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I have to confess that I've lost track of modern comics. The characters don't seem to be the ones I grew up reading, whether they be MARVEL or DC mags. Why the powers-that-be would jettison decades of continuity and alienate long-time fans seems a stupid thing to do, but what do I know? I'm just a guy who's been contributing towards their success for many years.
Surely there must be a way of attracting new readers without chasing away older ones? And this new title is a step in the right direction. It's set in the time when the original AVENGERS had 'retired', and HAWKEYE, QUICKSILVER & The SCARLET WITCH had joined CAPTAIN AMERICA to become the new team. (I just love that 1960s corner cover box!)
I'd first read the original stories when they were reprinted in a British periodical called TERRIFIC back in 1967, and reading new adventures of the same line-up (starting from when they first formed) makes me feel as if I'm a kid again, sitting with a pile of comics in the back garden of the house I lived in at the time.
If you hail from the same period as myself and enjoyed The Avengers when you were a youngster, then you're sure to love this comic as much as I do. So here are the first three covers to whet your appetite. You'll find #3 in all good comicbook shops now - and, if you're really lucky, they might still have #s 1 & 2 as well. Happy reading!
And, as a bonus, below is how I first encountered the new team of The Avengers way, way back in 1967. Just a shame they got the colour of CAP's sleeves wrong.
This is another book I am following (well I only have issue 1 I wasn't aware issues 2 and 3 were now out) the first issue was a nice fun read so I can recommend it to others especially as you say; to those of a certain age or fans of the 60s strips. I also don't understand the need to re write the characters so often and change thing around to the extent that they do now. I do get the need for the odd revamp I mean Capt America and Nick Fury can't have been in WW2 (actually what ever happened to the real Nick Fury?) and be alive / young today and they can't refer to the 60s they'd all be over 70 (averaging 20 years old in 1962 ish) but I think most writers/ editors are trying too hard to make these characters real and relevant rather than produce entertaining stories - to many fanboys in the industry rather than professional creators. As for DCs revamps... sheeesh what a mess - Saying all that I have to say if you ignore the continuity / history messes of the characters; some of the new comics are pretty impressive with good stories and amazing art.
ReplyDeleteI just go with the flow as far as modern comics are concerned and I'm fairly relaxed about changes to characters. The latest incarnation of Peter Parker is a tech billionaire which sounded daft when I first heard about it but I read some issues of Panini's Astonishing Spider-Man before Christmas and the idea of Parker as a tech billionaire was quite interesting - anyway, it probably won't last.
ReplyDeleteWell, Captain America was in 'suspended animation' in a block of ice since the end of the war, so that explains why he's still alive, PM. John Byrne came up with the idea that nothing in a character's superhero career happened more than 6 or 7 years ago, which, although there are still occasional incongruities, seems to work in most cases. So Cap only 'defrosted' 6 or 7 years ago, not in the '60s, which we should regard as mere topical references of the time. Nick Fury is a bit more of a problem, so we either have to regard his wartime exploits as never having happened, or assume that he benefitted from some kind of longevity drug. (Maybe I'm imagining it, but I seem to recall reading that such a thing happened to him.) Again, Reed Richards and Ben Grimm's wartime exploits must be regarded as topical references of the time, etc. The occasional revision is inevitable I suppose, but I think Marvel and DC have now taken things too far in their reboots.
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Well, if that's part of a current storyline, or Peter Parker's natural 'evolution' as a character (as in, he invented something that made him a billionaire), then that's not so bad, I suppose. (Although it makes it harder for geeks and nerds to identify with him.) However, if his history has been rewritten to accommodate the change, then I'm against it on principle. I don't mind 'natural' (preferably temporary) changes as part of a plot, but not a total rewriting of historical continuity.
When The House of Ideas started the Marvel Age of Comics in 1961, the idea that Reed Richards, Ben Grimm, Nick Fury, and others served in WWII was reasonable, since it was only 20 years earlier, so the "real-time" storytelling concept worked!
ReplyDeleteAs time went by, Reed and Ben were said to have served in Korea, and, recently, the Middle East.
(Of course, the reason for the FF's trip into space, to beat the Commies, has also been modified over time!)
Tont Stark, originally injured by a mine while demonstrating weapons in a field test in VietNam is now a victim of a mine in the Middle East!
Nick Fury, with a solid placement in WWII due to Sgt Fury and His Howling Commandos, was a bigger continuity problem.
Jim Starlin and Howard Chaykin came up with "The Infinity Formula", which kept Fury young for decades.
But, as time went by, it became harder to account for fellow Howlers Dum-Dum, Gabe, and Eric Koenig still working in the field for SHIELD, so, the current characters are LMDs with their liknesses and personalities!
Oh, I didn't know the Howlers were now LMDs, BR, so thanks for that bit of info. Of course, they could have retroactively had all the Howlers exposed to the Infinity Formula and kept them as the originals - I'd have preferred that. Franklin Richards is surely a bit of a problem (if you ignore John Byrne's idea), 'cos he's been a kid for 40-odd years now.
ReplyDeleteWhoa !!! Thanks Kid, I had no idea. I too stopped reading current Marvels decades ago when they effectively killed off every reason to follow them any more, art, liberal themes, to many titles etc. I will pick these up ASAP (in the states mind you)
ReplyDeleteMike in FL
A pleasure to help spread the word, LG. Let me know what you think of them.
ReplyDeleteNot directly linked to this thread but I am Just back from Hamilton where they have the Pannini titles back on the shelves with the rest of the comics (not behind the cashier) anyway if interested both the "Incredible Hulks" and "X-Men" mags have 1960s reprints in them, not many story pages though - the Hulk tales is an early one with Steve Ditko art.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't aware of the Howlers issue either (pretty clever in a way) - I think they have even killed of Bruce Banner which annoyed me most as a big Hulk fan. Spidey should always be a geek (imho) don't know why they do these things when the films and established characters are so popular - no doubt Bruce will come back.
The last time I looked at a Panini Hulk mag, PM, they'd cut the '60s story in half and continued it in the next issue. I'll take a look at them the next time I'm in WHS, but if they're not complete I'll give 'em a miss. Thanks for the heads-up anyway.
ReplyDeleteYeah, a lot of it reeks of change for the sake of change, of which I am not a fan.
Thanks for the tip, I haven´t checked this out yet. But it seems this is not a new title but rather the .1 issues that run with the regular AVENGERS title which has restarted with a new number 1. I might just have to get the single issues as I don´t know how Marvel plans to release the trades ( either regular issues and .1 issues together or apart ).
ReplyDeleteWell, this mag is about the 2nd Avengers team, and it starts from #1, so it's a new mag to me, SZ. I'm afraid I don't know what the .1 signifies as I get very few comics these days.
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