2011
Ok, with this weekend being the end of 2011 and by the time I post my next blog it will be the new year of 2012, I’m making this last blog of 2011 about what happened in comic books during 2011 and what to look forward to in 2012.
· I’ll start off with the biggest even in 2011 where DC Comics took every single one of their titles, ended them, and then started all over with the New 52. Some titles like one of my favorites ‘Gotham City Sirens’ where ended but other titles like ‘Detective Comics’, ‘Batman’, and ‘Action Comics’ where titles that had never had a renumbering in their very long history by getting started over with new #1 issues. Not only that but there were new characters introduced, ‘Batwing’, old characters that where once thought out of the superhero biz completely was brought back, Barbara Gordon as the original ‘Batgirl’, and every character got revamps on their looks. This was a first time in the history of the comic book world that a company has taken every title, ending the runs, and starting over again with new stories to the characters, new backgrounds, and taking their characters back to the beginning but in the modern age. I’m still liking it and not liking it because what I once knew is no longer true. So as much as I like having all these new stories and not knowing anything about Superman and how cool it is seeing Batman and Superman meeting for the first time, it’s also a little annoying of having to go through all the mystery of what’s going on. But I’m here for history being made in the comic world and that’s just plain cool.
· Next big deal in 2011 also deals with the New 52 that DC did, and that is bringing back some of the artists from the 90’s to do this new comics. Rob Liefeld, Brett Booth, and Greg Capullo where some of the people in the 1990’s that took the comic books from these bland, one story per issue, old looking comic into these vibrant, bright, sexy, action packed, story filled comics with new characters, new looks, old characters getting a update to that age, and it looked good. I mean then it did, now it has been put in the past and there is better looks to the characters, but still, these guys knew what to do to give comic books some new life and it’s looking like it’s happening again with DC’s New 52.
· This is one of the things that started back in 2010 but didn’t really take effect until 2011 and it’s one of my biggest concerns and annoyances for comic books. 20 pages! Don’t get it? For many, many, many years the standard amount of pages for comic books has been set at 22 pages. Well, that’s no longer true. It started in 2010 when DC Comics said they were going to drop the price from $3.99 to $2.99 for all their monthly titles. In doing this they went from having 22 pages of story to 20 pages. Marvel at first said they where going to do the same but did the opposite in fact by keeping the prices at $3.99 but upping the page count to 30 pages. Granted most of the extra pages were crap with reprints, stories already told but in new artwork, or like in the Avengers a book was being written. I didn’t want any of that, I would rather had more pages of the story I was already reading especially if this is the reason they are keeping the titles at $3.99. But sadly that didn’t last and now both Marvel and DC Comics are doing 20 pages, sure some of the other companies like Dark Horse and Image are keeping with 22 pages, but the big 2 are not. Not only that but Marvel is still keeping the $3.99 price tag on their titles and even DC has a few titles that are at the same $3.99 price. It worries me because the comic industry is a fragile one where anything can happen to help or hurt it and with so much going to digital, including comic books, taking the printed format down in pages but keeping a higher price can easily start to lead to them doing it more and more to eventually there is no more printed format. Yeah, extreme, but it can happen.
· Speaking of digital, the jump in the amount of digital comics was big in 2011. What was once just a few in 2010 has now turned into something big. All these new electronic handhelds, pads, phones, and what nots are ushering in the digital comics. Amazon has comics and graphic novels for the Kindle being sold on their site and it’s getting bigger and bigger and it was in 2011 that it happened.
www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link_355831402_18
· Fear Itself. That’s the big storyline in 2011 that Marvel Comics did that took these mysterious hammers that fell from space and turned villains and heroes into evil villains with god like powers. Not only that but it was the death of Thor where he went up against the leader of Fear Itself, The Serpent, who is the brother of Odin, but was also where Bucky Barnes supposedly died and then returned as the Winter Solider and it was the returning of Steve Rogers being Captain America. It was also a very good story line, some of these big story lines that span nearly every title will be disappointing because they put the tie in title on the ongoing titles but the story in it won’t tie into the main story. Fear Itself didn’t do this, when one of the other many titles, like Iron Man, Captain America, and so on had tie in issues with Fear Itself, the story inside the book not only had to deal with the story going on with Fear Itself but it also kept in line with it. Like when the main title Fear Itself had Thing smashing something in one panel but was not brought up again in that issue, over in the FF special it picked it up. It was refreshing getting a title that I paid extra for so I could read more of the big year story and getting that story.
· Spider-Island, that’s the story that went on in Amazing Spider-Man, it also brought back the Jackal, Professor Miles Warren. This is the guy that made the clones of Peter Parker and in my opinion ranks as the second worst villain for Spidey. Here in Spider-Island the Jackal with the help of the Spider-Queen put out a virus that has given nearly every person in NYC spider powers. At first it starts off cool, everyone is swinging around like Spidey and is getting an idea why he does what he does, but then it goes bad. People with these powers also decide that it’s not enough to just swing around and climb on walls, they are going to rob banks, and become villains cause now they have the power. Heroes from everywhere come in to help fight when matters get worse as the people with powers turn into giant spiders. This was actually a pretty fun story to read with it’s own tie in specials like Spider-Girl and Cloak & Dagger but it was over too quickly. Not time wise, it took awhile for it to be brought out, what I mean is that it didn’t last long enough issue wise. There wasn’t enough of this story, though I can see why, not much really other than fighting, but there could have been more said with Madam Web and more with Spider-Man himself.
Ok, now for what to look forward to in 2012.
2012
· I start with what to look forward to with the same thing that made 2011 so big, New 52. There’s only been 4 issues so far that has come out for the New 52 titles and not much really has been given to what’s going on with the characters. How has Barbara Gordon been able to walk again and taken up the mantle of Batgirl? What’s going on between Action Comics where Superman is just starting and Superman title where he’s wearing the new blue and red suit where he’s been around long enough for people to like him more. I’m really looking forward to getting a full year of new stories, and I mean new cause this is a fresh start to characters that haven’t had this done to them.
· The Mystery Woman, nothing is known about this woman in purple who has shown up in the background in every issue of the #1 titles of the New 52 for DC Comics. But who is she, why is she in the background, how did she get there, what is she doing, is she good, bad, is she just watching, is she getting ready for something, or maybe getting info on how to take them all down? It’s all just unknown, other than it’s a female and she has a purple costume on. Hopefully in 2012 we will be given some info on who this mystery figure is
· Speaking of characters, Scarlet Witch is back in the Marvel Universe. Oh sure she’s still be around, kind of, since she did that whole House of M thing with taking out the mutants of the world but only as someone who didn’t know who she was while living in Latveria. But now she’s back as the Scarlet Witch and she’s going to be again a big player in the Marvel Universe. I’m looking forward to seeing this character making waves again in the Marvel Universe. She’s a powerful character, not only in what she can do but just her presence alone speaks for itself, so here’s to a year where she’s doing some major things.
Now these last two will be movies but still comic book releate.
· Dredd. If you’re thinking Judge Dredd than you’re right cause they are remaking the movie and it comes out in September. The original featuring Sylvester Stallone didn’t do so well but it was a fun movie none the less but it was more fun than anything. What I’m wondering if this new movie will be more violent and graphic than the original was? I think it should be, it’s a character that lives in a rough time during the history of the world and there’s not much room for comedy. So here’s to this working out.
· Now for the last are just a list of movies to look forward to that should be (better be) good in 2012.
The Avengers
The Dark Knight Rises
The Amazing Spider-Man
GI-Joe 2
And then some that I don’t expect much from.
Ghost Rider 2
Men in Black 3.