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Post by Nutcase65 on Jan 29, 2008 18:30:45 GMT -5
Hey all,
Here is a question. At first it will seem like a negative question, and I guess it really is, but exercise your memories and try to make it a little fun.
As one of the old fogies, I have always made my feelings known about some of the current directions being taken. BUT,.. the stuff we grew up on wasn't always that great.
What I want to know, is what do you consider some of the most mind numb ing reading from the 60's and 70'? The reason I ask is I have been reading the entire Marvel catalog recently (work in progress)
Of the stuff I have read right now I consider 60's and 70's Hulk to read kinds like one of those dreams where you need to run but can't.
So what are some of your harder runs to read?
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Post by Tana Nile on Jan 29, 2008 23:43:23 GMT -5
Good question Nutcase (and welcome back!). For me, the very early X-Men are just excruciating. I picked up the first X-Men Marvel Masterwork (issues 1-10) and it was a real chore to get through. Just seemed really flat. I think the uniforms are also incredibly boring to look at.
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Post by dlw66 on Jan 30, 2008 8:36:14 GMT -5
A welcome back from me as well!
When I buy the Essentials, I usually don't buy the first volume. Silver Age Marvels don't generally seem to hit their stride until after a year or so. I don't find the Avengers particularly interesting until the Kooky Quartet era; Spidey is hit-and-miss but really takes off when Romita is on the scene; and I've mentioned before that while the FF had it's high points, for whatever reason the book didn't take off for me until Sinnott started inking Kirby.
Tana, I'd agree with you about X-Men 1-10 -- I have that Masterworks and felt the same way. I was reading it to say that I had.
Nutcase, Hulk 1-6 would be in the same category. Just "blah" to me.
EDIT: And I'd be remiss if I didn't cite most of what DC put out from the mid-50's to the late 60's.
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Post by Shiryu on Jan 30, 2008 11:19:16 GMT -5
Well, I obviously wasn't around in the 60s or 70s, so my answer is based on reprints. I agree that the early X-Men issues were extremely dull, and the same goes for the first Hulk ones (no wonder it was quickly cancelled in those days).
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Post by Doctor Doom on Jan 30, 2008 11:41:57 GMT -5
Hmm, I too would have said early X-Men. As FF Plaza once observed, it was just the exact same personalities as the Fantastic Four but split up- especially with Johnny/Iceman and Reed/Xavier and Cyclops
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Post by sharkar on Feb 7, 2008 22:16:02 GMT -5
I picked up the first X-Men Marvel Masterwork (issues 1-10) and it was a real chore to get through. Just seemed really flat. Tana, I'd agree with you about X-Men 1-10 -- I have that Masterworks and felt the same way. I was reading it to say that I had. I agree that much of Marvel's output in the early Silver Age pales in comparison to the later stuff...but I like the early X-Men issues you both cite. I remember reading them as reprints in Marvel Super-Heroes in late 1969. I didn't find the X-Men themselves very interesting (typical soap opera angst with Scott, Jean and Warren; Bobby was a pale imitation of Johnny Storm), but I was fascinated by Magneto's group. They appeared in several issues between #4 and #11, and I had just never seen "villains" given such prominence before. Magneto's group and its dynamics were just so much more intriguing than the putative stars of the X-Men book. I bought the X-Men Masterworks vol. 1 a couple of years ago and re-read these stories. I was very pleased to discover that these stories still captured my interest and imagination! EDIT: And I'd be remiss if I didn't cite most of what DC put out from the mid-50's to the late 60's. I agree...DC from that era was pretty much fluff. I enjoy reading it, but usually only as pure escapism. |
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Post by asgardian on Feb 15, 2008 2:34:54 GMT -5
Agreed. I have only ever read the reprints, but Uncanny X-Men was by far the worst of the titles. It was just...odd. The characterisation was weird and the villains often ridiculous. Notice how the Beast was a carbon copy of the Thing in the first issue, before becoming an intellectual?
Unfortunately, the Avengers - my favourite team - also wasn't very good. Great start with #1 -3, but #4 is spoilt by the silly alien angle and then silly creeps in more and more. The later Roy Thomas stuff is farcical, and I would grit my teeth when one of the powerhouses got taken out by something ridiculous. We had to wait until the Renaissance when Shooter guided the team through a gauntlet of villains like Ultron, Nefaria, the Collector and Korvac. Great storytelling and art. Ah, those were the days!
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Post by Dr. Hank Pym on Sept 8, 2008 23:51:06 GMT -5
Hooo boy, some Silver Age Marvel titles really did stink up the joint at points! I have a few:
Prince Namor: The Sub Mariner - Just couldn't get into his book. He will never work as a solo series to me, only as a guest star!
Hulk - From Tales to Astonish to his solo series... I just couldn't get into it. The whole "Woe is me I am the Hulk and can't control myself!" thing just got annoying to me. I got into the series later on, when he was able to control his own thoughts as the Hulk.
Captain America - Yeah, blasphemous! However, I think it got better when Cap had Sam Wilson at his side.
Daredevil - The occasional good story will show up every now and then, but it didn't get good until the 70's. Black Widow being at his side did make for interesting chemistry, though.
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