Hey Scott,
Thought you and the BOD may be interested in a new project I'm guest writing at Comic Book Resource's Comics Should Be Good Blog - it's called "Gimmick or Good." In this column, I look at the gimmick covers/issues from the 1990s (foil embossed, variant covers, polybags, etc.) and analyze the contents to see if the comic book actually has any redeeming merits. Considering how a lot of these gimmicks are making a comeback in today's marketplace (Batman #13's die-cut covers, Age of Ultron #1 foil embossed cover), I thought this would be a fun retrospective. I think a lot of people slam the excesses of the 1990s, and deservedly so, but through four columns, I've already found a number of "gimmicked" gems and I expect to declare many more to be "good" even by today's standards.
Thanks,
Mark
(aka, Chasing Amazing guy - www.chasingamazingblog.com if you want to throw the plug in there too)
Of course I've been reading it! CSBG is one of the first web-surfing stops I make every day, and I've had a couple of suggestions picked by Dread Lord and Master Brian Cronin myself for his columns.
I'm not really into Age of Ultron yet, but it's only been a couple of issues. Still, feels like the BIG RESET button is obviously going to be pushed, rendering the whole thing little more than an Elseworlds. We'll see, I guess.
Quick tangential comic recommendation: The Sixth Gun! I picked up the trades and blew through them, and apparently it's going to be a pilot on NBC, so support it now and look cool and hip when it's the next big thing! Becky shooting the everloving fuck out of the bad guys while in spirit form was one of the most awesome moments I've read in a long time, and the wacky entourage of undead Billjohn and the grumpy mummy is tons of fun. It's just a consistently great western/supernatural hybrid and well worth your money. Plus Cullen Bunn is a cool guy, too.
I look at the gimmick covers/issues from the 1990s (foil embossed, variant covers, polybags, etc.)
ReplyDeleteTo borrow a popular meme, that's basically ALL the covers!!!
Ultron embossed sounds mmm, boss, though.
Over in the DD review I just was mentioning how I had the special issue of Fall from Grace that glowed in the dark.
I remember that whole run of X-titles (you know, that time when they shook stuff up) that had the hologram on cover. I do recall that two issues in particular (X-Men 25 and Wolverine 75, I think?) that were great on the inside: the former where Magneto rips the adamantium out of Wolvie's body and the latter as a follow-up where it had the awesome moment where we learn through an excruciating moment in the Danger Room that Logan's claws weren't just inserted with the adamantium and were in fact natural bone.
LOL at everyone who bought multiple copies of all the Death/Rebirth of Superman polybags. Your endorsement over-saturated the market, drove up prices to recoup losses on unsold product, and eventually killed a lot of good indy stores!!!
What's ridiculous these days is all of the variant covers, b/c they can't choose just ONE cover and they have to make sure EVERYONE's cover gets center stage. It's the multi-tag and battle royal matches at WM where instead of earning the spot, everyone gets thrown on to be fair.
ReplyDeleteI thought Marvels was worth it b/c Alex Ross's art was so different. Last year he had an exhibit at the Warhol. It was so cool seeing all of his Marvels and Infinite Crises stuff.
ReplyDeletePS - I can't stand Chasing Amy. It weirdly hits to close to home in some ways. :(
ReplyDeleteFor my Communication's class I did a monologue from Chasing Amy. Great movie.
ReplyDeleteThe opening with Hooper X is worth the price of admission alone.
ReplyDeleteThat site with its "top runs" list has cost me hundreds of dollars, the bastards.
ReplyDelete"Fatal Attractions" is the X-Over mini you are talking about.
ReplyDeleteXMen 25
Wolvie 75
UXM 304
Xfactor 92
Excalibur 71 or 75 (cant remember which if at all)
He did Infnite Crisis covers?
ReplyDeleteYou have been bookmarked. Great concept and article.
ReplyDeleteLook forward to reading more.
I'd forgotten about that Marvel's series but I really liked it. I might even go and dig it out of the boxes and have another read.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Age of Ultron: Neil Gaiman is returning to Marvel to co-write Guardians of the Galaxy with BMB and is bringing the character that he and Todd McFarlane got into a spat over with him. Quite the development.
ReplyDeleteThere was also an X-Force issue. Marvel recently released an omnibus with all of those plus every UXM and X-Factor after X-Cutioner's Song leading up to it, including Peter David's "X-Aminations" masterpiece. Another indicator of the speculators boom: at least a half-dozen new characters are introduced, and they all suck, including Exodus. One appears behind a giant door and is never heard from again.
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