feebadger

“I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.” Douglas Adams

1599 5889 230 138
Forum Posts Wiki Points Following Followers

feebadger's forum posts

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#1  Edited By feebadger

@RigorMortis said:

I'm disgustingly excited for these. I have no integrity...

I am deeply ashamed to say that i feel exactly the same way... Damn you DC, you made me feel dirty... again.

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#2  Edited By feebadger

I think this kind of plot device is usually used to denote how far a male character is willing to go, or how for they have crossed a line. A man hitting a woman still pushes a lot of buttons, whether they be super powered or not. Look at Hank Pym when he hit his then wife, The Wasp. It was a shocking moment, used to highlight how far Hank had fallen into his darker self. With Superboy/Wonder Girl, i give it the benefit of the doubt in regards to it being about a battle of power levels and highlighting exactly how powerful this new version of Superboy is. Yet with Atrocitus/Bleez, i think it's used to show how driven Atrocitus is. It's an effective device as it instantly puts our sympathies with the person getting beat down. In this case it happens to be awoman and we all know that isn't merely coincidence. I don't know how i feel about having my emotions manipulated in such a way, but i certainly don't see anything too offensive about such a plot device, in these examples anyway. As a woman, do you find this type of thing offensive, that is if you agree with me?

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#3  Edited By feebadger

I have only read the first two issues of this run so far and am loving it.

But when it comes to breaking Bats down, it seems that everyone has forgotten The Cult series from the 80's.

This story seems to have something in common with that tale as Batman was so broken down that he even leaves Gotham (before returning of course). The Cult wasn't a great Batman story but definitely an important one and if you like the idea of Bats being broken, you should pick it up.

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#4  Edited By feebadger

I LUUURVE The Shadow and i'm reserving judgment on Ennis as writer. I love his work, but not sure if he's the best tonal choice. Anyway, they're going to have to go a looong way to beat the Andy Helfer and Bill Sienkiewicz run of the 80's.

Now that was some radical Shadow.

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#5  Edited By feebadger

Firstly, comics are, primarily a visual medium and there are only so many colours of khakis and sweat shirts.

Secondly, as with superheroes, Villains should only really have a costume if it matches their character and intent.

Dr. Doom's costume not only suits his personality, but there is also a reason for him having it. Ultron IS his costume. Braniac IS his costume. Dr Octopus wears modified overalls. The Riddler is a walking question mark. They serve a purpose to further define the villain against the insanity that is the hero.

ALL Super characters are mad. You just need costumes to tell them apart.

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#6  Edited By feebadger

@TheWitchingHour said:

@feebadger: Well defining it as a Graphic Novel is subjective at best. I tried to apply terms familiar with most users on ComicVine to distinguish between the evolving comic book world and self contained art. The Arrival is most certainly the latter of the two. And I don't want to come across as though single issues or trade paperbacks of Marvel or D.C. titles aren't art. They definitely can be. I just think it's a little more difficult to tell the story you want to tell when you have to worry about who is faster, Zoom or the Silver Surfer. And I think you're definition is spot on. A graphic novel should be out of continuity and self contained or you have to deal with too many outside influences. Another book that I consider to be a graphic novel and truly artistic is Dinotopia by James Gurney. It is beautifully written and beautifully drawn and was my first experience with comic books. Although many would argue it plays out more like illustrated fiction. I highly recommend this book. In fact I'll make another blog post on it shortly.

I think it's also very common for books such as The Arrival and Dinotopia to be simply categorized (and often easily dismissed) as nothing but 'kids books'. I love childrens books but there is far more to these illustrated novels than being just for children. With the Arrival, the complexities and subtleties of the plot and the silent narrative are as evolved as any work of fiction. comic book or otherwise. The Adventures of Tintin and Asterix And Obelix have always been a bit of a grey area also when it comes to a definition of what they are. Are they childrens' books? Are they graphic novels? Are they just comic books in a prestige format? In the end it doesn't really matter, i suppose, all that really counts is if they are good reads or not. Though i do like your term of 'Illustrated Fiction'. It creates some lovely imagery for me.

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#7  Edited By feebadger

@cbishop said:

I am not a huge fan of Millar's. I liked Wanted okay, had no interest in Kick-Ass or Nemesis, and was disappointed with Superior. I liked the first issue of War Heroes, but that was the only issue I ever saw. I just don't care for the man's writing. He has good ideas, but no style. He thinks four letter vocabularies make his work cool, and he was literally quoted as thinking Superior improved "the Superman archetype." He's now working his stories for maximum appeal to Hollywood, and while he WILL probably get those movies made, it seems to me that the stories always suffer when the goal is not the story, but what you can sell off of it. This will sound odd, considering the amount of output the man has, but I find him to be lazy in his craft - all flash and no substance.

I agree with you in part cbishop. I definitely think that Mr. Millar seems ot have his eye on the Hollywood prize and that his scripts seem to have become nothing more than storyboards for the next movie advance cheque he wants to cash. Which is a shame, because the thing that keeps me reading and enjoying Millars stories (and its certainly not the dialogue) are the concepts and ideas behind the stories. He has some great ideas and though its a shame he doesn't spend more time and energy developing them, i do love to see what he's got. On top of that, and i may be in the minority here, i still think that Civil War was one of the few decent 'event' series to come out of mainstream comics and that was entirely due to Millar.

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#8  Edited By feebadger

I am a massive fan of Shaun Tan and The Arrival has pride of place on my bookshelf. I love how he took the immigrant experience and turned into something so fantastical, while staying true and capturing the immigrant experience itself (i am an immigrant to Australia, which is where Shaun Tan is born and lives). i love your review of the book, though i don't necessarily se it as a graphic novel, as it seems like something more, or different than that format to me. At the same time, i can't think what else you might call it. For me a graphic novel is something like Elektra:Assassin, The New Frontier or The Killing Joke. I've never really thought about what a graphic novel actually is. To me, i guess, it's a story, or series that is written with it eventually being collected as a self contained story in mind. A beginning, a middle and an end. As i write that though, i don't know if it sounds right to me. How do you define such a thing?

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#9  Edited By feebadger

@TheWitchingHour said:

I think Sinestro has joined the ranks of comicdoms most iconic villains. Not simply because he has flip flopped more often than a presidential candidate, but because each of his role reversals has heralded greater change and significance to his character. Sinestro has pathos and dimensionality to him now. Not to mention he is completely badass and seems to be turning Hal into a chump. I think Hal being overshadowed by Sinestro is only going to rev up the engines and lead to Hal's eventual succession as the greatest Green Lantern who ever lived. But until that time Sinestro is gonna be soaking up the limelight and he is gonna do it with gusto. I love Sinestro and I'm so happy to see him back in the green flight suit.

Absolutely and Amen.

I love all of what they are doing with Sinestro in this storyline. There's no way he'll stay a hero but when he reverts back to his villain roots for whatever reason, he'll become a much more interesting and deadly adversary for Hal because of what has happened in this run.

Avatar image for feebadger
feebadger

1599

Forum Posts

5889

Wiki Points

138

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#10  Edited By feebadger

@LeeThomasART: It could be a great Ultron, but for some reason when i first saw it i thought that it was Black Manta.

I think it makes a great Ultron but an AWESOME redesign on Black Mantas helmet. Great job.