Flex and Wolter's Den of Nerdly Awesomeness

[Wolter]

I do think if Secret War was actually discussed and planned with all editorial and writers in the loop, that whole lost time issue could be been written better and be a cool sort of mystery for the readers, but it was just a shit story with little point that did more harm than good to the books when it ran.

[Dr. Medulla]

Though it does famously have a page where Spider-Man teaches the Beyonder (a godlike creature with Jheri curls dressed like Sonny Crockett) how to shit in a toilet.

That rings a bell, so I must have had that issue.

The other thing about SW was that it took an entire year to fully play out, but in all the other books, it happened between issues. So for the next year (until SW concluded) the characters had all gone thru this remarkable event yet didn't speak much of what happened, talking around it, so as to not reveal things that wouldn't be published for several months. What a wretched editorial edict for the writers to labour under.

The worst thing in my book was that it gave Colossus a weird love interest that died, thus making him suddenly a mope who acted like a dick. Honestly, the naked contempt Shooter had was evident, because he wrote all the mutant characters like it was still 1975.

Ah, right! He cheated on Kitty Pryde.

This morning I read the issue where a mountain range is dropped on the heroes. There's suspension of disbelief and then there's … yeah, if I were 13 I'd come up with that idea.

[Wolter]

Though it does famously have a page where Spider-Man teaches the Beyonder (a godlike creature with Jheri curls dressed like Sonny Crockett) how to shit in a toilet.

That rings a bell, so I must have had that issue.

The other thing about SW was that it took an entire year to fully play out, but in all the other books, it happened between issues. So for the next year (until SW concluded) the characters had all gone thru this remarkable event yet didn't speak much of what happened, talking around it, so as to not reveal things that wouldn't be published for several months. What a wretched editorial edict for the writers to labour under.

The worst thing in my book was that it gave Colossus a weird love interest that died, thus making him suddenly a mope who acted like a dick. Honestly, the naked contempt Shooter had was evident, because he wrote all the mutant characters like it was still 1975.

Ah, right! He cheated on Kitty Pryde.

This morning I read the issue where a mountain range is dropped on the heroes. There's suspension of disbelief and then there's … yeah, if I were 13 I'd come up with that idea.

Jim Shooter: pro comics writer at age 16. Zero growth since.

[Dr. Medulla]

Though it does famously have a page where Spider-Man teaches the Beyonder (a godlike creature with Jheri curls dressed like Sonny Crockett) how to shit in a toilet.

That rings a bell, so I must have had that issue.

The other thing about SW was that it took an entire year to fully play out, but in all the other books, it happened between issues. So for the next year (until SW concluded) the characters had all gone thru this remarkable event yet didn't speak much of what happened, talking around it, so as to not reveal things that wouldn't be published for several months. What a wretched editorial edict for the writers to labour under.

The worst thing in my book was that it gave Colossus a weird love interest that died, thus making him suddenly a mope who acted like a dick. Honestly, the naked contempt Shooter had was evident, because he wrote all the mutant characters like it was still 1975.

Ah, right! He cheated on Kitty Pryde.

This morning I read the issue where a mountain range is dropped on the heroes. There's suspension of disbelief and then there's … yeah, if I were 13 I'd come up with that idea.

Jim Shooter: pro comics writer at age 16. Zero growth since.

Ha! Very mixed evaluations as EIC of Marvel, too.

[Wolter]

That rings a bell, so I must have had that issue.

The other thing about SW was that it took an entire year to fully play out, but in all the other books, it happened between issues. So for the next year (until SW concluded) the characters had all gone thru this remarkable event yet didn't speak much of what happened, talking around it, so as to not reveal things that wouldn't be published for several months. What a wretched editorial edict for the writers to labour under.

The worst thing in my book was that it gave Colossus a weird love interest that died, thus making him suddenly a mope who acted like a dick. Honestly, the naked contempt Shooter had was evident, because he wrote all the mutant characters like it was still 1975.

Ah, right! He cheated on Kitty Pryde.

This morning I read the issue where a mountain range is dropped on the heroes. There's suspension of disbelief and then there's … yeah, if I were 13 I'd come up with that idea.

Jim Shooter: pro comics writer at age 16. Zero growth since.

Ha! Very mixed evaluations as EIC of Marvel, too.

I think he was a blessing and a curse in the job. Marvel before him was a bunch of drugged out wackos making whatever crazy shot they could, with a lot of inmates running the asylum. He brought stability and a lot of financial success to them, but at the cost of losing a lot of that weird magic. You’ll note his run largely coincides with no weird ass Jim Starlin cosmic craziness.

[Dr. Medulla]

The worst thing in my book was that it gave Colossus a weird love interest that died, thus making him suddenly a mope who acted like a dick. Honestly, the naked contempt Shooter had was evident, because he wrote all the mutant characters like it was still 1975.

Ah, right! He cheated on Kitty Pryde.

This morning I read the issue where a mountain range is dropped on the heroes. There's suspension of disbelief and then there's … yeah, if I were 13 I'd come up with that idea.

Jim Shooter: pro comics writer at age 16. Zero growth since.

Ha! Very mixed evaluations as EIC of Marvel, too.

I think he was a blessing and a curse in the job. Marvel before him was a bunch of drugged out wackos making whatever crazy shot they could, with a lot of inmates running the asylum. He brought stability and a lot of financial success to them, but at the cost of losing a lot of that weird magic. You’ll note his run largely coincides with no weird ass Jim Starlin cosmic craziness.

That's my understanding of the consensus take. He brought order to a company that risked going under because the creatives were unaccountable, but after a time he couldn't stop looking for/creating problems to fix.

[Kory]

Though it does famously have a page where Spider-Man teaches the Beyonder (a godlike creature with Jheri curls dressed like Sonny Crockett) how to shit in a toilet.

That rings a bell, so I must have had that issue.

The other thing about SW was that it took an entire year to fully play out, but in all the other books, it happened between issues. So for the next year (until SW concluded) the characters had all gone thru this remarkable event yet didn't speak much of what happened, talking around it, so as to not reveal things that wouldn't be published for several months. What a wretched editorial edict for the writers to labour under.

The worst thing in my book was that it gave Colossus a weird love interest that died, thus making him suddenly a mope who acted like a dick. Honestly, the naked contempt Shooter had was evident, because he wrote all the mutant characters like it was still 1975.

Ah, right! He cheated on Kitty Pryde.

This morning I read the issue where a mountain range is dropped on the heroes. There's suspension of disbelief and then there's … yeah, if I were 13 I'd come up with that idea.

The more recent Secret War storyline was actually pretty good for a number of reasons, chief among them being that it's written by Hickman and it ended the Ultimate Universe.

[Dr. Medulla]

Though it does famously have a page where Spider-Man teaches the Beyonder (a godlike creature with Jheri curls dressed like Sonny Crockett) how to shit in a toilet.

That rings a bell, so I must have had that issue.

The other thing about SW was that it took an entire year to fully play out, but in all the other books, it happened between issues. So for the next year (until SW concluded) the characters had all gone thru this remarkable event yet didn't speak much of what happened, talking around it, so as to not reveal things that wouldn't be published for several months. What a wretched editorial edict for the writers to labour under.

The worst thing in my book was that it gave Colossus a weird love interest that died, thus making him suddenly a mope who acted like a dick. Honestly, the naked contempt Shooter had was evident, because he wrote all the mutant characters like it was still 1975.

Ah, right! He cheated on Kitty Pryde.

This morning I read the issue where a mountain range is dropped on the heroes. There's suspension of disbelief and then there's … yeah, if I were 13 I'd come up with that idea.

The more recent Secret War storyline was actually pretty good for a number of reasons, chief among them being that it's written by Hickman and it ended the Ultimate Universe.

I only know Hickman from his FF. Wasn't thrilled (not a fan of the FF as cosmic, multi-dimensional wanderers).

[Dr. Medulla]

Finished reading Secret Wars. God, what a dog. Dumb idea executed ever more inanely. It really does read like fanfic. Given that Marvel had a ton of talent at the time, I can't help but wonder how a competent writer would have tackled it.

[tepista]

[Dr. Medulla]

This one's for Tep …

[Wolter]

Finished reading Secret Wars. God, what a dog. Dumb idea executed ever more inanely. It really does read like fanfic. Given that Marvel had a ton of talent at the time, I can't help but wonder how a competent writer would have tackled it.

I feel like a competent writer would’ve just said no.

I’m kidding. The idea of a bunch of heroes disappearing and coming back changed in ways explained by a miniseries could’ve been a great story, if and only if it were carefully planned and agreed upon by all the major writers/editors involved. And if a writer much better than Shooter was in charge of it.

[Dr. Medulla]

I also just finished reading Secret Society of Supervillains, a brief DC series in the late 70s, focusing on, duh, a kind of anti-Justice League. Not a bad concept to try out, but you can tell that the company had no idea what it wanted to do because pretty much every issue has a different writer and artist on it. Launch a new series and treat it as filler? Not good. But structurally, the concept doesn't have legs. The villains can't actually succeed in their scheme du jour, but they can't fully fail either, so it's pretty much a Gilligan's Island situation. Unless the focus is on how villains fail, the appeal is vague.

Reading early Avengers now, which, apart from scattered issues, I've never done. (The reason for more older comics reading is the new iPad, which has so much storage that I can afford to load up comics onto it.)

[Wolter]

I also just finished reading Secret Society of Supervillains, a brief DC series in the late 70s, focusing on, duh, a kind of anti-Justice League. Not a bad concept to try out, but you can tell that the company had no idea what it wanted to do because pretty much every issue has a different writer and artist on it. Launch a new series and treat it as filler? Not good. But structurally, the concept doesn't have legs. The villains can't actually succeed in their scheme du jour, but they can't fully fail either, so it's pretty much a Gilligan's Island situation. Unless the focus is on how villains fail, the appeal is vague.

Reading early Avengers now, which, apart from scattered issues, I've never done. (The reason for more older comics reading is the new iPad, which has so much storage that I can afford to load up comics onto it.)

The Avengers are a surprising personal blind spot for me overall. It was never a book I read as a kid, so it never was one I’ve gone back to.

[Dr. Medulla]

The Avengers are a surprising personal blind spot for me overall. It was never a book I read as a kid, so it never was one I’ve gone back to.

The first three issues are … jarring … for how Stan writes the Hulk. He seems more like a green Thing than the kind of brute caveman he was later characterized. And the Wasp is pretty horny for everyone.