hahaha Alfred is so horny for violence
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I keep almost checking these out. I think I read he’s in poor health these days?
Is that the Doomsday Clock prequel?
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It’s very disappointing, the joker doesn’t even show up
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Doc Savage has trained diligently so that he can intentionally drop a part of his gunpla model, and then pick it up from the crack behind the desk it bounced under.
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More G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero thoughts:
I knew, coming in, that the first year of G.I. Joe is not really what most people think of when they think of the property. Having read a previous collection of the first ten issues, I was aware that most of that original team has not withstood the test of time: of the thirteen members introduced in the first issue, only Scarlett and Snake-Eyes are still considered essential. Characters like Zap, Grunt, Grand-Slam, and Flash are mostly entirely absent from later iterations, and even at-the-time prominent members like Hawk or Stalker have been replaced by other characters filling in the same roles. And it made loads of sense that things went this way. Even if the writing for those other original Joes was up to snuff (more on this later) the sad truth was that there wasn’t a whole lot to set them apart from each other, either visually or in terms of skill sets.
And so, one of the things I was most interested was in seeing the transition from that original team to its more famous version. I expected it to be gradual, with the new characters slowly replacing the old.
Instead, we get issue #11, where we’re introduced to these guys.
We’re also introduced to Snow Job, Doc, and Airborne. And by “introduced” I mean the issue starts in the middle of a mission, and we’re told they’ve just joined the team off-screen. No indication that the Joes were recruiting. No indication of why these people made the cut. They’re just there, and they’re immediately more distinctive that most of the Joes we’ve come to know–just the names tell you more about them than say, “Grunt” or “Steeler” do. They’re also, well…sillier. The difference between these Joes and the original is in some ways the difference between a Call of Duty squadron and FOXHOUND*.
Thing is, FOXHOUND kicks ass. Everyone loves FOXHOUND. And yet, it’s hard not to feel a bit sad for those original Joes. They’re still around, in issue #11, but notably, the issue starts with about a fourth of them being ferried away from the battlefield, having been injured before the plot starts. It feels like an omen.
Additionally, it’s not like the book sucked in that first year. Sure, most of the titular characters hadn’t gotten to get distinct personalities, but that’s largely because the book was mostly focused on bringing the action–and it was quite good at that! The book’s approach didn’t actually need changing, I’d argue. The characterization would come in time.
But of course, the thing was that the comic book didn’t exist in a vacuum; it was there to support a toy line, and had no time or interest in pretending otherwise. It’s actually kind of refreshing, and it helps that the issue is actually quite fun, once one gets over the weirdness of the new cast members. But damn, it’s a lot.
*Helping this comparison is the fact that issue #11 takes place on the Alaskan tundra–and no, Gung-Ho up there does not wear a shirt.
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the ninja arc around issue 27 is my favorite gi Joe thing in the entire universe and it’s a top ten overall comics thing, I should go back and re read the first 100 or so issues my brother stopped buying them so I stopped reading around issue 110
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I spent half my waking hours driving today so that I could go to a Zine fest in Durham (and see a friend I haven’t gotten a chance to meet up with in a year). I love how tight knit these events are and it’s so inspiring to see young people willing to represent their art. There are two events like this happening in Virginia next January and February. I’ve pretty much convinced myself to register a table even though I have nothing to show right now.
Jenny Zervakis was there. I saw her talk last year in Richmond and I loved reading her Strange Growths anthology. I bought a Zine her daughter made and had a quick chat with her. Talking to these people feels so fucking good.
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Just got to this point! I’m familiar with the gist of the story from the adaptation–(G.I. Joe: Renegades is shockingly solid, given the usual pitfalls of adapting the franchise to Saturday morning cartoon form), so I’m excited to see the original!
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i binged what’s available of these several weeks ago so my memory for talking about them is admittedly fuzzy, but i’m like, fascinated by tomomi’s tsurenai hodo aokute azatoi kurai ni akai and august 9th, i will be eaten by you and their erotization of relationships to dangerous supernatural entities
the former has a chronically curious boy fall in love with the gender ambigious student at school who is the center of lots of rumors and is either extremely knowledgeable about apparitions or is one themself, implication often being that if he ever figures them out it’s gonna be the end of him. both of them play around exploring various mysteries and phenomena at school which always seem to be some degree of true and almost always lethally dangerous, but boy’s got the protection of his supernatural enby, at least until they are satisfied and disappears him from the world themself. absolutely delightful sicko smiles from both of them, they deserve each other so bad
the latter is about a boy who for some reason keeps attracting folklore monsters who are pretty much always women extremely horny to literally eat him, and his only protection is a stalker wolf-girl who pretty much feels the same way. it’s… uh… probably to some degree trigger warning material even if it’s not explicitly adult? it’s for those of us who love the idea of being pinned down by a giant woman who will eat us alive
there’s some bullshit going on that seems to imply everyone used to be normal but were implanted with these myths and i’m not sure if i care about this part of it in particular. but their monstrous forms are really good. i don’t have the patience to figure out which chapter has a good view of kudan, who looks great, but here’s hasshaku-sama. ain’t she adorable?
to think i started my drawing project before reading these, i’ve got so much study material that is maybe too close to what i wanted to make. almost makes me consider quitting (i wont)
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I was reading this one for a while and I think I also tuned out when there was too much Lore happening and that government agency or whatever that shows up,
Can’t I just read about the monster mommys
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What is this?
Godzilla’s Monsterpiece Theatre
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There’s pubes in issue 2 of Rob Liefeld’s self published Brigade/Prophet follow up.
I ordered an unsigned copy and he sent me a twice signed one, so he still rules.
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