Tag Archives: Marvel

Great Moments in Hulk History

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10. Hulk at the Tropicana

Class. That’s what this is.




9. “Nobody Loves the Hulk”

This song was for sale in issues of Marvel Comics.  You thought John Lennon’s “Imagine” was a tear-jerker?

Try this: “They dropped an H-Bomb on him, but Hulk only became annoyed.”


8. Hulk Rollercoaster at Universal Studios

At Universal theme park’s Marvel Superhero Island, don’t eat at the Fantastic Four cafe before you ride this.

It’s very exciting to hear the screams of terror from all the milksops.

7. Hulk 1970s toy commercial

The Hulk song in this toy commercial  is still stuck in my head a million years later.

I’m not sure why Hulk and Spider-Man have “fly away action,” but some questions are not meant to have answers.

6. Hulk Cartoons from 1966

In 1966, appeared to be the result of someone going crazy with the scissors on a pile of comic books, then moving the pieces back and forth. It offered a finger-snapping theme song that rhymed “gamma rays” with “unglamorous.” That is called “creative expression.”

5. Incredible Hulk #417

The longest-running Hulk comic book writer is Peter David, who brought humor and heart to the Hulkster (along with plenty of smashing).  Hulk throws a bachelor party for sidekick Rick Jones and invites the super-males of Marvel. Hijinks ensue, including Captain America attempting to hire a magician, and instead getting an ecydiast. (Google it. Totally worth it.)

4. Hulk cartoons from 1982 and 1996

The 1982 series had an awesome bass drum intro with Hulk growling and breaking things, as Hulk is wont to do. It was notable for Bruce Banner’s clothes, which ripped to shreds every time he Hulked out, but returned to buttoned-up shirt, tie, and nicely pleated pants when he returned to Banner form. 

The 1996 series had John Rhys-Davies as Thor.  Lou Ferrigno did Hulk’s voice and I have a story.

3. Meeting Lou Ferrigno

Lou Ferrigno appeared at Atlanta’s DragonCon sci-fi convention in the late 1990s, and I got in the autograph picture line. After seeing dozens of fans talk about the Hulk TV show with him, I decided to talk about something no one else did: his voice acting as Hulk on the 1996 cartoon. Some advice: Don’t be the one guy a celebrity remembers.

As the line drew closer, I plotted my message in my head: “It’s good the cartoon makers asked you to do the voice of the Hulk.” 

But what came out of my mouth, to Lou Ferrigno’s face,  was “I’m glad they asked you, because they must have said, “What could Lou Ferrigno be doing?”

Time stood still. I realized what I said. He realized what I said. He said “Thank you for enjoying the show,” and we shook hands. He squeezed my hand, as if to say, “I could rip this arm right off.”

This is a great moment in Hulk history because I survived. 

2. The Incredible Hulk TV series


In four seasons Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno taught us many life lessons.

Number one: Don’t try to fix your car during a lightning storm.

Hulk cologne.

Hulk cologne!
Smells like rage.

Black Panther: 4-Word Movie Reviews

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Full-length movie reviews are the worst. Four words? We’ve got plenty of time for that. Especially when we’re talking about BLACK PANTHER. 

 

Shuri = rules.

When is Shuri’s movie? — Tegan Hendrickson, @artfulusername

Representation that matters. Finally! — Jessa Phillips, @SultryMinxZoe

M’Baku is my cuddle-bunny.   –– Shaun Rosado, @Pneumaz

Genuine epic. Visually stunning. — Jennifer Hartshorn, @ThatJenHarts

Dora Milaje movie, please!  — Tegan

Gorillas save the day!  — Mark Finn, @FinnsWake

Killmonger was not wrong. — Jennifer

Where’s the brass frog?  — Michael Gordon, @NewLegendMike

Wakanda out-cosmics Asgard.    — Van Allen Plexico, @VanAllenPlexico

Suck it, white supremacists!    — Deanna Toxopeus, @UbalStecha

 

Welcome to my new blog

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I already have a long established RevolutionSF blog called The Culture where I record my thoughts on the comics books I read. This new one will have a slightly different focus.

I have been collecting comics on and off for the last 30 years or so and there are a number of series that I would like to re-read – mainly from the eighties and nineties. Most of these will be from Vertigo but there are others from DC, Marvel and 2000AD that I would like to read too. So I will record these readings here separate from my main blog.

The final spur to actually do this is the news from DC that the only ongoing title throughout Vertigo’s 20 years of existence, John Constantine, Hellblazer, is to end with issue 300 and move back to DC as part of the New 52. Like most fanboys, my views on this change are not entirely positive but the closing out of the series on Vertigo means that now is probably a good time to go back and revisit the series as I have been meaning to do for some time.

So all things John Constantine will be my first focus. I will look at some of his appearances in Swamp Thing before moving onto his own series and the associated spin-off series that he also appeared in. I will probably not start before December so you have time to dig out your old back issues if you want to join in.

Dead of Night: Devil-Slayer (2009)

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“They look like zombies. They’re dead, right?”

“No they are undead.”

“Oh yeah? Then let’s see if we can make the undead dead again.”

Dead of Night: Devil-Slayer #1 cover

This book collects the four issue mini-series which is one of three published by Marvel on their MAX imprint in 2008/9 featuring modern versions of horror characters from the Marvel Universe – the others featured Man-Thing and Werewolf by Night. This one was written by horror author Brian Keene with art from Chris Samnee. Keene is a new name to me but has written a library full of books on his own. Samnee’s work I know from Serenity: The Shepherd’s Tale and Thor: The Mighty Avenger – and he is currently doing art duties on Daredevil.

Dan Sylva is returning for a tour of Iraq after leaving the army but finding that his girlfriend had left him and that there were no job opportunities at home. His first mission is to investigate a site where a captured American soldier is possibly being held. Dan discovers the soldier, and a lot of the civilians who had also gone missing recently, prey to a bunch of demons – both in demonic form and masquerading as part of the mercenary Bloodstone unit. With the help of a magi, Isaac, Dan alone escapes and learns that some demons and angels are plotting to bring about Armageddon early using war zones to hide their ritualistic murders. Dan learns that his uncle was a devil-slayer and that he is the next in line to assume the mantle and prevent hell on Earth.

The blurb on the back of the book says:

A radical re-imagining of Marvel’s premier horror icon!

which is not a good start as I had never heard of the character before – which in a way is not surprising as I am much more of a DC/Vertigo fan than I am a Marvel one. I much prefer the DC/Vertigo take on horror, magic and the supernatural. The original character was created in 1977 by Rich Buckler and this series marks an updating and rebooting of the character. Gone is the cheesy superhero costume to be replaced by fatigues and shemagh.

It would appear that the reboot did not lead on to any further series which is a bit of shame as I quite liked this book. It still had a long way to go to match the rich Vertigo universe but it had some promise. I liked the grounding of the horror within the human conflict and the conspiracy between demons and angels, although well worn, could have legs if handled correctly. The last page in the book showed how the story could be expanded out to involve corporations, religious leaderships and governments – again familiar targets but full of potential if tied to current affairs. Perhaps a missed opportunity for Marvel to try and muscle in on some of DC’s action.

House of M: World of M featuring Wolverine (2006)

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[ Listening to BBC Radio Scotland Currently: Listening to BBC Radio Scotland ]

Quote:
“You gave him the one thing that he could not live without: you gave him back his war.”

 

This book is a bit of an odds and sods collection of House of M related stories. The main story is from Wolverine 33 -35 and was written by Daniel Way with art from Javier Saltares and Mark Texeira. The book also contains three single issue stories from Black Panther 7, The Pulse 10 and Captain America 10.

The main story features Sebastian Shaw, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., interviewing Mystique after Logan literally jumps ship from a helicarrier. He is concerned about Logan’s loyalty especially after a recent terrorist incident in which a sentinel was stolen by Logan’s old colleague Nick Fury and Logan himself disappeared. The story features Wolverine only in the flashbacks as the interview proceeds and examines further the mutant oppression of the human population and the spiky relationship between Fury and the mutant squad he is tasked to train.

The main story is good but only features Wolverine as a background character in his own book. It does explore, along with the other stories in the books, some of the prejudices of the formerly suppressed mutant majority. The Black Panther story expressly addresses the prejudices of the ruling regime towards other mutants – for instance the ruling classes tend to be white and human looking with the more extreme looking mutants not having a look in. The quality in the book shines through in the last two stories that were written by the great Brian Michael Bendis and Ed Brubaker. Bendis’ story again features the oppression of humans in the mutant controlled workplace and the censorship the press. It features a confrontation between journalist Kat Farrell and the anguished Hawkeye who has just had his memories of his death restored to him. The Captain America story features the sad decline of the formerly feted hero as he struggles to find his place in the increasingly mutant dominated world order. So a mixed bag but an interesting read exploring some of the background to the House of M universe.

House of M: Spider-Man (2006)

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Quote:
“Hope you don’t mind, Goblin, but I brought some of my buddies along.”

 

This book collects the five issue mini-series and was written by Mark Waid and Tom Peyer. I know Waid best from the Kingdom Come mini-series but he has had runs on other DC titles such as Flash and JLA and Marvel titles such as Captain America and Fantastic Four. Peyer was an editor on Sandman but I think this is the first book I have read for which he has a writing credit. The art was by penciller Salvador Larroca and inker Danny Miki. I know Larroca from the Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra and Ultimate Elektra mini-series and I don’t think I have come across Miki’s work before.

Peter Parker has the perfect life. He is one of the most famous mutants on the planet – as a wrestler and film star. He is happily married to Gwen Stacy with a small son and has the rest of his family around him including his uncle Ben. So why would anyone want to dirty his reputation? Who is the mysterious Green Goblin who passes the dirt, in the form of an alternate reality journal, to Parker’s personal whipping boy Jonah Jameson?

Peter Parker is the superhero who gets the roughest emotional ride in the House of M series when his memories are restored. And that continues in this great series from Waid and Peyer in which his real memories are trying to come to the surface and he goes from hero to zero with Jameson’s revelations in the press. The book continues a theme common to a lot of the House of M related series – the so-called dream come true reality created by the Scarlet Witch does not seem like a dream come true in actuality. The only fault that I can find with it is that I felt the ending was a little weak but other than that well worth a read even without any knowledge of the main book.

House of M: New X-Men – Academy X (2006)

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Quote:
“You’re a terrorist now?! People have been sent to kill you. My people.”

 

This book collects New X-Men 16 -19 and was written by husband and wife team Nunzio DeFilippis and Christina Weir. The art was by penciller Aaron Lopresti and inker Brad Vancata. All of the creative team are new to me.

In this reality, the Hellions are a group of young S.H.I.E.L.D. trainees and the New Mutants are a group of non-combatant mutants being trained for leadership. After the Hellions break-up a terrorist incident at a New Mutants assembly, the signs point to the father of Surge, one of the Hellions, as being behind the attempted atrocity. When the Hellions are sent to Japan to investigate without her, Surge enlists the help of her New Mutant boyfriend to find out the truth of her father’s involvement and the super secret Project Genesis.

This was an enjoyable little side tale in the House of M universe. It explores more of the dark side of the seemingly perfect mutant ruled world created by the Scarlet Witch. Because the teams are made up of teens there is a bit of a juvenile feel to some of the settings and dialogue but the story is mostly good with mystery and intrigue in the form of the secret Project Genesis and super covert S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in both camps. one of the worthier House of M titles though it did feel like they ran out of room a little with an ending that borrowed from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

House of M: Mutopia X (2006)

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Quote:
“I can’t do it this time. I can’t raise the dead.”

 

This book collects the Mutopia X mini-series that was written by David Hine a British artist and writer who seems to be more well known for his writing duties these days. He wrote the District X series for Marvel out of which this series is descended. The art was by penciller Lan Medina and inker Alejandro Sicat – a pair of comic book artists from the Philippines who also worked on District X.

Ismael Ortega is a human cop working in Sapien Town. When the Sapien League narrowly fail to assassinate a mutant singer, Ortega is teamed with Lucas Bishop to protect the League’s next suspected target film director Daniel Kaufman. In the course of his duties, Ortega becomes close to Kaufman’s shape changing wife, Lara, prompting retaliation from Kaufman leading to tragedy for Ortega and his family.

This book was OK but given its pedigree – all the creators having worked on the parent title District X – it may have had more resonance for those familiar with that series and the background of the main characters. There is a sub-plot concerning tensions with Ortega and his mutant wife over their daughter who has the chance of awakening her dormant mutant abilities in a rite of transformation. There was an opportunity to explore this more and elevate the story above the average but it was only touched upon and used as a plot device to enable the villainous Kaufman a shot of revenge at Ortega. Ortega himself is not a very sympathetic character in this story and his plight did not touch me as much as it might have done for characters that I have an emotional connection with. So another House of M related title that adds little to the main story.

House of M: Uncanny X-Men (2006)

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Quote:
“And what is this? I swear, if I’m dead again …!”

 

This book collects Uncanny X-Men 462 – 465. It was written by long-time X-Men writer Chris Claremont and pencilled by two of my favourite arists – Alan Davies and Chris Bachalo. I know Claremont’s work from various X-Men books but primarily from the original Excalibur series from the late eighties. Davis also worked on that series as well as the fabulous, Alan Moore penned, D.R. and Quinch from 2000AD. I loved Bachalo’s work on the two Death mini-series on Vertigo as well as Shade, the Changing Man and The Witching Hour – in fact my favourite t-shirt to this day remains one that features a Bacholo image of Death (the only picture that I can find online is in the background of this image).

Captain Britain is swept up into the events of the House of M as this story shows that the actions of the Scarlet Witch on Earth 616 threaten the integrity of the whole omniverse. He is tasked with returning to Earth 616 to try and seal the breach in causality before the whole of the omniverse ceases to be. however once back on Earth 616 he he finds himself happy to play the role given to him by the Scarlet Witch’s changes. It is only through messages transmitted through Meggan and a hunt for fugitives from Magneto that he gets back on track.

This is the first book in the spin-offs from the main story that I have really loved. I think part of it is nostalgia for the original Excalibur series that I liked back in the day – and this story feels like an Excalibur story rather than an X-men story as a lot of the characters and the setting come straight from Excalibur. The other part of it is due my love for the two pencillers’ work who both have two chapters each in this story. The story from Claremont is good but the plot line featuring Juggernaut and Nocturne on the run from a bunch of Magneto’s hunters is left largely unexplained – possibly to be resolved in one of the remaining books. An early splash page shows Captain Britain and Meggan being blasted across the omniverse and shows familiar characters in unfamiliar setting and guises – some of these look intriguing and I wish there was a series that explored some of these further (like a Marvel version of DC’s Elseworlds books).

House of M: Fantastic Four/Iron Man (2006)

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Quote:
“You just killed those people.”

“No. Not people. Mutants.”

 

This book collects two mini-series related to the House of M crossover event – Fantastic Four: House of M 1 – 3 and Iron Man: House of M 1 – 3. The creative team on the Fantastic Four series are all new to me – it was written by John Layman with pencils by Scott Eaton and inks by Don Hillsman. The Iron Man series was written by Greg Pak, whose work I know from the Planet Hulk and World War Hulk books, and the art was by another unknown to me Pat Lee.

The Fantastic Four story actually stars the Fearsome Four, a mystically powered team led by Victor von Doom with only Ben Grimm as the It surviving Reed Richards space mission to examine cosmic rays. Doom is allowed to rule Latveria under the global mutant superiority but finds himself at the beck and call of Magneto. His vanity will not allow this and he directs his scientific research to the problem of how to rid the world of the House of Magnus and install himself as world ruler only to find his plans scuppered by the one person for whom he has utter contempt.

In the Iron Man story, Tony Stark is a successful entrepreneur and competitor in Sapien Death Match – an arena sport where he battles with other humans in mechanical suits – however he finds himself constantly overshadowed, in all his pursuits, by his father. Searching for Henry Pym, a rogue scientist who was researching the mutant genome while in Stark’s employ, Stark uses a new mechanical suit that he developed in secret. He traces Pym to a hideout of the human resistance but soon finds himself in a battle with a sapien hunting sentinel controlled by his father. When Pym is revealed as a terrorist who has planted a number of devices targeted at mutants only, Stark must decide between being his own man and the future seemingly mapped out for him by his father.

For a world that is supposed to give the heroes their dreams come true neither Victor von Doom or Tony Stark are particularly happy with their lot – though this could be seen as some dormant, nagging sense that something is not right. The stories are both fine in themselves without really adding much to the central story.

Pat Lee’s art in the Iron Man story is quite strange. There is a lot of it that contains sentinels, armoured humans and other mecha and this is all really good but when it comes to the depiction of the people it just does not do it for me.