When you talk about Aquaman at any length, there’s always a certain conversation that hangs in the background: that of his relevance. For years, he was the butt of jokes, the man who talked to fish, the “also attended” of the Justice League. Despite numerous reinventions, despite his role as a founding member of the Justice League, the image of Aquaman in the public consciousness remained that of a spandex-clad seahorse riding buffoon. That stigma surrounding the character remains to this day, a permanent mark on the cultural zeitgeist that, in all honesty, will probably never truly go away. What I find fascinating about Aquaman, however, is that he exists as a part of a duality. You have your Super Friends incarnation, sure, but there is simultaneously a vision of the extreme that can ultimately be traced to Peter David’s post-Crisis treatment of the character. While directly at odds with the former “softer” interpretation, this rough-around-the-edges outlaw incarnation has carved its own space in the minds of the general audience, coexisting in an endless push and pull for cultural relevance. [Read more…] about The Old 52 – Heavy is the Head: The Influence of The New 52 on Aquaman
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Creannotators #44: “Thirsty Mermaids” Interview With Creator Kat Leyh!
This week on Creannotators, I talk with Kat Leyh about Thirsty Mermaids. We talk about creating graphic novels vs. single issue comics, creating Thirsty Mermaids right after the release of Snapdragon, and much more!
On Comic Book Herald’s ‘Creannotators’ I’ll be interviewing some of my favorite creators in comics about specific runs, graphic novels or series, looking for their insights on the inspirations behind the work and ideas or hidden material readers may have missed. Creannotators is an audio annotative guide to enjoying the intricacies and thinking in the art. Thanks for listening, and enjoy the comics!
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[Read more…] about Creannotators #44: “Thirsty Mermaids” Interview With Creator Kat Leyh!X-Force: Zero Tolerance Collects X-Force’s Road Trip Years
Often referred to as “the road trip era” of X-Force, X-Force: Zero Tolerance recollects the team’s relatively minor role in the Zero Tolerance conflict. Perhaps more importantly, it also rounds up the period during which its members quit the team and rode off on a doomed road trip where they made questionable romantic decisions, hitchhiked with the literal Scooby Gang, and got attacked by Selene at Burning Man. All very regular things that many of us do in our twenties when we’re trying to figure stuff out.
For better or worse, X-Force was one of the X-Books that defined the ’90s, and not just within Marvel. Characters like Cable were at the forefront of mainstream comics, but as the decade wore on, interest (and sales) waned. Writer John Francis Moore spent over thirty issues working on X-Force, and characters that generally didn’t get a lot of attention underwent a great deal of growth during his run. The changes they experienced were many, not the least of which was saying goodbye to Cable and figuring out how to be heroes on their own terms. Market fatigue was certainly a major factor for late ’90s X-Books, but though sales nearly halved during this run, it holds up surprisingly well today.
Collects: X-Force #67-84 and #-1 [Read more…] about X-Force: Zero Tolerance Collects X-Force’s Road Trip Years
1990 Variant Cover B: Comics Websites, Falcon & the Winter Soldier, & More!
Zack & Dave cover your questions as we read through the Marvel Comics of 1990!
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[Read more…] about 1990 Variant Cover B: Comics Websites, Falcon & the Winter Soldier, & More!The Best Spider-Man (Peter Parker) Comics of All Time!
With almost sixty years of publication history, comicdom’s friendliest of Friendly Neighborhood heroes has seen a staggering range of stories and interpretations—not all of them compatible. Indeed, Peter Parker has inspired some of the greatest superhero comics ever—and some of the absolute worst. There’s just so much content in Peter’s world that it can be difficult to know where to start.
But if I were to imagine a reader completely new to the Spider-Man of Marvel’s mainline universe, Earth-616, the ten story arcs and creator-run highlights listed below would be a most excellent entrée for beginners. Because there’s so much material to draw from, my criterion for this list is finding those moments where satisfying, entertaining storytelling endures not just on its own merits but through continued relevance to Spidey’s contemporary world and mythos.
And if you’re keeping up with Nick Spencer’s current Amazing run, you know that he’s been mining deep into seemingly all of Spidey’s endlessly layered history. His enthusiasm for the whole Spider-Man mythos is inspiring, proving that these classic stories have largely aged well, rich with material that continues to satisfy and provoke. [Read more…] about The Best Spider-Man (Peter Parker) Comics of All Time!