Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

Reviews

Predicting the Future of the Avengers After Endgame

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Avengers: Endgame is almost upon us and while anticipation is understandably insane, speculation is absolutely unchartable! In terms of adapting straight from a comic book source, the upcoming film has no direct equivalent. Keeping that notion of uncharted territory in mind, it’s still really anybody’s guess as to how the team gets out of this one- much less what is to become of the beloved franchise once the dust settles (oh, puns, how you wound…).

But before those theater seats are filled and the lights go down, here’s more speculation!

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Heroes in Crisis & The Breakdown of Tom King’s Formula

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“What does it mean for the world to end?” This is the core concept at the heart of Heroes in Crisis and, regardless of its execution, it’s worth pointing out why it’s such a provocative question. The apocalypse is always around the corner in comic books, with huge, potentially universe destroying events like the Anti-Monitor’s cannon and the Anti-Life Equation near annual occurrences. So much so that some fans are growing numb to this.

Note: Spoilers for Heroes in Crisis follow [Read more…] about Heroes in Crisis & The Breakdown of Tom King’s Formula

Shazam! Review – Sparklefingers Rides Again

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It feels regressive, and frankly boring, to talk about the degree of “fun” in a comic book movie. For me, any movie reviewer honing in on the fact that Shazam feels light, positive, and joyously heroic, is just more of the lazy baseline assumptions that the world is fatigued of “serious” superhero movies.

Taking a step back, though, it is mildly interesting to note the overall darkness at the heart of comic book movies. DC’s Synder-verse has gotten the most attention of course, but it doesn’t take too much analysis of Avengers: Infinity War to assert that a film ending in unmitigated tragedy isn’t a particularly happy-go-lucky affair. [Read more…] about Shazam! Review – Sparklefingers Rides Again

The Macro-Narrative of Tom King: Comics Will Break Your Heart, Kid

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Tom King is impossible to miss right now. His books have won multiple Eisner awards, he’s appearing on late night TV, and if he’s putting out a new book, it’s sure to be on virtually every “must read” list before the ink is dry. Even his backstory is everywhere:

Originally a CIA operative in the Counter Terrorism Center, King left the agency after the birth of his son, stating “the type of career I wanted at the agency did not fit with the type of father I wanted to be.” He returned home to pursue writing, eventually working at the same places he’d interned for while in college — DC and Marvel. [Read more…] about The Macro-Narrative of Tom King: Comics Will Break Your Heart, Kid

Sabrina the Teenage Witch: Comics vs. TV – The Tale of Two Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa

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Dan DeCarlo co-created Sabrina the Teenage Witch with writer George Gladir in October of 1962. The character followed the classic formula set forth by all Archie Comics titles: teenagers getting into romantic hijinks in an impossibly wholesome America.

Most of Sabrina’s adventures in the 1960’s either involve Sabrina secretly helping people through magic or trying to get through normal kids stuff like bullies, boys, and bizarre magic worlds. [Read more…] about Sabrina the Teenage Witch: Comics vs. TV – The Tale of Two Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa