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Meet the Magus 10, The Magus in Time: From Hell Part II
Alan Moore is still better known for his super-hero work than for his esoterically themed or experimental genre-breakers, but this may not always be the case.
On Crisis on Infinite Earths
DC’s first universe-wide crossover was the 12-issue Crisis on Infinite Earths (Apr 1985 – Mar 1986). Written by Marv Wolfman and penciled by George Pérez, the team responsible for DC then-hit New Teen Titans, Crisis was designed to… [more]
The Older Generation’s Farewell: The Hunger Dogs (Part 1)
To examine how comics changed in 1986, we should begin by looking at what comics were like in 1985.
“By Demons Driven!”: Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing, Issue #27
Saga of the Swamp Thing #27 “By Demons Driven!” Cover date: August 1984. Writer: Alan Moore. Penciller: Steve Bissette. Inker: John Totleben. Letterer: John Costanza. Colorist: Tatjana Wood. Cover: Steve Bissette and John Totleben. Editor:… [more]
Building a Better Dredd: The Smart Narrative Choices of Dredd
Earlier, we discussed how Dredd is faithful to its source material, to the extent that it could be described as a violent morality play. Today, I’d like to discuss the film’s narrative choices, because I… [more]
Meet the Magus 9, Gods and Demons: From Hell Part I
In subject matter, history, and art style, From Hell stands apart from other works written by Alan Moore, but that hasn’t made it obscure, rather notorious.
Sharpening the Image: Rob Liefeld’s Youngblood, the Man and the Comic that Started It All (Part 2)
While one certainly should not judge a book by its cover, applying this adage to the cover of a comic book can be problematic.
“A Time of Running”: Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing, Issue #26
Saga of the Swamp Thing #26 “A Time of Running” Cover date: July 1984 Writer: Alan Moore. Penciller: Steve Bissette. Inker: John Totleben. Letterer: John Costanza. Colorist: Tatjana Wood. Cover: Steve Bissette and John Totleben.… [more]
On the Ethics of How and Why Hank Pym Created a Wasp (Part 2)
By design and chance, Tales to Astonish #44 had presented a fledgling romance between Pym and Van Dyne which had the potential to constantly and plausibly generate both conflict and reconciliation over and over again.… [more]
On Mark Waid and Bryan Hitch’s JLA
With Grant Morrison’s departure from JLA in 2000, DC made the absolute best decisions possible for the title’s new creative team. As writer, DC chose Mark Waid. Waid had written Kingdom Come (which had inspired… [more]
1986, The Year That Changed Comics: Introduction, Part 2
Over the course of the coming months, Sequart will be serializing chapters from my forthcoming book, currently titled 1986: The Year That Changed Comics, here on their website.
Grant Morrison’s Day-Glo Years: Flex Mentallo, Part 3: “Dig the Vacuum”
Issue 3 of Flex Mentallo brings us into the “dark age” of super-hero comics, starting with the Dark Knight parodying cover, which even features faux autographs from the creators.
On Stan Lee and H.E. Huntley’s the Wasp and Ant-Man (1963 to 1966)
Suddenly, Ant-Man’s wife was dead.
On Denny O’Neil and Dick Dillin’s Justice League of America
While many celebrate Gardner Fox’s inaugural run on Justice League of America, comparatively few appreciate the run that immediately followed it: that of Dennis “Denny” O’Neil and penciler Dick Dillin (who had illustrated Fox’s final two… [more]
Bill Finger, Batman, and the Future of America
New York City, 1938. A young cartoonist named Bob Kane is attending a party where he serendipitously crosses paths with a fellow Dewitt Clinton High School alumni by the name of Bill Finger. Kane had… [more]
Sharpening the Image: Rob Liefield’s Youngblood, the Man and the Comic that Started it All
By many accounts, it was Rob Liefield who initiated talks about forming Image Comics and encouraged other rock star artists of the late 1980s and early 1990s into breaking away from the mainstream to form… [more]
“The Sleep of Reason”: Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing, Issue #25
Saga of the Swamp Thing #25: “The Sleep of Reason” Cover date: June 1984 Writer: Alan Moore. Penciller: Steve Bissette. Inker: John Totleben. Letterer: John Costanza. Colorist: Tatjana Wood. Cover: Steve Bissette and John Totleben.… [more]
X-Men #1-19 by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, et al (1963-66), Part 2
In the wake of their first public appearance, the X-Men appear to have been briefly embraced by the American people. Having defeated Magneto’s attempt to seize the U.S. military base of “Cape Citadel”, Cyclops and… [more]
On Super Powers (second series), by Paul Kupperberg and Jack Kirby
The six-issue, second Super Powers mini-series from 1985, written by Paul Kupperberg, penciled by Jack Kirby, and inked by Greg Theakston, has been almost completely ignored by critics.
1986, The Year That Changed Comics: Introduction
In discussions of graphic novels, three works that are regularly cited as landmarks of the medium are Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’s highly acclaimed Watchmen, Art Spiegelman’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Maus, and Frank Miller’s Batman: The… [more]
Grant Morrison’s Day-Glo Years: Flex Mentallo, Part 2: “My Beautiful Head”
Each issue of Flex Mentallo is loosely aligned with an era of comics, and the second issue takes us into the Silver Age. The Silver Age was notable for crazy experimentation
Meet the Magus, Part 8: Transforming Perception in Another Suburban Romance
Quite a few of Moore’s works don’t merely feature transformative themes but display a capacity for transformation themselves. By taking on new forms, they lead what could be described as parallel or alternate lives.
X-Men #1-19 by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, et al (1963-66), Part 1
In a profoundly reactionary society, even a gentle and sincere challenge to the status quo can be read as a significant marker of dissent.
On The Weird, by Jim Starlin and Bernie Wrightson
The 1988 four-issue mini-series The Weird — written by Jim Starlin, with art by legendary comics artist Bernie Wrightson and inks by Dan Green — isn’t told from the Justice League’s point of view. Rather,… [more]