I stopped reading comic books, mostly because I felt they were killing main characters just for shock value and to gin up publicity--and then bring them back and gin up more publicity. It just felt like cheap story-telling. I read Joss Whedon's run on Astonishing X-Men and thought it was pretty awesome. The Hellfire arc was thoroughly enjoyable. But then they went and "killed" Kitty Pryde. I'm not against death--but death seems to happen in comic books (especially to women) often because writers can't think of anything else to do. I don't know.
But we're not going to dwell there. Comic books are still--along with hip-hop, D&D, and my Dad's collection of black books--my first literary inspiration. They gave me my that sense of the fantastic and the magical that, as I've said before, I really believe all little black boys should have. Especially in these times. Listen to any Wu-Tang, Big Pun or Jeru album and you'll realize that I wasn't alone in this. Anyway, I've developed this habit--whenever I travel--of popping into the local comic book shop and perusing the collection. I always liked Dwayne McDuffie's work on Justice League Unlimited. For me, that show made the case against comic book movies. OK, that's too broad. But if you look at what they were able to achieve, with old fashion animation, it's just stunning.
And so I went ahead and picked up McDuffie's latest--his Fantastic Four run and his current Justice League. Man, he's killing it. I won't bore all the non-comic book fans here with a recitation of the arcana. But I'm going to talk to my people for a second. Nope, not even black people. I'm talking to those kids who came up like me, whose folks mistook Malcolm's Autobiography for the Bible, gave them African names, but didn't prohibit them from watching Star Trek: The Next Generation. If a 12-sided die and Swahili mark your childhood, than this is for you: Dwayne McDuffie has turned Anansi the Spiderman into a villan. And a cool-ass one at that. The writing is superb, and the pacing and action is great. But after all these years of Thor, Hercules and Loki--and believe me, I loved them all--there's something cool about seeing Anansi in a Justice League comic book.
At any rate, I doubt I'll ever go back full speed. Retconning Spiderman's marriage was the end for me. I get the argument against it, but what a cheap-ass move.
P.S. I know that cover has nothing to do with anything with this topic. I just love that series.
The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood 
Comics have lost me too. I still read Vertigo comics from time to time, or Image, but that's it.
Too many meaningless events, too many stupid revolving-door deaths, not enough real creativity.
did you catch Obama's reference to Jor-El at the Al Smith dinner last night?
most people--even if they've never read a comic book or seen one of the movies--knows Superman is from Krypton, but it takes a guy who read comics growing up (as Obama did) to throw in Jor-El!
if i wasn't already an Obama supporter that would have sold me. plus, McCain is SO Lex Luthor.
You NEED to read the current Daredevil issues...so good.
My children were deeply into Anansi the spider stories whenever the school studied Ghana. And relatedly, when I lived in West Africa one of the most telling cultural differences* was in folk tales: rather than a hero who triumphs and gains a princess through trickery and good-heartedness in some combination, there were 2 vegetables or animals who were friends, but had an argument about something and were not friends, and this caused trouble that was only resolved by their becoming friends again. So I'd be interested to see how they integrate the Anansi style into the American superhero style.
Superhero comics were always meh to me (though I loved Archie, establishing me as even geekier than the typical comic book nerd), but I did recently love Cancer Vixen by Marisa Acocella. Sometimes these adult graphic novels are great and a lot of the time they're pretentious without being different.
*These cultural differences are the sorts of things that are very interesting to observe when you visit for a month, and drive you to McCain-levels of rage when you live somewhere for 6 months or more. Like going from a queuing country to a nonqueuing country.
I came to comics through there cartoon counter parts, back when Fantastic Four, Captain America, and XMen, which I watched because of Storm, was on. Lost touch, obviously, but I loved Joss Whedon's work on "Buffy."
And although he killed Buffy several times on the show, the writing was smart, the women were complex and they weren't all, half naked, and nicely toned. But I suppose an overweight superhero wouldn't be believable?
Did you know that DC is bringing back all of Dwayne's Milestone superheroes next year, and putting them into regular DC comics alongside the Teen Titans and JLA? Static, Icon, all those guys.
And now I've got "Twelve Sided Dice" by Dream Warriors stuck in my head.
Have you read Neil Gaiman's (of Sandman comic book fame) Anansi Boys and American Gods novels? I wonder if they come across differently when you already have a context to put them in. I never heard of Anansi before then. They make for some interesting story telling regardless.
BTW: Best current comic books:
Hellboy
Powers
Star Trek was Martin Luther King's favorite TV show
I am your peoples though Swahili was not part of the mix. I still read comics full blast, committed to the titles of my youth along with more recent graphic novels and mature titles (God bless Vertigo). On your rec. I will check out out the Justice League and I agree Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men is some of the best work done on those characters in years, though I loved Grant Morrison's New X-Men (if a comic can't bend your min, what can?). BTW dig your blog.
Respect
Not coincidentally, old school Star Trek featured the first interracial kiss on TV (or so goes the lore). From Sun Ra, Coltrane's "Interstellar Space," and Ornette's underrated "Science Fiction" LP to "ATLiens" and even Puffy's misguided spaceship tour, space has been a place to imagine around and outside of as well as through race.
I got that recent hardcover of McDuffie's work on FF largely due to the awesome Michael Turner (R.I.P.) cover and hated it.
I liked McDuffie's work on JLU A LOT but was strangely bored with those issues of the FF with the Black Panther.
Made me want to reread old FF issues with the Black Panther and FF drawn by Kirby to remember why I love these characters so much.
Maybe it was just the bad art in the actual issues distracting me from what McDuffie was trying to do with the story?
Should I read the Hudlin Black Panther run? I tend to overlook the silly plots of the old Black Panther issues as written by Kirby mainly cause his art was so good.
Really, those mid-1970's Captain America and Falcon issues written and drawn by Kirby are the first things I really got into in comics as a child.
Part of me misses comic books so much, but I've been boycotting Marvel since "Civil War: Frontline #11," which was the first comic book I had ever read which I truly believed was evil in the message it intended to convey.
Of course, that was before Peter Parker hired Satan to be his divorce lawyer.:)
Gully, Anansi Boys is definitely enriched if you know the stories. Highly recommend you check out the source mythology (and hell, the Norse myths that inform the first book too, if you haven't already).
This post reminded me why almost all my comic money goes to manga nowadays. They still have the occasional fridged woman or character who isn't really dead, but there's a lot more continuity (they're written by one author/artist or team), and as a result far fewer jarring retcons. And the series eventually end, something I think a lot of American comics might benefit from.
Having said that, I still miss Young Avengers.
You may already have - but if not, you should go read Minister Faust's (he's posted around here, hasn't he?) From The Notebooks of Dr. Brain, a stylistically adventurous take on the whole superhero idea. It's got the same kind of amazing reworking of comic-book/SF ideas through the black cultural prism that the better hip-hop has done. Seriously, you won't get any work done once you pick it up.
Star Trek was Martin Luther King's favorite TV show
The reason I love good sci-fi is its ability to basically take a metaphor and bring it to life. Suppose society were different--all right, let's just set it up and let the metaphors run their course. If you have a dream of a different future, then early Star Trek is absolutely the show for you.
Watching S3 Battlestar Galactica, and it's excellent. I can't watch with my little one, because the topics are too adult. No, not sex except tangentially. But you're sympathizing with suicide bombers, and later in the season I'll get to weigh genocide as an acceptable solution when your race is on the brink of extinction from another race. I love Roslin despite her baby-napping; I even understood it. These themes are too much for a 7-year old, but how fabulous to have adult entertainment that isn't inappropriate because of the way-too-easy explicit sex or violence? (For clarity: I'm not opposed to explicit sex but recognize that it holds zero interest for him--he doesn't even watch the kissing scenes.)
Man, I get what you're saying about the Spider-Man marriage thing, but you should pick up at least a few of the post-reboot books (particularly the ones written by Dan Slott). They are among the best that franchise has been in like 15 years -- really fun, with a legitimately interesting story. The book finally seems like something more than a John McCain-style series of goofy gimmicks.
i recommend y: the last man to anyone who enjoys a great story. best thing i've read in years. it's a fantastic story. i can't wait until my kid is old enough so i can pass it on.
not a big mcduffie fan, but i've still got my 4 original milestone books pollybagged & boarded. i bought two copies of each so i could put the posters on the wall.
You should pick up McDuffie's Beyond miniseries, which is available in trade paperback. It's kind of a sequel to the 1980s Secret Wars books and makes excellent use of the Deathlok character.
BTW, there's been much hootin' and hollerin' online about McDuffie making his books "too black." The trolls never seem to get that he puts character, not race, first.
I've got a rant in me about the current state of the Black Panther, but I won't get into it here.
If you haven't read Mat Johnson's Incognegro, published by DC's Vertigo imprint, you really should. Brilliant use of passing as a plot device.
You know, it's always been this black nerd's dream to open up a comic shop in Harlem. Manhattan's not hurting for comic shops but I don't think there aren't any decent ones further north than 72nd Street. Yet, it's wall-to-wall brothas every time I go into Midtown Comics. I keep on thinking, "someday," as I pass these vacant storefronts in my neighborhood.
If you haven't been reading _Invincible_, you should. Classic, smart, supers stories.
And _Y: the last man_ is also great. Not at all supers, but smart, sharply written characters in a solid, thought out storyline.
Both available in trade paperback from the beginning, probably at your local Borders or B&N
Another voice for Anansi Boys (and American Gods for that matter).
While I agree that gratuitous deaths of super-heroines palls (to where it almost becomes jokey, although Morrison's quote for Jean "All I ever did was die on you" and Whedon's picking it up with "Huh, so that's what that's like" from Cyclops are most excellent), I have to admit Kitty's departure -- and the reaction of everyone watching -- was pretty darn awesome that I nearly forgave Whedon for it. He likely had envisioned it from the start of his run, and went about making her one of the best written characters in a long while. Lots of Willow-echoes helped. But he likes to twist the knife, the great bastard.
Also, another voice for the initial "The Other" arc in Spiderman. I picked up the graphic novel compilation of it, and I was surprised at how good it was.
HA HA! YES! Given name Swahili (Tafakari): check!, raised a Trekkie: check! Grown woman teaching college students to dissect comics/cartoons as literature: check!
OFF TOPIC, but could it be worth exploring the connection between black nationalism and (love of) science fiction? (I do love me some Octavia Butler...)
As far as the Spiderman reboot thing, I think it is illustrative of one of the fundamental problems with these comic book series by the big labels. Storytelling, in my opinion, works best when you have a beginning and an end. Actually, thats not quite right. I think there is something interesting about telling different stories about the same character but only if the character develops. The central character needs to have an arc of development that allows for the possibility of profound change and unexpected transformation.
But characters like Spiderman or Superman aren't just characters in a story that someone is telling, they are franchises worth multiple billions of dollars to corporations that have an interest in selling the same basic story about these characters to new audiences every few years.
Spiderman can never grow up in other words. He cannot undergo any kind of fundamental or permanent change. The story might be better for it but it would also cost the corporation that owns him a great deal of money.
So these big event story lines, like Spiderman revealing his identity or World War Hulk are cool but the changes they create in the story's universe are unsustainable in financial terms. Marvel was always going to have to find a way to remove all of the consequences of those events and take us back, essentially, to the beginning of the story. That makes for crappy storytelling and but it also keeps a lot of people employed and pays a lot of bills.
I have always thought the best storytelling in comics is in the 60 issue type of story arc like the Preacher series or Watchmen. But as a business model, I doubt that sort of thing could sustain comic companies for very long.
Really? Anansi is a bad guy in Marvel too? In the DCU, Vixen is confronted by Anansi the Trickster - in a current miniseries dealing with her story. And maybe this is too Malcolm X of me or whatever, but - I find it upsetting that Anansi the trickster is turned into a bad guy. African stories didn't have this villanous aspect - more of a mischevious aspect - and one that highly regarded well used wit. I grew up kinda admiring Anansi the Spider, and I find it culturally jarring to be reading the "bad guy" take on the character.
QT
TNC,
Have you ever been down with Manga? Personal opinion, but they've been surpassing comic books in quality for a while now.
Man... this topic might keep going for days. A couple that have already been named: Invincible is a must-read to anyone who likes classic super hero stories. Y: the Last Man is brilliant, and now that the series is finished it can be devoured in a single day.
A couple more: The Walking Dead, also by Robert Kirkman, is the best zombie-related thing going: claustrophobic, unsettling and sometimes downright terrifying. Dynamo 5 is set in the same universe as Invincible; fairly new but with an beatable premise: Superman clone dies and leaves behind a bunch of illegitimate kids to take over his super-heroing. Finally, it's way under the radar but Blue Beetle is the best Spider-Man comic going right now. Jamie Reyes is Peter Parker with an accent, an intensly likable kid who finds his way as a hero. Great supporting cast too, including his girlfriend Traci 13, simply the coolest euroasian teenage witch in comics.
Look closely at that cover. Do you see the black guy, beating up the red guy?
Why do blacks always resort to violence when taking on Native Americans?
Thanks for this post, man. I don't if you had read it when it was first out, but I would recommend Starman from James Robinson that DC published from 1994 to 2002. The characters, environment, appreciation of DC lore, and artwork made this a book I could anticipate every Wednesday in the era of "big guns and explosions." I think it stands even keel with Gaiman's "Sandman," and Alan Moore's "Swamp Thing."
I've been reading comics since I was three, and I think it helped me find appreciation for all literature that i would discover as I grew up. And comics make me happy; I know that at the end of the week, when I'm not in college or at work, I can go to my favorite coffeehouse, sit back and enjoy my favorite comics with warm cup of coffee or tea next to me.
Suggested current books: Action Comics, Captain America, Hellblazer, Green Lantern, War Heroes, Ex Machina, Optic Nerve, Blue Beetle, Detective Comics, Invincible Iron Man, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern Corps, to name a few.
Someone above mentioned Watchmen. It looks like the movie will really be good:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4blSrZvPhU
MacDuffie KILLED it on FF and is doing some decent stuff in Justice League except Justice League is suffering badly from being the victim of DC Editorial. That book should be a Flagship title at DC and they are saddling it down with crossover nonsense.
As for Spiderman--I get the disdain for the retcon, I was in fact cheap, but the stories they are telling now are awesome. The book is relevant again and is one of the best comic stories out there. It's really worth a try.
You know. Being a nerd has no color. I love that.
One of the problems I have is that a lot of the younger writers, not just of comics but a lot of Genres, are essentially amoral. Lacking a moral compass themselves, they regard morality as a handicap. And they can't write moral characters very well. Morality ends up equating to a type of specialized retardation that prevents you from being truly badass.
That said:
A couple of heads ups. Check these out for old school comic vibe.
Kurt Buscieks Astro City. Its SO GOOD.
Also, Alan Moore's Top 10. More the first volume than the 2nd.
I also really enjoyed DC's '52'.
My biggest problem is that I grew up poor, and learned to be cheap. I cant see shelling out 3$ for a comic when I can get a book for that much at the used book store, or Alibris.
So I will read comics at Borders or Barnes and Nobles, and if they are REALLY good, I'll buy them. Mostly, I just feel a little bit of despair.
(Yes, I'm thinking of Planet Hulk and Civil War.)
I got into comics during the 1st "Death of the Pheonix" story. Or rather, about 2 years before that "death" series.
I gave it up for awhile - but comics writing has, for the good stuff, simply gotten so good!. The pacing of the stories, the voices of the characters, the tone, mood, and flow of the stories, the good ones are really good.
So I've started reading again.
I actually started picking up some old stuff - in this case, the Invisibles series - which, in my opinion, is just outstanding. Then some Ellis stuff (Planetary) and the Top 10 series.
The thing is, if there is GOOD WRITING, then the additional great fantastical art, hits me with a "wonder", that I really appreciate. I get the same type of hit that I get say watching Matrix, only at a slower, more leisurely pace.
These original ideas and images - if there is a good storyteller included - keeps me coming back.
I'm not so much on the standard DC, Marvel superhero stuff. Sometimes can be pretty good - The Ultimates is great, for example, as is Powers - but the pleasure for me comes from an image/idea expressed in comics, which I'd never thought of before, and makes me go "wow".
I have always thought the best storytelling in comics is in the 60 issue type of story arc like the Preacher series or Watchmen. But as a business model, I doubt that sort of thing could sustain comic companies for very long.
And yet, manga is outselling American comics now in trades. And pulling in more female readers. And generally, they're doing that exact same thing. And appealing to girls, which American comics companies seem pretty incapable of doing (this might also be related to the 'outselling').
to all that have stated it, it can't be said enough - invincible is a great book.
i like the spider man reboot. because i wasn't on the book(s) before the reboot, i really didn't care so it gave me a good jumping on point. since then, the arcs have been nice and the release schedule has kept me involved.
i agree w/the point made by brent above. books written w/a beginning and end in mind tend to be better. you can, however, achieve that with a mainstream comic via a good story arc. punisher achieved this time and time again recently.
for the adults out there, i've also been reading "the boys" and finished up "black metal." i keep saying that black metal looks like it's begging to be made into a movie.
And yet, manga is outselling American comics now in trades. And pulling in more female readers. And generally, they're doing that exact same thing.
Do you mean that they are doing those kinds of sales in Japan? I am sure that is the case of course but what I mean to suggest is that the Japanese market is quite different from the American market because Manga culture is so deeply ingrained there. I have seen some interesting explanations of this but the bottom line is that comic literature has been a central part of their literature for decades. Comic books here were once far more ubiquitous but they were always essentially a medium for young boys and since the mid 70s are really more of a niche culture item.
Attempting to expand the demographic and cultural reach of comics here would involve a lot more than changing the way that stories are told. It would involve a kind of massive marketing endeavor that would lead to a major cultural shift. There are small labels here that build their library on the kind of limited run series that I was talking about but I suspect that their titles probably sell better in Japan than they do here.
@Sansouci:
"I agree Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men is some of the best work done on those characters in years, though I loved Grant Morrison's New X-Men (if a comic can't bend your min, what can?)."
I'd recommend keeping up with Astonishing X-Men. Ellis seems to be off to a good start and I say this as someone who tired of him a while ago.
As for Morrison, well, New X-Men is just the tip of the iceberg. Everyone should go back and read his 7 Soldiers series and then pick up what he's doing with Final Crisis. After that, pick up WE3 and then work your way backwards from there. These are just the beginning, however. I'd get into greater detail but I'm trying to avoid a fanboy meltdown here.
Lemme also second Top 10 - especially the Forty Niners TPB - and Ex Machina.
Also, if you really want to pass on your love of comics to your children or nieces or nephews, buy them Jeff Smith's Bone. (Buy yourself a copy too, it's just a great story for any age!)
And yet, manga is outselling American comics now in trades. And pulling in more female readers. And generally, they're doing that exact same thing.
I posted my last comment before I finished my thought. If on the other hand you meant that manga is doing those kinds of sales in America, then I would be pretty impressed but it doesn't quite fit with my perception of things. I mean I see a few manga titles here and there in regular bookstores and comic shops and every now and then I see manga specialty shops in New York and other big cities but are they really outselling Batman and Spiderman?
brent- go to your local B&N.
The manga sections- one or two aisles depending on the location vs. American comics one lil section really tell the story.
I am not a fan of manga, but it is KILLING!
Retconning Spider-Man's marriage was the end for me too but luckily I lost interest in the book 6 years before that happened. I planned to read it again after J. Michael Straczynski left. But somehow the storylines became even more dull and pointless.
T-NC,
As a (white) teen growing up in the 80s, I was fortunate to experience some of the very best rap, comics and D&D. I loved them all because they all worked on so many levels: They expanded my mind, my imagination and my awareness. It's unlikely that I'll ever play D&D again, unless my kids really get into it. I might re-read an old comic every now and again. But "It Takes A Nation..." & "Fear of a Black Planet" I could listen to every day. Not just two of the best rap albums ever, to of the best albums ever.
Amazing Spider-Man 287! I had that!
I even subscribed to the darn thing when Todd McFarlane started drawing it. I had the first appearances of Venom...and then lost them **while I was still collecting**. Tragic.
Man, I must have ransacked the house 10 times looking for ASM nos. 298-300.
Love the blog, dude, esp. your recent post on the Taibbi-York exchange.
I loved ASM during that time just before and after the secret wars. Of course I've read the whole series from Amazing Fantasy #15 but Spider-man in the 80's was when I was growing up reading it religiously. Thanks for the memories.
Brent, what T Harris said. Manga in the US is nothing compared to the Japanese market, but it's a huge chunk of 'comics' sales in the States. In my local Borders the comics/manga section has tripled since their opening less than a decade ago, and almost all that growth is manga. There's been a hit in sales lately but it's still a very strong market. Trades of manga definitely sell better than trade comics, but I'm not sure how much of a factor single issue comics and magazines like Shonen Jump USA are. (A big factor of this is sales to girls, because girls buy more books overall.)
Late to the post, but:
I stopped reading comics for the same reason. However, the best death/resurrection arc was Hal Jordan as the Green Lantern: murder the whole corps; take their power; become a galaxy spanning villain; and when he finally, finally get killed, Hal's essence left such an evil stain that it became yet another villain.
Another shout out for Minister Faust. Am still hoping for a sequel to his first book, "Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad". "Notebooks of Dr. Brain" is a satirical work of genius with an ending I'm still trying to figure out.
For those looking for black science fiction, may I reccomend Steven Barnes, both his solo work and his work with Larry Niven.
Best comics death: The Sandman. HE STAYED DEAD! Also, it was the perfect ending to the story, and said a lot more about how much a true death could bring to a medium that almost never lets that happen. Also, the art was stunning.
Best resurrection: Starman. Ok, he was a resurrected character, not individual, but that book was one of the more interesting, fun and creative comics to come out of DC in a few decades. Plus, I am not down with resurrections- they usually suck. I can't think of any that I haven't hated, or at best not cared about.
The ending of Y the Last Man was something of a disappointment to me. I need to re-read the whole series before I fully judge, but I was not blown away.
I was interested in DC for a hot second thanks to Infinite Crisis, but that's gone now. The books just don't hold my interest for the most part. Other than Fables, DMZ and 100 Bullets (The Exterminators befre it got the axe), I'm not actively following anything- and what I do read I read in TPB.
late to the fray...
but i had to comment on the "nerd has no color" thing. yes, i'm a scifi/fantasy/comic/animation nerd and i read pretty much everything i can (well, that i like) in those genres.
but i get a serious THRILL when i see people that look like me in the media that i love...especially when they're done right. i LOVE being black and spend lots of extra effort to find art and media that celebrates the complex black identity that i maintain (as do others here)
*end of sermon*
i don't read the underwear pervert stuff much - although Top 10, Watchmen, and Nextwave are great! i prefer stuff like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen or 100 Bullets or DMZ. but thanks for the recommendations, folks!
Whedon made Cyclops deeper and more interesting than any other version I've ever read. The way the white queen torments him before they're sent to the breakworld was incredibly gripping.
My dream as a teenager was to write a series of comic books where characters age in real time, and would eventually retire or die in the line of duty. You'd have to have a few immortal characters, I think, to make it viable.
My comic days are long gone. I still watch sci-fi on TV and see w/ my kids the occasional cartoon on Cartoon Network. Most are just OK. But tonight I saw some insane thing about the JLA circa 1960. there wasn't a character of color unless you include the Martian Man Hunter. Every last one was white and I am thinking what in the 2334 did the RNC do to get a country first ad on Cartoon Network.
As a note of interest is the Whelan you're talking about the same one who moved to TV and Firefly.