had with the second one is that they took a robin story line and put Rachael in it instead. I think the second movie would had been better if two face wasn't in it. Harvey Dent was ok though.

However it seems like Nolan took material from Batman Year One and Two, The Dark Night Returns, and a Death in the Familiy.

Honestly Begins= Year One and Two even have same love interest, mob boss, and Gordon back story.
The secon movie = The death in the family
The third movie = The return of the Dark Knight. They even have a lot of the same lines like the eldar and youngpolice scene and Bane = Mutant leader lines.

I like Mark Miller, but they shouldn't use his material for Batman. At least Batman saves people in the 3 movies and didn't abuse poor Robin.

[eldargal]

Her character is named Nebula apparently.

[chicop76]

Her character is named Nebula apparently.


Hmmm. That character wasn't orginally bald. Thanos messes her up going around saying she was his granddaughter.

I know she became a cyborg. I am trying to remember if it was due to her being half dead due to Thanos.

I really don't like that character. She either is an annoyance at best or a plot device for Thanos to get over on someone that is not a good guy.

Since the guardians roster is not that impressive I can see her actualy being a threat.

Depends on what they do with drax though. They really depowered him a lot. If he is The Riddick than it would be interesting, if he's a hulk with laser blast than he would treat her like a bug.

The only power house on the team is a tree. The rest just fight real good or shoot real good.

Ronan and the Nova Corps is an interesting add to the movie. If Ronan is in the movie than they have to do the Kree. They may do the Supreme Intelligence or have Ronan as leader of the Kree.

I am thinking Kree/ Skull war or Kree/ what the aliens where in Avengers one. The Chatari.

[Gotthammer]

Also presenting one of the greatest panels from a New 52 book I've read:

And then Peej and Huntress had dirty, dirty dumpster sex.
Glad they changed her back to her classic outfit, not sure what they were thinking with the new one.

Also glad the new Batman has nothing to do with the Nolan films, though I hope it doesn't have any bloody prequel / backstory crap in it. Sum it up in a five minute montage already. Burton didn't need it and it's not exactly a complicated story.

[chicop76]

Batman is not really a simple story and you have a lot of source materia to draw from.

Why you bring up Burton. They was rather bad with the first Batman being ok. He tried to use material from the old Batman shows and movies.

Nolan used a lot of material from Miller.

The problem with doing Batman is I think you can't read the top selling handpicked issues/ novels and due a movie on it. You need someone to read a good bit of the material to understand how you going to use the subject.

Another problem is how many writters Batman has had over the years.

Batman is more complicated than most heroes since he doesn't really need to ge his hands dirty. Tony Stark makes more sense than Batman.

The problem with Batman is that he is sooo rich he really doesn't have to get his hands dirty. Also why does he dress up like a bat is another issue. We get his parents have been killed, but he can hire an elite outfit and get them train up to deal with crime.

Even in Batman 3 Alfred was saying similar that Batman could simply send more funds to the police department for example.

If he wasn't rich that we can understand why he dresses up like a bat more and why he personally beat up the filth in the streets.

On top of all that he is the smartest man in the world. Please.

[Psychosplodge]

Apparently


I have never read a comic book


Which explains ****ing batman

[chicop76]

Apparently

For some reason that doesn't surprise me. It shows if they actually read the material.

[Gotthammer]

Batman is not really a simple story and you have a lot of source materia to draw from.

Young rich kid, who is afraid of/gets scared by bats at some point sees his parents murdered and decides to become a figure of terror for criminals. He uses his vast wealth and intellect to train himself and create gadgets. That's all the back story you need for a film. Look at Thor (the film) - it didn't spend 3/4 of the film telling us how Thor became awesome and was given Mjolnir - it showed us him being awesome and weilding Mjolnir and as the film progressed inserted bits of backstory as necessary and showed us his character and how his past had shaped him rather than telling us.
Show - don't tell. Too many re-boots, too many tellings of the character's past before they become somebody interesting.

[chicop76]

Young rich kid, who is afraid of/gets scared by bats at some point sees his parents murdered and decides to become a figure of terror for criminals. He uses his vast wealth and intellect to train himself and create gadgets. That's all the back story you need for a film. Look at Thor (the film) - it didn't spend 3/4 of the film telling us how Thor became awesome and was given Mjolnir - it showed us him being awesome and weilding Mjolnir and as the film progressed inserted bits of backstory as necessary and showed us his character and how his past had shaped him rather than telling us.
Show - don't tell. Too many re-boots, too many tellings of the character's past before they become somebody interesting.

He is also known as the worlds greatest detective, which we fail to see in any of his movies. Even the aninmated movies show that, but it will not be seen if you do not know that part of the character.

It's like showing superman without his heat vision for example.

Also look how Tim Burton portrayed Batman. He goes in the front door fighting. While Nolan's Batman acts like a ninja which shows he read enough of the source material to portray that.

Batman uses stealth and scare tactics. Batman doesn't annouce to the world he is there. When hlf your villians is gone you realize Batman is there.

Tim Burtons movies was a huge insult to Batman. I give Nolan credit for picking up a comic book at least.

[Gotthammer]

All of which is irrelevant to my original point that I hope this re-reboot of the character isn't weighed down with origin story crap which the Burton films, regardless of other element, did not suffer from.

[chicop76]

All of which is irrelevant to my original point that I hope this re-reboot of the character isn't weighed down with origin story crap which the Burton films, regardless of other element, did not suffer from.

They may not have to bother with an origin story thanks to Nolan, but you never know.

Joe Chill, Jason Todd, and Damion Wayne for starters I think really molded Batman. The Burton film kinda did the Joe Chill story line.

The problem I see is to either do Batman or set him up for a Justice League movie. Also do you add Robin if you do which one.

Personally I think doing Jason Todd wouldn't be a bad ideal. It can start off with Batman by himself and Tim Drake taking up the mantle of Robin. You get a very brief Nightwing story and flash backs of. Todd which hampers Tim trying to be Robin. In the course of the movie you are confronted with Jason Todd and Tim Drake finally becomes Robin.

That way you get Nightwing and Batman with Robin in one swoop.

However even the animated movies go back to his parents death.

Also fans hated the 3rd Batman movie out of the first two. I liked Begins over Darknight.

Look at any super hero movie. They all go into the origion story. The more they go into it the better the movie does go figure.

[eldargal]

Scarlet Witch is appearing in Avengers 2 (http://uk.movies.yahoo.com/avengers-2-scarlet-witch-makeover-162900554.html), but not in her traditional uniform:
http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/On7RQ5ieTTahiBkJPbL20g--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Y2g9MjY5O2NyPTE7Y3c9NDcwO2R4PTA7ZH k9MDtmaT11bGNyb3A7aD0yNjk7cT04NTt3PTQ3MA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/associatedcontent/470_2664131.jpg

To which lady geeks everywhere shout 'Yay!'.:rolleyes:

Received my copy of Gail Simones Red Sonja #1, enjoyed it a lot.

[Brakkart]

Yeah her costume needs work and I'm pretty sure that once Whedon's had a go at redesigning it it will be a lot better, and likely then appear in the comics afterwards. I am hopeful that they keep her headpiece though or something similar to it as I kinda like that bit of the outfit.

Was able to get hold of a copy of the newest DC animated movie recently: Justice League - The Flashpoint Paradox which is absolutely brilliant. Much darker than most of their previous movies, this one is on par with Batman: Under The Red Hood for both animation quality and the depth of the story. I cannot recommend it highly enough. As a clue to how dark this tale is, there are very few laughs in it and some of the best ones are provided by Batman... and this is a Batman who uses guns and kills!

[eldargal]

He said in the article there might be some kind of headband to echo it or something.

Not sure I like a Batman who kills.:p

[Brakkart]

Not sure I like a Batman who kills.:p

Spoiler: This isn't the Batman we know. It's pretty cool as to who he is under the cowl!

[eldargal]

Pfft, excuses.:p

New Thor 2 trailer has been released, looks nifty:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvKjS2s1v0k

[AirHorse]

Looks nifty indeed!

[sebi81]

I read Spidey and X-Men quite a while and really enjoyed Age of Apocalypse. After Onslaught I quit reading marvel. And I never got into DC. At the moment I read actually only comics with female main characters:

Red Sonja: I always preferred the She-Demon with the sword over Conan. And she definitly won´t let any guy slap her backside.
Vampirella: Vampire killing Vampiress, daughter of lilith. Her costume is a little silly but in newer comics she fights in a overall not in a swimsuit.
Lady Death: Story is a bit confusing sometimes but she is the ruler of hell and in the storyline I read atm fighting agains a rebellion.
Bomb Queen: an always drunk, always half naked, bisexual, sexist, chauvinisitic and mean female super villain which rules over a city were crime is allowed and Heroes are forbidden, she kills innocent people and her costume magically disintegrates everytime. really bad taste.
Tarot: Good witch with really big curves and a bad witch sister with really big curves too. The stories are esoteric most of the time with celtic and wicca influences. Her costume magically disintegrates too so that she fights completely naked in every comic like many of her female foes. a little bit like softporn.

I would recommend you to at least take a look at newer Vampirella books and perhaps give Bomb Queen a try.

[eldargal]

How to draw a comic book cover:
http://media.tumblr.com/f668f23ac015a967006e3a19ae1a6623/tumblr_inline_mrfuq4XSoa1qz4rgp.jpg

How not to draw a comic book cover:
http://media.tumblr.com/3841b35db72022268fb0a5541411b447/tumblr_inline_mrftf3nTGB1qz4rgp.jpg
Power Girl is passable though crude, Harley Quinn is unforgivable. Crude and twisted into an impossible shape with am impossibly thin waist and ridiculously large bust compared to what she is usually depicted with. Hideous.

[chicop76]

How to draw a comic book cover:
http://media.tumblr.com/f668f23ac015a967006e3a19ae1a6623/tumblr_inline_mrfuq4XSoa1qz4rgp.jpg

How not to draw a comic book cover:
http://media.tumblr.com/3841b35db72022268fb0a5541411b447/tumblr_inline_mrftf3nTGB1qz4rgp.jpg
Power Girl is passable though crude, Harley Quinn is unforgivable. Crude and twisted into an impossible shape with am impossibly thin waist and ridiculously large bust compared to what she is usually depicted with. Hideous.


Is that Harliquin's new costume. It looks like she can easily wind up being naked in a fight. I thought her skin was normal with white paint. All I got to say is wow. Quinn comes off looking like a stripper, most comic book character's look like hookers anyway. That being said Power girl looks like Power girl.

I think someone like Red Sonya and Batwoman a lot. Funny I seen mystwry of the Batwoman not too long ago. In the movie Batgirl was a bit upset. Intesting that one of the batwomen reminds me a bit of todays batwoman.

[Kirsten]

is it just me or is Harley's right hand the wrong way round?

[eldargal]

I think it is yes, she's completely messed up.

[Kirsten]

major artist fail all round really

[chicop76]

I was sooo distracted with the fact that her shirt can burst open at any time I failed to see her hand holding the hammer rather oddly. This reminds me of Gamora in her old outfit. She was in a skin tight outfit, but it was soooo tight she was naked.

[Kirsten]

two left hands and about to suffocate, not a good day for Harley.

[eldargal]

Not to mention her spine is liable to snap at any moment given the angle to which it is being twisted and the immense wait of her torso.:rolleyes:

[Kirsten]

power girl looks like zoe wanamaker to me there...

[eldargal]

Oh God, you're right.

[DarkLink]

Actually, considering that she's about to swing the hammer, that's pretty much the ideal position to generate power. Same thing with javelin throws, you start with your hips extremely rotated in the opposite direction of your shoulders, and then snap your torso around as you take a step. That rotation where you get your power. If you look at this, you'll see that she's just in the first stage of the throw:

http://croquisdecrayon.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/javelin-0013.jpg

[eldargal]

Yes but she is twisting wrong. I get what he is trying to show, he just ****ed it up.

[Brakkart]

Yeah that is a really bad cover. I like the Batwoman one though, good to see Mister Bones in the New 52, he's always been an interesting character ever since he stopped being a superhero (He was originally a member of Infinity Inc) and went to work (and then run) the Department of Extranormal Operations. Certainly more interesting than his counterpart Amanda Waller anyway.

[eldargal]

Fan cover for Red Sonja:
http://31.media.tumblr.com/6ca9a0d91631dbaef19640c46e10dc5d/tumblr_mrmje7EJPx1qlx0d7o1_500.jpg

Also, adawbs Batgirl fanart:
http://24.media.tumblr.com/24f7dbd16cd72388787ea26f56fae3ed/tumblr_mrkqg3t0nJ1qb57azo1_500.jpg

[eldargal]

So the writer and artist of Batwoman are both leaving the series because they are fed up with DCs bull****, including not letting them show her wedding to her fiancee (http://www.jhwilliams3.com/archives/1826)

Dear Batwoman readers -
From the moment DC asked us to write Batwoman — a dream project for both of us — we were committed to the unofficial tagline “No Status Quo.” We felt that the series and characters should always be moving forward, to keep changing and evolving. In order to live up to our mantra and ensure that each arc took Batwoman in new directions, we carefully planned plotlines and story beats for at least the first five arcs well before we ever wrote a single issue. We’ve been executing on that plan ever since, making changes whenever we’ve come up with a better idea, but in general remaining consistent to our core vision.
Unfortunately, in recent months, DC has asked us to alter or completely discard many long-standing storylines in ways that we feel compromise the character and the series. We were told to ditch plans for Killer Croc’s origins; forced to drastically alter the original ending of our current arc, which would have defined Batwoman’s heroic future in bold new ways; and, most crushingly, prohibited from ever showing Kate and Maggie actually getting married. All of these editorial decisions came at the last minute, and always after a year or more of planning and plotting on our end.
We’ve always understood that, as much as we love the character, Batwoman ultimately belongs to DC. However, the eleventh-hour nature of these changes left us frustrated and angry — because they prevent us from telling the best stories we can. So, after a lot of soul-searching, we’ve decided to leave the book after Issue 26.
We’re both heartbroken over leaving, but we feel strongly that you all deserve stories that push the character and the series forward. We can’t reliably do our best work if our plans are scrapped at the last minute, so we’re stepping aside. We are committed to bringing our run to a satisfying conclusion and we think that Issue 26 will leave a lasting impression.
We are extremely thankful for the opportunity to work on Batwoman. It’s been one of the most challenging and rewarding projects of our careers. We’ll always be grateful to everyone who helped us realize 26 issues: Mike Siglain, who brought us onto the project originally; Greg Rucka for inspirationally setting the stage; our amazing artists Amy Reeder, Trevor McCarthy, Pere Perez, Rob Hunter, Walden Wong, Sandu Florea, Richard Friend, Francesco Francavilla, Guy Major, Dave Stewart, and Todd Klein; Larry Ganem, for listening in tough times; and editors Mike Marts, Harvey Richards, Rickey Purdin, and Darren Shan.
And most of all, a huge thank you to everyone who read the book. Hearing your voices, your reactions, your enthusiasm every month was such a joy, so humbling, so rewarding. You guys rock! Because so many of you embraced the series, we were able to complete four arcs, and your passion for Batwoman encouraged us to push ourselves to do our best work with each and every issue.
Thank you for loving Batwoman as much as we do.
Goodbye for now,
Haden & J H
Thanks to Brakkart for letting me know about this. **** DC! Batwoman after Batman is easily the best of the New 52 series for both art and writing, closely followed by Batgirl and also one of the more progressive featuring a lesbian female lead. ****ing insane for DC to **** around with them so much, no wonder the story writing has been a but odd at points. Not going to ragequit but if Batwoman doesn't maintain it's quality after issue 26 I will be ready tempted to drop all my DC subs, DC are just ****ing around too much.

[eldargal]

Timeline of DC New 52 Departures (http://guttersandpanels.com/gutters-and-panels/2013/3/23/the-new-52-timeline-of-departures)

A list of the creative talent DC have hemorrhaged over the past two years. Doesn't include other scandals.

DC have also retconned Aquamans marriage, he isn't married anymore despite the comics saying he is. Coupled with the Harley Quinn naked suicide art competition and the widespread media attention on DCs treatment of Batwoman it has not been a good week for DC. Personally hope it makes Warner Brother sit up, take notice and sack the **** out of Dan DiDio.

In happier news, there are hints that a Captain Marvel film is a real possibility for the Marvel Cinematic Universe phase 3. Possibly sooner and starring Katee Sackhoff if the more optimistic rumours are to be believed.

[Kirsten]

Timeline of DC New 52 Departures (http://guttersandpanels.com/gutters-and-panels/2013/3/23/the-new-52-timeline-of-departures)


the place just reads like a total disaster. I can imagine exactly what is going on because the brewery I used to work for had exactly the same issues. people don't properly understand their jobs, don't understand the boundaries of their authority, multiple people claim the same responsibilities, arguments over who does what and what should happen...

[eldargal]

Yep, the trouble also seems to be that a couple of the senior chaps, DiDio and Lee, run it like fanboys not creators. Everything is about what they think comics are about and not what makes good stories and compelling characters. The person at DC sent from Warner Brothers doesn't seem to know anything about comics so just lets them go. A lot of people are hoping WB steps in and puts some people in charge who know what they are doing or at least will reign back editorial interference. It's quite amusing really because one of the bigwigs at Marvel has said outright they will approach any talent that leaves DC and has already extended a hand to JH Williams III. Factor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films being much more successful than DCs film attempts and Marvel are just running rings around DC. Much better female representation too, though far, far from perfect.

[Brakkart]

DC have also retconned Aquamans marriage, he isn't married anymore despite the comics saying he is.

Not entirely accurate. He is married, but his wife Mera as it turns out was already married when she married him and just didn't say anything about that. She was married against her will to a man chosen by her father. This is actually pretty in character for Mera who has a long history of keeping secrets from Arthur (like how she was sent to kill him by her father).

Ohh and DC didn't take too kindly to Batwoman's writer airing his dirty laundry in public so to speak, so he is being replaced on the title as of issue #25 now. That said they have got a pretty good new writer to take the reins though for the life of me I can't remember his name right now. Apparently the overriding reason for not allowing Kate and Maggie to get married is that none of the Bat Family are allowed to have happy personal lives because that's not what they are about. Which is total bollocks really, but that's DiDio reasoning for you.

I got issue #1 of the Forever Evil event though which is very good (Geoff Johns rarely disappoints) and was full of some shocking moments, not least Lex Luthor's summary of what was going on as "Now this is a job for Superman... so where the hell is he?"



In happier news, there are hints that a Captain Marvel film is a real possibility for the Marvel Cinematic Universe phase 3. Possibly sooner and starring Katee Sackhoff if the more optimistic rumours are to be believed.

If true then this is a damn near perfect piece of casting!

[eldargal]

Do we know what underwater laws stance on bigamy is?:p

The new writer for Batwoman will be Marc Andreyko (http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/60652072927/five-reasons-that-marc-andreyko-is-a-good-choice-for), who I'm hearing nothing but good things about and he apparently has a good relationship with DiDio so that's pleasing. Still livid about the treatment of Williams and co. though.

[Kirsten]

maybe we should start a pool on how long he lasts...

[eldargal]

maybe we should start a pool on how long he lasts...
Well I hope for a good long time, especially if his relationship with DiDio is as good as people think it is. But with DCs record it could be anywhere from one issue to 6. One author left before his issue even went on sale and I think another left so abruptly his name ended up being on a book he hadn't written.


Ohh and DC didn't take too kindly to Batwoman's writer airing his dirty laundry in public so to speak, so he is being replaced on the title as of issue #25 now. That said they have got a pretty good new writer to take the reins though for the life of me I can't remember his name right now. Apparently the overriding reason for not allowing Kate and Maggie to get married is that none of the Bat Family are allowed to have happy personal lives because that's not what they are about. Which is total bollocks really, but that's DiDio reasoning for you.
It is bollocks, I mean the idea that her marrying Maggie would mean less angst and tension is absurd. I mean you have two lesbian workaholic crime fighters, one legitimate, one a vigilante married to each other. That' is so not a recipe for domestic bliss.:rolleyes:


If true then this is a damn near perfect piece of casting!
Yep, it's very vague speculation and rumour but I live in hope. Basically someone at Disney started dropping hints about a Captain Marvel film but said probly not in phase 2, then Katee Sackhoff was approached by Disney about something and no one knows what it is. So it could be anything.

[DarkLink]

Yes but she is twisting wrong. I get what he is trying to show, he just ****ed it up.

She's in exactly the same pose as the first position in the sketch I posted. She'll miss with her hammer since Power Girl is too close for her to swing properly, but the pose is anatomically correct (even if her figure isn't). Just sayin'.

[Kirsten]

but the pose is anatomically correct

there is too much twist, not physically possible, just try it.

"Heroes shouldn’t have happy personal lives. They are committed to being that person and committed to defending others at the sacrifice of their own personal interests.

That’s very important and something we reinforced. People in the Bat family their personal lives basically suck"

gets a bit cliché if every single character has the same issue surely. not really a comic reader, but I wouldn't want every hero to have this problem all the time.

[DarkLink]

there is too much twist, not physically possible, just try it.

http://d.yimg.com/i/ng/sp/reuters/20110903/11/1981853108-03092011111826.jpg

Shoulders are parallel to the direction of throw. Hips are very close to perpendicular to the direction of the throw. Exactly like in the cover drawing. Like I said, perfectly reasonable. If you want to complain about that picture, complain about the absurd waist to hip ratio.

[Kirsten]

that guy's twist is nothing like as extreme as harley's, completely off. it isn't remotely possible or reasonable.

[eldargal]

Sorry Darklink but the pictures you've produced show what is anatomically possible, but Harley isn't in that pose, her torso is considerably more twisted and her waist is impossibly small. It's complete bollocks.


that guy's twist is nothing like as extreme as harley's, completely off. it isn't remotely possible or reasonable.

This. The position the athlete is in is what the artist was going for, but it is far too extreme.


Getting back to a possible Captain Marvel film, given Marvels open tactic of poaching talent DC pisses off and generally making them look even worse I wonder if all the fuss over DCs treatment of women (Wonder Woman being 'too difficult' because alien babies arriving to earth is totes easy) would lead them to try and fast track a female lead superhero film? Because if Marvel put out a female lead film based on the relatively unknown Captain Marvel before DC put out a Wonder Woman film it would be another PR win for Marvel.

[Kirsten]

I know nothing at all about Captain Marvel, but Katee Sackhoff I would like to see in more stuff

[Psychosplodge]

http://i42.tinypic.com/2pyp6b6.jpg

[eldargal]

No worse than her New 52 outfit. Hutt doll is adawbs.

[Psychosplodge]

Interesting crossover is what i thought...

[Kirsten]

Geoff Johns leaving Aquaman. These days I automatically think hmm what have DC done now? :p

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/09/09/geoff-johns-leaving-aquaman

[DrLove42]

Apparantly, David Tennant has expressed an interest in playing Mister Fantastic in the new Fantastic Four reboot....

[eldargal]

Hehe:
http://media.tumblr.com/507050e23f022c2e5d8dabb0f3e9fa80/tumblr_inline_msyjcmIwRP1qz4rgp.jpg

[eldargal]

http://media.tumblr.com/7d09559fa5f984ae1dfc00a339fd8338/tumblr_inline_mt42s2cmne1qbujox.jpg
Wouldn't usually post something like this, but I have to admit Frank Cho draws an amazing bottom.

[Deadlift]

http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab3/joenortonjones/f23d3d04a36eab57991a2542c2b670f4.jpg

;)

[eldargal]

As covers go that's one of the less sexualised, at least her back isn't twisted into an impossible shape.

[Deadlift]

As covers go that's one of the less sexualised, at least her back isn't twisted into an impossible shape.

Except she has a massive bum :) not complaining mind.

[eldargal]

Yup, it's still not the worst though.:p

[Kirsten]

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/dd380/KirstenIGMB/553621_638007512896884_1330635115_n_zpse8a96643.jp g

[Kaptain Badrukk]

Yes. Well..........
Oh who am I kidding, I'm never going to complain about these. :eek:
I know, principles etc, but I'll be damned if I'll ever stop enjoying the concept of a sexy individual in skin-tight Lycra.
Which BTW is the WORST choice of clothing to fight crime in.

[Psychosplodge]

Just remember, No capes!

[Kaptain Badrukk]

Just remember, No capes!
Yay, Edna!
Best pixar character EVER!
Plus the cape just gets in the way of a gratuitous arse shot.

[eldargal]

Surprised Edna had never heard of press studs personally. Avoids 100% of the cited problems.

[eldargal]

For Kaptain Badrukk:
http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=4863&d=1379516298
;)

[Gotthammer]

If you're going Peej (and you really should be) you can't go past Amanda Connor:

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lrebquNs8Y1r36nsho1_500.jpg

http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/2632/rajo.jpg

^ What I imagine EG is like ;p


http://geekdraw.com/img/2011/01/amanda-conner-pg-10-24mar2010header1.jpeg

http://www.nerdcenaries.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Authority.jpg

[eldargal]

I love those pictures, especially the first three.:p

One of my favourite scenes from New 52:
http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=4864&d=1379517129

[Gotthammer]

I was so distracted by how awful that costume is to notice Huntress just chillin in the dumpster there :p But anything that has Robin getting kicked in the butt (though given his face maybe not the butt?) is gold :D

[eldargal]

It's a terrible costume, so pleased when she changed it in a Supergirl crossover issue.:) I think the cleavage window suits her character really. It was a great scene though, Huntress and her sort-of-brother Damien Wayne were fighting it out and Power Girl appears and does that.:) I loled.

[Kirsten]

anything that has Robin getting kicked in the butt (though given his face maybe not the butt?) is gold :D

if Beiber really is Robin in the next Batfleck, then I am hoping this and more happens...

[eldargal]

Fairly sure I heard the Bieber-Robin thing was connected to a spoof show or something.

In other news, Batman is a dirty old man:
http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/1/11898/924080-274577_86844_batman_super.jpg

[Kirsten]

I think Batman has earned the right to be a dirty old man :p

[Gotthammer]

Explains why he rejected Superman:

http://i.imgur.com/8ZMT5.jpg

[eldargal]

Probly. I'd hit it.

Edit: Lol

[eldargal]

Amanda Conner drawing Captain Marvel:
http://31.media.tumblr.com/e3bd8125e380c7a0c30bcf9d128af6bd/tumblr_mso8thddrf1qc4eq5o1_1280.jpg

[eldargal]

Superman is also a dirty old man:
http://24.media.tumblr.com/b05ed54e2c6e58931490121a5376b0d8/tumblr_mie8lexgDY1qzizmho1_500.jpg

[Deadlift]

Amanda Conner drawing Captain Marvel:
http://31.media.tumblr.com/e3bd8125e380c7a0c30bcf9d128af6bd/tumblr_mso8thddrf1qc4eq5o1_1280.jpg

Ahh yes Hulk in armour. I don't like it. :(

[Gotthammer]

Captain Marvel pic - I like how everyone is leaping into action but CapA just looks confused :p I love Connor's work, but I like her short hair (http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/80450F/comicsalliance.com/files/2012/07/capt-marvel-jamie-mckelvie.jpg) better.


As for Superman... well, there's a website for that (http://superdickery.tumblr.com/).


Discussion on why DC sucks (http://comicsalliance.com/dc-comics-new-52-batwoman-harley-quinn-dan-didio-editorial/).

[eldargal]

That article is spot on.

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mardnktLax1qk6saio2_500.jpg
Reminds me of me.

[Deadlift]

I will just leave this here.

http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab3/joenortonjones/598efa6bc08f702c729bef4a5a2f2b2a.jpg

[eldargal]

See, DC would probably still run a cover like that today.:p

[eldargal]

Popped into a comic store this morning before work, purchased:

Powergirl volumes 1, 3-4
Wonder Woman New 52 vol 1.
Queen and Country vol 1

I love New 52 PG and have wanted to get the earlier version for a while now, ordered them all from the store a while go and forgot to pick them up and they ended up selling volume 2. Decided to by WW volume one because her reboot was highly controversial and a lot of female comic fans hate it but a lot also say it has redeeming qualities so I want to see for myself.
Queen and Country is a graphic novel by Greg Rucka (he who created modern Kate Kane Batwoman who is awesome) about a female MI6 agent named Tara Chace. It's a bit like Homeland but set in Britain, so superior. Or Spooks, but you know, without the tendency to kill more agents in a season than MI5 has lost in the past 60 years combined...

[Kirsten]

watching Justice League, and Rex Mason has been turned into metamorpho and is very angry. given that he can turn into anything, why not just make himself look like he used to all the time? :p

[eldargal]

watching Justice League, and Rex Mason has been turned into metamorpho and is very angry. given that he can turn into anything, why not just make himself look like he used to all the time? :p
I wondered the same thing.:)

A'ight, read the above mentioned comic books last night:
Powergirl is brilliant, such a wonderful character even with the silly costume. Good story, great characters, absolutely wonderful, wonderful art by Amanda Conner. So charming and one of the few artists who can draw a cat well. I can't wait for the store to find my a copy of volume 2. Easily my favourite comic now, alongside Batwoman.

Wonder Woman vol. 1 was disappointing. I didn't particularly enjoy the story and the way the amazons were depicted really bugged me. This is one of the common criticism of the New 52 WW story and I was hoping to find it was overblown. It isn't. Instead of the peaceful, enlightened and advanced culture the amazons have been since their introduction sixty years ago we have a bunch of catty, *****y, stone age women who we also find out later are rapists and murderers. The actual story seems lifted out of Hercules the Legendary Journeys and the art is fine but unremarkable. The characterisation is poor as well, I know much less about the character of Wonder Woman after her first TPB than I do about PG from hers for example, and PG had a well developed secondary cast too. Not impressed.

Queen and Country was excellent, I recommend it. Full of realistic, flawed characters without everyone being obnoxious or idiotic and the realism is actually realistic, not the 'gritty realism' which translates to 'lots of blood and naked women' in most popular culture.

[Brakkart]

watching Justice League, and Rex Mason has been turned into metamorpho and is very angry. given that he can turn into anything, why not just make himself look like he used to all the time? :p

Metamorpho can turn into any element, not any thing, so while he can make a humanoid form for himself, he can't for example coat it in skin to look human.

[Mr Mystery]

Metamorpho can turn into any element, not any thing, so while he can make a humanoid form for himself, he can't for example coat it in skin to look human.

Rubbish power is rubbish!

Nice on DC!

[eldargal]

He was certainly not one of the more impressive heroes.:) Nice fiancee though.
http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100123213949/dcanimated/images/7/7b/SapphireStagg.png

[Mr Mystery]

He was certainly not one of the more impressive heroes.:) Nice fiancee though.
http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100123213949/dcanimated/images/7/7b/SapphireStagg.png

Dunno....with a nose like that, I suspect it may just be Voldermort in drag.....

[eldargal]

Not the best angle I agree.

[Gotthammer]

Can't be Voldy - the eyes are all wrong.

[Mr Mystery]

Can't be Voldy - the eyes are all wrong.

Not if he's just been goosed.

[Gotthammer]

I shall have to take your word on what a recently goosed Voldy looks like.

[DrLove42]

http://www.theverge.com/2013/9/24/4768170/commissioner-gordon-is-getting-his-own-television-series-with-gotham?utm_content=buffer8e451&utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer

I'll just leave this hear. With Agents of Shield premiering in the states last night (tempted to stream it tonight, so as to not wait till Friday), Fox have announced a series based on just Gordon, as a young cop, featuring 0% batman, but some well known villains

Could be interesting

[eldargal]

So Commissioner Gordon gets his own tv show before Wonder Woman even gets a cameo in a film.:rolleyes:

[DrLove42]

DC have always been a lot more TV show prone. Superman and Batman have had multiple series based on them. Arrow is supposedly good, and the Flash is due a series soon

She'll turn up soon. if they want to Justice League it like Marvel did shes pretty essential

[eldargal]

DC seem determined to ignore her though. They have turned her into Supermans girlfriend in the comics and it's obvious she is a low priority for films despite being up there with Batman and Superman. The trouble is DC is run by fanboys who don't get her, they'd rather focus on the boys, even relatively minor boys like Arrow and Gordon.

[Mr Mystery]

Meh.

DC can't do anything right.

It's as if there's some cosmic force out there meaning they can only produce good Batman films twice in a row, with the follows honour bound to undermine all the hard work....

[DrLove42]

Just seen a report on the new Gotham show that says CW (Arrow and Smallville) are looking at picking up Wonder Woman for the small screen