Current Marvel - Is it good?

[Jon-El]

I used to love marvel but can't get into the stuff coming out right now. I guess I could say the same about DC but I've at least purchased a few DC titles. I haven't bought a Marvel comic in years. I've read alot because a friend of mine loans me his comics. Most of the comics I've read seem like tv scripts. Alot of characterization but that doesn't play as well when you're reading it. A single issue isn't as rewarding. It takes a full arc to appreciate a story. The characters have evolved to the point where I just don't like them anymore.

Nothing is wrong with Marvel but I personally can't get into it. Is it just me? I love everything from the 60's - mid 80s'.

[Domo Goddess]

I'm the same way although I prefer the Marvel comics from the 80's and 90's. I miss the old X-Men comic stories/characters although I am happy to see Spiral appearing in the recent ENDANGERED SPECIES story.

[Expletive Deleted]

It's like everything else. A lot of it is crap, but there are a few gems scattered around the place. It depends on what you like.

Personally, I'm really digging Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction's work for Marvel these days. Their IMMORTAL IRON FIST is just this side of perfect, and the titles each is writing solo tend to be above average.

[Roquefort Raider]

I was a big Marvel fan in the 70s and 80s, and got many DC titles as well. In the 90s, I mostly read Vertigo or independent titles and kept following a few DC titles (like the Legion) but lost interest in Marvel: too much re-writing of established history, too many shoulder pads, too many insane plot twists (the spider-clone, the crossing, heroes reborn, killing Nick Fury, etc.),

In 2000, moving to a place that had no comic-book shop whatsoever, I had to give up comics entirely. I stayed informed thanks to the many internet sites dedicated to comics, and started buying trade paperbacks of recent comics run.

I'll say this for Marvel: they really managed to correct many of the mistakes of the 90s. Many of their comics since 2000 compare quite well with the golden years of the company. For example: Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev had an excellent and long run on Daredevil; while it was not altogether original, being inspired by many previous runs, it had a great realistic feel that harkened to crime novels more than superheroics. Mark Waid and the late and lamented Mike Wieringo had a good run of Fantastic Four that reminded me of the excitement brought back to the title by John Byrne in the 80s. Grant Morrison re-invented the X-Men as a pop-culture metaphor for the stranger living among us; and while it, too, was very much inspired by the best Claremont years, it was a modern and addictive take on Marvel's mutants. (I regret to say that things have pretty much returned to normal after Morrison's run, with too much self-reference and a convoluted continuity).

Marvel's dubious attempt at creating a parallel line for "new" readers, the Ultimate line, produced at least one extraordinary title: The Ultimates, which are basically what a good Avengers movie could be. (Unfortunately, Marvel didn't decide to let the title lay fallow when its creators moved to something else. I'm not sure overextending that story is a good idea).

The current Captain America volume, written by Ed Brubaker, is probably the most fun the book had been since the Englehart days.

All in all, I think that even though Marvel is definitely too event-driven in its publishing strategy, it does produce excellent titles. Caveat emptor as always, but it's fairly easy to find out what the books worthy of being picked up are.

...

And while this is not the subject of this thread, I'd like to say that all the continuity-twisting, rebooting and character assassination that DC has been going through in the last few years really, really doesn't make me feel like picking any of their titles. More's the pity. So for the time being, as far as the major companies are concerned, make mine Marvel.


...

But of course, everyone should read Finder, Strangehaven or Queen and country first!

[spaz]

I've read comics back in the 70s and 80s, tailed way off in the 90s. Hands down I want to say the best stuff is NOW. I can't stand reading old comics anymore. Too outdated and just too childish. When it comes to comic books, I just don't understand the people who like to re-live that time period. Current Marvel just kicks old Marvel. No contest.

[Shellhead]

Marvel right now: Is better than it was in the '80s or '90s. The writing is better now than the '80s, except that the characterization seems pretty careless now. And the editing is a joke.

Marvel in the '90s: Mostly a horrible crapfest. A poke in the eye with a sharp stick would still be better than most Marvel comics in the '90s. The real low point was when they outsourced some of their comics to Liefeld and those other Image hacks.

Marvel in the '80s: Jim Shooter was a decent writer and even an okay comic artist, but his turn as Editor-in-Chief was oppressive. Lots of talented writers were driven off, as Shooter forced all the major titles to rely on gimmicks to increase sales. New costume for Spider-Man! Hulk is smart! No, wait, Hulk is completely mindless! Tony is drunk! Etc. Crisis on Infinite Earths was so much better than Secret Wars that I started dropping Marvel titles and picking up great stuff from DC like Swamp Thing, Suicide Squad, and even that wacky version of Justice League.

Marvel in the '70s: My favorite decade of Marvel Comics. Good writing, several outstanding artists, and an amazing surge of creativity building on Marvel's foundation in the '60s. And this was the best decade for non-superhero titles at either DC or Marvel, ever. Conan, Deathlok, Killraven, Tomb of Dracula, etc.

Marvel in the '60s: Stan laid a fantastic foundation, with the able assistance of Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko. Still, the writing and the artwork was often a bit crude in terms of storytelling.

[Shellhead]

I can't stand reading old comics anymore. Too outdated and just too childish. When it comes to comic books, I just don't understand the people who like to re-live that time period. Current Marvel just kicks old Marvel. No contest.

You apparently missed some awesome Marvel Comics in the '70s:

Amazing Adventures (Killraven): Rough start, but eventually some great artwork by Craig Russell and some excellent writing by Don McGregor. Includes the first interracial kiss in comics.

Astonishing Tales (Deathlok): I personally think that this is where cyberpunk started. An early comic anti-hero, Deathlok was an extraordinarily violent character coping with an extremely dysfunctional situation. The violence seemed to be a comment on violence itself, especially during the shootout at the meat packing plant. And who could forget the Watergate-inspired cynicism of that moment when Deathlok tore the american flag insignia off his uniform?

Avengers: Some of the best Avengers comics were written in the '70s. In fact, you can't go wrong with most Avengers comics between issues #100 and #200. Towards the end of that period, there was some very good artwork by John Byrne and George Perez. Very good writing by Steve Englehart, Jim Shooter and David Michelinie.

Captain America & the Falcon: Steve Englehart really wrestled with the whole concept of patriotism after Watergate, and that made for some extremely interesting stories in the pages of Captain America & the Falcon.

Conan: Great adaptation work by Roy Thomas and Barry Smith.

Doctor Strange: Steve Englehart and John Brunner did several legendary issues together.

Iron Man: David Michelinie and Bob Layton did a great job on this book, and they took it to a whole new level with the classic Demon in the Bottle story.

Master of Kung Fu: The Gulacy issues were amazing. He can draw realistic HTH combat like few other artists. Later, Gene Day did some great work on this title, too with amazing backgrounds and interesting panel flow.

Tomb of Dracula: Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan put together an excellent horror comic that let readers see things from the viewpoint of the monster.

Warlock: Starlin's epic space adventures were also very character-driven stories. Adam Warlock was practically a blank slate before Starlin got a hold of him, and quickly acquired great depth and personality. And I really enjoyed it when Adam teamed up with Thanos against a greater menace.

X-Men: I'm not sure if the Neal Adams issues came in at the end of the '60s or the beginning of the '70s. Either way, there was another fantastic run from roughly #94-143, written by Chris Claremont but apparently with some help from artists Dave Cockrum and John Byrne. After they left, Claremont was on his own, with nobody to check his worst tendencies towards over-writing and super-feminism.

I also enjoyed the strangeness of Super-Villain Team-Up, the Project Pegasus saga in Marvel Two-in-One, the extreme weirdness of Gerber's run on the Defenders, and the really intense years of Spider-man leading up to and after the death of Gwen Stacy. Also, I'm fond of the blaxploitation exploits of Luke Cage and the kung fu antics of Iron Fist, and the combination of the two was inspired. Ghost Rider was always good for a cool visual. I know that the general consensus is that the only great runs for Fantastic Four were written by either Stan Lee or John Byrne, but there were still some good stories throughout the '70s, especially during the collaboration by Marv Wolfman and George Perez.

[adam_warlock_2099]

I'm a bigger fan of anything from the 60's and 70's. I have recently stopped buying most anything recently. I still get Ultimate Spider-Man, because for me it's got right everything that was wrong with Spider-Man, especially the 90's, Clone Saga era.

I really liked Silver Surfer: Requiem, and am still buying Thor. But other than that, most anything I buy comes from a longbox.

[matthewaos]

What I can say is from the 80s and forth. Most of my back issues, if all, are from the 80s and 90s. I think that in the 90s the writers were confused... Imo, some writers wanted more mature comics and some wanted comics like in the good old days, and then there were all the gimmicks. I think that now is the best time to read comics, considering what was the situation, say, even five years before. There are some great super hero comics, and there are also great independent comics.
To be honest I can't follow DC. I mean I got Infinite Crisis and 52, but I got confused, and I wasn't bothered to see what actually happened. Being a marvel guy, I cannot tell about CW, but I know more people that read CW, understood what was happening, and had some questions that drove them read the comic. So I think it's a great time for marvel. I don't say it's everything good, and I don't say that DC sucks, in any way, but considering that I read many marvel titles and I can't stop any of those, I believe that the comics are good, or that my perspective is crap!:p

[Kirk G]

Nice summary, Shellhead.
Except, the Neal Adams run was approx. issues #55-66, and reprinted in the last Marvel Masterworks volume in their entire glory. I can do without the last two issues, (the last one tying up a Hulk subplot,) but the run from 55-64 are probably the best of the series.

And, these were all appearing in the end of th 1960s. Hense the title "Do or Die, Baby" from about X-men 59... the last of the return of the Sentinels. (Easily, the best version of the sentinels, transforming them from cartoon robots to a deadly threat!)

[Jon-El]

Thanks for the opinions. I should point out I posted this here rather than the Marvel board because I wanted the thought of readers familiar with "Classic" Marvel. I started reading in the mid 70's. Marvel two in one, Powerman & Iron Fist, Avengers, FF, Cap, & Iron Man were some of my favorites. I even love pre-Miller Daredevil.:eek:

[spaz]

You apparently missed some awesome Marvel Comics in the '70s:

Amazing Adventures (Killraven): Rough start, but eventually some great artwork by Craig Russell and some excellent writing by Don McGregor. Includes the first interracial kiss in comics.

Astonishing Tales (Deathlok): I personally think that this is where cyberpunk started. An early comic anti-hero, Deathlok was an extraordinarily violent character coping with an extremely dysfunctional situation. The violence seemed to be a comment on violence itself, especially during the shootout at the meat packing plant. And who could forget the Watergate-inspired cynicism of that moment when Deathlok tore the american flag insignia off his uniform?

Avengers: Some of the best Avengers comics were written in the '70s. In fact, you can't go wrong with most Avengers comics between issues #100 and #200. Towards the end of that period, there was some very good artwork by John Byrne and George Perez. Very good writing by Steve Englehart, Jim Shooter and David Michelinie.

Captain America & the Falcon: Steve Englehart really wrestled with the whole concept of patriotism after Watergate, and that made for some extremely interesting stories in the pages of Captain America & the Falcon.

Conan: Great adaptation work by Roy Thomas and Barry Smith.

Doctor Strange: Steve Englehart and John Brunner did several legendary issues together.

Iron Man: David Michelinie and Bob Layton did a great job on this book, and they took it to a whole new level with the classic Demon in the Bottle story.

Master of Kung Fu: The Gulacy issues were amazing. He can draw realistic HTH combat like few other artists. Later, Gene Day did some great work on this title, too with amazing backgrounds and interesting panel flow.

Tomb of Dracula: Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan put together an excellent horror comic that let readers see things from the viewpoint of the monster.

Warlock: Starlin's epic space adventures were also very character-driven stories. Adam Warlock was practically a blank slate before Starlin got a hold of him, and quickly acquired great depth and personality. And I really enjoyed it when Adam teamed up with Thanos against a greater menace.

X-Men: I'm not sure if the Neal Adams issues came in at the end of the '60s or the beginning of the '70s. Either way, there was another fantastic run from roughly #94-143, written by Chris Claremont but apparently with some help from artists Dave Cockrum and John Byrne. After they left, Claremont was on his own, with nobody to check his worst tendencies towards over-writing and super-feminism.

I also enjoyed the strangeness of Super-Villain Team-Up, the Project Pegasus saga in Marvel Two-in-One, the extreme weirdness of Gerber's run on the Defenders, and the really intense years of Spider-man leading up to and after the death of Gwen Stacy. Also, I'm fond of the blaxploitation exploits of Luke Cage and the kung fu antics of Iron Fist, and the combination of the two was inspired. Ghost Rider was always good for a cool visual. I know that the general consensus is that the only great runs for Fantastic Four were written by either Stan Lee or John Byrne, but there were still some good stories throughout the '70s, especially during the collaboration by Marv Wolfman and George Perez.

Good re-cap of the 70s. Agree with you on the Avengers, Iron Man, Warlock, and of course the X-Men. Haven't read the others. Also loved Marvel Team-Up by Claremont and Byrne as well as Iron Fist.

[founder81]

I haven't really sat down and read cover to cover a recent Marvel book. From the little I can tell, the story quality is good, but it's just not what I'm looking for in a superhero story.

I want excitement and imagination in my superhero stories. To me, that seems to be lacking in current Marvel. The most recent books from Marvel I own are Spider-man/Human Torch and She Hulk Vol 1, 2, and 3.

[jesse_custer]

I don't feel like there's been a truly great Marvel book in a long time. Mainly because the company focuses on events and retellings rather than characters.

[Shellhead]

I don't feel like there's been a truly great Marvel book in a long time. Mainly because the company focuses on events and retellings rather than characters.

You might want to check out a relatively recent 5-issue mini called Doctor Strange: The Oath. This is a very character-driven story by Brian K. Vaughn, and the artwork is an amazing tribute to Steve Ditko's work on Strange.

http://image.milehighcomics.com/istore/images/large/25946763641.5.gif

[Babylon23]

I'm not a big fan of most of Marvel's current output, but there are still some gems hidden amongst the endless 'events'. For fans of 'classic' comics, I'd recommend the recent Agents of Atlas miniseries.

I second Shellhead's recommendation for Dr. Strange: The Oath as well.

[earl]

I got back into comics about a year ago after being gone since about 1990 and I read a bit of everything through the 80s. The detail of the artwork and the coloring is pretty amazing on many newer titles. Extending out the stories across multiple issues is probably pretty lame if you are reading it month to month, but the action scenes are more detailed and work well when reading them collected. I don't think the stories break any new ground, but often times they are pretty good.

I've gotten a few of those Marvel DVDs, so I read up to Civil War the recent issues of the Avengers, Hulk and Amazing Spider-man. Just like the 80s, some of the stories work and some really don't, but the artwork on many of those titles is great.

I've also gotten some of the Garth Ennis Punisher books and got started on newer Daredevil books. Some of the Ennis Punisher's are great, especially The Cell and The End. The Kevin Smith Daredevil and the follow up about Echo was not bad either.

The Ultimate trade paper backs I got was not bad either, especially the Ultimate Galactus hard cover. Kubert's artwork on the first Ultimate X-men was really sharp.

I'm kind of curious about the current Moon Knight series, as the artwork in the first trade paperback looked really sharp. I was a big fan of the 80s series. The artwork on some of the Iron Man issues also looked good.

I've been reading through the first X-Men omnibus and then got the Morrison X-Men omnibus. The Morrison run is pretty interesting and that Quitely guy can really draw. The detail on the artwork is fantastic.

[Agentum]

I have problems with Quietly, i still think he draws all people with that big upperlip look, but not as bad as i has been.

It looked really stupid in New X-men or The Autority, people standing around with exacly the same expression and a big upperlip, and their chins sticking out.

I think Marvel today as it good and mad momenst, i must say that Civil war was a waste of my time.

No i like the books that is not so tightly involved with the main editordriven storylines.

Marvel is also a bit too stuck in superheroes, try something else for a change.

But as has been said here, there is always some goldnuggets in the output.
AND i have always been more of av DC fan, but i read more and more books from other publishers than the big two, they often take chances that Marvel or DC wouldn't dare to with their characters or universes.