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Why Miracleman Matters
Everybody talks about Miracleman, but few have read it. Far more people know of Miracleman’s importance than understand why it occupies such a crucial role in the history of super-hero comics.
Sequart Podcast #2: The Art of the Event
Guests Julian Darius and Kevin Thurman discuss event comics, their pitfalls, and their possibilities.
The Art of the Cover: Paolo Rivera’s Daredevil Covers
The covers to most comics are a mixed bag. There are some that look so atrocious they would make Warren Ellis puke up his Red Bulls and shepherd’s pies. The cover, after all, is just… [more]
The Power Ring and the Comic Book (Part 1)
Whenever a critic speaks of any popular work as possessing a “mythology”—a term often applied to serial, fictional narratives—the most common objection is that popular fiction is too “low”—as in, “created for the lowest common… [more]
Continuity Conundrum
Continuity can be a good thing.
The Bane / Venom Connection
Ok, so here’s a fun one.
Reading Holy Terror’s First Act
After its three-page thematic introductory sequence, Holy Terror shifts to the Fixer chasing Cat Burglar across Empire City’s rooftops. It’s a sequence not without its charms, including a few powerful images. It depicts an eccentric, hard-boiled… [more]
Parody in Alan Moore’s The Stars My Degradation
Alan Moore’s early professional work (such as Maxwell the Magic Cat, Roscoe Moscow, and The Stars My Degradation) was firmly rooted in comedy, which may seem at odds with the more later dramatic work he became… [more]
Stan Lee, Presented (Part 3)
In Part 2 of this discussion of editor / writer Stan Lee’s contribution to the creative process in the era of Silver-Age Marvel Comics, I argued that Lee had done far more than just dialogue… [more]
Super-Hero Prose: It’s About Damn Time
Marvel is branching out into legitimate publishing and I couldn’t be more excited.
Aiming Below the Belt
I was speaking to a friend of mine recently who lives primarily in Thailand but has been staying in the U.S. temporarily, and I asked her if she was familiar with Superman.
Reading Holy Terror‘s Introductory Sequence
It’s hard for me to describe the mixture of pleasures and pains, both of them quite intense, that I feel reading Holy Terror. The pleasure tends to be artistic, primarily visual. The pain tends to… [more]
Sequart Podcast #1: The Changing Format of Comics
Guests Kevin Thurman and David Balan discuss the future of the comics form, and the implications of digital comics.
Alan Moore’s The Stars My Degradation
The title of Moore’s second strip for Sounds Magazine, The Stars My Degradation, owes its inspiration to a famous science-fiction novel by Alfred Bester, The Stars My Destination (1956). In the novel, Gully Foyle is… [more]
Identifying the Complete Story: Diablo #1
In my last article, I discussed how Watchmen #2 was successful as an individual comic book issue by satisfying the reader with a complete chunk of story.
Screen Villains
It’s often said that a hero is only as good as his villain. I think.
Ultimate Captain America: A Meditation on American Identity
While Mark Millar was experimenting with narrative during his return to the Ultimates, Jason Aaron was exploring the inner-workings of Captain America in his mini-series Ultimate Captain America.
O Captain? Not My Captain
Captain America: the First Avenger—henceforth abbreviated to Captain—is a fairly entertaining film that illustrates both the advantages and disadvantages of applying real-world verisimilitude to comic-book superheroes.
A Place for Bold: Understanding Frank Miller
No one seems to get Frank Miller. Despite the flurry of digital ink spilled over him, most critics seem to be left scratching their heads. Indeed, the entire body of Frank Miller criticism can now… [more]
Building a Better Batman: An Introduction to Morrison’s Batman
From the first few pages of Batman #655, “Building a Better Batmobile,” Grant Morrison makes it abundantly clear to his readers that this is not your typical Batman story, nor should it be read like… [more]
Death and the Super-Hero
Let’s talk death.
Mark Millar’s The Ultimates, Part 8: The Grand Exit
A word of advice before going into this series: ignore the “Death of Spider-Man” banner at the top and you’ll be just fine.
Stan Lee, Presented (Part 2)
In the previous installment of “Stan Lee, Presented,” I argued that Stan Lee had functioned as a “truly creative editor” during his tenure as editor/writer at Marvel Comics.
The Fever of Urbicande, Chapter 4
We’ve previously looked at The Fever of Urbicande‘s prologue (and some of that prologue’s implications), as well as chapters one, two, and three (in two parts). This time, we’ll begin to look at chapter four,… [more]
The Captured Ghosts Movie Tour Rages On!
After a successful premiere at the Napa Valley Film Festival, Warren Ellis: Captured Ghosts is now screening worldwide! If you’re a fan of Warren Ellis and live within driving distance of any of the below… [more]