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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336
Time Trapper
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OP
Time Trapper
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336 |
The Comedian #1
Wow, they threw him right into the middle of it. He hangs out with the Kennedy boys. Plays football with them in fact. Jack is President, Bobby and Teddy are there as well. As is Jackie. Interesting implications in the book about her role in things, at least in the Watchmen universe.
The story features an interesting take on the assassination of JFK. One that also answers a few questions about it, at least in this reality.
Interesting read and well thought out.
The art by JG Jones is phenomenal. So far the art on these books has been great. Maybe the winning piece of these books. That is not to say that the writers are resting on their laurels by any means.
So far these have been much better than even I expected.
Active LMB character is still Beast Boy.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336
Time Trapper
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OP
Time Trapper
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336 |
Nite Owl #1
Origin story in one issue...plus a bit more.
We get Dans background. Where his money is from, how he met Hollls and how he meets Rorschach.
This one actually moves through the pages of the original story at points. A nicely done nod to what we have seen before while still offering us more than we saw.
Some nice foreshadowing to events that will happen years from now for the characters, and years ago for us. It didn't feel overly heavy handed for the most part.
The art by Andy and inks by the great Joe Kubert are great. I'm sorry, Joe Kubert could do a book with nothing but stick figures and I'd think it was good.
Another good entry to this project so far.
...and yeah, I'm skipping the Corsair story at the moment, but will get back to it at some point.
Active LMB character is still Beast Boy.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336
Time Trapper
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OP
Time Trapper
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336 |
Ozymandias #1
Holy crow. The art in this thing is beautiful. I have enjoyed the art in all the books so far, and they have all been very well rendered. This though...my God, Jae Lee's work here is phenomenal.
The story is the straightforward origin of Ozymandias/ From his parents coming to America, to him donning his alter ego. The why is interesting and I am glad to see Len Wein writing a good story. I had worried about this one probably the most. Len's work has been hit or miss over the years for me. Not necessarily bad, just not my cup of tea if you will. Here he does a good job.
Active LMB character is still Beast Boy.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336
Time Trapper
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OP
Time Trapper
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336 |
Minutemen #2
Darwyn steps it up a notch in this one. The art is as good as his ever is, but the story starts to get into the heart of the group.
Some of them are in it for the fame, others are in it to actually fight crime. What crime those few are going against is a horrific thing to be sure.
Darwyn also reveals some other personal relationships that are hinted at in the original, but are in your face here.
Still a good book. Definitely not for the kiddies though.
Active LMB character is still Beast Boy.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 33,081
Time Trapper
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Time Trapper
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 33,081 |
Finances demand I trade-wait these titles. I am always interested in anything drawn by Hughes, Cooke, Amanda and Jae Lee though. Thanks for the reviews, it will make deciding what to buy a little easier.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336
Time Trapper
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OP
Time Trapper
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 12,336 |
I admit that I like all of them so far. Very good job all the way around at this point. I expect something somewhere will fall flat to me eventually. But so far I am happy with what they are putting out.
Like I said, it may not be covering all new ground, but it is danged entertaining to see the stuff from in between panels mixed in with the hints that were left in the original. There is expansion on ideas, and those are very interesting. The art on all of them so far has been superb.
Active LMB character is still Beast Boy.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 8,758
Wanderer
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Wanderer
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 8,758 |
I agree, Dev. I've read them all so far, and this is some good stuff.
"Everything about this is going to feel different." (Saturn Girl, Legion of Super-Heroes #1)
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 10,929
Time Trapper
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Time Trapper
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 10,929 |
I'm dropping Night Owl, and sticking with Ozymandius, Silk Spectre and the Minutemen, which is my favorite book right now. fyi.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 17,872
More Polyanna than Poison Ivy
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More Polyanna than Poison Ivy
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 17,872 |
I re-read the original Watchmen recently, and it didn't change my mind that it's one of Alan Moore's lesser works. If anything, I had the nagging sensation while I was reading it that Moore deliberately "dumbed down" his writing to achieve mass appeal (Saga of the Swamp Thing, despite its top-notch quality, was never a particularly good seller.)
More to the point, though, it inspired me to do some research on the prequels on Wikipedia and to re-read this thread.
Now, I'd be curious to know what people thought of the retcons in the Minutemen mini-series, particularly the ones involving Hollis Mason. I, personally was outraged that Mason not only became a murderous vigilante, but also that he lied in his book.
In the Moore/Gibbons original series, Mason was, IMO, one of the few well-rounded and sympathetic characters. Like Inspector Abberline in Moore's From Hell, Mason was a fundamentally decent men while also being very much a product of his time. I love stories that prove that the above traits are not mutually exclusive, and I think that the retcons to Mason's character are probably the most offensive thing about the whole sorry prequel project.
I'd like to know what the rest of you who read either the comics or the spoilers think of this.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 24,141
Not much between despair and ecstacy
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Not much between despair and ecstacy
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 24,141 |
I never read any of the Watchmen spinoffs. Based on what you've written, I have no desire to.
I understand that it's always a challenge to find some new angle in old characters, some unexplored terrain. But writers need to understand the essential qualities of characters, what made them "them" in the first place. Hollis Mason was the "boy scout" of the Minutemen--the one who most embodied the fantasy ideal of what super-heroes were like. That was his "essential quality." Writers should understand and build upon that quality, not seek ways to undermine it.
Hollis was not perfect. I like your point that he was a man of his time--for all the good and bad of that. But he was essentially a decent human being who sought to make the world a better place. That quality should not be forgotten or trampled upon.
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Re: Before Watchmen
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Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 17,872
More Polyanna than Poison Ivy
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More Polyanna than Poison Ivy
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 17,872 |
Thank you, He Who. That was beautifully put, and I agree 100%.
I think that somewhere around 20 years ago, a certain cynicism and laziness became endemic upon mainstream comic book writers. Oh, there were still some good books, even from the Big Two (especially DC from about 1997 to 2002), but overall, it became a law of diminishing returns. The Watchmen prequels are but one of far too many examples.
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