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Marvel Comics on Your iPhone
Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Marvel Comics,
Those folks over at Apple don’t stop at catering to people’s needs. This time, they’re impressing comic book fans, as the iPhone now carries an array of Marvel comics you’ve probably been meaning to catch up on.
Marvel has now made both new and classic issues available via Comixology, iVerse, and Panelfly. Whether it’s the first 25 issues of Stan Lee’s Amazing Spider-Man, Joss Whedon’s Astonishing X-Men, or Robert Kirkman‘s Marvel Zombies, finding something you’ll want to read is guaranteed. The best part of this whole deal is the fact that Panelfly, which has the most comics in its library (84), sells their comics for $0.99 (others generally charge $1.99).
Despite this more cost-effective comic book venture, nothing quite beats the sensation of walking into your local shop, digging through those boxes to find that treasured issue you so desperately want to get your fingers on. What’s a couple dollars or so when you’ve still got that?
Let’s hope the sacred Wednesday tradition of new issues stays intact as well, considering the iPhone doesn’t have that… yet.
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Starr The Slayer #1: Daniel Way & Richard Corben
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Reviews, Marvel Comics,
As I’ve said in the past, I’ll buy pretty much any comic book that lurks on the outer edges of DC and Marvel. That’s where the off-the-wall, non-continuity stuff can be found, and there are some real gems that feel like someone’s sliding them under my door and running off. Starr The Slayer is one of the latest, written by Daniel Way (Deadpool) and illustrated by the most-excellent Richard Corben (Den; Hellboy; Cage).
In the first issue of this four-part mini-series, pulpy genre writer Len Carson enjoys wild success with a series of Conan-like books called Starr The Slayer. So successful that he’s soon churning out books like crazy and driving fast cars packed with top-heavy women. Y’know, just like real life. He soon tires of success because “the lit scene calls to me.” Twenty years after he’s abandoned his barbarian creation and failed to crack the world of tweed jackets, college professors and Borkum Riff, he’s ready to tackle his greatest creation one last time.
In a parallel story, Starr, a barbarian with a hot temper, journeys from his village to “civilization” with his family. They promptly hit a wall of trouble, his family is killed and Starr is forced to fight in an arena, where he brutalizes a local named Trull so badly that the disfigured guy runs away to concentrate on the black arts—and making these two parallel stories collide.
Click to continue reading Starr The Slayer #1: Daniel Way & Richard Corben
Forgotten Comics: Howard Chaykin’s Cody Starbuck
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Reviews, Independent,
Mike Friedrich was one of the talents of the 1970s and 1980s who changed the comic book business for the better. Dean Mullaney, Phil Seuling, Bud Plant and several others belong on that list as well as several people I’m forgetting. Mike started out as a comic book fan, became a freelance writer for DC and Marvel, transitioned to publishing with his own company (Star*Reach) and later became an agent, turning Star*Reach into an agency representing artists and writers. As a freelancer, he knew well the contracts (and contractual problems) at the major companies. As a publisher he provided an alternative venue for creators to pursue projects DC and Marvel either didn’t want or wouldn’t let the creators own. That may not sound like a big deal, but back in the day if you wanted to tell stories outside of the standard Marvel-DC superhero template, or found yourself on the outs with those two companies, you had almost no alternatives until Star*Reach and Eclipse came along.
When Friedrich became an agent he was able to turn his experience loose on behalf of other creators to negotiate better deals. I’ve read comics Mike wrote, I’ve read comics that he published, and a couple of times I’ve been across the virtual negotiating table from him. [I won’t name names, but at the initial Ultraverse Founders conference in Scottsdale AZ, he quite rightly had his client wait in the hall while he finished negotiating via phone his client’s UV contract. My job at the time was to nod sycophantically and supervise the snack trays for the conference; Dave Olbrich did the actual nuts and bolts negotiating.]
Click to continue reading Forgotten Comics: Howard Chaykin’s Cody Starbuck
Weekend Reading: Iron Man, Geek Chic, Chip and Dale and I Love Lucey
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, DC Comics, Marvel Comics,
Lots of good stuff going on as we slide into the weekend. We’ve got Iron Man, Archie Comics, Douglas Adams’ Monty Python connection, Chip and Dale and tons more.
Let’s start with my pal Bob Greenberger, the noted comic book writer, novelist, tie-in writer, and a guy who actually knows how to make a physical comic book/graphic novel (all that production/printing/binding/press run/distribution stuff). He has a new book out. Iron Man: Femme Fatales has just been published by Del Rey and it should keep fans happy post-Iron Man I movie and pre-Iron Man II movie. Bob happily blogs about it at his website where he reposts this nice review. I haven’t read the book yet, but I snapped up a copy off the rack at Wal-Mart to feed a little royalty money Bob’s way. I also reshelved the remaining copies to give Bob a better display. That’s how I roll, people.
Harry Lucey: The animator John Kricfalusi has a nice gallery of great Lucey covers from assorted Archie titles at his blog. The covers are absolutely stunning in their simplicity. There’s a “Get Off My Lawn!” part of my brain that wishes the books still looked like this.
Geek Chic Daily: Nikki Finke has a few details about the Hollywood playas lining up behind Gareb Shamus’ new online presence.
George Tuska: Marvel and DC artist George Tuska, so prominent in the comics of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s has passed away at 93. Mark Evanier has a nice look at Tuska’s career. Here’s a real nice original art page by Tuska—no superheroes, just guns, gangsters, street scenes and a hot girl in a bikini. He was from the generation of comic artists who all knew how to draw people, horses, cars, the folds of clothing, and characters in hats who could still make a guy in an iron suit seem believable.
Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Iron Man, Geek Chic, Chip and Dale and I Love Lucey
Marvel Comics Review: Amazing Spider-Man #608
Posted by David Torres Categories: Reviews, Marvel Comics,
Rating: ***
Since I read the amazing (no pun intended) Amazing Spider-Man Annual #36, I’ve been looking forward to more Spider-Man stories focusing on the Spider-Man story the Clone Saga. In Amazing Spider-Man Annual #36, we saw the premiere of the character called Raptor who has a grudge against Ben Reilly. He blames Ben for the death of his family and he’s out for revenge. Since Peter obviously looks like Ben, Raptor has set his sights on Peter.
Our story begins with Spidey battling it out with the relatively new super-villain Screwball. I wasn’t reading Spider-Man back then so this was my first introduction to the character. I like this character. A perfect modern character that uses the Internet in order to get that “celebrity” status that comes with it if you can get people to watch your videos. Peter tries to use his photos of the fight to try and sell them to Ben Urich at Front Line. Raptor whose name is Damon Ryder shows up to the offices of Front Line to confront Peter. Ryder calls Ben and hands Urich an old newspaper clipping of the fire that occurred at his house that resulted in the deaths of his family. A sketch of the suspect matches that of Peter’s face.
Click to continue reading Marvel Comics Review: Amazing Spider-Man #608
Weekend Reading: Julie Schwartz, Carl Barks, Jim Aparo & Evan Dorkin
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials,
After a month that saw Disney gobble up Marvel, Paul Levitz step aside at DC, and Jack Kirby’s heirs opening up a copyright reclamation project, it’s kinda nice to slide into October where leaves are dropping faster than Wizard employees. There’s lots of great stuff for your weekend pleasure. From Art Spiegelman and Julie Schwartz to Carl Barks and Jim Aparo and even Evan Dorkin. It’s nice to curl up on a blustery fall day with some warm links. Enjoy!
Julie Schwartz and Forry Ackerman: Once upon a time, they teamed up and almost got some poor kid kicked out of comic book convention. Sort of. This is from the current issue of Guy H. Lillian III’s fanzine, Challenger, which also boasts an NSFW sketch by Wally Wood and the story behind it that involves the artist Kelly Freas. Fans with Bat-walkers who wear Superman Depends may remember Lillian as a long-time DC Comics letterhack from the 1970s.
Carl Barks: In 1976, there was a comic book convention in Boston called Newcon. Among the guests: Carl Barks, John Stanley, Harvey Kurtzman, Joe Kubert, Jim Steranko, Dick Giordano, Mike Kaluta, Gil Kane, and Bob Overstreet. Cartoonist Bill White was there and met Barks. Says Bill, “I asked him for a drawing of one of the Duck family. He said he was sorry, but recently the Disney company had revoked his rights to draw the Ducks.” Go Team Disney!
DC Field Trip: The letterer Todd Klein took a trip to DC Comics to explore their logo archives, the comic book equivalent of an archeological dig. Needless to say, he found good stuff.
Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Julie Schwartz, Carl Barks, Jim Aparo & Evan Dorkin
Marvel Comics Review: Spider-Man: The Clone Saga #1
Posted by David Torres Categories: Reviews, Marvel Comics,
Rating: ***
Finally, Marvel will be returning to the infamous Clone Saga storyline with a mini-series that is set to tell the story of the Clone Saga as it was meant to have been told. As I’ve mentioned before in previous posts, I was a big fan of the Clone Saga when it first began and have always liked the character of Ben Reilly. So this week, issue one of the revisited Clone Saga storyline hit the stands, and while it did not blow me away, I was entertained. Two of the writers working on Spider-Man back in those days have come on board to tell the tale: Tom Defalco and Howard Mackie.
Before I go into my review for this issue, I must profess my love for the Spider-Girl title in which Defalco worked on. Defalco’s Spider-Girl/M2 universe sprang from the stories that were created during the Clone Saga, and he was able to make a grown up Spider-baby May Parker work well along with continuity of those storylines. Marvel completely abandoned the characters for years in the regular 616 universe until the upcoming Who was Ben Reilly? storyline that we’ll see next month in Amazing Spider-Man.
Click to continue reading Marvel Comics Review: Spider-Man: The Clone Saga #1
Edward Norton Hopes For Hulk Role
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Universal, Action, Adaptation, Sequels, Thrillers, Casting, Celeb News, Celebrity Gossip, Rumors,
Will the third time be the charm for Marvel superhero the Incredible Hulk? Edward Norton thinks so.
The actor—who was believed to be unhappy with the final version of 2008’s movie about the green superhero, in which he played the title character and his alter ego Bruce Banner—says that he will happily appear in The Avengers, which unites Marvel Comic heroes Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and The Incredible Hulk, and is being planned for 2012.
Asked if he can see himself appearing in The Avengers, Edward said, “Yeah, oh yeah. The thing about Marvel‘s universe that’s fun is that it all cross-pollinates. Even when I was working on the script for The Incredible Hulk, I tried to plug in the whole Super-Soldier Serum from Captain America.”
Edward even hopes that the movie will see his character portrayed as the villain, fighting against the other characters: “He kind of was the villain, not in the books, but in the comics there was always a tension between the rest of the superhero community and he was always this problem. They treat him as this problem. I don’t know, I think that’s a fun way to go with it.”
Jack is Back: Jack Kirby Vs. Disney/Marvel
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Marvel Comics,
Of course, you knew it was coming. I didn’t, because sometimes I can’t see either the forest or the trees, but someone knew it was coming once it was announced that Disney was buying Marvel. Jack Kirby’s children have banded together, not unlike the countless groups their father created, to file motions of copyright termination to 45 of Kirby’s Marvel creations and co-creations.
Nikki Finke at Deadline Hollywood Daily and Rich Johnston at Bleeding Cool, weigh in with the details and analysis. Over at The Beat, Heidi McDonald also notes the news and has a very lively comments section (pay particular attention to the calm and rational ones by Nat Gertler and Kurt Busiek). Elsewhere, countless bloggers and message board attendees are posting about the shock and awe they feel. Their wild theories of how this is the end of everything—the equivalent of a comic book rapture—has them typing faster than they can down a box of Milk Duds.
Before everyone gets all Defcon Fanboy about it, I recommend reading up on the history—the continuity, if you will—of relations between Marvel and Jack Kirby.
Click to continue reading Jack is Back: Jack Kirby Vs. Disney/Marvel
Marvel Turns Tim Gunn Into Superhero
Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Interviews, Marvel Comics,
Leave it to Marvel to branch out into yet another pop culture obsession (I mean, they had me hooked with Marvel Zombies): fashion. This time, they’ve actually appointed a nontraditional, real life hero, Project Runway‘s Tim Gunn.
Ridding the world of fashion crimes in real life, Gunn lends his likeness to Marvel‘s limited series Models, Inc. in the first issue of the series, “Loaded Gunn.”
And boy is he thrilled:
“Isn’t it just utterly and totally surreal? This is one of those make-a-wish things that could never happen… There are lots of debates about how much it looks like me. I said, ‘Gentleman, this is your business. This is not what I do. I do not even want to remotely weigh in on it or micromanage it.’”
With a little help from Iron Man, Gunn comes to the rescue when a special superhero museum is attacked.
Click to continue reading Marvel Turns Tim Gunn Into Superhero
Read More | USA Today
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