That must be the newer editions they released a few years ago, with about 12 issues each. They're great. Only six volumes instead of the original 9.
You must've gotten that on sale because normal cover price is $20.
[Comics] The "Let's Bitch about Comics thread!"
- Thread starter Yoshimickster
- Start date
You must've gotten that on sale because normal cover price is $20.
Amazon has lower book prices on the U.S. site.
Found the true Marvel site.
BananaHands
Staff member
Is that the new Ms. Marvel series? I heard it was great.
It is. Kamala Khan is that perfect mix of put-upon and forever burned in her normal life, but joyous and excited in her superhero life. I get tired of superheroes angsting about what they can do; the only one I'm okay with it from is the Hulk. As with the better incarnations of Spider-man, the best part of Ms Marvel's day is when she gets to put on the costume and be Ms Marvel.
I'm in a conundrum of trying to catch up so I can read it monthly, but also not wanting to go too fast and be out of comics to read.
I'm checking out Brian Michael Bendis's run of Guardians of the Galaxy from the Marvel Now line, and it's actually pretty good. I've seen a few things people mention him being good with.
So why is Civil War II written so poorly? I don't just mean the deaths now; I went into #1 to read some and between the poor dialogue (oh yeah oh yeah oh yeah), the poor characterization (Tony Stark and Carol Danvers, recovering alcoholics who joke about drinks tonight--classy!), and hand-waving current events of the Marvel universe (mutants are dying because of the Inhumans, but the X-Men are fine hanging out with Medusa and crew because "it's a party"), it's a shit show.
My guess, and what I'm gleaning from other Bendis stuff, is that he doesn't care. When he gives a shit, it shows, and when he doesn't, it also shows. While ALL of these properties exist to make money--even Marvel's push for the Inhumans, regardless of actual sales, is to prime them for the spotlight later when they hope to reap the profits--there's a difference between a money-maker story where the writer has a story to tell and one where it is just the money, not the soul of it, and Civil War II #1 reads like exactly what it is, a corporate decision. Everyone's a chess piece, and there are kings and queens, knights and pawns. Doesn't matter who they are as a character, just that character's connections and role. Tony blames Carol for Rhodey's death because each is the leader of a pre-determined side, despite how obvious a threat like Thanos would be for the use of the future sight power. No one listens to Tony that they shouldn't be so quick to trust Ulysses because if they did, the conflict wouldn't so immediately lead to the Inhumans storming Stark Tower later this month. And so on.
So, I won't write Bendis off entirely, which is what I thought I'd be doing after reading this dreck. But I will be careful, especially since the Marvel Now run of Guardians doesn't seem to be collected properly into trades (please correct me if I'm wrong; I'd really like to get this--the run with Venom and Kitty Pryde). (EDIT: Never mind. There was the Marvel Now run, and then the new run, but Marvel calls them both ongoing. See? This is the problem with constantly resetting to #1; it gets really difficult to figure out which volumes correspond with what you want to read since the collection numbering becomes useless.)
Maybe later on in Civil War II, Bendis will start to care and the writing will get better. Kinda doubt it, but they have seven issues of this to go, so who knows?
So why is Civil War II written so poorly? I don't just mean the deaths now; I went into #1 to read some and between the poor dialogue (oh yeah oh yeah oh yeah), the poor characterization (Tony Stark and Carol Danvers, recovering alcoholics who joke about drinks tonight--classy!), and hand-waving current events of the Marvel universe (mutants are dying because of the Inhumans, but the X-Men are fine hanging out with Medusa and crew because "it's a party"), it's a shit show.
My guess, and what I'm gleaning from other Bendis stuff, is that he doesn't care. When he gives a shit, it shows, and when he doesn't, it also shows. While ALL of these properties exist to make money--even Marvel's push for the Inhumans, regardless of actual sales, is to prime them for the spotlight later when they hope to reap the profits--there's a difference between a money-maker story where the writer has a story to tell and one where it is just the money, not the soul of it, and Civil War II #1 reads like exactly what it is, a corporate decision. Everyone's a chess piece, and there are kings and queens, knights and pawns. Doesn't matter who they are as a character, just that character's connections and role. Tony blames Carol for Rhodey's death because each is the leader of a pre-determined side, despite how obvious a threat like Thanos would be for the use of the future sight power. No one listens to Tony that they shouldn't be so quick to trust Ulysses because if they did, the conflict wouldn't so immediately lead to the Inhumans storming Stark Tower later this month. And so on.
So, I won't write Bendis off entirely, which is what I thought I'd be doing after reading this dreck. But I will be careful, especially since the Marvel Now run of Guardians doesn't seem to be collected properly into trades (please correct me if I'm wrong; I'd really like to get this--the run with Venom and Kitty Pryde). (EDIT: Never mind. There was the Marvel Now run, and then the new run, but Marvel calls them both ongoing. See? This is the problem with constantly resetting to #1; it gets really difficult to figure out which volumes correspond with what you want to read since the collection numbering becomes useless.)
Maybe later on in Civil War II, Bendis will start to care and the writing will get better. Kinda doubt it, but they have seven issues of this to go, so who knows?
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BananaHands
Staff member
Oh man, we have opposite reactions to his Guardians of the Galaxy. It's not the worst, but it poops all over the team's old run.
I never read it, so maybe I'd feel the same? I like how Bendis writes Rocket. I'm actually kind of curious about the Marvel Now part as well--at the point where Iron Man is there, it feels way more like Tony Stark than Civil War II.
But like I said, I never read the previous run, and from what I understand that's the run that the movie is based on. The main complaint I'm reading about the Bendis run is Marvel-itis, in that there's a shit-ton of cameos and crossovers.
The pricing on the Guardians volumes is ridiculous. I don't know why Marvel has a hard-on for hardcovers for these, but it's not worth the price. Maybe they'll release paperbacks later.
BananaHands
Staff member
If you have the time and patience to read through all of this, it's extremely rewarding. The Guardians (with the exception of Rocket) are a lot different from what you're reading but it's super good.
I've seen some stuff I like about the Bendis run, but the Original Sin tie-in was such a slap in the face to any person who read cosmic Marvel before his run so it left a sour taste. He just didn't care to read the source material and it just came off as insulting to the writers and fans of the Thanos Imperative event.
I don't think I'll be reading the stuff leading up to and around Original Sin, so no worries there. I'm kinda avoiding any past forced event stuff like the plague--Civil War II filtering into the books I like is already dispiriting.
If you have the time and patience to read through all of this, it's extremely rewarding. The Guardians (with the exception of Rocket) are a lot different from what you're reading but it's super good.
I've seen some stuff I like about the Bendis run, but the Original Sin tie-in was such a slap in the face to any person who read cosmic Marvel before his run so it left a sour taste. He just didn't care to read the source material and it just came off as insulting to the writers and fans of the Thanos Imperative event.
I'm sure that chart follows an amazing story, but it's a daunting number of books. Would you say it's worth reading the Abnett run of Guardians (vol 1, vol 2, Thanos Imperative) on its own, or not to bother unless I'm going to read all that other stuff in the chart?
I poked in on this recent Guardians stuff because throwing in the likes of Kitty Pryde, the Thing, and Venom seemed like it'd be wacky adventure time, and having them make up half the group kinda changes what the team is. I'm not sure if it's fun anyway, but my curiosity wasn't because I'm expecting the same great cosmic story as what's in that chart. I doubt the Rocket Raccoon & Groot comic is in the same vein as all that either though. Right now it seems like each member of the Abnett run's team has their own title thanks to the movie.
Abnett/Lanning wrote the majority of those books, actually. I honestly say it's all worth it because it's great, huge, cosmic fun. Plus, it's largely separate from all the crossovers going on at the time (Civil War and such). Most of the stuff is collected really well, too. I think they released a nice, big omnibus of Annihilation and maybe Conquest, too. I have them in the volumes above. They released two volumes of Guardians that collect the whole series. I also recommend the Nova series, not only because a lot of it's important, but it's a LOT of fun.
You can also skip the Silver Surfer and Annihilators stuff altogether, I think. You could easily end it on The Thanos Imperative.
The only part where I find the whole Cosmic Marvel stumbles a bit is War of Kings. It's not bad, but it's a little jumbled because it mixes in some X-Men and Inhuman stuff that I find isn't as interesting. Especially the villain in it. It gets interesting again with Realm of Kings and, as I said, finishes off great with Thanos Imperative.
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BananaHands
Staff member
This is all worded perfectly. You could definitely stick with Guardians of the Galaxy up to The Thanos Imperative, but you'd be cheating yourself out on a lot of great moments without Richard Rider.
Once you've read a lot of Richard Rider Nova, you'll understand why nobody likes Sam Nova.
Just think, kids. With DC's Rebirth crow-barring Watchmen into continuity, we're another step closer to this:
Well, they made cartoons out of RoboCop and The Toxic Avenger. Anything's possible.
Neither of those were self-contained stories, though.
My point was more in terms of them being mature-rated content turned into Saturday morning cartoons. Also, I think Before Watchmen was that first seed in expanding Watchmen beyond just that core story.
Either way, it would be terrible and I thank you for posting that video. It had been a while since I'd seen the Saturday Morning Watchmen video.
Best thing I've heard from Tom Bevroot lately was that if Marvel on the property they would have been in continuity years ago.
Using them is not going to somehow ruin or tarnish the original work, and if people are upset on Alan Moore's behalf then screw 'em.
Honestly I just can't wait for Captain Atom and Doctor Manhattan to meet.
Using them is not going to somehow ruin or tarnish the original work, and if people are upset on Alan Moore's behalf then screw 'em.
Honestly I just can't wait for Captain Atom and Doctor Manhattan to meet.
There's absolutely zero need for the characters to be part of the DC Universe. None. Their story was told, it ended, and that should be it. It was a self-contained book that had no need for prequels, sequels, or crossovers.
Plus, the DCU is populated enough as it is. They'll be shuffled away and forgotten about, anyway, just like most of the Wildstorm characters.
BananaHands
Staff member
Hayley Atwell: 'Captain America: Civil War' Actress Says Kiss in Film Was 'Disrespectful' to Character
Come on. Sharon Carter has always been Captain America's love interest.
Come on. Sharon Carter has always been Captain America's love interest.
Not only that, but the DCU already has the original characters the watchmen ones where based on... and it's kind of funny that the reason why Moore didn't get to just use the originals was because DC, at the time, realised that the characters would be "unusable" after a story like that... guess current DC disagrees.
Wasn't Peggy Carter actually a retcon that came after Sharon?
EDIT: Look like Peggy came 2 issues after Sharon... and they where originally sisters... heh.
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BananaHands
Staff member
In the comics, yeah. But in the movie universe, it feels a little out-of-character for Steve. It's not that Steve wouldn't move on with his life, but with the niece of his crush/love? I feel like he should have been a little more conflicted with that. On the other hand, the reaction of all three characters (Sam and Bucky in the car, Steve's blush) was worth it.
While I was in my local comic shop today, a woman came in and asked one of the workers, "How much are your comics?", whipping a random comic in the worker's face. When the worker told her, she said, "Where? Where? I don't see a price?!" until finally, the worker pointed the $2.99 in big bold on the front cover.
As she was leaving, she said to her husband, "I'm surprised there aren't any people like you seen in Big Bang Theory!"
Apparently conversations like that happen often, especially during tourist season. But I mean, who would go into any other store and say something like that? No one would go into a bookstore and say, "How much are your books?!" Or ask "How much are your groceries?" in a grocery store.
As she was leaving, she said to her husband, "I'm surprised there aren't any people like you seen in Big Bang Theory!"
Apparently conversations like that happen often, especially during tourist season. But I mean, who would go into any other store and say something like that? No one would go into a bookstore and say, "How much are your books?!" Or ask "How much are your groceries?" in a grocery store.
"I remember when comics were $1.25"
Good for you you fucking cheapskate. I remember when gas was around 90¢ a gallon, you don't see me pestering the owner of my local shell station about it every time I fill up. Said books were also on shitty newsprint paper, with a 4 color printing process that restricted what was possible for the artist. Speaking of creators, they make a lot more money now, and are treated far better now by the industry than ever before. So yeah, comics are more expensive now than they were when you were a kid. Everything is, and comics fought off price increases due to inflation for years and it had to catch up sometime.
Well, they where already shown to be attracted to each other before he found out who she was...
But, yeah, doing it so soon after the funeral was a bit iffy... but, hey, movie run times and all that.
I assume she didn't buy anything?
Heh, of course not.
Civil War II updates
The bad news: There's at least one big death left; Marvel it touting it as the fall of one of the greatest, I'm guessing in Civil War II #4. Because the only way to escalate drama is to kill a hero -_-. I partly blame Marvel, but after stuff I learned today, I also blame fans. Apparently Avengers vs X-Men was criticized by readers because despite the highs takes, there was "only" one death. Never mind that interesting things were done to expand on the Phoenix, or that relationships changed and developed. Gotta get that carnage scale going. They demanded, and Marvel is delivering.
The good news: Civil War II is NOT a monthly comic! Issues are releasing every 2-3 weeks, so it'll be over late September. I'm so relieved; I thought this would hang around all year.
The bad news: There's at least one big death left; Marvel it touting it as the fall of one of the greatest, I'm guessing in Civil War II #4. Because the only way to escalate drama is to kill a hero -_-. I partly blame Marvel, but after stuff I learned today, I also blame fans. Apparently Avengers vs X-Men was criticized by readers because despite the highs takes, there was "only" one death. Never mind that interesting things were done to expand on the Phoenix, or that relationships changed and developed. Gotta get that carnage scale going. They demanded, and Marvel is delivering.
The good news: Civil War II is NOT a monthly comic! Issues are releasing every 2-3 weeks, so it'll be over late September. I'm so relieved; I thought this would hang around all year.
Patsy Walker aka Hellcat joins the list of All New, All Different Marvel comics that will end in their first year. The writer "accidentally" leaked this yesterday on Twitter.
Why is it getting cancelled? Probably due to what I'm told are terrible sales. If anyone knows how many issues a comic needs to sell each month to continue being profitable, I'd love to know. Hellcat was around 10k to 12k a month, I think. Vision will end this year too, at issue #12.
Why is it getting cancelled? Probably due to what I'm told are terrible sales. If anyone knows how many issues a comic needs to sell each month to continue being profitable, I'd love to know. Hellcat was around 10k to 12k a month, I think. Vision will end this year too, at issue #12.
That's definitely in the cancellation range for Marvel.
There's no hard number, sometimes a book will fill a role or audience a publisher wants and so they will keep it around despite sales, just to have some diversity in their lineup (see Jonah Hex/All-star Western from DC during the mid to late aughts). With 80+ titles the only roll Hellcat was serving was shoving independent titles off of comic racks.
Vision is ending because Tom King signed an exclusive with DC and gets to write Batman. He was able/allowed to wrap up the book, so it's going to 12 then it's finished. I think it's safe to say that the title wouldn't survived a writer change.
There's no hard number, sometimes a book will fill a role or audience a publisher wants and so they will keep it around despite sales, just to have some diversity in their lineup (see Jonah Hex/All-star Western from DC during the mid to late aughts). With 80+ titles the only roll Hellcat was serving was shoving independent titles off of comic racks.
Vision is ending because Tom King signed an exclusive with DC and gets to write Batman. He was able/allowed to wrap up the book, so it's going to 12 then it's finished. I think it's safe to say that the title wouldn't survived a writer change.
Oh yeah, I know when it suits the company's desires, a title will stick around no matter what. No other reason to have three Inhumans books
.I liked it as a continuation of Charles Soule's run of She-Hulk, but I don't think Marvel would ever do the kind of marketing push on it needed to get a real target audience into comic book stores to buy it. With She-Hulk dead, I was ready to drop it and A-Force anyway. This just gave me the impetus to do so.
I don't think anyone would've wanted it continuing under another writer. It just would've been nice to get a long run on what was a very interesting project. But Marvel isn't the place for long runs anymore, according to an interview with Tom Brevoort. On the upshot, this should be an excellent run of Batman.
I knew it.