Collections: Alan Moore - Superman Whatever Happened To The Man of Tomorrow?

I've had this hard back collection of DC Universe by Alan Moore for quite a while now but haven't had a chance to read it until recently and I have to say, I'm super impressed.  Obviously Alan Moore is a HUGE name in comic books but outside of Watchmen I haven't really read much of his work.

This collection is mostly single or back to back issues that have self contained stories from Detective Comics, Green Lantern Corps, Phantom Stranger, Vigilante and more.  Each of these is unique and stand out from nearly any other comic plot you would have read in those particular titles at the time, which is what makes these SO good.  The stand out story for me though? Superman #423 and Action Comics #583: Whatever Happened To The Man of Tomorrow?

This was a very candid look at the Superman Mythos.  While some of it takes a more comical look at some of the more ridiculous aspects of the Superman story like his highly sophisticated disguise:

The story really digs into Superman's psyche when, along with all his enemies finally taking off the kid gloves, he gets an ominous visit from some friends from the future and he begins to realize that something more than the standard evil plot is afoot:

Can you imagine Superman crying?!?  This is something that, to me, does something it's very hard to do with Superman, it humanizes him.  Another thing that lends an amazing edge to this story is the fact that it's all coming from a newspaper interview between a Daily Planet writer and the one and only Lois Lane.  This fact allows for the perfect pacing, hitting all the highlights and moving the story forward without the reader feeling like they've missed too much detail in between.

Part two moves us back into the more typical feeling of Superman plots, which isn't to say it's less than part one but it moves us into the fight for Superman's life and the battle ensues!  Supe's is trapped under an impenetrable energy done (naturally) with only his friends.  So we see Jimmy and Lana power up and give us a flash back to some team ups from the past:

Next the most surprising of all the fight scenes, sweet Lana damn near karate chops Luther's head off!

However the victory is short lived and after the defeat of Jimmy and Lana, next we see the most courageous and saddest two panels ever:

First Superman is crying, now I'm crying!  How am I supposed to keep reading after this!?!  I don't remember how but somehow I wiped away the tears and pulled myself together enough to keep turning the pages.

Now after all the above amazingness the story ends with a bit of a cliche in my opinion.  We find out that the little funny midget from the 5th dimension is actually a super demon who's orchestrated this entire production...

 ...and to save his friends our hero is forced to murder the little bastard.  Now while you and I would do this with no shame and sleep like a baby afterwards, Superman cannot bear that he's taken a life and makes his decision to end it all:

So it seems we've seen the last of Superman.  Or have we?

So, after a spectacular story that examines the humanity of a super powered indestructible alien and his impact on his adopted homeland including the people he loved, the story falls a little flat in the end.  But all good things must come to an end (don't you hate that saying?!).  Don't take my word for it though, go find it in your local comic shop and see what you think.  I for one will be checking out some more of Alan Moore's work thanks to this collection.

(I couldn't decide which sign off to use so I'm writing them both and you can choose)

Praying that if I have children they can make diamonds out of coal,
or
Hoping that I never have to decide to trade my super powers for a porn stash,
~Steve

Jack Kirby's Forth World - The New Gods

Recently I've been reading some of the many stories that have come out of Jack Kirby's Forth World.  Stories of The New Gods!  I still don't really know where to rate many of these characters in the DC Universe since among the other more well known main stream characters some of them seem abstract at best but some of these stories are really great.  Darkseid is the most well known of the characters in these stories since he's been the big bad in many huge DC plots but some of these other lesser known characters like Big Barda, Orion & Mr. Miracle have really been amazing to read.  Anyways not much to really say here except if you haven't checked out any stories of the New Gods you definitely should, especially if you're a Kirby fan!  Here are some nod's to Kirby's work that can be found in a collection of art done by some other well known artists in dedication to Jack Kirby and his amazing work on these characters called Jack Kirby's Forth World Gallery:

As always wishing I could actually draw,
~Steve

New Justice League Dark Animated Film

Looks awesome!  And yeah, it's a cartoon.  Cartoons can be cool.  I swear!

Hoping I never grow out of a good cartoon,
~Steve

Do we still need Wonder Woman after 75 years?

I read the title of this CBR.com article and thought to myself: Why is this even a question?  The answer is obviously YES!

Immediately I was wondering if they might actually be arguing that we don't need her but was very happy to see that wasn't the case.

Wonder Woman has a much bigger problem than people framing her as a sexualized pin-up girl draped in the American flag, however. She has a reputation for being — dare I say it — boring. Boring to the point that people have published lists of exactly why she is boring, with complaints centering on a boring supporting cast, boring villains, boring weapons and overall boring stories.  

In the era of Ms. Marvel, Maps Mizoguchi, America Chavez and Faith, do we even need boring old Wonder Woman anymore?

The answer is a simple one: Yes. We need Wonder Woman just as much today as we did in 1941. Although at first glance she might feel like a throwback, with connotations of second-wave feminism, she remains genuinely radical, and it is precisely that radicalness that makes her unique in superhero comics.
In a genre defined by violence, Wonder Woman is, at heart, a pacifist. Her earliest adventures literally pitted her against War, personified in the form of the Greek god Ares. Diana’s lasso of truth might seem a puny weapon, but that’s precisely the point: it is meant to enlighten, rather than harm. Truth wins out over War and Deception.

Check out the whole article Do We Still Need Wonder Woman After 75 Years?  for some more interesting takes on this timeless Amazonian Warrior!

As another testement to the need of Wonder Woman, how can a character that inspires adorableness like this not be needed?  Pint Sized Wonder Womans Dad takes to Photo Shop

Here's to another 75 years,
~Steve

Recent Reading: Batman and Robin #2

This was such a powerful panel for me. How wonderfully wicked to have the book open up on Batman and Robin drugged and tied into a rotting car in an abandoned drive in watching as a montage of their enemies killing innocents plays, bringing into question Batman's vow not to kill. This is a classic controversy endlessly argued among geeks in corners of comic book stores and cons for years and Peter Tomasi knocks it out of the park in this arch using the process of Bruce teaching Damian the value and purpose of that vow to drive the story line. If you haven't read this run yet go do now.

Seriously go. NOW!
~Steve

75 Years of Batman Video

If you're a Batman fan this is a must see.  This video released on DC's All Access YouTube account is an awesome look at Batman throughout the last 75 years.

Wishing I was Batman,
~Steve

Batman The Killing Joke Original Art Revealed (Enter Dramatic Music Here)

A REALLY cool piece of comic lore as popped up recently and this is the story thanks to my favorite comic news source CBR:

As if recent renewed debate about its ending weren’t enough to demonstrate that, after 25 years, Batman: The Killing Joke can still spur discussion, now new original artwork has surfaced indicating the scene depicting the torture of Barbara Gordon was initially far more graphic and sexualized.A photo of the inked page (below, definitely NSFW) was tweeted Sunday by Bill Hynes, a former employee of Gosh! Comics in London, revealing a naked and bleeding Barbara among the montage of images shown to her father James Gordon. In the published comic, by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland, that shot is replaced by a close-up of Barbara’s face.

Indeed, whether the Joker raped Barbara Gordon has been long debated, with some readers insisting the violence was physical and not necessarily sexual. This page now may cast the scene, and the already-controversial comic, in a slightly different light.

Read the full article at CBR.COM

Here are my thoughts:

This doesn't change anything for me in the story. Everyone is going to assign their own assumptions to the story whether the art is “graphic” or not. That’s something about the comic medium I love and this is one story that uses the readers imagination masterfully and it’s made this into one of the greatest Batman stories of all time.

For instance for me the Joker has never had any interest in sex. Whether in his day to day life or in his crime it’s never been a priority or focus for him so I never saw this scene as one where he sexually violated her. This is all about humiliating, torturing, degrading and just plain beating down the Gordon’s in the most sadistic way possible. So, check check and check.

Although I do have to say this is a really cool piece of comic lore and if anyone ever does get their hands on this art they’ll either get a pretty penny for it or hold onto it and be transformed into a Geek God from it’s power. How’s that for an origin story!

Doing my best to keep up with the "cool" comics guys,
~Steve

Weird Stuff In Comics - Superboy and the Legion of Superheroes 253 & 254

Weird Stuff In Comics.  I realize this title implies that seeing weird things in comics would be an out of place oddity, when in fact the majority of the things written in comics are implicitly and by definition, weird.  But that aside in the interest of getting to the good stuff, if it helps think of it as, "The REALLY Weird Stuff In Comics"!

Today's focus is on a little known hero by the name of SUPERMAN!

Okay, so in this case Superboy and his favorite after school club that happens to be 1000 years in the future and full of super beings: The Legion of Super Heroes!

Superman has been around for a long time and in that time has had MANY writers scribe his adventures and it's the older Superman comics that are known for having some of the wackiest stories and plot lines in comics history.  Following along those lines Superboy and the Legion of Super Heroes issues 253 & 254, does not disappoint.  Published Circa July/August 1979, written by the legendary Gerry Conway and brought to life by Joe Staton & Dave Hunt.

Here is the summary before the weirdness:  A group of super powered beings has come together under the banner of revenge to kill the six legionnaires they believe is responsible for destroying their planet!

THEN they systematically target and "kill" all six of the Legionnaires (enter shocked and surprised gasp here).  BUT WAIT!  What was that steak of light?

Crazy right?  I laughed out loud after reading these last three pages.  I mean come on, Superboy takes a wild guess that some gases they all inhaled would put them in a protective coma if he zapped them with his x-ray vision and it works!?!  Well of course it works, it's a comic book!  But come on Gerry!  At what point do you think he said, "yeah that sounds good lets go with that"?  Even the Legion and Superboy himself can't believe this crap:

So yeah it's quirky, wacky, zany and every other word for crazy but this is something I love about old comics.  Everything was science fiction back then.  Even the things we can now say are conceivable or even plausible because of what we know, was impossible back then, which meant nothing was off the table and it sure made for one hell of a ride through some of those stories.

NEXT: Comics? Movies? Comic Movies?,

~Steve