Originally published June 20, 1997, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1231
Haven’t checked the mail in some time, so I thought we’d give it a look. This week’s missive comes from Michael G. in Paramus, New Jersey. Michael writes:
Category: But I Digress…
Comics review: A Touch of Silver
Originally published June 13, 1997, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1230
Back when Image Comics first started up, I expressed the opinion in these pages that I felt, personally, a little disappointed over the choice of superheroes for the subject matter of the line. My point (and, as Ellen DeGeneres says, I do have one) was that other comic creators had broken away from Marvel and DC to produce comics that were wildly away from the norm of “the Big Two.” And that I felt an opportunity was being missed to expand the horizons of comic book readers who thought that guys in tights were the be-all/end-all of what comics could provide.
This sentiment was attributed all sorts of misinterpretations and (naturally) evil ulterior motives, when all it was was one dope with a column saying, in essence, “Gee, I’d just liked to have seen something different, that’s all.”
Miscellaneous Thoughts
Originally published June 6, 1997, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1229
Miscellany…
It’s trailer season, and the two major comic book-related entries could not be more different. While the Batman and Robin trailer makes me wince at the clunky costumes and dialogue, the Men in Black trailer absolutely kicks butt.
Revisionist History
Originally published May 30, 1997, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1228
Essayists and political analysts with far more political savvy than I (which, frankly, isn’t all that much of a trick) have been commenting that President Bill Clinton has his eye on the history books. That his current policies and actions are being taken, not only with a consideration towards how they will affect his constituency (namely everyone) but also how he will be perceived by future voters and generations.
It’s evocative, to a certain degree, of some of former-president Nixon’s actions, which were allegedly taken–not out self-preservation or an eagerness to cover up the potentially criminal activities of himself or others–but rather out of obligation to future generations of presidents (to say nothing of future burglars and cover-up artists) and how he himself would be portrayed by historians.
And it’s been interesting to see how both historians and politicians have viewed, or even manipulated, the track records of past presidents. During recent presidential campaigns, both GOP and Democrats endeavored to portray themselves as heir apparents to Harry Truman, the humble haberdasher who stepped into the massive shoes of FDR and authorized the ushering in of the atomic age. There are those who would focus on the monumental achievement of the former, while others who would condemn him for all time for the latter.
When Richard Nixon passed away, there seemed to be a battle between varied schools of thought as those who remembered Nixon the (I am not a) crook went toe to toe with those who wished only to focus on his achievements other than being the first sitting president to resign. Should Nixon have been canonized? Or should he have been shunned?
Well, interestingly, the world of Captain America has weighed in on the topic, and the results are–to say the least–surprising.
Amalgam contest results, part 3
Originally published May 23, 1997, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1227
Finishing up the Amalgam/Vs. Contest, here’s the last of the most intriguing entries. It’s been a lot of fun. And these are by no means all of them. I’m listing the ones that are, quite simply, my personal favorites. Sure, it’s arbitrary. To paraphrase the parents of everyone in the world, As long as you’re living in my column, you’ll live under my rules. Italicized comments are mine.
Amalgam contest results, part 2
Originally published May 16, 1997, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1226
Just to be utterly different, I’ve decided that–even though I’ll be running the concluding installment of our little Who fights Who/Amalgam contest next week–I’m going to run the winning entry this week. Why? Because it showed a staggering amount of initiative. Because the entrant created not only a statue, but the beginnings of an entire story to accompany it, and because–most important of all–the entrant didn’t put his name and address on the story. And the problem is that, when the entry gets separated from the cover letter… like now, for instance… it means we can’t give proper freakin’ credit. So we eagerly look forward to hearing from the creator of…
DOC SAVAGE DRAGON
…and who also was gung-ho enough to write the attached the opening chapters of his own vision of a megacrossover (and fella, when you write in to identify yourself, be sure to tell us what was written in marker on the binder , so we know it’s you.)
Herewith the opening chapters of a crossover by… some guy.
Amalgam contest results, part 1
Originally published May 9, 1997, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1225
Well, it’s time to announce the results of the little contest we had at “But I Digress,” namely the Super-bizarre fight and amalgam universe contest.
For those who came in late (as they always say in The Phantom), we decided to sponsor a little competition in which people could put forward the sort of match-ups that weren’t especially suited to the famed “Marvel vs. DC.” In addition, you were all invited to submit concepts for particularly odd Amalgams.
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