Subcultural engagement for the 21st Century...
Barbelith is a new kind of community (find out more)...
You can login or register.

Underground > Comic Books >

Ask before you buy (or Byrne steal)

Page: (1)2

04:17 / 19.04.06

I'm thinking of downloading this Outsiders torrent for something to read and was wondering if anyone could offer their opinion on the original series. How was the writing? The art? Not being a huge DC guy in the past, when does this series take place? Late 70s, early 80s? Does anything in the series survive continuity-wise or was the whole thing done away with?

Hallo, Paper Spaceboy

05:08 / 19.04.06

I like some of the stuff that had Alan Davis art, but the whole thing had an air of aimlessness about it ... and, oddly, I still love the Masters of Disaster. Metamorpho was the key selling point for me, so if you like him I recommend it. It was mid-80s, wasn't it?

Anyone have an opinion on Runaways? I've been inclined to pick it up as a matching set with Young Avengers, as an alternative to the Teen Titans mishmash.

05:55 / 19.04.06

Hey Papers, it looks like a lot of people like runaways. I found a thread here.
How's Young Avengers? I read the latest issue, and it had some Captain America coolness in it, but I think it's towards the end of a storyline and I need to read some back issues.

Shiny: Well Over Thirty

06:00 / 19.04.06

Runaways is generally good fun, simultaneously much more fun and much more grown up than the current run on the Titans. Vaughan tells enjoyable tales of a bunch of super-powered kids who critically for me aren’t really superhero’s per se, just teenagers some of whom can do crazy stuff. One of the most enjoyable parts of the book for me is that Vaughan seems to be having great fun with this book, especially picking up and playing with various bits of old Marvel continuity, whilst actually helping to expand the 616 universe by building up a fresh new corner of it. Probably one of the most enjoyable new concepts Marvel’s come up with in years and definitely well giving a chance. I’d counsel anyone to track down early issues and read it from the beginning though rather than just jumping on, since the book tends to be quite continuity heavy and I think it would spoil the story with this book quite severely to have the payoffs to various mysteries without reading the set up.

06:11 / 19.04.06

I heard there was a hardcover of the first 18 issues. Might try to track that down.

Shiny: Well Over Thirty

06:11 / 19.04.06

Does anyone have any interesting opinions on any of the latest crop of new Vertigo books, Loveless, Testament, DMZ, American Virgin and Exterminators? I’ve been quite lazy about trying new titles yet and so haven’t read any of them, but I could quite happily be convinced to give one or two of them a chance if anyone wants to sell them a bit.

Shiny: Well Over Thirty

06:14 / 19.04.06

With Runaways I'm reasonably sure Marvel put out a relatively inexpensive Manga style digest of the cancelled first volume and the success of that edition is what got the book a second volume, but I'm none to sure of the details.

06:17 / 19.04.06

Marvel Comics' The Runaways Vol. #1 HC, collecting all of the issues #1-18 of the series' first volume, has made the Top Ten list for Best Books for Young Adults for 2006, as named by the American Library Association. Runaways is the only graphic novel to make the list.

11:29 / 19.04.06

I'd be interested in your collective thoughts on 100 Bullets, the first two trades of which I've got, but the end of which doesn't seem to be in sight. I'm about 10 trades behind now, and not exactly swimming in money.

Heard lots of good things about Starman, but have only got the first trade. Interested due to Steve Yeowell and Peter Snjejberg [sp?] art later in the series.

And Y: The Last Man - I've got only good reports and no trades so far.

D Terminator XXXIII

12:34 / 19.04.06

Altho I stopped reading Starman right after Harris left (Stars My Destination?), I have to say that, if you've only read the first trade, you should definetely steal, borrow or, if you can afford it, buy the next couple -- it began to rock for me during numbers 13-17ish (Sins of the Child?) and onwards. The singles are dirtcheap, which makes it a more affordable read, and you'll get Robinson answering mail too!

13:50 / 19.04.06

Young Avengers is surprisingly good...highly entertaining, well-told old-school with a fresh modern spin Marvel fun. I'd say check it out.

14:27 / 19.04.06

Loveless: A great comic. It's been slow to start (#6 just came out and it's still building up), but Azzarello seems to be setting up for good things in the future. I'd definitely recommend it.

Testament: I got the first two issues, but couldn't get into it. I'm not a fan of the art, and the story is too convoluted for me. But! My friend's reading it too, and he loves it. So... this has been no help.

DMZ: Very solid, enjoyable comic. Things are just warming up in the new issue, so if you're going to jump on, it's not too late to get the back issues and catch up real quick. I was going to say originally that it's good but not worth the extra $3 a month, but that'd be a lie. The writing is great, the plot is great, and the art is nice and edgy.

As for 100 Bullets, I've been reading the new ones and have to admit that I'm confused half the time.

Hallo, Paper Spaceboy

15:39 / 19.04.06

Denfield - Young Avengers is well-written and for the most part the artwork is slick. It's fairly old school in some ways but I enjoy that while the characters are all connected to old bits of floating continuity, the series itself is straightforward and you don't have to keep track too much.

alex - I highly recommend the last few storylines of Starman, in particular. "Grand Guignol" makes more sense if you've read the whole thing (worth it) and the "1951" storyline is a beautiful piece with some gorgeous Snjebjerg art.

17:57 / 19.04.06

Young Avengers
Just picked up the TPB of volume 1 and enjoyed it. Found myself up till 3:AM plowing through the book in one sitting. That's a good sign.

Runaways
Been picking up those manga sized digests and enjoying it. the art suffers a bit from poor paper quality and gets a bit muddy. I suspect this would be resolved with the hardcover but I ain't going tobuy that now.

Y the Last Man
It's strange, I picked it up and for a while kept wondering why I would bother but just wanted to see what would happen the next issue. Love the consistant art and have grown acustom to the writing style.

Starman
I love love love that series. I'll occasionally dig out the individual issues and spend a month re-reading them. If you haven't finished the series, do so.

Testament
I like the art. To me it's got a Frank Quietly feel to it... I'm struggling though and loosing interest in it. I'd much prefer it if the series stayed focused on the old testament stuff rather than the "modern day/near future" analogues which fall a bit flat.

100 Bullets
Sometimes I wonder if I'm buying this series out of habit. Then there's the art which always blows me away. The writting can be a bit hit and miss but I suspect it will rock as a long form continous read. I've been reading it since issue 1 and I still get a bit lost. I thought it was intended to end with issue 100.

DMZ
It's shaping up much nicer than Testament. The art continues to improve and the story gets progresively stronger. Much more relavent then Testament.

Haven't bothere with Loveless, American Virgin and Exterminators.

How about the latest Hellblazer run? Will it make a buyable TPB?

Shiny: Well Over Thirty

18:22 / 19.04.06

Good Question with regards to Hellblazer. So far I think Mina's run is okay, but definitely nothing special. The first issue would actually have been a pretty good one issue horror story, if it had ended slightly differently, but the subsequent issues have been pretty dull in comparison and there's some slightly dodgy 'young people in hoodies = demons' stuff going down that sets my teeth on edge a bit. All in all it's probably not worth getting in the single issues unless you happen to be terrible John addict, but equally it's probably going to wind up being good enough to get in a reasonably priced trade.

05:33 / 20.04.06

I do not understand why people like Runaways. Young Avengers is enjoyable at times, but try as I may I can't get into Runaways. Am I the only one who thinks it's childish?

11:32 / 20.04.06

How old are you, Xenoss? I ask in all seriousness, because I don't usually hear that kind of criticism from adults, especially when said criticism is directed at a product aimed at a demographic that very likely includes children and young teenagers.

Also, from what I've read of Runaways, which isn't that much, I don't remember it being particularly childish. "Buffy clone" (but a half decent one) and "Whedon lite" were the words that stuck in my head.

13:39 / 20.04.06

Of course all the waffle above is based on a particular reading of what you meant by childish

14:36 / 20.04.06

I'm reading DMZ, Testament, American Virgin and Exterminators and actually my favorite of the lot is the Exterminators. Kinda quirky, kinda creepy horror-ish. With Testament, I'm still waiting to see why I should care. American Virgin is off to a good start and I'm still with DMZ mainly because I'm a Brian Wood fan.

14:54 / 20.04.06

Boboss - I'm 20. I understand the comic is (most likely) aimed at a young demographic, but a few people on here and a friend of mine have praised the comic. Admittedly, I don't know the ages of those Barbelithers that like Runaways, but at the very least I know my friend's age (same as mine). To me, the comic seems childish (I don't mean it in a bad way, just as a matter of fact), but to my friend not at all.

16:49 / 20.04.06

More a matter of Opinion I would venture. I've found that quite a few female comics fans I know enjoy RUNAWAYS all of whom are older than 20.

Meanwhile I'm curious about ONI... what have they put out that was as enjoyable as one bad day?

17:10 / 20.04.06

W.r.t Oni, they've put out some great stuff, including Hopeless Savages, and my particular favorite, The Adventures of Barry Ween: Boy Genius, aka the stuff Judd Winick wrote back when he was good.

17:37 / 20.04.06

I'm an ancient 33 and I love RUNAWAYS mostly because:

- it's something new in the Marvel universe, rather than more of the same.

- it's endlessly clever. I liked the sort of casual explanation for why there were no superheroes on the West Coast. And a recovery group for kid heroes. And a marriage between a genderless Skrull and a lesbian teenager.

- it moves fast.

- there's no status quo. People die, people leave, people join. It's one of those stories where you feel like something is going on.

- it's not too serious. I enjoy how it doesn't take the Marvel superheroes as if they were Biblical prophets.

19:02 / 20.04.06

As for other Oni goodness, SCOTT PILGRIM!! Terrific, inventive, just plain FUN comics about an early twentysomething slacker and his Ninentdo-inspired life. Not nearly as cliche as it might sound, and totally entertaining. Check it out. There are 2 volumes, manga-sized, with the third coming later this year (they never came out as individual issues), about $12 each.

21:16 / 20.04.06

I've been reading ONI's Queen and Country since the first issue, and it's a consistantly good, sometimes great spy book (of which there are too few). It's grounded solidly in reality and the procedural details of being an operative for Her Majesty's Gvmt, and is punctuated by some brutal action sequences every couple of issues.

It's by Greg Rucka, who I think really excels at the talky-talky office bits, and has rotating art teams on each arc, who bring a nice change in tone to each story. I can't remember the name of the story or the artist (sorry, I'm really not helpful, but it's late, and I'm tired), but the art style is really scratchy, reminiscent of Bill Seinkewicz (no idea if that's the right spelling), and it's a great read - really tight and compelling, even if it's mostly talking heads. It's well worth a check of the trades.

22:51 / 20.04.06

Another BIG thumbs up for Queen & Country. And yes, sometimes the most riveting stuff is office talking heads scenes between espionage politicos...like amazing dialogue scenes on the West Wing or something similar, where every line just cuts to the core.

Bard: One-Man Humaton Hoedown

04:35 / 21.04.06

Queen & Country is fantastic. Whiteout and Whiteout: Melt are also fantastic comics by Greg, and were actually the semi-precursor books to him writing Q&C.

I love Runaways. I read it in manga digest format, becuase its actually cheaper to buy the first 18 issues in the digest form than in the hardcover, and I was strapped for cash at the time. Also, they're easy to carry (the Marvel teen line has really appealed to me for that reason...the books are relativly witty, pretty much just TV shows in comic format, and are small and easy to carry but are full 6 issue trades).

While the book IS juvenile at times, I like it for that. Its both playful and mature, like some of the later Season 2 and Season 3 Buffy writing. The writing is sharp, witty, and there are some very nice twists. I also think that Grady Hendrix kind of ruined the "big reveal" from the 5th trade up-thread, but it IS kind've obvious a few issues in advance.

Starman is a MUST READ. There's one specific trade, the one where Jack's in space, that isn't so great. I wasn't a big fan of using Starman/Jack Knight to tell straight science fiction stories, but I love most of the rest of the series. Just fucking brilliant.

MY question is:

Is it worth reading Supreme Power? I've seen it around a lot, and a few people have recommended it...but do people recommend it? If so, are there any really major things to it that you feel are big selling points?

16:46 / 21.04.06

Supreme Power has its ups and downs. The beginning was more enjoyable, I think, but it's still good. The miniseries Supreme Power: Nighthawk was great, definitely recommended. I'd say pick up the first trade and see how you like it.

As far as Oni stuff goes, I second the Whiteout and Whiteout:Melt recommendations. Other good trades are Love Fights (volume 1 and 2) and Coffin. And, of course, Local is wonderful.

16:52 / 23.04.06

Due to this thread I picked up the first few Runaways digests and would agree with those who praised it: it really is excellent. It's what super hero comics used to be about, updated with a nice touch. It strikes a nice balance between self-referential nods to the genre and playing it straight. The character's are all really well defined as well.
I used to pick up an awful lot of Oni stuff, but can't seem to find single issues in stores now, so stick tp the trades. Like Mario I love Barry Ween, and wish Winick would get back to this rather than his hack work for DC. I'd also recommend Mutant Texas: The Adventures of Ida Red by Paul Dini with brilliant art by J. Bone, who also worked on Dini's Jingle Belle, also by Oni, and also good. In similar vein is the Adventures of Alison Dare, which is basically a comic for kids, but well written, unlike most of the drek out there.
In a more adult vein I'd recommend any of the stuff Oni puts out by Andi Watson and Chynna Clugston-Major.

Hallo, Paper Spaceboy

23:36 / 23.04.06

Phyre: Due to this thread I picked up the first few Runaways digests and would agree with those who praised it: it really is excellent. It's what super hero comics used to be about, updated with a nice touch. It strikes a nice balance between self-referential nods to the genre and playing it straight. The character's are all really well defined as well.

I also picked them up, partly because they were so freaking cheap! And I'm a bit of a shoo-in for a Cloak & Dagger team-up. It's not perfect, there's a lot of soap opera twisting to the plot, but it's all pretty high octane.

09:21 / 06.05.06

Anyone ever read this? I found it while wikiing Clive Barker. I guess it's a concept by Clive Barker as a Marvel horror kinda book that came out in the early 90's, and was written by James "Starman" Robinson, and then "Matrix" Wachkowski. Anyone even heard of this thing?

Essential Dazzler

19:08 / 14.05.06

Is this as ace as it sounds?

I love Marvel's Essentials and I've been itching to try the Showcase books. Should this be the first stop?

22:03 / 14.05.06

Not read Ectokid, but have read an issue of Hyperkind, and it was so terrible that I cannot imagine any of the rest of the Razorline Barkerverse being better than sticking hot knitting needles into your eyes...

D Terminator XXXIII

07:19 / 15.05.06

I'm struggling to recall whether it was Barker or Robinson said so in an interview, but apparently many of the concepts in the Razorline were half-assed and rushed, quite simply it was done to cash in on the boom of the early 90s, so I'd be wary about Ectokid. Still, my fascination with the Robinson is such that my curiousiy commands me to sample it.

But you can't go wrong with Hellraiser. From Epic, not Vertigo.

07:44 / 15.05.06

If you are looking for semi obscure James Robinson stuff that isn't terrible and rushed, he did a graphic novel in the late 80s with Paul Johnson called London's Dark. it was reprinted recently by Titan and shouldn't be too hard to get hold of...

Page: (1)2