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The Evolution of Marvel Cosmic, Part 4: King Kirby & Princeling Thor’s Mission to Space, 1966

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[covers & interiors by Jack Kirby (p), Vince Colletta (i), Stan Goldberg (c), Artie Simek/Sam Rosen (l)]

Part 3 of this “Evolution of Marvel Cosmic” series is here, along with links to previous posts.

Before the introduction of the imperial but adorable Rigellians—of the fictional galaxy Rigel, a name taken from a real star in the Milky Way, part of the Orion constellation—Jack Kirby and Stan Lee’s Thor comics were thoroughly rooted in two things: a pulpy, streamlined reinterpretation of Thor-centric Norse myths, squeezed into backstories (excellent stuff, really), and very silly, mostly mundane villains for him to fight (like Cobra and Mr. Hyde)—but there was a lot of potential with screwball ideas like the Absorbing Man (imbued with Asgardian enchantments courtesy of the God of Lies) and having the Nordic Thunder God encounter the gods and heroes of Ancient Greece (Ares and Hercules). [Read more…] about The Evolution of Marvel Cosmic, Part 4: King Kirby & Princeling Thor’s Mission to Space, 1966

Merely a Monument; Always a Seamark – Sandman and DC Universe Connections

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The recent adaptation illustrates how crucial the Sandman’s connections to DC continuity are to Morpheus’ Story.

Throughout the press tour in anticipation of Netflix’s adaptation of The Sandman, there’s been focus on a particular diversion from the source material — its lack of connective tissue to a grander universe. This is usually spun as a liberating factor — “for too long the weight of the DC universe weighed heavy on the brains of the dreaming, etc, etc.” The usual assumptions also hang in the air, namely that some rights issue is preventing the authors from following the script exactly. While excising the comics’ connections to the DC world is, for the most part, done without losing too many key plot details, the absence of the DC Universe is indicative of larger tonal problems for the series. [Read more…] about Merely a Monument; Always a Seamark – Sandman and DC Universe Connections

Creannotators #92: “Phenomena” interview with Brian Michael Bendis & Andre Lima Araujo!

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This week on Creannotators, I’m joined by storytellers Brian Michael Bendis and Andre Lima Araujo to talk about their new all ages graphic novel Phenomena: The Golden City of Eyes. We discuss storytelling for YA, a design-first creation process, and what’s next in the trilogy.

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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Jason Shiga Interview on “Adventuregame Comics”

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I had the great experience of interviewing Jason Shiga, creator of Meanwhile and the new interactive comic Adventuregame Comics: Leviathan. You can hear our full conversation on Comic Book Herald’s “Creannotators,” on the podcast.

But since some people prefer the ancient art of “reading,” we’ve also transcribed the interview below, talking with Jason about making the graphic novel. The transcription has been slightly edited for clarity. Read and enjoy!

[Read more…] about Jason Shiga Interview on “Adventuregame Comics”