As one of the (many, I hope) people who disagreed with Devin's point of viw in his "Your superhero is broken" article ( http://chud.com/forum/showthread.php...perhero+broken ), (which i will admit I found inspiring despite my utter disagreement with it), i wanted to post about some memorable superhero comics that actually prove how limitless this genre can be (alas, it rarely is) when it comes to originality and themes; Ill start 8skipping "Watchmen", for obviosu reasons), but Im looking foward to learn which comic books you find deserving of being considered Groundbreaking:
"Starman" (Writer: James Robinson): im doing my thesis on Robinson's "Starman", as I consider its characterization and use of a superhero comic's concepts of legacy and character growth as one of the runs that started the new comic book age (IE the "Writer's Age, as I call it"). Jack Knight remains in my mind as the most likable and believable comic book character Ive read in my life...so far.
"The Golden Age" (Writer: James Robinson): I love how the characterization and use of real life sociopolitical events make a Golden Age-like plot (fuck spoilers on this one) believable...shit, the characterization was so good, DC incorporated part of this "elseworlds" story in continuity.
"The Spectre" (Writer: John Ostrander): A former theologian, Ostrander's run on "The Spectre" is a fantastic portrayal of faith, belief and spirituality, all wrapped around a stunningly human drama...Sure, you might find it sacrilegious (if you are a fundamentalist) or nonsensical (if you are an extreme atheist), but Ostrander's pretty much wrote the definitive "path to redemption" tale in comics here, if you ask me.
"Sandman Mistery Theater" (writers: Matt Wagner/Steven T. Seagle): Sure, it was a Vertigo title, but this "serious yet pulp like" title starred a realistic and relatable "costumed adventurer", and tackled realistic, horrific crimes in its pages...the core character and their world is so well written/portrayed, that the appearance of more fantastic heroes in the last issues never feel out of place.
How about you, fellas?
"Starman" (Writer: James Robinson): im doing my thesis on Robinson's "Starman", as I consider its characterization and use of a superhero comic's concepts of legacy and character growth as one of the runs that started the new comic book age (IE the "Writer's Age, as I call it"). Jack Knight remains in my mind as the most likable and believable comic book character Ive read in my life...so far.
"The Golden Age" (Writer: James Robinson): I love how the characterization and use of real life sociopolitical events make a Golden Age-like plot (fuck spoilers on this one) believable...shit, the characterization was so good, DC incorporated part of this "elseworlds" story in continuity.
"The Spectre" (Writer: John Ostrander): A former theologian, Ostrander's run on "The Spectre" is a fantastic portrayal of faith, belief and spirituality, all wrapped around a stunningly human drama...Sure, you might find it sacrilegious (if you are a fundamentalist) or nonsensical (if you are an extreme atheist), but Ostrander's pretty much wrote the definitive "path to redemption" tale in comics here, if you ask me.
"Sandman Mistery Theater" (writers: Matt Wagner/Steven T. Seagle): Sure, it was a Vertigo title, but this "serious yet pulp like" title starred a realistic and relatable "costumed adventurer", and tackled realistic, horrific crimes in its pages...the core character and their world is so well written/portrayed, that the appearance of more fantastic heroes in the last issues never feel out of place.
How about you, fellas?
