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Comics Guides

The Best Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel) Comics!

April 22, 2022 by David Bowen Leave a Comment

[covers by Sara Pichelli & Justin Ponsor; Mashal Ahmed; and Cliff Chiang]

The world seems to slip by so fast these days—hence, why the past decade feels like two decades! (And yes, that’s the usual cliché inverted, because it’s truer!) Somehow, in 2022, it seems like Kamala Khan has always been with us and yet only a little more than eight years have passed since her January 2014 debut. Now obviously, it’s not like she’s there in the comics before 2014’s historic Marvel Now relaunch (not a reboot), but really, so much has been done to assure Marvel readers, especially those who came of age in the 2010s, that this Ms. Marvel, from a Jersey City Pakistani immigrant family and a diverse high school, is even more than just the Peter Parker of her time. Kamala is unique for a star Big Two superhero because whereas most superheroes are sped through what would realistically be their gradual, formative phase, to get them away from their families and their everyday, relatable lives and settings, to launch them into cosmic battles and world-ending dramas, Marvel has from the beginning to the present moment stewarded this character to guarantee that she is what has been all too rare in superhero comics: an authentic in-universe viewpoint for an entire generation of fans, a position she shares perhaps only with Spider-Man Miles Morales. [Read more…] about The Best Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel) Comics!

Filed Under: Best of Lists, Featured Tagged With: kamala khan, Ms. Marvel

Science Fiction & The X-Men, Part 1: The Golden Age Origins of Marvel’s Heroes & Mutants

March 5, 2022 by David Bowen Leave a Comment

Text Description automatically generated

Introducing – Some Big Ideas

When Comic Book Herald EIC (Ed note: and all around genius savant bachelor) Dave Buesing asked me to look into the non-comics sci-fi connections to Jonathan Hickman’s 2019 House of X and Powers of X, I found myself facing a much larger challenge. While the Hickman era of X-Men threads in not a few outside sf tropes and influences, the tapestry itself has already been perpetually in the loom for the past 60 years. And my restless penchant for connecting parts to wholes and present to past wondered: But what sf stories were Stan and Jack reading? Where did the first superman of American comics come from? How did the notion of the born mutant become shorthand in the pulps for the outsider genius or the beautiful freak whose very existence was countercultural?

Obviously, there are endless such questions we could formulate, especially when it comes to the early years of pulp adventure and popular sf*, of which virtually no one but a handful of scholars has ready knowledge. And anyway, what does this have to do with Hickman’s X-Men at this point? Well, if you know his work going back to the start of his comics career, you’re certainly familiar with the fact that he’s always been a nut for high-concept sf; indeed, many of his influences appear to call back quite clearly to Golden Age sf classics (the 1930s and ’40s) and sundry benchmarks in the genre—even if it’s not intentional or a direct citing of specific stories. To be clear, it’s not my intention here to ever presume that any author is plagiarizing. However, I do work off the assumption that even the most astonishing creators aren’t creating ex nihilo: Everything comes from somewhere, but ultimate origins are all but impossible to trace. We are inspired by what’s in our environment, education, and experience, and even the most radical auteurs are so limited. Simply put, what this series of articles will try to track to the best of my current ability is the evolution of those tropes central to the current X-Men narrative from its earliest discernible origins in the primal soup of pulp sf, with an undeniable dash of (warped) Nietzscheanism and necessary historical and cultural context. [Read more…] about Science Fiction & The X-Men, Part 1: The Golden Age Origins of Marvel’s Heroes & Mutants

Filed Under: Comics Guides, Featured Tagged With: X-Men

What Hath Thou Wrought, Comixology?

February 21, 2022 by Dave 5 Comments

Several months back, Comixology’s affiliate linking partner began emailing participants (including yours truly!), that the Comixology affiliate program would shut down in the coming months, as the website migrated in full to Amazon. While a mild inconvenience for a strapping young webmaster like myself, this was hardly shocking, as Amazon purchased Comixology back in 2014, and it’s honestly surprising Comixology operated as its own entity as long as it did.

This rollout was delayed (spoiler: all rollouts are delayed), but came to fruition this past week. In and of itself, this would have generated the predictable levels of dissatisfaction that happens with any technology changing, but Comixology managed to actually shock by combining the migration with a full-on upheaval of their entire product. What I took to be a minor shift was instead accompanied by a full app overhaul, a desktop reader overhaul, Comixology Unlimited changes, and virtually every feature changed – predominantly for the worse – in one form or another.

In short, it’s the single most universally reviled technology shift I’ve ever seen in digital comics, and one of the most confusing instances of a self-inflicted wound since Plaxico Burress.

So, here we are, to explore what did Comixology do, what does it mean for comics fans, and is it as bad as everyone’s saying on social media? [Read more…] about What Hath Thou Wrought, Comixology?

Filed Under: Digital Readers, Featured Tagged With: Comixology

Best Batman Comics & Graphic Novels!

February 19, 2022 by Comic Book Herald Staff Leave a Comment

It’s time for DC’s The Batman to hit theaters in 2022, which means the CBH staff is here to pick some favorite Batman comics and graphic novels to fully immerse yourself in Gotham City.

Much like our guide for Wolverine, these picks represent some personal favorites and more off-the-beaten-path recommendations than the average list. If you’re wondering where best of Batman mainstays like Dark Knight Returns and “Year One” are, well, you can probably find them on my picks for the best comics of all time!

[Read more…] about Best Batman Comics & Graphic Novels!

Filed Under: Best of Lists, Featured Tagged With: Batman

The Guide to Comics on Substack

February 5, 2022 by Dave 1 Comment

In August 2021, the landscape of comics distribution shifted slightly, as two of America’s most popular and acclaimed comic book writers, James Tynion IV (Batman, Death of Wolverine: The Logan Legacy #6) and Jonathan Hickman (X-Men, Transhuman), announced Substack financial grants that meant their upcoming projects would release via Substack’s email newsletter platform. Tynion’s announcement felt particularly seismic since the writer coupled the news with his planned departure from DC’s Batman, the biggest superhero comic in America.

Other creators accompanied the news, or followed later, including notable talents like Molly Knox Ostertag, Saladin Ahmed, Chip Zdarsky, Sophie Campbell, ND Stevenson, Kelly Thompson, Scott Snyder, Jeff Lemire and Donny Cates & Ryan Stegman. On January 31, 2022, a day declared “Comics Day on Substack,” the roster swelled to include Tom King & Elsa Charretier, Brian K Vaughan & Niko Henrichon, Khary Randolph & Joanne Starer, Rodney Barnes, Jen Bartel, oh, and GRANT MORRISON. [Read more…] about The Guide to Comics on Substack

Filed Under: Digital Readers, Featured Tagged With: substack

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