X-Cutioner's Song

I meant to post about this three weeks ago, but I'm reading more than I really have time to write about lately, plus it's crunch-time for a big art show, involving 22 new canvases I've been working on since June. Really busy!

  

"X-Cutioner's Song" was a crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics in twelve parts from late 1992 to early 1993, involving the Uncanny X-Men, X-Men (vol. 2), X-Factor, and X-Force titles. It was heavily hyped and priced higher than the other titles at the zenith of both the X-Men franchise and comics popularity, in general. A few of the issues I picked up were still polybagged with a special trading card, as the issues of this crossover were originally released, all part of the heavily hyped event that warranted a $.25 hike in price!

I'm not going to give you a plot summary or anything like that; good or bad, it's all been discussed.  But in a nutshell, Cable's nemesis (and clone) Stryfe, shoots Professor Xavier with a techno-organic virus. X-Factor & the X-men are out to bring Cable down, while X-Force try to find their framed leader & get to the bottom of what really happened. It is thought that Apocalypse might be behind the assassination attempt, who is awakened from his regenerative sleep to be informed of the situation. Mr. Sinister is then thought to be the mastermind behind Xavier's assassination attempt & the kidnapping of Cylops & Jean Grey, but he is merely a pawn in Stryfe's endgame: revenge on his (or Cable's?) parents for leaving him. In the end Cable must sacrifice himself to take out Stryfe, but we now know of course that Cable will return!

Jim Lee, Rob Liefeld, & Whilce Portacio, the popular artist's of these books who had rocketed Marvel & it's X-books to the top only a year before, suddenly left to form their own company prior to the crossover event, leaving editor Bob Harras to scramble a new team together. I liked Greg Capullo's art in X-Force, as I did Andy Kubert, Jae Lee, & Brandon Peterson's penciling on X-Men, X-Force, & Uncanny X-Men respectively.

I've been reading X-Factor from issue #1 here in the last couple months or so, digging up the individual issues in the dollar comics bin, uncovering nearly every issue up to # 40. I missed all this back in the early 90's, so it was all new to me. 90's comics have a somewhat bad reputation for a reason: they're  over-the-top in every way,  filled with some of the ugliest costumes, most desperate marketing tactics, and worst, most melodramatic story ideas. But isn't that really describing comics history in general, has any one decade not suffered from the same at certain points? I'd be lying  if I said I haven't enjoyed most of what I've read. My enthusiasm is partly due to having just got back into comics in the last 15 months or so, certainly, but Cable & X-Force have been fun reading, action packed, with plot twists often enough to keep me interested throughout. Topless Robot justifiably claimed "X-Cutioner's Song" to be one of the 11 Most Essential X-Men trades only this past July, and while I'm somewhat of a newbie, I agree it was pretty great.

As stated above, I found at least two of these still polybagged with trading cards included. I mentioned before the comics boom of the 90's and the following crash crippling the industry as speculators tried to unload the extra copies & special editions that prosperous times had afforded.  The aftermath of this glut is still visible twenty years later, brand new copies like these so plentiful they can be bought for one dollar- fifty cents less than they were sold for on the date of publication...

A couple of the cards I received, the designs for which aren't that great, though I'm glad I got Stryfe & Apocalypse...

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Hey, Mr. Postman!

I finally reaped the reward of some of my holiday gift cards, and bought some other stuff I wanted, so some cool toys have been coming in the mail- a whole bunch of really FUN stuff! I haven't had time to shoot anything as I'm finishing up work for a BIG art show in the city on the 24th- I'll be showing 22 canvases I've worked on since June, and the invite list is like thirteen-hundred people. As you might suspect, I've been busy  :D

Speaking of absentia, I'm sure you were wondering like myself, "Where's ChunkyB been?" and "It's February- who's going to enforce the 28-Day Challenge of No Toys?" Well, Chunky has been on vacation for awhile, but e-mailed to say he will return... so for now it's safe! LOL!   Well Chunky, if you're passin' by, I'm sure I speak for one & all when I say that you are sorely missed & we eagerly await your return to Eclectorama & Batman: The Animated Toys blog   :)

LOTS of More Fun Stuff Later!

... now go back & read my last post- it rocked!

DC New 52: Green Lantern #2 & #3

Man, has the New 52 Green Lantern book turned out exciting! Like I said last week in my post on issue #1, Doug Mahnke's pencilling is super-tight, and starting off with Sinestro as a Green Lantern was unexpectedly cool. Part of you almost wants Sinestro to see the errors of his past and join the good fight, but what's his motivation?

In issue #1, Sinestro appeared before Hal outside his evicted apartment after a disastrous date with Carol Ferris, "If you want your ring back, you'll do everything I say."  "How many times have you thrown this oppurtunity away", Sinestro adds before Hal gets ahold of the ring...

But the ring Hal is given may not be used against it's creator, Sinestro. It's clear that our grounded Lantern will need to learn some humility & submission if he's going to get what he wants, and Sinestro is once again the teacher! When Hal hears sirens he runs off to be the hero, rescuing a damsel in distress from a collapsing bridge right before Sinestro cuts his ring's power off in midair. Begging Sinestro to return his power before the innocents die, Sinestro refuses, pulling Jordan in a headlock so he can watch how the former "Greatest of All Lanterns" ... rescues everyone in one blast?? As a reader, I was surprised and delighted by this! Sinestro brushes off the grateful citizens on the bridge while Hal looks on, speechless "Just... get back to your little lives." So great!

But Sinestro knows it was Gorgor bubbling in the water below who was responsible, coming for him for abandoning his own corps, the killer of Sinestro also the heir to Korugar. Disgusted by the sadism among his yellow lanterns who have enslaved his homeworld, Sinestro dispatches the monster, telling Hal if he wants to keep the ring, he'll be helping destroy the rest. 

Issue #3 starts with Hal wanting to say goodbye to Carol, who has by now witnessed this strange reunion with Sinestro on the evening news. Sinestro insists saving Korugar is more important than his lost relationship, sending Hal into a rage, "I'm coming with you , I'm going to help you clean up your mess. But don't think you're better than me." At which Sinestro erupts into laughter, smugly offering "Jordan. I am better than you. And you already know that."  :D

Meanwhile, the Guardians have gathered in contemplation of the error of their reliance on the volatile Green Lantern Corps. Agreement is reached that like the Manhunters before, it is time to replace the Corps...!

On Korugar, Hal is instructed to stick to the plan Sinestro has given, but his discipline gives way to uncharacteristic emotion upon seeing his former deputy Arsona in danger on the street below. Sinestro charges to the rescue, causing a panic among the citizens and their tormentors, the same reckless emotion Hal displayed for Carol manifested in his own actions... this is good stuff, People  :D

Hal flies into the central yellow battery to shut it down while the Sinestro Corps keeps busy with their former leader as instructed,  but something has gone terribly wrong it seems...!

More Later- Make It FUN!

DC New 52: More Justice League...

While on the subject of DC's New 52 here at the Super-DuperToyBox, I've continued picking up Justice League since the 1st issue, recently picking up #5 at The Fantasy Shop. I've heard a fair share of disdain for this particular title, but I seem to keep coming back for more- the combination of Green Lantern, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Cyborg is just to good for a 70's kid like myself to pass up. I love a supergroup, what can I say? Personally, I continue to be thrilled by Jim Lee's incredible pencilling- just... wow! Some fans have expressed a distaste for Mr. Lee's redesigns of these iconic characters, but I attribute at least half of this to nostalgia, and people's resistance to change. I've grown to like the new renderings of my old favorites, and eagerly await DC Direct's 2012 release of the New 52 Justice League action figures  :)

Issue #2 shows the misunderstanding between these metahumans, Superman mistakenly associating Green Lantern & Batman for the aliens who've been showing up with the pinging "little boxes", leaving awesome destruction in their wake. Young Victor Stone's fate as Cyborg is sealed during a visit to his father's laboratory where the superhumans are being researched, one of the boxes erupting & violently releasing more aliens.

Issue # 3 introduces the royalty, the Amazon Princess Diana on the cover, and Atlantean King Arthur on the last page. The members f this fledgling supergroup start acting like a team now, fighting what we now start to realize are Darkseid's parademon armies...

Aquaman comes on strong & confident when Hal questions his ability to contribute to, much less lead the fledgling group on champions in Justice League issue #4...

When Darkseid appears at the end of issue #4, we see the Master of Apokolips is no less powerful in the New 52 reimagining of Jack Kirby's Silver-Age creation. He instantly dispatches the group effortlessly...!

Justice League #5 opens, Flash trying to rouse the flattened Justice League, but one of Darkseid's Omega beams hits Superman, and he's carried off by a Parademon...

...then Hal Jordan gets his...!

For whatever reason, perhaps an act of trust, Batman exposes his identity to Hal before leaving his to rally the troops while he hitches a ride with a parademon to find Superman... on Apokolips??

Pretty exciting stuff! A retread of old material? Sure, but fun... fellow Erin likened it to Marvel's Ultimates series delivered in a "summer movie" vibe, which rang true to me. There are a lot of extras filling the last pages of these issue, including concept sketches of the characters, like Batman & Superman above, as well as mock dossiers from the files on these strange, new superhumans. Lots of advertisements for the other New 52 books fill these issues as well, some of which I'm tempted to pick up.

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The New 52: Green Lantern

I was determined to stick to only the Justice League title from DC's New 52, the price of comics being outrageous these days, but when presented with the opportunity to pick up the first five issues of Green Lantern at the Fantasy Shop, I caved like a spelunker  :D

I was intrigued most by the cover of the 1st issue featuring Sinestro as a Green Lantern! And let me stop here before we go any further to say I love Doug Mahnke's pencilling work, my initial experience with this talented artist in reading Final Crisis just last year. His exacting, super-tight style looks so great applied to Sinestro's GL outfit! While many fanboy bemoaned Geoff Johns writing yet another book for DC, I loved Blackest Night, and the way the reboot of this title starts off caught my attention immediately- this doesn't start off with an origin story, but quite some time after Sinestro had started his own Yellow Lantern Corps. The Guardians have restored Sinestro's Green Lantern power ring, forcing him to take the oath before... setting him free?

Meanwhile, Hal is getting bailed out of jail by Carol Ferris, who graciously offers our grounded pilot a job sweeping floors, having also been recently stripped by the Guardians of his Green Lantern status for his characteristic reckless behavior. Sinestro sets his sights on home planet of Korugar, having erupted in chaos since his incarceration by the Guardians. The "Greatest of all Lanterns" is portrayed perfectly in this new book: fearless, scheming, and unstoppable. All the things I love about Sinestro! I was enthralled! After Hal ruins dinner with Carol, and probably his last chance to get back in good with Ferris Air, the grounded hero returns to find an eviction notice on his apartment door, and a surprise visitor bearing an unexpected proposition...!

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Hey, Mr. Postman!

A pal from my old hometown mailed some comics to me this week! These aren't necessarily what I would pick up, which makes the package even more interesting  :) 

*Unexpected, Ghosts, & Witching Hour issues from the late 70's. These horror/mystery comics should be a lot of fun! As a child I'd read a handful of old horror comics a family friend had that fascinated & frightened me a little  :D  Maybe some of you older kids remember these...

*The cover on this House of Mystery is great- it instantly caught my attention! Mysterious Island is an adaptation of the Jules Verne novel, both a type of comic and classic adventure literature I'm unfamiliar with.

*A couple Jonah Hex issues from the late '70's, an issue of G.I. Joe from '86, and three McDonald's Golden Adventures of Brett Hull  -if you lived anywhere within a 200 mile radius of St. Louis in the early 90's, you remember Brett Hull was worshipped by the Blues fans. I wasn't even into sports and I watched the Blues. 

*The Brave & the Bold, 1977- Batman & Green Arrow team up with the Metal Men! Now this is cool 'cause I'd seen this in the dollar comics bin recently, but decided to pass on it in order to stay within the budget I'd set for the day. And Man-Thing vs. Dr. Strange... wow! I'm really curious about this!

Well, if I didn't have enough to read before (laughs), I certainly do now thanks to Lara- Thanks girl  :)

More Later- Make It FUN!