I like “summer reading”-style lists, but this superhero comics-focused rundown from Terry Morrow of Scripps Howard News Service strikes me as strange because of its presumption of accessibility.
“Summer is a perfect time to get lost in the adventures of comic books,” Morrow writes. “But if you’ve been away for a while — or are just now being tempted to start reading them — here’s a primer on the best titles out there.”
And then he dives into his list, which includes the continuity-entrenched Justice League of America — with a specific mention of the “Lightning Saga” crossover — The Sinestro Corps and Countdown. Nothing against any of these comics, but could a new, or returning, reader even begin to crack the continuity code?
It’s not all DC, though: Morrow mentions an equal number of Marvel comics with Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man and World War Hulk Prologue: World Breaker. Those first two have elements familiar to movie-goers — the Human Torch and The Thing, and Spider-Man’s black costume — and the third lays out most of the information necessary for the uninitiated. So, I can see those being fairly accessible. But those other three? I don’t know …
July 6th, 2007 at 11:46 am
Why is continuity always such a big deal? I think comic book fans use it to intimidate potential new readers to protect their little segment of society. They only want new fans who will obsess over continuity like they do.
Ok, now that I am done lobbing blanket statements around, more to the point. I am a fairly new reader of comics and follow both Marvel and DC. I am reading Countdown, Sinestro, and JLA with each providing an example of the importance of continuity.
Sinestro Corps is the best example. Johns did a great job of giving enough information for a more casual or new reader to know what the heck is going on. And while novices may not understand the true impact of that last page, I am sure he will cover this in the subsequent issues.
Reading reviews online, I find I am one of the few who is enjoying Countdown. I like having a weekly book and while the story has been unraveling a bit slow, I I am confident there will be a payoff.
JLA was the one comic where continuity has been a bit of an issue. I know nothing of Legion and it seemed like Meltzer was doing his best to confuse the heck out of those not familiar with Legion. The JSA issue of the crossover were a better read, which led me to believe that JLA suffered from poor writing just as much as it did from being bogged down in continuity.
My point? Try to approach comics like you would approach a movie. When the movie starts, you don’t know anything about these characters and you are brought up to speed over the course of the story. A good comic writer will have flashbacks or write in a way that makes it accessible and fun for newer readers while not have the older readers feel like they are jogging in place.
Perhaps the best way to look at comics would be the Seinfeld approach. You don’t need to see every episode to laugh at a single episode, but you will laugh harder the more episodes you have seen.
July 6th, 2007 at 12:55 pm
You’d think with the number of trades available, the guy would have just highlighted a few of the more accessible ones.
July 6th, 2007 at 1:18 pm
I dunno, when folks want recommendations for good superhero reading (yeah, like *that* ever happens), I steer ‘em towards the good stuff in the MARVEL ADVENTURES line. Generally non-skeevy and essential takes on the characters that readers can get into quickly.
If they want “literature”, well, first I clock ‘em on the head, then I steer ‘em towards something like HEAVY LIQUID.
July 7th, 2007 at 9:41 pm
If you look more closely, he’s recommending the Lightning Saga arc…and…when you think about it…they give enough details for you to know what is going on in the story. Now, the reward of seeing old school LoSH members is lost…but not all of the potential enjoyment.
Sinestro Corps is a bit of an Empire Strikes Back downer tale and, at its base, is about a war and a prison break. You have enough iconic characters in this story for newer readers and even more for returning readers.
Countdown? Well…that’s gotta be all for returning readers.