tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post112638631796080800..comments2024-01-01T05:14:46.672-05:00Comments on Double Articulation: SPOILERS ABOUND: a weekly digest of reviews, notes, and rantsJim Roeghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16381244745309535742noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1128730461564120642005-10-07T20:14:00.000-04:002005-10-07T20:14:00.000-04:00Thanks, A! Welcome to the site--hope you enjoy Yo...Thanks, A! Welcome to the site--hope you enjoy Young Avengers!Jim Roeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16381244745309535742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1128609417098663542005-10-06T10:36:00.000-04:002005-10-06T10:36:00.000-04:00Wow. My first visit to your blog, and my head is s...Wow. My first visit to your blog, and my head is still spinning. I will add yet another blog to my ever-growing list of "must follow" sites.<BR/><BR/>I started off my own comic book life with the X-Men circa issue #200, so I particularly enjoyed your reminiscing about the period covered in Essential X-Men volume 6. There's something appealing about that particular era of the X-Men that I can't quite put to words. But it's not something the series (or its innumerable offspring) has been able to capture lately - which is a shame.<BR/><BR/>Thanks too for the tip on Young Avengers. I've avoided it to date (more out of some age-based snobbery than anything else), but will probably give it a chance now.<BR/><BR/>Anyways, great work. I could go on, but real life calls. I plan on spending some quality time going through your archives, but I look forward to your next post.Keystonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01217221418810754700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1127418555060250922005-09-22T15:49:00.000-04:002005-09-22T15:49:00.000-04:00Hehe--I wish I could come back right now! Thanks,...Hehe--I wish I <I>could</I> come back right now! Thanks, guys... Soon...Jim Roeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16381244745309535742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1127291517693816232005-09-21T04:31:00.000-04:002005-09-21T04:31:00.000-04:00Come back right now, Jim. It feels like it's been...Come back right now, Jim. It feels like it's been months already.Disintegrating Clonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11751287039603688094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126992570292275822005-09-17T17:29:00.000-04:002005-09-17T17:29:00.000-04:00come back soon, Jim!come back soon, Jim!zack sotohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05316613980695547614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126943760005615342005-09-17T03:56:00.000-04:002005-09-17T03:56:00.000-04:00You were right the first time!Jackson Guice and Bu...<EM>You were right the first time!Jackson Guice and Butch Guice are one in the same (and yep, that was Jackson/Butch on Ruse from the get-go).</EM><BR/><BR/>OMG--no kidding?<BR/><BR/><EM>His work has grown exponentially, though, hasn't it?</EM><BR/><BR/>That is an understatement!!<BR/><BR/><EM>I remember really having a mixed reaction to his early DC work. I liked the detail, but his bodies sometimes seemed strangely distended.</EM><BR/><BR/>I barely remenber his early DC work, I just remember alot ho=is work on Iron Man (ca. David Micheline era) which I thought was very solid, if not necesarily noteworthy. But it had a consitency that was very welcome at the time (at least for me).<BR/><BR/><EM>His work on Ruse really impressed me though--he's another example of an artist that absolutely flourished under the creative demands of CrossGen.</EM><BR/><BR/>I'll say--wow, now I really am going to find those old <EM>Ruse</EM> issues I have. That's just some incredible development!<BR/><BR/><BR/><EM>Excellent point about artists/actors on the challenge of characterizing Magneto, by the way!</EM><BR/><BR/>I'm just sometimes disappointed by artistic renderings of some character types (or role types). Some of this just might have to do with the fact that I've practically spent my life surrounded by "performers" so I've seen and been around people that are able to portray, or in some sense <EM>are</EM> exactly like, such archetypical characters.<BR/><BR/>I guess you could say that I'm just a little "spoiled."Jon Silpayamananthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17956747018534076778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126881688233455762005-09-16T10:41:00.000-04:002005-09-16T10:41:00.000-04:00Jon:About this: When I first skimmed through your ...Jon:<BR/><BR/>About this: <BR/><BR/><I>When I first skimmed through your post I thought you were talking about Jackson Guice--I was thinking--"whoah--I don't remember Guice's work looking like this"--but I tend to read things through a couple of times before really commenting, so realized this is someone new</I><BR/><BR/>You were right the first time!Jackson Guice and Butch Guice are one in the same (and yep, that was Jackson/Butch on <I>Ruse</I> from the get-go). His work has grown exponentially, though, hasn't it? I remember really having a mixed reaction to his early DC work. I liked the detail, but his bodies sometimes seemed strangely distended. His work on <I>Ruse</I> really impressed me though--he's another example of an artist that absolutely flourished under the creative demands of CrossGen. You really got a sense that stepping out of the superhero genre pushed him artistically and the results now show in his current superhero work, which is filled with the type of spectuacular artistic choices on display in his current <I>JLA: Classified</I> run.<BR/><BR/>Excellent point about artists/actors on the challenge of characterizing Magneto, by the way!Jim Roeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16381244745309535742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126574041733077402005-09-12T21:14:00.000-04:002005-09-12T21:14:00.000-04:00Hey--no need to thank me, this is good reading!It'...Hey--no need to thank me, this is good reading!<BR/><BR/><EM>It's all good. Guice is a master (and I can't wait to blab about his work on CrossGen's Ruse when I get back).</EM><BR/><BR/>When I first skimmed through your post I thought you were talking about Jackson Guice--I was thinking--"whoah--I don't remember Guice's work looking like this"--but I tend to read things through a couple of times before really commenting, so realized this is someone new (or at least someone I hadn't heard of before--I'm so out of touch with some current comics, it's pretty pathetic).<BR/><BR/>Did he do Ruse from the beginning? I'll have to go back and take a look at the first few issues I have.<BR/><BR/><EM>The book isn't quite as spare as these selectively chosen panels imply--I just really liked them!</EM><BR/><BR/>Yeah--those pages are just spectacular! But, just like anything else, the comic would probably lose some of its force if this were the only style being used. I suppose some creative artistic genius might be able to keep the interest and flow with one particular style of rendering, but I'm not so sure there are any ot there right now.<BR/><BR/><EM>I think the problem with Magneto as a comic character is that fascists are boring.</EM><BR/><BR/><EM> The reason Magneto works in the movies is because the *only* interesting dimension of a fascist leader is precisely his "charisma" (cult of personality, etc.)--and McKellan certainly has charisma that we can see and be affected by.</EM><BR/><BR/><BR/>Hah! Or maybe he's just drawn "boring" [sic]--some types of personalities are just so difficult to draw well (sequentially)--in a sense--that it would take someone that has the ability to render that presence visually with a similar amount of skill as it would take for an actor to do so physically. Not every artist is quite up to that task, any more than would every actor be up to the task.<BR/><BR/><EM>There's my provocation for the day: fascists are more interesting on film than in comics. Any takers?</EM><BR/><BR/>Perhaps. We'll just have to see if any artist will ever be up to the task.<BR/><BR/><EM>Agreed--more blogging! But you'd make an exception for this blog...right? :)</EM><BR/><BR/>Haha--I think I just might have to--especially now that I;ll have some time to read all of your older posts before you really so some more heavy blogging!<BR/><BR/><EM>I still have to get back over to Mae Mai and reply to your very generous answer to my question about Orientalism!</EM><BR/><BR/>Hey--take your time. I know you're busy. And I'm having a hell of a time at that Comicon thread sorting through some of Neil Cohn's issues about visual language and how that relates to Said's <EM>structures of attitude and reference</EM>. So I'm sorting through ways to modify the poco crit to visual analysis.Jon Silpayamananthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17956747018534076778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126571152294970252005-09-12T20:25:00.000-04:002005-09-12T20:25:00.000-04:00Jon: thanks for commenting so thoroughly! Let me ...<B>Jon:</B> thanks for commenting so thoroughly! Let me try to return the favor:<BR/><BR/><I>Those pages you scanned/posted are incredible!...If the rest of the comic is anything like the few pages you've shown I would almost be temptd to start collecting the series. But I wonder how much affect can a reader take before the effect is lost?</I><BR/><BR/>It's all good. Guice is a master (and I can't wait to blab about his work on CrossGen's <I>Ruse</I> when I get back). The neat thing about <I>JLA: Classified</I> so far is that it has moved between the type of affective intensity presented in these panels and denser, sparkily dialogued pages by Ellis. One page that I really wanted to include in the review was the *hilarious* conversation between Lois and Clark, which others have already commented on. The book isn't quite as spare as these selectively chosen panels imply--I just really liked them!<BR/><BR/><I>There is just something... commanding, about McKellan's presence (in general) that just never seemed to work in most comic book portrayal of Magneto.</I><BR/><BR/>I think the problem with Magneto as a comic character is that fascists are boring. Making Magneto a "complicated" or "reformed" fascist doesn't help much because, frankly, it's so unbelievable. The reason Magneto works in the movies is because the *only* interesting dimension of a fascist leader is precisely his "charisma" (cult of personality, etc.)--and McKellan certainly has charisma that we can see and be affected by. There's my provocation for the day: fascists are more interesting on film than in comics. Any takers?<BR/><BR/><I>I do have to remember to not spend so much time reading and posting at other blogs and message boards so that I can actually blog more myself</I><BR/><BR/>Agreed--more blogging! But you'd make an exception for this blog...right? :) (And the flattery is warranted by the way!--I still have to get back over to Mae Mai and reply to your very generous answer to my question about Orientalism!)<BR/><BR/><B>David:</B> Thanks! And I'm really looking forward to your thoughts on Uncanny X-men #201. What is it about this issue that is so deeply satisfying? Claremont is at the top of his game here, but I also really love Rick Leonardi's guest art. Leonardi was one of those wonderfully odd Marvel artists. Loved his work on <I>Cloak and Dagger</I> too. So pointy, yet filled with unexpected curves.<BR/><BR/><B>Shane:</B> <BR/><BR/><I>I loved John Romita JR's art on X-men back then. I can't tell you how many times I read #200. I was amazed at the characters in that comic. I was shocked that the "bad guy" of the comic wasn't so "bad" and that the leader of the X-men would even let him join. It really blew my mind back then</I><BR/><BR/>I know what you mean about the reversal involving Magneto--this was an incredible moment. My very first X-Men comic was also a reprint of a very early issue of the original X-Men comic, before they were "Uncanny" (I'd have to do some research to figure out which issue) and they fought Magneto who was just, as you'd expect, a big ridiculous villain. This was mainly my context for him, so #200 was quite a shock. Back then, all these reversals were happening for the first time; the problem now is that there seems to be so little to do with this character now. I was delighted when Grant killed him. The new (mercifully cancelled) <I>Excaliber</I> set on Genosha was *excruciating*. <BR/><BR/>It's interesting that you came to X-Men through an old reprint--and then found the current state of the series exciting because of its moral complexity. I wonder if there are any comics other than X-Men that were able to produce that effect of depth through immediate contrast with earlier issues (circulated through concurrent reprints)? This was very much my experience of the title too.Jim Roeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16381244745309535742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126532140113814632005-09-12T09:35:00.000-04:002005-09-12T09:35:00.000-04:00I actually started my X-men run with Classic X-men...I actually started my X-men run with Classic X-men #13. It had Banshee bringing the X-men to this old Castle he inherited and featured Nightcrawler being kidnapped by Leprechans, Black Tom, Juggernaut, and Storm going crazy with her claustraphobia causing her to lose control of the weather. How's that for an introduction?. After that I picked up the main title which was close to around the same time you started. <BR/><BR/>I loved John Romita JR's art on X-men back then. I can't tell you how many times I read #200. I was amazed at the characters in that comic. I was shocked that the "bad guy" of the comic wasn't so "bad" and that the leader of the X-men would even let him join. It really blew my mind back then and it was a pretty good introduction to the X-men. I'd like to say I'm still interested in the X-men that much, but I don't think anyone can ever recapture that feeling when I was first introduced to their adventures.Hate Filled Posterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00965492342916144479noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126523834560190472005-09-12T07:17:00.000-04:002005-09-12T07:17:00.000-04:00Re: Essential X-MenIt's nice to hear about someone...Re: Essential X-Men<BR/><BR/>It's nice to hear about someone else's X-Men devotion - I became a real comic book fan when I picked up <I>Uncanny X-Men</I> #201 (which I shall be blogging about shortly), which made me pick up <I>New Mutants</I> #35, which led to comic shops and, well, you know how it is.<BR/><BR/>They were good times, weren't they? And you're absolutely right about the in-between-fights parts which made the X-Men so good.<BR/><BR/>Looking forward to your return to blogging, Jim.David Normanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12981976646419481110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126496991310724392005-09-11T23:49:00.000-04:002005-09-11T23:49:00.000-04:00Re: JLA: Classified #11Those pages you scanned/pos...Re: <STRONG>JLA: Classified #11</STRONG><BR/><BR/>Those pages you scanned/posted <EM>are</EM> incredible!<BR/><BR/><EM>If an issue is going to have as little plot as this one, it had better be brimming with affect—and this one is. It’s pure adrenaline.</EM><BR/><BR/>If the rest of the comic is anything like the few pages you've shown I would almost be temptd to start collecting the series. But I wonder how much affect can a reader take before the effect is lost?<BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/>Re: <STRONG>Astonishing X-Men #12</STRONG><BR/><BR/><EM>(For some reason, this rule does not seem to apply to Magneto, who is always boring, except when played by Ian McKellan.).</EM><BR/><BR/>Haha. This made me chuckle. There is just something...commanding, about McKellan's presence (in general) that just never seemed to work in most comic book portrayal of Magneto. He usually just seems so, I don't know, depersonalized--almost like he's just the embodiment of his powers ather than being a human that happens to be able to weild one of the most spectacular powers on the earth. It's sort of disappointing. <BR/><BR/>I think Magneta was portrayed at his worst during the Genoshan and Age of Apocalypse eras.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Re: <STRONG>notes</STRONG><BR/><BR/>I had the pleasure of reading the GØDLAND #1 preview at Newsarama. Some of it worked well for me--but I could have gone for some more decompression it.<BR/><BR/><EM>And yet, there’s something not quite on about big-kid Marvel scoring points off a company that’s not only smaller, but DEFUNCT! Careful guys.</EM><BR/><BR/>heh. I miss Crossgen<BR/><BR/><EM>as well as the other ones that I never bothered buying at the time: Thor and Power Pack. And it gives us the Asgardian adventure from New Mutants Special Edition #1 and X-Men Annual #9</EM><BR/><BR/>I may have to pick this essentials up if only to get most of these that I also missed.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Re: <STRONG>rants</STRONG><BR/><BR/><EM>it’s been an incredibly fun and educational summer for me. See you back here in October, and of course, around the blogverse in the meantime.</EM><BR/><BR/>I think we're going to hold you to this, Jim!<BR/><BR/><BR/>And thank you for the <EM>very</EM> kind words. You flatter me much more than is deserved. <BR/><BR/>I do have to remember to not spend so much time reading and posting at other blogs and message boards so that I can actually blog more myself--but I've been playing a bit of catch-up from my own lengthy hiatus.<BR/><BR/><BR/>And Shane--don't you be gone THAT long!Jon Silpayamananthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17956747018534076778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126492056768959702005-09-11T22:27:00.000-04:002005-09-11T22:27:00.000-04:00Chris: Thanks for picking up on my provocation! Y...<B>Chris:</B> Thanks for picking up on my provocation! You force me to agree...with myself in order to disagree...with myself. It was an even more half-baked idea than I realized! And to add to the internal contradictions of that last post even further, even though I mostly liked TV-scribe Whedon's <I>Astonishing</I>, I have often felt that that book is too decompressed (more movie-like), when compared with Heinberg's snappier <I>Young Avengers</I>. I guess the truest answer is the one Mark Fossen provided for the film/decompession techniques: there are good and bad examples of any technique. I guess I'm just wishing that Heinberg would write more comics. :) <BR/><BR/>Still, there is an interesting formal overlap between TV and comics (both serial forms). One could say that there's also much overlap between comics and film too, though the formal similarities have less to do with story-interruption and suspense/cliffhangers (unless we're talking old movie serials) and more to do with visual languages of "shots" etc. Hm...<BR/><BR/>BTW, I'm looking forward to your new features at Crisis/Boring Change! (Though I'm sure the Changes will be anything but Boring. *groan*)<BR/><BR/><B>Shane:</B> You too! I'd agree about the coordinated relaunches...but I don't want to have to wait that long to see the New Near Mint Heroes!Jim Roeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16381244745309535742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126473817827052282005-09-11T17:23:00.000-04:002005-09-11T17:23:00.000-04:00See ya when you get back. Maybe we can schedule ou...See ya when you get back. Maybe we can schedule our relaunches to be at the same time. :)Hate Filled Posterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00965492342916144479noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13604760.post-1126466864380196012005-09-11T15:27:00.000-04:002005-09-11T15:27:00.000-04:00"[C]omics based on TV-storytelling techniques are ..."[C]omics based on TV-storytelling techniques are superior to comics based on movie-storytelling techniques"? I'm not sure I agree. Just because you mentioned it, <I>JLA Classified</I> 11, along with other precious-few instances of unabused decompression, is an excellent example of quality movie-based storytelling. The iconography of images there, the reliance on widely-painted swaths over more nuanced character detail: These are aspects of more pressed-for-time cinematic storytelling techniques. And here, at least, I think it works in the story's favor.<BR/><BR/>Nevertheless, you've brought up an interesting issue (as usual), and I'm curious to see what other people have to say.<BR/><BR/>And I'm sorry to hear you'll be missing in action, though I certainly understand why. I look forward to seeing your return to the blogosphere.Chris Tamarrihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06213995997020425750noreply@blogger.com