What are you reading... Now...

[Leo656]

I started reading "Crossed" on a recommendation, and now I really think Garth Ennis needs a hug.

I generally love his stuff and I like this too, but man. This is undoubtedly the most f*cked-up thing I've ever seen in my life in any medium. It's like "The Walking Dead" times 100.

Not that I think that's bad. But this is one rare case of, when the comments about it are all "What the hell goes on in the mind of someone who can write this sort of thing?", I honestly have to ask the same question.

I can absolutely see some people needing five gallons of "brain bleach" and a long, warm nap after even one issue. It's very affecting.

I can't even say whether or not I recommend it. I mean, I LIKE it, but it's undoubtedly the most gory, bleak, and horrific thing I've ever seen in my life. And I can see most people not getting through a single issue. I'm pretty addicted to it, but man... it's rough. Like REALLY rough. As horrible as you might imagine it is based on description... it's ten times worse. Not over-selling it at all.

I guess if someone LOVES Garth Ennis, and they think "The Walking Dead" is too much aimed at kids, they'd like it, or at least find some entertainment in it. I think it might be far too much for most people, though. I mean, *I* like it, but I'm like, a known lunatic. And even I needed a long nap and a hot shower after the bunch of issues I read. Definitely not a feel-good read by any stretch. Seriously, Garth... who hurt you, man?

I actually jumped around a little and read a few issues that were written by other people... and those were a little bit worse. I don't know if that's Better or Worse.

That said... I've been entirely worn out on "zombie fiction" for many years just because it's so oversaturated in media now to the point it's almost entirely for laughs, but somehow I'd never heard of this, and it definitely makes the basic concept pretty goddamn frightening again. So, there's that.

I definitely don't think anyone who has kids would have a good time with it. Considering all the awful sh*t that happens to kids in these books. And pets... and the elderly... and... well, f*cking everyone. It's like a blood orgy that only barely stops to catch its breath, and every pause is only the calm before an ever-more horrifying storm.

It's alright, though. I can't say I could recommend to anyone it but I do like it. I mean, if you're gonna shock and disgust people, it's Go Big or Go Home. And I have to give them credit for "Going Big" in ways I've never even seen or thought of. That takes a certain talent all its own, nowadays.

[Autbot_Benz]

Originally Posted by Autbot_Benz

Currently Reading Hellblazer John Constantine Book 14 Good Intentions this is more the original vertigo run. Pretty good so far.

Brian Azzerello is a terrible writer for Hellblazer. I see why fans don't like his run

[Leo656]

I haven't read it, but Azzarello is definitely hit-and-miss with me.

I'm one of the few who really loved his "For Tomorrow" run on Superman, but I didn't care for his "Angel Lupo" storyline on Batman very much at all. Meanwhile, I thought his "Joker" graphic novel was great, but I didn't much like his "Lex Luthor: Man of Steel" mini-series.

100 Bullets is supposedly his magnum opus, but I've never read that yet either. He's pretty good but for my money very inconsistent. "For Tomorrow" remains my favorite thing he's done, with "Joker" a very close second.

[Autbot_Benz]

Just Started Justice League Dark Vol 2 Book 1. I have been reading the singles from issue 20 onward so I figured it was time to go back and get the first 3 books and read Issues 1-19.

Good Start to Issue 1 like seeing how the team gets formed. Love Swamp Thing's new look with his hair and beard being braided roots. Constantine shows up as he should and all the other main magical players too. Also makes reference to Saga of Swamp Thing Issue 50 with the death of John Zatara.

[Autbot_Benz]

Finished the final issue of the Sandman Universe Hellblazer. Fantastic really wish it hadn't been cancelled but DC are idiots and would rather push 200 batman comics/spinoffs/team ups/ villain spinoffs instead.

[IMJ]

Originally Posted by Autbot_Benz

Finished the final issue of the Sandman Universe Hellblazer. Fantastic really wish it hadn't been cancelled but DC are idiots and would rather push 200 batman comics/spinoffs/team ups/ villain spinoffs instead.

I've wanted to read Sandman and Hellblazer for a very long time now and never have. It's one of those things I'll probably never get around to doing, but I know that as far as required reading goes, I should.

[Autbot_Benz]

Finishing up Alan Moore's Swamp thing book 6. Issues 57 & 58 were cool seeing Adam Strange and two evil thanagarians. But half the words were in Rann language and I couldn't understand squat. Issue 59 was decent showing how evil Anton Acrane was.

[Leo656]

So I got This F*cking Thing in the mail today:


He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: The Newspaper Comic Strips in hardcover. This thing is gorgeous and MASSIVE, at a whopping 14.25x9.25 inches and over 500 pages! There's a Foreword about how hard it was to track down and assemble the strips into this book, some Afterword stuff about some of the regional syndication differences/errors, and more. The hardcover mini-comics collection was amazing but this is way up there, too. The oversized format really makes it shine.

I can't wait to dive into this goddamn thing. For starters, I was only barely aware that there WAS a newspaper strip back in the day because it didn't run around here. And I had no idea it lasted as long as it did. I just happened to find out about it while I was reading about He-Man stuff on Wikipedia, and ordered this book immediately. What an awesome discovery.

The only "negative" is that most of the strips are in black and white except for the Sunday strips. But that's fine, and it's authentic. It's still a great-looking book.

I still need the "Art of the Masters of the Universe" hardcover and the DC "Masters" Omnibus. I plan to order those pretty soon after I take care of a few other things.

[Autbot_Benz]

Finished Book 6 of Alan Moore'S Swamp thing it is the weakest of the 6 books and i thought it was kind of boring. Cool surprise seeing Darkseid and Apkolops showing up. Book said a green lantern would be in it I got excited for Hal John Kyle or Guy nope just some obscure lantern I've never heard about. last issue was pretty good too

[Leo656]

This came on Saturday: The He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Omnibus by DC Comics!


Strap in, I've got a LOT to say about this one. Two-part post!

This thing is MASSIVE, at over 1400 pages; it feels like it weighs about 15 lbs! And it. Is. AMAZING. It collects nearly ALL of the DC Comics MOTU stuff ever released, including the original 1980s mini-series, the DC Comics Presents issue #47 where the series debuted in print, and the "Preview" strip "Fate is the Killer" which ran in several DC issues to promote the then-upcoming 80s mini-series, and of course, it collects almost all of the DC mini-series and ongoings they put out from 2012 and onward, both print and digital. The only DC stuff it DOESN'T collect is the "MOTU vs. Injustice" mini-series and the "Masters of the Multiverse" mini. It also includes multiple variant covers and bonus artwork.

The focus is on the more modern DC MOTU series, with the 1980s stuff placed near the back of the book as more of a "Bonus Feature". Which makes sense, because the 1980s series and the 2012+ series have nothing to do with each other other than being published by DC. The one thing they both have in common, is that they have almost no relation to any of the more "familiar" MOTU lore such as the cartoons, with each being entirely "Their Own Thing".

I had never read most of the post-2012 He-Man books, give or take a handful, so I was very, very excited to finally take a look at them. I know that they've gotten a very mixed reaction from the fanbase, with some people absolutely loving it and some absolutely hating it. So I was very intrigued to finally find out what all the fuss was about. I'd liked the few issues I'd seen, but without context there was only so much I could take from it. Having the opportunity to finally read the storyline in order as it was meant to be presented, I have to say... as a huge He-Man fan for my entire life, I absolutely LOVE what I've read so far. I can see why some people - especially fans of the Filmation cartoon - aren't fans of it at all, BUT, while it's nothing that I would have predicted or expected, I really, REALLY liked what I've seen so far and I was completely blown away.

It was late when I picked it up to look through it, so I figured I would just skim it briefly to get a look at what it was like. I ended up staying up until about 7am reading the first 400+ pages, stopping only once I got up to the start of the "MOTU vs. DCU" mini-series. I legit could not put it down... I kept saying "Just one more issue" but that went out the window pretty fast.

The storyline itself combines elements from the toyline mini-comics, as well as the Filmation cartoon, but is beholden to neither of them, being 100% its own distinct Universe, with its own history and tone. And it is NOTHING that an "old school" fan like myself would expect, and I mean that in the best way. I can absolutely see why some people would much prefer something more "safe and familiar", like an extension of the cartoon storyline or something in that vein, and I totally get that. That's probably what I personally would have done if I were in charge, and if that's what this series was, I'd have loved it for sure. BUT. For as completely unique as it is, and as someone who generally does NOT like "Different Just For Being Different's Sake", I was honestly blown away by almost every page.

I knew going in that it was going to be "different", and I expected to have mixed feelings about it, but so far, I don't. I love the original and Filmation storylines. I always will. But I love this so far, as well. It feels... "Right". It feels like what a never-ending battle between a magic-powered barbarian with a gigantic magic sword and an evil warlock with a skull for a face should be, rather than the childish punchline so many people seem to think of the franchise as. It comes off as what the series MIGHT have been if it was created and written as a straightforward "Conan-esque" Fantasy series rather than a kids' toyline. And in that, it feels a great deal like it fulfills some of the potential the series always had, for high-stakes action, drama, and danger. It leans heavily away from the Filmation trappings everyone knows, and far more into stuff like Conan and Red Sonja. And as much as I love the stuff I grew up with, as an adult I have to say, this feels a lot like what I always WISHED He-Man and MOTU was.

The storyline starts off in media res with Skeletor having finally conquered Grayskull, taken the Sorceress prisoner, and erased the memories of He-Man and the other Heroic Warriors, and proceeds from there, with the How, What, and Why slowly unfolding over several issues. Over 400 pages in, we STILL don't have all the answers as to WHAT exactly happened to bring this situation to a head, but there are a lot of shocking hints and revelations along the way. But it's VERY intriguing stuff. All of the characters' dialog and interactions are fantastic; Teela comes off a lot more of a bitch than she normally does, but I can handle it. He-Man comes off as much more world-weary than usual - you get the feeling he's been at this for a while, and has been affected by it - but retains his dry, sarcastic and quippy sense of humor. These definitely ARE the characters you remember from your childhood, just... "damaged", maybe? "Affected"? However you'd describe it, it's not altogether unfamiliar, just a bit unexpected, but also refreshing.

Along with brand-new origins for He-Man, Skeletor, Battle Cat (an especially touching one that explains why Cringer is so fearful when he's not Battle Cat), and several other characters, there's also an entirely new She-Ra origin story presented, with only the loosest possible connection to the original "Secret of the Sword" cartoon storyline. She still hasn't become "She-Ra" yet at the point I left off on, but they kept in the "Adora was kidnapped as a baby and raised under Hordak" stuff from the cartoon; it's just totally different. For one thing, her storyline takes place MUCH later in this series' timeline, and as "Despara" she's presented as an EXTREMELY violent, cruel and ruthless commander of the Horde at first, a far cry from her more naive cartoon representation. It's shocking stuff, to be sure - Adora/Despara conquers without mercy and kills without hesitation or remorse, even young children - but I have to figure that what it's leading to is some sort of redemption arc for Adora once she finally becomes She-Ra. Again, it's NOT what I ever expected to see but it's powerfully written stuff, especially the revelation that she and Teela were briefly close friends as children; it's hinted that it's that friendship that is what's going to help bring Adora back to the light. The stuff of them as kids is really touching stuff. This is an emotionally powerful book.

That said, as much as I'm loving it so far, I can see why some people hate it. This is NOT the cartoon show. Some people say that it's "disrespectful" to that version, but I really don't see it that way. To me, it feels simply like "What if He-Man was written for adults instead of children?" And I think that was smart, because let's be honest, the He-Man audience who'd be reading a comic book in the last decade is NOT a little kid, it's an adult male pushing age 40. Therefore, WHY would DC want to simply retread a 35-year old cartoon show that most people now look down upon as campy kitsch nostalgia? It makes sense to me that they would aim for adults, and present the storyline as more of a Conan or Red Sonja-style comic. And it is a DAMN good one. IF you're willing to accept it on its own terms.

(Cont.)

[Leo656]

But again... I DO get why certain people don't like it. There's the usual "Grimdark DC" jokes about it, and yeah, that's kind of fair. I would even say that calling it "Zack Snyder's Masters of the Universe" is a fair assessment. It's dark, violent, and definitely more aimed at adults. There's a little bit of sex (only shown in shadow but it's obvious what's happening), some censored profanity, and a fair amount of violence, albeit mostly-implied, such as He-Man's sword being covered in blood after a battle, and limp and bloodied bodies strewn about without any explicit showing of how they got that way. But yeah, He-Man kills people, and he only occasionally seems like it bothers him very much, but again, this is less of a "super-hero" take on the character and more someone who's been fighting a WAR, with everything that entails. Teela, for her part, is especially bloodthirsty, at times encouraging He-Man to kill someone and being increasingly annoyed when he doesn't. Again, if you expect an extension/retelling of the cartoons, this will all be hit-or-miss with you, but in-context, it all feels very natural. The most violent thing, so far, is when Skeletor casually snaps the Sorceress's neck, and later taunts He-Man with her severed head during a battle.

Again, maaaybe a little over-the-top, but again, context is everything. This Skeletor doesn't f*ck around; he repeatedly asks his minions after they fail to conquer He-Man, "Remind me again why you didn't just slit his throat when you had the chance?" Which let's be honest, is something any grown person with a functioning brain has asked of these "cartoonish" type villains at some point or another, once you reach the age of reason. Skeletor, Shredder, The Joker, and so on and so forth; we've all grown accustomed to seeing these "Bad Guys" be in a position to actually "win" against the heroes, and only lose or fail because "It's for kids" and the plot demands it. And let's face it, that rings a bit false after a while. It's refreshing to see villains actually use logic or have realistic motivations. Especially when Skeletor's initial plan fails specifically BECAUSE he chose to toy with the heroes rather than kill them outright; after that, all bets are off. It feels a lot more realistic, and I appreciate that.

So yeah, it's "dark" and it's violent and it's different from what may be expected, and all that may be a lot to take in for someone who genuinely wanted, or would have preferred or been satisfied with, a simple retelling or extension of the Filmation cartoon. But taken purely on its own terms? So far, I think it's great. I LOVE this book. I'm not even halfway through it, but it's one of the best He-Man storylines I've ever seen. And I say that as someone who DOES still love the Filmation cartoon.

If you take it for what it is, and look at it as maybe not the "Definitive" He-Man but rather One More Unique Version in the entire MOTU "Multiverse", I really don't see anything wrong with it, and while it's not what I would have done with the franchise I'm very pleasantly surprised. The only thing that's a bit jarring is that most of the issues have different pencilers, so the art, while generally good, can be very inconsistent from one issue to the next. There's a bit early on where Teela gets shot with an arrow near the end of one issue, and in the next one her wound is completely gone (not only visually ignored, but another character points out that she "Hasn't spilled so much as a drop of blood" despite CLEARLY having been shot with an arrow just two or three pages earlier), and then the bloody wound shows up again a couple of pages later as if it was always there. THAT was very jarring, but so far that's the only bit of inconsistency to that level that I've come across, everything else has been pretty tight.

I'm not even halfway through it, but I give it an A and a Highest Possible Recommendation for He-Man fans. And you know what? If you're the kind of person who always thought that He-Man was "silly", maybe give this a try. It might tonally be more in your wheelhouse. Especially if you like Epic Fantasy, Conan-type stuff. If you just generally don't like that stuff at all, this probably won't matter to you, but if you DO like that stuff and just never gave He-Man the time of day because it was a "goofy, dated kids' cartoon", this might just be up your alley. It runs about $70+ hardcover, but the digital version might be cheaper, and the hardcover is still a far sight cheaper than collecting all the issues (or even TPBs) individually.

At over 1450 pages, it's a fantastic value for the money and an absolute Must-Own for any serious He-Man fan. This Omnibus DEFINITELY Has The Power!

[Leo656]

I'm just about done with the MOTU DC Omnibus - I finished the entire "main" run, the Thundercats cross-over, and the first couple of 1980s issues - and I have just the three-issue 1980s mini-series left to go. But I also had THESE gems come in the mail today:




I haven't read the Injustice cross-over yet, but it's a very nice hardcover.

I did however flip through the entire "Art of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" hardcover, and WOW. It's a nice-sized book and absolutely packed with content. There was tons of stuff I'd never seen before, like some the original toy concept art and Filmation pre-production sketches. But even insofar as the stuff I have seen a hundred times, seeing it all together in one place is AMAZING. So many differing art styles between the toy packaging, mini-comics, DC/Marvel/MYP/Image comic books, the Filmation cartoon, "New Adventures", the 2003 reboot, MOTU Classics, the posters, the magazines, the live-action movie... it's overwhelming, in a great way. There's even lots of scans of production notes, interviews with some of the creators, and a miniature animation cell. This book has it all!

Highest Possible Recommendation to any MOTU fan. It's a great coffee table book but ALSO an incredible "history lesson" and time capsule. This is the kind of book you give to someone who "doesn't get" why MOTU is so cool. If those incredible Earl Norem paintings don't get their blood pumping, you know the brand just isn't for them. But I feel like just about anyone would be able to flip through this book and come away with a better understanding and at least a slight appreciation for the property, simply from seeing how many different ways its been done and reinterpreted over the years, to such great effect.

A+. Buy it. It's gorgeous.

Also... I can't be the only one crushing on Evil-Lyn on that back cover, can I? Whooooo.

[Leo656]

So last night I finally read the Injustice vs. Masters of the Universe hardcover, and I gotta say, I liked it a lot more than I thought I would! It was way better than the "regular" DCU vs. MOTU crossover, which had great MOTU parts and very weak/lackluster DC parts. This was just plain good all-around.

It picks up after the "Superman Wins" ending of Injustice 2 and some time after the MOTU/Thundercats crossover; neither That nor This are canon to the other DC MOTU books, however; the DC MOTU ongoing series were their own distinct continuity whereas this and the Thundercats crossover are pretty much either the Filmation universe or one that's heavily inspired-by.

I felt like they did a good job incorporating all the characters and lore together into One Big Story, and in a way that felt natural to both universes. Although with some of the more major character deaths, I highly doubt this will be "canon" to the Injustice Universe once the inevitable third game hits; although the "true" ending of Injustice 2 was the one where Batman wins, anyway, so this story already takes place in kind of a "What If" scenario.

A ton of MOTU fans are seriously hoping that this will lead to He-Man and Skeletor being DLC for Injustice 3, but it seems that the relationship between DC and Mattel has soured over the last two years so that may no longer be likely. We can hope, though, because it's a natural fit.
---------

Then today, this came in the mail:


I'd only managed to pick up issues #1 and 4 of the He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse mini-series, so I saw most of it for the first time today. This was a really awesome concept and they did a lot with it. My wife and I really enjoyed this one.

Basically, an "evil" He-Man is going through the Multiverse killing all the other He-Mans and taking their Power Swords so he can absorb their power and unleash ultimate evil upon all creation. So the Keldor of that universe teams up with a bunch of surviving He-Mans to try and stop that, and also avoid his destiny of becoming Skeletor. It's ultimately an excuse to team-up and showcase all of the many different iterations of the MOTU brand, from the original mini-comics/toys version to the Filmation cartoon, the MYP 2003 series, the 1987 live action film, "New Adventures", and more. And as stories that are mostly wall-to-wall fanservice go, it's a great one. Which isn't to say that there's no story, or that the story is weak; the story is actually very good, with a lot of unexpected twists. But the writer knows what we want to see and doesn't shy away from giving it to us.

MAJOR pop for Anti-He-Man's snide dismissal of "New Adventures" He-Man right before he kills him. "Space He-Man. You're ridiculous." Hey, when you're right...

Some people were unhappy with the plot's final resolution, because it means that most of the character deaths in the book are permanent. But eh, it's a comic book. I really DID like, however, how the final factor in the tide turning towards the heroes was directly related to the ending of DC's "The Eternity War" storyline, with DC's own He-Man ultimately becoming a deciding factor in the outcome based on his decisions at the end of that series. For this entire mini-series, DC's He-Man was quite conspicuous by his absence, to the point where I almost felt like he wasn't going to factor in at all for some reason, and then BAM, and it turns out that he might be the most important He-Man of all, in a sense. Rather than ignore the DC MOTU series, the ending of this book makes it EXTREMELY important to the fate of the entire Multiverse. And I really liked that.

Spoiler:

The whole bit about Anti-He-Man not being able to trace and locate his Universe because that particular He-Man decided to share the Power of Grayskull with others rather than keep it hidden and "protected" in one central location made a LOT of sense and was a nice way to tie things up by using the DC MOTU series in a Really Important Way.

On the whole, this is an easy one to give a High Recommendation to. Any He-Man fan should have no problem following it, although the very end might make a bit more sense if you have read the DC MOTU ongoing series and "The Eternity War". But even if you haven't, it's easy enough to follow, it just makes the ending even more impactful.

Just be prepared going into it for the chance that your favorite version of He-Man might just die and not come back by the end. They don't ALL get killed off, but a few of them do, and some people were not pleased with that. The general expectation was that this being DC, and basically MOTU's version of a "Crisis", there'd be some shenanigans at the end where everything that had gone bad would be "restored" and thus anyone who got killed off would be "un-killed" by the ending. Instead... nah, pretty much everyone who dies stays dead, including a few He-Mans. And that annoyed the crap out of some people.

BUT, it's a comic book. And if you can accept that Your Guy might not make it to the end, it's still a damn good He-Man crossover and a great celebration of the larger franchise. I always wanted someone to do a story like this and I was in no way disappointed.

[Autbot_Benz]

Just Finished Justice League Dark book 2 from the Rebirth run. I really enjoyed this. I love the team of Wonder Woman Detective Chimp Swamp Thing Zatanna and Man Bat. Love everything about the Magic users. This run also calls back to Swamp Thing's American Gothic story line. Constantine is also in this a good amount same for Nabu/Doctor Fate.

[Leo656]

Currently re-reading the DC Masters of the Universe Omnibus alongside my wife, who's just reading it all for the first time. She's totally in love with it, and I gotta say it's all even better the second time around. Even the DC crossover played a bit better; maybe I was just tired the first time I read it, I'unno. Once we got started she only took a break to eat dinner, and then she insisted on going back to it. So we ended up getting almost 700 pages into it in a single day. That's way better than I would have hoped.

And then THIS came in the mail today:

He-Man and She-Ra: A Complete Guide to the Classic Animated Adventures, published by Dark Horse and compiled with assistance from some of the staff of He-Man.org and others. And man, when they say "Complete", they ain't kiddin'!

This is one of the most comprehensive guidebooks for any TV show I've ever seen. It has in-depth coverage of all 130 episodes of He-Man and all 93 episodes of She-Ra, plus "Secret of the Sword" and the other specials. Plot summaries, Episode Moral recaps, episode reviews, Trivia Facts, script analyses, "Deleted Scenes" that were scripted but didn't make the final cut, behind-the-scenes artwork, and a whole lot more. They even point out some of the more notable instances where animation sequences were re-used - which, let's face it, happened quite a bit. They also go to great lengths to point out how some of the characters were portrayed inconsistently in later episodes compared to early on (especially the villains) and some of the more absurd uses of He-Man's powers. Every episode gets at least two pages of coverage, and sometimes even more, leading to over 500 pages of stellar content that is guaranteed to have even the hardest of hardcore fans saying, "Huh... I didn't know that!" I only skimmed it for a couple minutes and found a ton of things I never knew. This thing is a goldmine!

So far ALL of the Dark Horse "Masters of the Universe" books have been outstanding, and it really speaks to just how dedicated the fanbase is since so much of this material has been put together by fans, many of whom have even managed to work on the franchise in a professional capacity as writers, artists, etc. There's only a couple more I need to get, but they're all highly recommended to anyone with even a passing interest in the franchise. I know for a fact that I'll be keeping this book handy from now on every time I watch an old episode. I think I just need the Character Compendium and I'll be caught up, not counting the upcoming Toy Guide and the Supplement to the Character Compendium.

I got a good deal on this particular hardcover because a member of He-Man.org tipped me off that it was on sale one Amazon, despite being out of print and somewhat harder to come by now. Awesome! I can't wait to give it a deeper look, but even at a glance it's one of the best and most in-depth books for any TV show I've ever seen put to print.

[Leo656]

Got another awesome book in the mail today:


He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: A Character Guide and World Compendium from Dark Horse. 700 pages of the most in-depth facts and trivia about everything in the MOTU lore, from the most obvious to the most obscure.

Seriously, this book has just about EVERYTHING, right down to full explanations of the differing variants of characters between different universes. The mini-comics, Filmation cartoon, 2003 series, the newspaper strips, "New Adventures", the toys... every character, every villain, every beast, every vehicle, every background or supporting cast member, as well as every variant of each, it's all covered in here. Or at least it would seem; there's a Supplemental Guide coming out, which I'll need to pick up, which covers just about anything this book doesn't, although skimming through this one it's hard to believe they left ANYTHING out.

This book is unlike anything I've seen this side of the Star Wars Encyclopedia... except it's better, because it's He-Man.

[AquaParade]

Hey Leo, you like Superman, right?

I just got the Morrison Superman Action Comics Omnibus. Haven't read it yet, but I'm a big fan of Morrison.

[Leo656]

I assume it's the New 52 stuff? I read some of the issues as they were coming out. Didn't love 'em.

I like Morrison in general, but not his solo Superman stuff. I liked how he wrote him in JLA and Final Crisis, but his solo stuff leans way too hard into all the goofy Silver Age stuff which I absolutely abhor.

I'd say the same thing to both Grant and Mark Waid: I get it, you saw a thing (Super-Friends, for example) when you were 5 and you loved it so much that it forever informed your opinion on the character... but you're not 5 anymore and at SOME point you should have come to realize that the thing you loved so much lacked any substance, and shouldn't be treated quite so sacrosanct. Objectively, those Silver Age Superman stories were unanimously pretty terrible, and knowing how much of it influences Grant's take on the character just makes me shake my head.

He does it with Batman, too, and it drives me nuts. Like he'll write something really layered and brilliant like the Black Glove stuff, and then he'll turn around and find a way to cram Bat-Mite in there, and it's like "God DAMN it, will you STOP?"

Grant's writing is really bipolar. It's like he really can't decide if he wants to be "the smartest guy in the room" and "elevate the genre" of comic book super-heroes into actual "art" with intelligent stories and witty social commentary... OR if he just wants to muck around in Saturday Morning Cartoon Land because "Let's face it, these are kids' characters! It SHOULD all be silly nonsense!"

It's like the part of him that forever wants to BE Alan Moore is eternally at war with the part of himself that resents Alan Moore and finds him pretentious, and so he can't ever let himself completely be that. "Whoops, I'm getting too 'deep' again, better throw something goofy in there so nobody will accuse me of having my head up my arse!"

Like god damn, man, just pick a side and play it! I really like his "serious" stuff but the goofy Silver Age stuff I can totally do without. I mean, "Crisis" in 1986 only partly happened because the continuity was "too confusing for casual readers". It objectively had more to do with the fact that DC editorial realized that their own history was a big joke and an embarrassment, and so for the next 20 years they only "celebrated" it by way of apologizing for it. "Yeah, we're sorry for the 50s and 60s, but if it's any consolation, we've decided to stop insulting your intelligence. Better late than never, right?" And then people like Grant and Waid come along and they're like "We LOVE that silly sh*t!" and then go about trying to bring it BACK, and it's like "No, NO! We ALL decided that stuff was terrible, where were you? We already had the meeting and we decided all that stuff never happened!" But they just refuse to let it go.

Sorry for the rant. My feelings on Grant Morrison are... complicated.

My feelings on the entire New 52 are not, however. Hated all of it!

[AquaParade]

No, that was a fun read. I like your analyzation of Morrison. Personally, I love most of his work, even the Bat-mite bits, but I can see what you're saying about his work.

I'm about four issues into his Action Comics run (yeah, New 52) and so far I'm really enjoying it. If anything strikes me about it, maybe I'll check up on your opinion again.

[Leo656]

To be fair to the man, for as much as I rib him, I'll defend "Final Crisis" with my dying breath.

And I didn't actually think his Action Comics run was all that bad, but the stink of New 52 kept me from really being too engaged with it anyway, along with the fact that it was like the third or fourth attempt at an origin reboot within a very short few years (and they've done MORE of them since then!). I'm a huge, huge, huge fan of the Byrne/Jurgens run of Superman and I never wanted to see that version of the character done away with. "Man of Steel" in '86 was the only origin retelling that anyone ever really needed, and I still feel that way.

But then around 2001 they started tinkering with stuff, and they did a story which implied the entire Byrne Krypton story was an elaborate lie, and that the Silver Age origin was "the real one". But THAT turned out to just be an elaborate ruse by Brainiac - supposedly or allegedly because readers who were still invested in the MoS origin storyline felt insulted by such an abrupt retcon, so DC walked it back, but I don't know how true that is - except that even though it was said in-story to be a fake, they kept bits of it around afterwards anyway for a bit, which was weird. Like Superman now had statues in the Fortress of his Byrne Krypton parents and his Silver Age Krypton parents, and it was weird. It was like symbolic of how even DC didn't know which way they wanted to swing with his origin.

Then they had Waid's "Birthright" come out as "the NEW official origin", and it was awful. Then like two years later they tried to insist that the "real" origin was some sort of hybrid of "Man of Steel" and "Birthright", even though that made no sense whatsoever on account of all the huge discrepancies and outright contradictions between the two stories (along with the fact that Waid had always hated the "Man of Steel" origin anyway). When people said "none of that makes any sense", DC was like "Well, we're trying to figure it out, so bear with us for a while and just try and squint. It might fit if you squint."

THEN when Geoff Johns was on his huge kick of rewriting everyone's origin story, they let him take a swing at Superman's, and he basically just made it the Chris Reeve movie origin with some Silver Age comics stuff in it like Superboy and the Legion. And it's honestly not a "bad" version of the origin but it wasn't so good that they needed to erase "Man of Steel" for it, especially since at this point they were still pretending that the contemporary Superman and the one from '86 were the same guy, with the same history... even though huge chunks of that history were solidly linked to an origin story - and a specific version of Krypton - that now, "whoops", didn't exist anymore. So now "Birthright" was now strictly non-canon, except that they spent five years insisting that it was, but Geoff Johns sells more books than Mark Waid so now HE gets to say what "canon" is and isn't. And they were still using PARTS of the "Man of Steel" origin to reinforce the contemporary stories of 2009-ish, but only when it was convenient, even though the two origins and the two versions of Krypton that they each grew out of had nothing in common at all.

They even threw "Superman: Earth One" in there at some point, and even though that was explicitly an Elseworlds it was still yet ANOTHER Superman origin reboot/retcon within a very short span of time.

So of course then in 2011 we get "Flashpoint" and The Big Reboot, with Grant getting to do his own Year One Superman story that he'd been not-too-subtly pitching for ages. And by this point... Jesus, by this point I couldn't even be bothered to care. It was very obvious that DC had gone in the complete opposite direction with the character that they'd had from 1986 to 2003, which was "The established canon matters, and we're going to use the storylines from our recent past to inform our immediate future, but we're not just going to throw it out and start over every time sales take a hit." They went the complete other way, into a constant cycle of "Reboot, Retcon, Reboot" every single time there was a lull. So sure, Grant's version of "Year One" wasn't all that bad, but for God's sake, it was all too much by that point.

I miss the simpler times when I knew that the stuff I'd read in 1987 still informed the storylines of 1997. Now they can't even go two years without another do-over and an "Everything You Knew About Superman's Origin Is Wrong!" story. I mean they essentially wiped out Grant's reboot when they "merged" New 52 Superman with Superman '86 and had most of the history of Superman '86 supersede that of the New 52 one, anyway, so BOY, all of that sure needed to happen, I guess. Then Geoff gives him another origin at the beginning of Doomsday Clock... and then by the END of Doomsday Clock he has ANOTHER new origin! And then there's F*cking Bendis! Like Holy Sh*t, where does this sh*t END already?

So yeah, Grant's thing was "okay" but for reasons not entirely his own it was destined to 1. Not sit well with me, and 2. Become irrelevant almost immediately after it was finished. And even as it was coming out, you got that feeling just based on how DC had been handling Superman for the previous few years. "Sales are mediocre? HARD REBOOT!" Kind of a no-win situation for him; even if I was really into the stuff he wrote, it wasn't going to have any lasting impact just based on how DC was mismanaging Superman so badly during that window.

It blows my mind to think that at one point, not even that long ago, there was almost 20 years before any "serious" retcons or reboots on Superman. Even if "Man of Steel" wasn't a person's favorite Superman origin, at least DC was committed to it and stuck with it for a long, long time. And I don't think it's any coincidence that that era was the height of the character's modern-day popularity and relevance. Whether it's by measure of sales, fan satisfaction or overall attention in general, those were the strongest days for the character in print and it's been all downhill since about 2003 when they started tinkering with the bedrock. One could try and say, "It doesn't really matter," but I kinda think that at least in this case, yeah, it really truly does.

Like, it's about as clear a case of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" as one could ever imagine. If you had a line graph, you'd see the character's popularity and relevance take a complete nosedive once they decided "Man of Steel" didn't matter anymore. People really liked that origin, there's still a ton who prefer it and wish it had stayed canon, and nothing they replaced it with afterward was as universally accepted and acclaimed. "Just because something is old doesn't mean it's no good." And so many of his contemporary stories are rooted in his origins to the point where changing the origins even a little bit has a way of changing the entire character going forward. So I can't help but notice that that's when a lot of people really started to feel disenfranchised with Superman; he wasn't the same guy they'd been reading about for 20+ years, and the New Guy just wasn't as satisfying.

Again, Grant wasn't the problem nor was his take altogether all that bad. But there were just a million reasons why it didn't fully land, and most of them had happened before he showed up. I prefer to look at it as a kinda-fun Elseworlds story, since that's essentially what it became, anyway.

It's just... this character really, really demands consistency for his stories to be satisfying long-term. When consistency is abandoned, people stop reading about him. That's not a Grant problem, that's a DC problem, but it didn't do his big origin reboot any favors whatsoever, that it was just one of a dozen Superman Origin Reboots to happen within a ten-year span.

I prefer Grant on Batman than Superman. Although he spent way too much time setting up a "Thomas Wayne was really a scumbag who had his wife murdered!" subplot and then only kinda-sorta said "Just Kidding" about it, and that's something I didn't much care for either. I always got the feeling that he actually wanted to make Thomas Wayne a villain and that DC just wouldn't let him do it. Thank God. But I mean, that's one of those things that he does that makes me just kinda sigh. But I do like his Batman stuff most of the time. Reading his Batman and his Superman, you'd hardly think it was even the same guy writing them.