Seriously though, this is an attempt to present a few of my all-time favorite comics and recommend them to you (highly). Since I've read so many great ones, it's impossible to list all of them in one post, so I'll highlight them a few at a time, starting with these ones right here today.
I'll start with a 'Canadian Classic':
ALPHA FLIGHT # 23
Truth be told, this comic doesn't come from Canada at all, but at least writer/artist John Byrne actually lived in Canada and all of the stories take place here....and at least one major character gets to say 'eh' all the time, eh? I've spouted off plenty about Alpha Flight and Sasquatch before, and I don't feel like repeating myself (yeah....like I never do that). If you are really dying to know more about this awesome comic title and Sasquatch in particular, check out this previous post, Marvel Legends - Sasquatch . I'm pretty sure there's a full synopsis of this issue in there.....
Let's just say it's all about two giant bigfoots(feets?) laying the smackdown in downtown Vancouver. Throw in a hot Quebecois girlfriend with a multiple personality disorder and a Dwarf in a wetsuit and you've got a rollicking good time, eh?
ROCKET RACCOON Limited Series (1985) # 1-4
Although I had erroneously stated in a previous post that Rocket Raccoon was first introduced in The Incredible Hulk #271 in 1982 (see Bronze Age Keys from a little while back), I just read that his first appearance was actually in 1976 in Marvel Preview #7. So I was wrong...sue me. None of that matters, because the Rocket Raccoon limited series in 1985 was the pinnacle of Rocky's career in my humble opinion.
Like I said before, this isn't for everyone, but I found it to be an excellent read, and the artwork by Mike Mignola (later famous for Hellboy, of course) is fantastic. It's a silly-looking comic that actually takes itself pretty seriously and manages to pull it off. I preferred the limited series over Rocky's Hulk appearances, since we didn't have the Hulk as an earth-based counterpoint, and it takes place entirely within it's own universe. I guess that makes it more 'believable' to me...and easier to accept a gunslinging, robot-fighting bipedal talking raccoon....and let's not forget the otter and rabbit and walrus either.
READ IT! BEFORE YOU DIE!!
AMBUSH BUG Limited Series (1985) # 1-4
Early on in my comic collecting life, I was a bit of a DC hater. I didn't actually know why, I just knew that Marvel comics were cooler. Maybe I just couldn't forgive the cheesiness of The Superfriends and the 60's Batman TV show (and let's not forget the Shazam! show...). It took me a while to get over my fear of DC comics... I think Saga of the Swamp Thing #1 was my actual first DC Comic purchase, but then I eventually got wise to Vigilante and then the greatest DC non-superhero of all time: Ambush Bug.
This limited series is jam-packed full of jokes, many of which I didn't understand, since they were about characters and situations in the DC Universe that I knew little to nothing about. This comic is DC's way of making fun of itself, and that obviously appealed to me. I found myself actually wanting to know more about Superman & Batman & Wonderwoman and the like, just so I could get the jokes in Ambush Bug. That being said, I wasn't going to risk wasting my money buying more DC comics while the Secret Wars limited series was going on... Besides the abovementioned titles, I didn't buy many DCs at all until this millenium (sounds like a really long time when you use the word 'millenium').
Anyway, Ambush Bug rules because he's basically aware of his audience and his place in the fictional comic book world....and constantly refers to us readers as 'fanboy'. His sidekick is a seemingly inanimate, super-cutesy doll in a homemade super-suit named Cheeks the Wonder Toy. His arch-enemy is Argh!Yle! an evil, sentient sock who wears a Dr. Doom-like iron mask. Ambush Bug himself has only one real power - teleportation. This allows him to basically disappear and reappear wherever it's funniest to do so.
Overall, one of the stupidest comic series that I've ever read....followed closely by the Ambush Bug Stocking Stuffer #1 (X-mas 1985) and the Son of Ambush Bug limited series (1986). There's also the recently produced Ambush Bug-Year None limited series which sort of recaptures the stupidity of the original. Rest assured there are a lot more stupid Ambush Bug appearances...all of which I'll hopefully read before the final curtain....
By now, one might assume that all I like are silly comics, but you couldn't be more mistaken. Case in point:
ELRIC-The Sailor on the Seas of Fate # 1-7
I love the writings of Michael Moorcock. His books are always full of violence and gore and the occasional bit of sex. Pretty raunchy for the fantasy genre. He has produced a lot of great characters, including Prince Corum, Hawkmoon and Jerry Cornelius....but his greatest and most well-known character has to be Elric of Melnibone - the gaunt, brooding albino anti-hero, who (with the help of the sentient, soul-stealing black sword Stormbringer) feeds off of the life energy of his opponents. He's kind of evil, but usually finds himself combating far greater evils and protecting the innocent as well as those few he can call 'friend'. Initially unknown to Elric, his life is all part of the cycle of the Eternal Champion...as are Corum, Hawkmoon and Erekose...all of whom he meets in this limited series (adapted from the novel of the same name) and allies himself with.
The comic book adaptation is done by Roy Thomas and Michael T. Gilbert. Very well done, in fact. Being a 'Mature Readers Only' comic, you could always expect a good level of gore, and at least you could catch a glimpse or two of some boobies in comic book form every month (this was, of course, very important at age 13). I can't remember if I actually read these comics or the novels first. There are comic book adaptations of at least six Elric novels that I know of, and I don't know what order I read either the comics or books in. Sailor on the Seas of Fate is my favorite, and The Vanishing Tower is a close second.
When it comes to 'swords and sorcery' type fantasy, Elric has to be my favorite character. No disrespect, but he's so not Conan.
GODZILLA - King of the Monsters # 1 (Marvel 1977)
I just couldn't go any further without mentioning Godzilla. I am a die-hard G-fan for life and appreciate Godzilla in all his forms, the 70's Marvel version being no exception. He's more like the real Japanese Godzilla in this than in the Godzilla animated series from roughly the same era, and certainly more than the disappointing 1998 Hollywood production, but still not quite the same. According to this comic, he appears in Alaska and then makes his way across the western United States and somehow finds his way to New York City. Along the way he encounters many Marvel Universe icons, like S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, the Fantastic Four and the Avengers...and less iconic characters such as Dr. Demonicus and the Champions. While it's nice to see Big G battling Thor and Hercules, it just doesn't feel quite right. Instead of blue radiation beams, Godzilla apparently spews actual flames from his mouth. He also looks a lot more lizard-like and leaner than his Toho counterpart. Still, it's great fun to see how America would deal with this walking natural disaster instead of seeing the same old crowd scenes of Japanese people running around in utter panic. (And there's no horrible voice-over dubbing in the printed version either.)
If you call yourself a giant monster fan at all, you absolutely need to own this comic. Next to Alpha Flight # 23 , this is the one comic I wish I could take with me to the next world when I die. I'm hoping they'll at least allow for carry-on luggage so I can take more than one...
If that is the case...y'all better start packing! Don't forget to include these titles on your Comic Book Bucket List, and stay tuned for some more essential reading!
Until Next time,
May the Force be with you...
I just couldn't go any further without mentioning Godzilla. I am a die-hard G-fan for life and appreciate Godzilla in all his forms, the 70's Marvel version being no exception. He's more like the real Japanese Godzilla in this than in the Godzilla animated series from roughly the same era, and certainly more than the disappointing 1998 Hollywood production, but still not quite the same. According to this comic, he appears in Alaska and then makes his way across the western United States and somehow finds his way to New York City. Along the way he encounters many Marvel Universe icons, like S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, the Fantastic Four and the Avengers...and less iconic characters such as Dr. Demonicus and the Champions. While it's nice to see Big G battling Thor and Hercules, it just doesn't feel quite right. Instead of blue radiation beams, Godzilla apparently spews actual flames from his mouth. He also looks a lot more lizard-like and leaner than his Toho counterpart. Still, it's great fun to see how America would deal with this walking natural disaster instead of seeing the same old crowd scenes of Japanese people running around in utter panic. (And there's no horrible voice-over dubbing in the printed version either.)
If you call yourself a giant monster fan at all, you absolutely need to own this comic. Next to Alpha Flight # 23 , this is the one comic I wish I could take with me to the next world when I die. I'm hoping they'll at least allow for carry-on luggage so I can take more than one...
If that is the case...y'all better start packing! Don't forget to include these titles on your Comic Book Bucket List, and stay tuned for some more essential reading!
Until Next time,
May the Force be with you...
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