The Black Panther, symbol and protector of the advanced African Kingdom of Wakanda, is missing. Several weeks ago, T'Challa took flight on a space mission with his trusted friend, Eden Fesi, a reality-warping teleporter, in a ship designed by his sister, Shuri, and built under her exacting supervision. Shuri is one of the greatest minds that the world has ever known - she was also once the ruler of Wakanda, and carrier of the sacred mantle of the Black Panther. Now that T'Challa is missing, the pressure is on Shuri to find her beloved brother, and her beloved boyfriend, Eden, while staving off the burden that her mother and several advisors want her to carry once more: the role of the Black Panther. However, it's going to take more than Shuri's prodigious intellect to solve this problem, she'll need the help the ancient Elders who accompany her in spirit, and she'll need the help of T'Challa's greatest love, the goddess known as Storm. Can Shuri save her brother, without losing herself to unbridled mysticism, and the burden of the mantle of The Black Panther?
Award-winning author, Nnedi Okorafor, pens this wonderful mystical, magical, sci-fi actioner, "Shuri"! Shuri is a GREAT character with her own burgeoning, evolving mythology - it was inevitable that she would step out of the Black Panther's shadow, and become a new, special, different type of hero in her own right. Shuri has a strong sense of right and wrong, a growing sense of self in a new, more democratic Wakanda which is now a constitutional monarchy. Shuri, loyal to Wakanda, and to her brother, has dreams and ideas for her future - and none of them involve taking up the mantle of The Black Panther again, even though her brother is missing. She is at odds with her mother, at odds with her situation, and at odds with herself; Shuri is one of the most gifted scientists on the planet, yet, she is possessed of old, arcane, mystical powers - the ancient Elders, who whisper in her ear, offering up wisdom and guidance that Shuri doesn't always welcome with an open heart. The Elders call her "Ancient Future," a dichotomic name that symbolizes the struggle that Shuri feels inside: the old ways, or the new; the mantle of The Black Panther or something new, something else; science, or magic? All these things swirl inside her as she struggles to find her footing in the world while trying to find her brother, who is lost in space with her new boyfriend, Eden Fesi. Okorafor has succeeded in masterfully crafting an engrossing, compelling protagonist in Shuri, and in bringing to the forefront a supporting cast of intriguing female characters who both support and create tension in the tightly written storyline - a storyline which is itself a very enjoyable sci-fi/mystical mash-up set in the growing world of Wakanda. There are several variant covers, but Sam Spratt's painted covers are my favorite, portraying a painfully gorgeous, lifelike Shuri that was so beautiful that I have to admit that my heart nearly skipped a beat. Leonardo Romero's interior pencils are straightforward and uncomplicated, yet very expressive with a cartoon-y tilt that makes Shuri's adventures fun to look at. If that weren't enough, the brilliant, effervescent Jordie Bellaire slides in with quirky, joyful colors that really get Romero's pencils to popping on the page! Okorafor, Romero, and Bellaire? Talk about a WINNING COMBINATION! WOW! My daughter loves this book. I love this book. I recommend that you pick it up because you just might love it too. "Shuri" definitely ROCKS!
RATING: An enthusiastic 10 out of 10!!
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It's TEX, back again with the skills to pay the bills and the comic books to hit your pocket-book! Today on TEX'S BACK-ISSUE QUEST, the anti-hero known as...
VENOM!!
Venom, originally a Spider-Man villain, made his first partial appearance on the final page of Marvel Comics' Amazing Spider-Man #299, printed in April of 1988. However, his first full appearance happened one issue later:
In this dynamic page from Amazing Spider-Man #300, printed in May of 1988, Venom explodes on the scene confronting a very bewildered Spider-Man, and reveals both, his identity, and his reason for hating Spider-Man!!
Venom was created by comics scribe, David Michelinie, and superstar artist, toy sculptor, and comics writer, Todd McFarlane. Klyntar (the actual name of the symbiotic), was chronologically first seen on Battleworld in 1984's Secret Wars #8; however, historically, it made its first appearance here:
Above is my well-read copy of Amazing Spider-Man #252.
The symbiote bonded with Spider-Man when his suit was damaged after a battle, and he found that it enhanced his strength, his ability to stick to wet surfaces, gave him stronger webbing that never ran out like his web-shooters, and it could mimic his everyday clothing which made crime-fighting a whole lot easier. However, through a series of unsettling events, Peter finds that the symbiote is alive with aid from Reed Richards, and removes and imprisons the symbiote. What Peter never figured on was that the symbiote had grown deeply attached to him - it escapes and re-bonds with him once more. When Spider-Man finds out, he uses church bells to drive the symbiote away. Enter Eddie Brock, a once-successful journalist who has, through his own carelessness, ended up disgraced with his life in shambles. Because he sees Spider-Man as having a hand in his downfall, Brock focuses all his blame and hatred on Spider-Man. Seeking a way to kill himself and end his suffering without violating his religious beliefs, Brock ends up in the same church in which Spider-Man had ejected the symbiote from himself! Sensing his rage, and hate, the symbiote attacks, and bonds with Brock! Twisted by the pain of Spider-Man's rejection and Brock's hatred and rage, Venom was born and made his first full appearance here:
Above is my copy of Amazing Spider-Man#300, CBCS grade, 4.0.
Venom gave Eddie Brock all of Spider-Man's powers, much greater strength...And all of Spider-Man's secrets, including his identity and those of his friends and family!! Venom went on to become one of Spider-Man's greatest, most dangerous enemies. Eventually, Klyntar, the symbiote, would bond with disabled war veteran, Flash Thompson, and be freed of its madness to become one of Marvel's coolest superheroes:
Agent Venom!
On the FUN FACTS!
FUN FACT 1: In 1982, Marvel ran a competition for artists and writers who wanted to break into comics. The idea for the black costume came out of that competition, submitted by a fan named Randy Schueller. The idea was then purchased for Marvel by then Editor-In-Chief, Jim Shooter.
FUN FACT 2: Todd McFarlane hated drawing the black suit.
FUN FACT 3: Venom made his first big-screen debut in 2007's much-maligned "Spider-Man 3." Topher Grace was a terrible choice to play Eddie Brock:
FUN FACT 4: Tom Hardy, who made his debut as a supervillain in 2012's much-lauded "The Dark Knight Rises" as Bane, jumps from DC to Marvel to executively produce and star in 2018's "Venom."
I enjoyed Venom VERY MUCH. I think it's probably the best Spider-Man-related film that I have seen since "Spider-Man 2," which in my opinion is the greatest Spider-Man film to date. I have seen Venom twice - once with Regal Theaters, and once with AMC. AMC get my vote. Why? They had lower prices (in my area), and cool Venom swag:
Check out "Venom" in theaters, and drop back by this blog and let me know what you thought about the film and this article! Thanks for reading!
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I hope that you are all doing well! I apologize for the radio-silence; however, it takes me a bit to get back in the swing of things after school gets into full swing. I promise to be back soon with those great articles that give you all that comic book knowledge that you can't get in any college!!
Cuz THAT'S what I do. :-)
Today, I have a nice treat for you, coming straight from the UK's premiere sci-fi comic book anthology series: 2000AD!! A comic much overlooked by filmmakers, very few offerings from this legendary series have made it to the big or small screens (not counting the series' most enduring, star property, Judge Dredd). Luckily for us, there are brilliant fans out there who are ready, willing and able to take matters into their own hand. Case-in-point: There is a Strontium Dog fan film...AND IT IS AWESOME!!!
The Strontium Dog made his debut in Starlord #1, a UK publication produced in 1978 from IPC Magazines - the same company that published 2000 AD. Unfortunately, Starlord was short-lived, so Strontium Dog made the jump over to 2000AD in prog #88 published in 1978. Strontium Dog is from 2/3rds of the creators of Judge Dredd (John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra) and follows the futuristic story of Johnny Alpha, a badass, mind-reading, mutant bounty-hunter who can see through darn-near anything. Johnny is even more unstoppable than is vision - he is a highly skilled fighter, a relentless tracker, and one mean mutha with a hidden heart of gold.
These filmmakers really did Johnny some justice. Without further ado, I present to you the award-winning Search/Destroy: A Strontium Dog Fan Film!
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I hope that you Labor Day Weekend is going great! Mine is moving along nicely since it's about the only time that I have had since the beginning of the school year to kick off my shoes, put my feet up, and indulge in a little rest and relaxation.
Being a teacher isn't a 9 to 5. It's more like a 7:15 AM to 6:00 PM gig, with nights and weekends dedicated to extra-curricular activities, parent meetings, and grading papers...And all that comes along with having a wife that travels, and basically being a single parent of a new high-schooler who ALSO has her own activities going on. But you didn't come here to read about my struggles...YOU CAME FOR THE COMICS!! Well, have I got a treat for you today!
I have been a fan of The Legion of Super-Heroes since I was a kid. There's something so awesome about the mix of fantasy, futuristic sci-fi, super-powered do-gooding, and the hefty drama that The LoSH has always brought to the table. The LoSH has dealt with complex issues like love, betrayal, family issues, flawed personalities in heroes, and even death long before the advent of the darker, grittier Bronze Age. By 1968, The LoSH had dealt with the loss of Ferro Lad, Lightning Lad, and even Chameleon Kid's beloved, shape-shifting pet, Proty, had given his life to save The Legionnaires!
If you've never been a fan of The LoSH, I encourage you to pick up some of their stories in TPB format, or in the LoSH archives, and walk yourself down through their amazing stories in chronological order. You'll be glad you did. Let me start you off with the obvious...The origins and powers of some of the Legionnaires out of the pages of Legion of Super-Heroes: 1,050 Years if the Future from DC Comics!! Click to enlarge and ENJOY!!
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"True love is a boot in a human face. True love is imposing the will of The State for the benefit of the many. True love, Dear Stella, means allowing the many to benefit from the abuse of the few." -Aleš Kot, The New World
The New World #1 from Image Comics -
The old world is dead. In 2037, nuclear weapons exploded over several major cities in what once was The United States of America. Invading forces occupy a large swath of what was once called The Land of the Free and The Home of the Brave, bringing the resistance to heel. But not everywhere. California, allied with neighboring states, has managed to not only repel the invaders but to reestablish order - an order in which The State is the unquestionable, absolute authority. To resist is to invite erasure...Yet, there are still those who try to stand against the system. Kirby Miyazaki, a brilliant hacker, is one such dissident. Stella Maris, on the other hand, is the darling of the system - she is a superstar law enforcement officer with her own rebellious streak and granddaughter of the President of California. Predator and prey. Natural enemies...But what happens when they fall head over heels in love?
From brilliant scribe, Aleš Kot (Wolf), comes this post-apocalyptic, dystopian love story, The New World. Just a bit reminiscent of George Orwell's seminal work, Nineteen Eighty-Four, The New World introduces us to a familiar, but futuristic California that seems to have prospered after the bombs exploded and the invaders came. But things change once we discover that militarized police keep the seemingly happy citizenry in line and that a barbaric voting system is used to decide whether criminals, or other specified targets of the state, will live or be executed for the entertainment of the masses on live television. Enter our protagonists, Stella Maris, and Kirby Miyazaki. Stella is one of The State's top law-enforcement officers, one who always gets her man, but refuses to kill any of them. Kirby is a genius hacker with an individualist streak a mile wide - and he's ready to give the system a little pain for the pain it caused him, and his father, years ago when it snatched his mother away. It seems that Stella's rebellious streak may come from a very similar pain. A series of random events bring them together in a whirlwind of a night of passion...After which Stella discovers that her new love is The State's new Public Enemy No. 1! Wow. This book is top-notch. It's slick, gripping, and balances precariously on the thin line between advocating for personal freedoms, justice, and equality, or simply pushing for anarchy. Kot's world is believable - half desirable, half monstrous - a place where sunny neighborhood barbecues and state-sanctioned, televised murder can take place simultaneously. Order through ruthless force. It's summed up quite nicely in a tongue-in-cheek splash:
Kot has fleshed his protagonists out perfectly, each with their own beautiful idiosyncracies: Kirby Miyazaki is something of a revolutionary, with shades of an anarchist, yet he is as straight-edge as they come in his personal life, coloring inside all his own self-imposed lines; Stella Maris, an agent of order, lives a life of sex, drugs, and parties, with an upscale apartment that looks like a hazardous waste dump. These two have so much in common, yet are worlds apart. I am very interested to see how their love fares, and how their lives change (or end) when The State tightens its grip. Will Kot give love a win, or will he go the same route as Orwell did in Nineteen Eighty-Four? Either way, it should be one hell of a ride, as Kot never disappoints with his observations and deeply reflective social commentaries. Tradd Moore's (The Strange Talent of Luther Strode) pencils pop - clean, dream-like, psychedelic, and strangely oppressive at times - Moore does some of his best work here, backed by Heather Moore's gorgeous colors. The $4.99 cover price may seem a bit steep, but don't let that deter you. Issue #1 is quite oversized with a hefty page count and the added pleasure of a haunting back-up story by Aaron Stewart-Ahn and Sunando C make the price more than a bargain. The New World is pure, engrossing reading bliss.
RATING: 10 out of 10.
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Gasolina #1 from the Skybound Imprint of Image Comics -
Randy and Amalia seem to be sugarcane farmers somewhere near Veracruz, Mexico. However, Randy - an American doctor, and Amalia - a beautiful but lethal Mexican woman, are way more than meets the eye. And they have dangerous a secret that kept them running and hiding for years. Just when it seems that they can stop looking over their shoulders, trouble finds them again. A missing boy. A mysterious pestilence attacking their crops. A weird, vicious death cult. And real, honest-to-goodness monsters. There's a storm coming for Randy and Mal...And there will be blood.
Seam Mackiewicz makes his first foray into comics in this atmospheric take on the drug war, and the influence, and power of the nightmare that has become the drug cartels. Mackiewicz is exploring some potentially combustible subjects here in this genre-bending crime/mystery/supernatural (sci-fi?) thriller, and I am looking forward to seeing how deftly he handles it all. Mackiewicz gives introduces us to his protagonists, Amalia and Randy, by showing us the world they inhabit, and the way that they interact with the people in it - they are kind but guarded, quick to lend a hand, and heroic, yet a lingering isolation and darkness surrounds them, separating them from their world, but never from one another. Though Mackiewicz gives us a wide view into the lives of our protagonist, and their struggles, he manages to keep much about them shrouded in a delicious mystery that will surely get me to buy the next issue. Then Mackiewicz throws in an enigmatic, savage cult/cartel resulting in the kidnapping of someone close to Randy and Mal, and a plague of monsters reminiscent of Ridley Scott's "Alien" and this book starts to feel like an odd, beguiling little rabbit-hole. Niko Walter, an artist with whom I am not in the least familiar, pulls out a strong showing on this first issue. His pencils are clean, precise, and no-frills, but very expressive - even if they seem a bit stiff at times. Mat Lopes' colors add heft to Walter's pencils and lend an oppressive atmosphere to the book which makes the story even more alluring. This comic has "MOVIE" stamped all over it...And strangely, it has the scent of great crime/mystery comics like 100 Bullets, or even mystery/crime thrillers with supernatural bents, likeGreek Street. I can't wait for issue #2.
RATING: 9 out of 10. I need to see where this goes.
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I am glad to be back with my fellow questers with another fun-filled episode of TEX'S BACK-ISSUE QUEST! Today, we churn out episode 6 of the chronicle of my journey through my first slabbing experience with CBCS!!
More than a year agone, I introduced you to an important obscure Dell western hero named...LOBO!!
Lobo #1 was printed in 1965, and the world came to know the legend of the Union-soldier-turned-gunslinger-hero...LOBO!! Well. Kinda. Actually, not really at all. Lobo didn't sell very well. Some sources say it may have sold just 10,000 copies - some retailers took one look at the color of the hero on the cover and returned the comics right back to Dell.
Unfortunately, it was the world we lived in, then. You can dive into the history of Lobo HERE. Oh, go on and click it. You know you want to. :-)
Since Lobo was largely forgotten, he languished in obscurity for more than forty years until collectors caught wind that Lobo was a VERY IMPORTANT piece of comicbook history; it featured the VERY FIRST African American to have his own title!! However, it was too little, too late. Lobo comics were scarcer than free money and smart dummies. Me? I just wanted to read it, and as luck would have it, I happened to come across a very nice copy for an incredibly low price. If I recall correctly, I paid about $25 for this comic about 10 years agone. In the past few years, collector demand has soared for Lobo, so I had mine graded and slabbed for posterity (but mostly to keep it out of my grubby hands because I LOVE to read my old comics). Here's what I went and did:
Oooh-wee!! Lookitdatrightdere!! It's my freshly-slabbed copy of Lobo #1. I had it scoped at an 8.0, but CBCS graded it at a nice 7.5. No complaints here - the thing's been read 20 times or more, so it's fine with me. Comicspriceguide has this book valued at, get this, a whopping $16!! But in the real world, Ebay values it at...Well, I can't rightly say since mine is graded higher than any sold on Ebay in recent months. Sweet. A copy graded at 6.5 sold for $595 and a few days later, a copy graded at 7.0 sold for only $450. You can see the completed listings HERE. There are only 5 for sale on Ebay right now; you can see the asking prices HERE.
Whatever the value of my book, I am sure that we can agree that it IS NOT $16. LOL!
I am really glad to have such an important key in my comics collection. And I am really glad that you took the time to visit with me today. Thank you, fellow Questers...And happy collecting!!
PS. Hey. Wanna see my other CBCS REVEALS? Click one, or click 'em all:
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Captain America, the REAL Captain America has returned. He returned in time to help save the world that was firmly in the grip of Hydra. He is the hero he always was, yet his friends, his government - the world - seem wary of trusting him again. Still, he fights, quelching a violent, bloody terrorist attack in the nation's capital, and stopping crime on the streets of NYC. But there's something deeper afoot. In Russia, Anti-Hydra groups have risen to crush the remaining Hydra loyalists led by a new, dangerous, merciless cabal called The Power Elite. In America, the president has shut Captain America out, choosing instead to tap some of Cap's best old friends and worst enemies, men and women with questionable pasts and special skill sets, to covertly track and eliminate the root of the terrorist attack - an attack carried out by soldiers wearing the American Flag itself on their faces. Captain America is out in the cold, unsanctioned, unsupported. How will Captain America take his rightful place as the living symbol of a country that he no longer recognizes, and that no longer trusts him? And where will he turn for help against the Power Elite who has found a way to insinuate themselves into our government at the highest levels?
Luminary, Ta-Nehisi Coates, best selling author who exploded into comics a little over 2 years ago with Black Panthervol 6, brings the real Captain America back to his own series in a story that highlights all the best parts of why we love Captain America. Coates shows that Steve is a man of peace, and a man of action - a reluctant, philosopher-warrior who doesn't revel in the glory of combat and carries the heavy burden of the consequences of battle on his mighty shoulders. Steve feels the alienation from the country he holds so dear, and its deep mistrust towards him. He senses that somehow, we have forgotten the price of freedom, lost our way, and to avoid the natural controlled chaos of being a free nation, we unwittingly chose the safety and order offered by a dictator with Captain America's face. And now, another enemy is inside the gates, The Power Elite, an obvious nod to C. Wright Mills' novel of the same name that shook the nation in 1956. Cap is just the man to escort them out - but how can he do it all alone, out in the cold? Coates masterfully uses the text boxes to reveal the nobility, confusion, and determination of America's greatest flag-draped hero. Leinil Francis Yu's pencils are equally masterful. From Captain America's explosive battle scenes to his thoughtful, powerful gaze, Yu's lays down panel after panel of stellar comicbook art. This story, in my opinion (useful, or useless as you find it) is the height of great comicbook storytelling - these are the types of stories that inspire readers, and make us think about our world in a different, more meaningful way. Captain America was MADE for these types of stories because, like it or not, Captain America has been a political symbol - a symbol of national ideals - since his inception. Sometimes we need to be reminded of those ideals. Sometimes, those ideals change as the nation changes, advances, and grows. Captain America is not an agent of the status quo, but an agent of the common good who, as Coates writes it, echoing Frank Miller (Daredevil vol 1, #233, 1986), "is loyal to nothing...Except the dream." Captain America #1 is simply amazing.
RATING: 11 out of 10 (extended scale).
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The Weekend Presents: Starboy #1 from Marvel Comics -
The futuristic megacity of Alphatron is on the edge of collapse. Cannibalistic crime-boss, Jack "The Chef" Smiley, has taken over all the organized crime in the city and created a unified criminal front that has overwhelmed public officials, law enforcement, and everyday citizens alike. No one is safe from Smiley - he is a ruthless, vicious, bloodthirsty criminal juggernaut that cannot be negotiated with, swayed nor stopped. In desperation, Mayor Arnold Winter commissions the creation of an equally unstoppable mechanical law enforcement corps - The Solar Police Force. The designers, genius scientist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, Isaac Starr, and his self-centered, but equally genius son, Jeremiah, have created a solution to Alphatron's crime problem...And made themselves the targets of the most soulless crime-lord in Alphatron's history. When Jack Smiley comes calling, the blood will flow, a father will fall...And a hero will rise. Maybe.
From the mind of genre-spanning recording artist, The Weekend (Abel Tesfaye), La Mar Taylor, and veteran comics writer, Christos Gage, comes this epic sci-fi stunner, The Weekend Presents: Starboy #1! Based on The Weekend's double-platinum-selling album, Starboy, this writing team delivers big time, with a cool, if familiar, sci-fi story set in a futuristic city beset by a relentless villain. The protagonist, Jeremiah, is an egotistical, genius, youth who can't seem to find a meaningful connection to the world outside himself. His only real connection is his loving father who is very preoccupied with the needs of his fellow man, much to the chagrin of his selfish son. These two men share blood, but their worldview is very different. When Jeremiah's world comes crashing down, he will find himself with new powers, and a choice to make. A great, complex protagonist, an inexorable villain, rampant corruption, and a city on the brink of destruction - this is a world in need of a hero. The Weekend, Gage and Taylor are doing some seriously great worldbuilding here. I enjoyed this book so much - it's like someone took the premise RoboCop, and elements of the origins of Iron-Man, and Ditko's creations, Spider-Man, and The Destructor, shook them all up in a bottle, and poured them all out in this super-fun, super-engaging origin story that leaves you hungry for more. I mean that last part LITERALLY, as this issue closes gracefully the most pivotal part of the origin story. The artwork, by Eric Nguyen tells the story in cinematic style with perfectly kinetic, sketchy, and expressive pencils. I hope that we haven't seen the last of The Weekend's and Marvel's Starboy. I'd happily read this series, or watch this film or TV series. I dig it. Hey, Marvel, I want more Starboy!
RATING: 9 out of 10. And I'm digging the title track to the album - a banging collabo with Daft Punk (Who doesn't like Daft Punk?). Beware, the video contains some HARSH LANGUAGE.
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Caden Park is a normal teenager with dreams of changing the world. Ever since he had a chance encounter with Superman, his mind has teemed with images of heroes. However, lately, Caden's dreams have become the darkest of nightmares - dreams in which two super-powered cabals of immortals vie for total control of the world. On the side of light, is the wise, enigmatic Immortal Man, with his army of Immortal Men who wish to leave it to humanity to shape their own destiny. Then, there is the warlike, bloodthirsty Infinite Woman, the oldest human in existence, and her army, The House of Conquest. What Caden doesn't know is that behind his dreams lie a dark reality: this once covert, ancient battle is about to be brought into the light by the bloody hands of The Batman Who Laughs who has tipped the scales in favor of conquest...And Caden will be caught in the crossfire. Will Caden survive when dreams and reality dangerously intersect?
James Tynion IV writes this mystical hero's journey, The Immortal Men #1. Tynion gives us Caden Park, a teenager that wants to be a part of something bigger than himself, a teenager plagued by nightmares of a battle that he can't understand - visions containing a man with ancient eyes that see right into the depths of Caden's soul. The story is quite gripping (even if the dialogue seems a bit clunky at times), quickly paced, and introduces us to intriguing new villains that look like they could become major players in the dynamics of the DCU. And I am really excited to see one of my favorites, The Immortal Man, return to the DCU, even if he doesn't stay around. With all this going for the story, I am sorry to say that Park and the Immortal Men haven't really captured my imagination as much as the villains, and the trajectory of the overall story itself. The mystery of the millennia-old battle and how it has shaped the DCU intrigues me, and the villains drip danger; but the heroes look weak, disorganized, and whiny by comparison. I can't say I really dig that, even though I understand that Infinity Woman and The Batman Who Laughs have them on the ropes. As far as the art goes, Jim Lee, and Ryan Benjamin dig a great job with this book, especially on the darker, nightmarish panels. Although I'm not totally sold on the heroes, I'm definitely sold on the story and the villains; Immortal Men has a lot of potential. I am looking forward to this journey that will probably take us down a rabbit-hole that unlocks many of the mysteries of the DCU.
RATING: 7.5 out of 10.
NOTE: In the DCU, it seems that Resurrection Man has kind of replaced Immortal Man. Resurrection Man debuted in one of the best series that came out of the 1990's which you can read HERE. I have no idea how Resurrection Man has been overlooked in DC film and TV.
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I am so glad to be able to join you once more in the continuation of our celebration of the life of a creative who would become a key contributor to the birth of the Marvel Universe as we know it; a man who would also leave an indelible mark on the DCU, and the entire comics industry.
Of course, I'm talking about the gone, but never-to-be-forgotten, Steve Ditko, may he rest in peace.
A few days back, we studied the story of Mr. A, who was probably Steve Ditko's most personal creation. Today, we consider Mr. A again, sort of, but not really. Just hang loose; all will be explained as we seek to find answers by exploring...
THE QUESTION!!!
Above, is my copy of Blue Beetle, vol 5, #1 published by Charlton Comics in June of 1967. This comic marks the first time that Ted Kord, Blue Beetle II, got his own title, but more importantly (at least to me anyhow), it is the comic in which Steve Ditko's faceless superhero, The Question, made his explosive debut!! Blue Beetle II, The Question, and Mr. A all come from the fertile mind of Steve Ditko!
Not to worry - there will be more to come on Blue Beetle II later. I'm a man of my word. :-)
Now, the obvious QUESTION (See what I did there?) is: Which came first, The Question or the very similar Mr. A? My answer is not going to satisfy you: I just am not sure. I read part of an interview in which it seems that Ditko implied that Mr. A came first, and that The Question was created solely out of the necessity for a companion feature for Blue Beetle in his new comicbook series:
W
hen Blue Beetle got his own magazine, they needed a companion feature for it. I didn't want to [use] Mr. A, because I didn't think the Code would let me do the type of stories I wanted to do, so I worked up the Question, using the basic idea of a man who was motivated by basic black & white principles. Where other "heroes" powers are based on some accidental super element, The Question and Mr A's "power" is deliberately knowing what is right and acting accordingly. But it is one of choice. Of choosing to know what is right and choosing to act on that knowledge in all his thoughts and actions with everyone he deals with. No conflict or contradiction in his behavior in either identity. He isn't afraid to know or refuse to act on what is right no matter in what situation he finds himself.
Where other heroes choose to be self-made neurotics, the Question and Mr. A choose to be psychologically and intellectually healthy. It's a choice everyone has to make.
This quote from Ditko himself, leads me to believe that Mr. A was conceptualized, and realized before The Question. However, other comics scholars like the late, great Don Markstein, and Mr. Steve Replogle (thanks for your comments!), believe that it was indeed The Question that came first. Others still, like Thom Young over at comicsbulletin.com, believe that they were possibly created with some semblance of simultaneity. But which appeared in print first? That should be a question that is easy to answer...But, no. Since witzend #3 has no publication month, it's really hard to actually pin down which character appeared in print first without access to some other firsthand sources. But as to which character inspired the creation of the other, I do believe that Steve Ditko's above quote gives us some insight to the answer - and to me, that answer seems to be Mr. A.
The Question is Vic Sage, an incorruptible TV reporter in the fictional Hub City. Vic is secretly the vigilante known as...The Question! He is out for justice, armed only with his keen detective skills (honed by years as a journalist), his fists, and a faceless mask made of a new material material called pseuododerm, an artificial skin pioneered by Vic's friend, accomplice, and mentor, Aristotle "Tot" Rodor. The pseudoderm is donned by Sage whenever it's crime-smashing time. It is activated by a special gas, also invented by Tot, that cements the pseudoderm to Vic's skin, and reacts to chemicals that he has sprayed on his hair and clothing to give him a totally new identity as The Question!
In his first adventure, The Question is hot on the trail of a crime-boss named Lou Dicer. You can read it HERE. The Question, like Ditko implied, is a Comics-Code-acceptable version of Mr. A - he's still an embodiment of Ayn Rand's Objectivism, yet a bit watered down so as not to ruffle the feathers of the Comics Code Authority. The Question appeared in all five issues of Blue Beetle, vol 5, and in the cool Charlton one-shot, Mysterious Suspense, which was the first comic totally dedicated to The Question. Soon after, Charlton's action hero line went the way of the dinosaurs, and it seemed that The Question was going too. But at least Ditko could still give voice to his philosophy via Mr. A in Wally Wood's witzend. Eventually, DC would end up with many of Charlton's action heroes (you can read more on the whys of that HERE), but The Question wouldn't reappear, with several other Charlton heroes, until 1985 in issue #6 of Marv Wolfman's and George Pérez's SWEEPING EPIC, Crisis on Infinite Earths, a series which this humble fan refers to as "the SINGLE GREATEST event comic in history." Seen as denizens and heroes of Earth Four, The Question, Captain Atom, Blue Beetle, and other Charlton heroes are brought into the DCU in Wolfman's and Perez's chronicle of the desperate fight to save the multiverse from the Anti-Monitor.
(You can read the entire series HERE - if you haven't, you SHOULD)
Alan Moore wanted to use The Question, and others of the Charlton action line for his legendary 1986 series, The Watchmen. Moore wanted to kill the character off (Moore deeply disliked Mr. A, and The Question), but DC had future plans for him, and the other Charlton heroes DC owned. So, Moore was forced to create new characters, thus The Question spawned Rorschach.
Ironically, in a classic story in The Question, vol 1, #17, we find out exactly what The Question thinks of Rorschach: HE SUCKS. LOL.
(Source: Revolution Science-Fiction)
You can read a great article by Jayme Blaschke on it HERE, or read issue #17 for yourself, HERE.
Soon, DC's plans for The Question materialized. They put him back in publication in his very own series, for the very first time. So, in February of 1987, The Question, vol 1, kicked off with a POWERFUL first issue:
The chosen scribe was comics veteran, Dennis "Denny" O'Neal, and the interior artist was one of the best of the age, the VERY unsung penciler, Denys Cowan - and if you know comics, you'll instantly recognize that cover as the work of the one-and-only Bill Sienkiewicz. O'Neal, who did not share Ditko's views, decided that the best thing to do was to give the character something like a soft reboot...by KILLING him off in the first issue!!! The Question is soundly beaten by one of DC's deadliest fighters, Lady Shiva (hired by Vic Sage's enemy, Rev. Hatch), and handed over to two henchmen to be viciously pummeled to a pulp, and finally shot in the heat and dumped in a river.
Yeah. Talk about a bad day.
Luckily, Shiva saves The Question out of respect for him, and delivers him to Richard Dragon, another of DC's greatest fighters, who hones Sage's physical prowess, combat skills, and most importantly, his new Zen-like philosophy that moves him away from Diko's Objectivist point-of-view. O'Neal knew that only Ditko could write The Question in the Objectivist way, the way in which he was conceived, so O'Neal killed and resurrected the character to take him in an entirely new direction. The series ran for 37 issues, and 2 Annuals, and then spawned a follow-on series, The Question Quarterly. As much as I love Ditko, I have to admit that this volume of The Question hangs in my mind as a truly legendary series - so much so, that I would, without hesitation, recognize it as one of the best series of the 80s, and one of my favorites of all time. It is one of the few titles of which I own a COMPLETE run (don't judge me - I am not a completist):
(The Question vol 1, issues 2 through 6, from my collection)
You can read the series HERE. I hope you read it, enjoy it, and come back and let me know what you think about it.
In 2007's series, 52, things went badly for Ditko's creations. The Blue Beetle was murdered, and The Question died of lung cancer, leaving his protege, Renee Montoya, to be the new Question.
In 2011, once again, The Question was retconned in The New 52, seen as one of several beings punished on The Rock of Eternity for unrevealed sins. Made to forget his face and identity, he is supernaturally forced to seek out his own identity, and solve conspiracies and crimes:
The Trinity of Sin (The Phantom Stranger, Pandora, and The Question)
As of now, Vic Sage has been retconned to have no ties to The Question. He was a high-level government agent over Task Force X (Suicide Squad) until he screwed up. Then he went rogue, and tried to take down Amanda Waller. You can guess where that got him.
Needless to say, this iteration on Vic Sage is a real head-scratcher. Nope. I don't like it.
The Question, and Mr. A: two very similar characters churned from the same feverishly inventive mind. Whether you dig The Question or Mr. A more probably has to do with your own personal beliefs and worldview; however, the fact is that both of these characters are part of a great legacy. Both reflect the complex life philosophy, thought processes, and moral beliefs of a singular creative icon in varying degrees of intensity. The Question was created with more of an intent to be accepted by the comics mainstream - an audience that Ditko knew wouldn't swallow Mr. A's bitter pills of his treasured, hardline philosophy. And he was right. The Question has a rather large following, especially after he debuted on The WB's smash series, Justice League Unlimited, quickly becoming a fast favorite:
But Mr. A? He is still only known to hardcore Ditko fans, comics enthusiasts with a love for comics history, and probably, followers of Objectivism. Maybe Mr. A will find a wider audience someday - I can't say, but The Question has, with a great bit of dilution, begun to bridge the wide gap between prevailing worldviews, and Rand's philosophy. Like Mary Poppins said, "A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down." I have been taking this medicine happily for many years: The Question is one of my favorite Ditko creations, and one of my favorite superheroes.
Thank you for reading!
IN LOVING MEMORY OF STEVE DITKO (1927-2018)
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