It's time again for me to recognize that I've survived another year here in blog-land. Though I never said anything about it here, five years was always my unspoken goal. I would keep the site running for that long, no matter what, and then if I was bored after five years, I'd feel okay shutting it down.
Well, the good news is: I'm not bored! Busier than I used to be, maybe, but not bored. Certainly the busy part is reflected in how my posting schedule has diminished recently. I used to post three to four times a week, then it became two to three times. Nowadays it's pretty much two, with an occasional third post, plus for the first time ever, I fell so far behind on a review project that I was forced to cancel it mid-stream. As noted at the time, I do intend to return to the James Bond newspaper strip at some point, but for now I'm setting it aside.
I have a new project starting up in a couple weeks, though, which I think I should be able to keep on track all the way through. Ever since I started the blog, the fall season was devoted to Transformers posts, but this time it's going to be something different -- however, in keeping with the toy tie-in theme, it will still be a beloved eighties property in comic form. Post-CRISIS Superman and Wonder Woman will continue for the rest of the year as well, so the remainder of 2018, at least, is in pretty good shape.
That said, I have absolutely no idea yet what classic run I want to look at for Mondays in 2019. Usually by this point in the year I've figured it out, or at least narrowed it down to a few candidates, but at present I've got nothing. I should be able to figure something out before January, but right now I'm scratching my head.
Now, we'll close things out as always with a look at some stats relating to the blog. I should probably stop mentioning that the X-MEN COLLECTED EDITIONS page is the number one most viewed around here. It's so far ahead of everything else, that I can't imagine anything ever catching it. In a nice surprise (for me at least, considering how much work I put into it), the home page for my SPIDER-MAN BY ROGER STERN reviews has leapt into second position. Last year it didn't even place! This knocks the INFINITY GAUNTLET OMNIBUS review, the perennial number two, down into third place for the first time ever.
(Also, though it's still some notches down from fourth place, I should note that John Byrne's savaging of my FANTASTIC FOUR #262 review has catapulted it up the standings, way ahead of any other single issue review I've ever posted here.)
So that's your anniversary post for Year Five. Onward into our second half-decade!
Maybe do the Paul Levitz/Kieth Giffen Legion of Super-Heroes run? It's definitely a favorite of mine.
ReplyDeleteOr how about the Roger Stern run on Avengers?
Someday I want to read Stern's AVENGERS, but I've just never been able to convince myself to do it. I do want to return to Marvel, though, after a year of Superman and Wonder Woman. I've thought about Simonson's THOR several times, but I'm not sure I'm in the mood for that, either. Whatever I choose, it's something with which I need to be prepared to spend several months, if not an entire year!
DeleteThough speaking of the Avengers, I do keep thinking Kurt Busiek's run could be fun to revisit, though that's obviously more recent than the 70s/80s stuff I typically spend my Mondays on.
in keeping with the toy tie-in theme, it will still be a beloved eighties property in comic form
ReplyDeleteBy the Power of Greyskull!
Right the first time, Teemu!
DeleteYES!
DeleteOh hell yeah!
DeleteFirst of all, I want to say (on behalf of all the anonymous readers throughout the various internets) thanks for doing this awesome project. As for a new classic run to cover: have you thought about doing some prime-period '80's Claremont -- perhaps his run on New Mutants? Or the Giffen/DeMatteis Justice League?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words, Zee! I appreciate your reading along.
DeleteI do want to read that Giffen/DeMatteis/McGuire JLI run someday, though I'm planning to jump back to Marvel after I'm finished with Superman and Wonder Woman. I like the idea of 80s Claremont, but since every other comics blog on the web is devoted to the X-Men, I'm not certain what I could do for a "hook" to make my reviews stand out. Plus, I actually gave a lot of my thoughts on those issues already in comments to the various Gentlemen of Leisure reviews over the years.
But still -- maybe someday...!
I guess my first pick for a Marvel run would be Byrne's Alpha Flight, but after the Superman reviews you might be a bit (I'm just gonna go ahead and write this) Byrned out at this point.
ReplyDeleteI suspect you'd enjoy the Stern Avengers, but there are certainly a lot of issues to cover (over 60 with annuals). Might I suggest my favourite Avengers runs? The 1st Shooter run (issues 157-177) with some classic storylines (Bride of Ultron, Nefaria, Korvac) crunched together along with Perez and Byrne art.
My second favourite is the subsequent, much less-discussed David Michelenie run going from 181-200. These stories didn't achieve the revered status of the most famous Shooter ones, but they introduce some interesting ideas to the mythos, have a lot of good characterization and, again, boast some nice Byrne and Perez art. The run closes out with the infamous 200th Ms. Marvel farewell issue...but the rest of the stories are good solid superhero fare (although there are a couple of looks at sexism and racism that, while maybe trying to be provocative, don't always hit the mark...it'd be interesting to read your take on that stuff as well).
Anyway, that's my two cents. 80's Marvel was my favourite comic-collecting era, so I'm sure whatever you examine, I will enjoy reading along (and if you go with Busiek 90s stuff, well, that was pretty good, too).
Best,
-david p.
I'll second any pre-#200 AVENGERS even with the emphasis on flying plasma rather than societal issues. Would be a fun read-along either way.
DeleteSomeday I do want to read the post-Englehart 70s AVENGERS. I've heard good things about Shooter's first run, I almost always like David Michelinie, and I know George Perez and John Byrne drew chunks of that period. Plus, I've read some of the material from that era, like the debuts of Taskmaster and Jocasta, and the "Night of Wundagore" stuff, and really liked all of it. Oh, and Korvac, too. I know I read that, though I barely remember it.
DeleteWhat would be a good starting point? I see Englehart's last issue is basically 150. Looks like Gerry Conway is on for just a little while before Shooter comes aboard. Something like issues 151 - 200?
The Busiek era sounds good too, though, and I haven't really explored that late 90s era much here (and I really, really love late 90s Marvel). Or maybe even an alternating series, as I've been doing with Superman and Wonder Woman, of THUNDERBOLTS and AVENGERS side-by-side? That could be a lot of fun!
I think Jim Shooter officially begins around #158-9 with the Graviton two-parter. That story's not super engaging (and I don't think Perez pencils it yet), but pretty much from 160 on the Shooter/Perez energy takes hold. Issue 169 is a fill-in, and I think Shooter wrote 163 but that definitely has an out-of-continuity fill-in feel to it as well. Korvac goes from 167-177 (Perez leaves after 171, sadly), then a Gerber fill-in, and a two-parter written by I-forget-who, and then Michelenie begins his run with #181. I think Byrne pencils everything up to #191, then Perez takes over from 194-202, which I think is Michelenie's last issue, or maybe that's 203 (a Beast/Wonder Man team-up, so it's certainly in Michelenie's wheelhouse if he wrote that one).
DeleteAnyway, think that's how the team finished out the late 70s and while that would certainly get my vote for the era to tackle next, your idea of alternating Avengers and Thunderbolts is a neat one, too (those Avengers were the only Marvel book I read at that time, and I know I should've been reading Thunderbolts too).
-david p.
Thanks, David! This will help me decide what I want to do next.
Delete(Now watch as I suddenly have a brainstorm that I never thought of and it turns out to be something totally different...!)
Belated congrats on the hitting the five year anniversary mark!
ReplyDeleteAs for your next series, something Avengers related would be great (they're my number two team/characters/franchise after the X-Men), but it's always fun to see what you come up with, and whatever you choose will be fun to read!
Thanks! I finally did decide what's next, and as I joked above, it's something nobody ever suggested, and something I wasn't even expecting to do (yet). But I do want to get to the Avengers sooner rather than later.
Delete