Minorities and Other Issues in Comics Thread/Community IV

[StoneGold]

Yeah, Valiant's launches have been incredibly strong. I actually like that Harbringer got "oddly rapey" early on because it felt true. One of the things I hate about "teen" comics is that they always present teens who jump into altruistic mode and a costume. What Dysart's Harbringer has done right is focus on that sense of being "the only boy in the world" and the desperation that implies. Peter rings true, even if he's not all that sympathetic. Once Harada and company starts playing those games on him, you begin to understand his transformation into a "hero" (if that's where he's actually going). It's a skilllful construction of a hero, in my opinion, and defintely the best of the early new Valiant books.

Shadowman was okay. A decent debut, but like Bloodshot, just establishing where the book is going rather than setting out what the book will be.

It's not the rapey that's so much of the big deal, as the not actually using the word rape that's bothersome. Because Pete raped her. She wanted nothing to do with him, he mind whammied her to fall in love with him.

[StoneGold]

Actually the majority of The Rock's romantic interest has been latina. To my knowledge, he's only had one white female love interest and one black female love interest, every other movie he was either in a non romance (Faster), interested in a girl but nothing came up (Race to whatever mountain), or Latina.

Or the occasional half-black, half-Italian.

[skyvolt2000]

However, i noticed that there isn't that much talk about comics. Yeah, i know we just had an issue about that, but im curious about how everyone's pull list is looking, and how they feel about comics in general right now.

The butchering of Static made ALL Nu52 Dc books off limits not only in my house but my school as well. Which is bad for my comic bookstores since I haven't been there since Static Shock #8.

Vertigo-getting the last 2 Scalped trades and trying to forget Aaron's X-Men vs Avengers run.

Marvel-the last 616 Universe Marvel book I bought was the last issue of New X-Men Academy.

Ultimate Marvel-I want to trade wait Miles's stuff but those dang mini comic cons we have in Dallas with his stuff 3 issue for $5 is making it hard.

Image-still waiting on Vescell and the trade of Invincible-the new guy does have me interested in the guy he replaced.

Right now still collecting all Milestone books (still have 20 left to get), Priest's Panther run, a few Generation X (when Lobdell could write) and the Moon Knight run before Bendis's (I have 4 left to get).

Another thing I learned is to be patient-I have 7 used book stores around me-unless it's Image, Batwing or an indy book-all nuDC & Marvel Now books will be there at 90% below cover price. While buying them used doesn't help sales-for these two companies that is not my issue.

How do I feel about comics now?

EVERYBODY got a ton of work to do. Especially DC & Marvel-this diversity issue needs to be address. It's time to confront fans and comic book stores owners that keep having issues with it. That also goes for employees of both companies. The McDufie JLA mess should have been a wake up call for everybody. If a group of black guys can name the same 5 folks at Marvel or Dc that blew them off-that is an issue.

The bottom line is profit and who knows how much money both are losing because they choose to cater to one group. How many stories are we losing?

[Greg Anderson]

Oh, & someone sell me on Storm Dogs. I may give that a try...

Hey, Flo. I posted this a few times, some folks might be annoyed of it already. But here's part of a Hine interview discussing diversity in his books.



http://www.newsarama.com/comics/imag...dogs-hine.html

Nrama: You're working with several female characters. Why that choice? Was writing them a challenge? And what does it bring to the story?

Hine: I’ve been doing this thing for a while now, when I’m creating new characters for a story, where I try swapping their gender, race, sexuality to see what happens to way the character is perceived and what will open up the most potential for the characters to develop. I did a lot of that with this cast of characters and this gender mix is what I ended up with. I’ve never felt it too much of a challenge to write specifically female characters. Decent fiction writers don’t write only what they know from experience. Who wants to read about a white male, comic-book writer living in cosy domesticity in South London? If you have a good imagination and empathize with other people’s experiences, you should be able to put yourself into the skin of a character no matter what their background or gender. It’s a wee bit tougher to get into the head of an alien, but on the other hand who’s going to say I’ve got it wrong?

What I do hope I’ve succeeded in doing is avoiding stereotypes. These are all unique individuals. There may even be scenes where two or more women are discussing something other than men.

So far we have 2 black leads (male and woman), Asian female muscle, and a queer male. Might be some more characters to come. This is the type of book and diverse cast we as readers be asking for, also with a black artist/creator. We'll see how well this does. Fingers crossed because it was a pretty good setup, solid read.

[Greg Anderson]

I think I'm one of the only on this forum that wasn't as impressed with the first issue of Shadowman. It wasn't bad but it didn't instantly grab me. I'm mostly on board because I was a fan of the last volume of the mantle and I'm always open to see some Vodou in my books.

[Greg Anderson]

How do I feel about comics now?

EVERYBODY got a ton of work to do. Especially DC & Marvel-this diversity issue needs to be address. It's time to confront fans and comic book stores owners that keep having issues with it. That also goes for employees of both companies. The McDufie JLA mess should have been a wake up call for everybody. If a group of black guys can name the same 5 folks at Marvel or Dc that blew them off-that is an issue.

The bottom line is profit and who knows how much money both are losing because they choose to cater to one group. How many stories are we losing?

It's one of the big reasons as to why I'm not in any rush to write for the Big 2 as it used to be a dream of mine.

[StoneGold]

I think I'm one of the only on this forum that wasn't as impressed with the first issue of Shadowman. It wasn't bad but it didn't instantly grab me. I'm mostly on board because I was a fan of the last volume of the mantle and I'm always open to see some Vodou in my books.

I'm hooked if only for the Pat Zircher art, but in general, the book is no Archer and Armstrong. But then, what is, as long as there is no Quantum and Woody, anyway?

[marvell2100]

I think I'm one of the only on this forum that wasn't as impressed with the first issue of Shadowman. It wasn't bad but it didn't instantly grab me. I'm mostly on board because I was a fan of the last volume of the mantle and I'm always open to see some Vodou in my books.

I love the new Master Darque. The first issue was a good setup story and the action will get into high gear real soon.

The character I'm eagerly anticipating to see is Gilad Anipada, the Eternal Warrior. He shows up in Archer and Armstrong #5.

[FanboyStranger]

It's not the rapey that's so much of the big deal, as the not actually using the word rape that's bothersome. Because Pete raped her. She wanted nothing to do with him, he mind whammied her to fall in love with him.

As horrible as it seems, that's what I really I liked about it. Because it showed that Pete was a desperate, lonely teenager who couldn't look beyond himself and his own desires. As icky as it is, it felt real. That's why I'm reluctant to label him a "hero". Once he got a sense that Harada was doing that to the whole world, he began to wake up.

The major problem with "teen titles" is that they're always so obviously written by a middle-aged guy. Dysart's work, at least so far, doesn't seem like that.

[marvell2100]

Image-still waiting on Vescell

EVERYBODY got a ton of work to do. Especially DC & Marvel-this diversity issue needs to be address. It's time to confront fans and comic book stores owners that keep having issues with it. That also goes for employees of both companies. The McDufie JLA mess should have been a wake up call for everybody. If a group of black guys can name the same 5 folks at Marvel or Dc that blew them off-that is an issue.

The bottom line is profit and who knows how much money both are losing because they choose to cater to one group. How many stories are we losing?

Did Vescell #8 ever come out?

Agree about Marvel and DC although Ultimate Spider-man is good. Also giving Fearless Defenders a try. My Marvel and DC titles have decreased for a variety of reasons. Whereas i used to get 20+ Marvel I'm now under 10. I gave the New 52 a try. Started with 8 and now down to 3, soon to be 2. Valiant has more than picked up the slack.

[Blade X]

How do I feel about comics now?

EVERYBODY got a ton of work to do. Especially DC & Marvel-this diversity issue needs to be address. It's time to confront fans and comic book stores owners that keep having issues with it. That also goes for employees of both companies. The McDufie JLA mess should have been a wake up call for everybody. If a group of black guys can name the same 5 folks at Marvel or Dc that blew them off-that is an issue.

The bottom line is profit and who knows how much money both are losing because they choose to cater to one group. How many stories are we losing?

I like what Darwyn Cooke had to say about the Big 2 (not necessarily in regards to diversity, but it could be applied to this topic).

[Blade X]

I think I'm one of the only on this forum that wasn't as impressed with the first issue of Shadowman. It wasn't bad but it didn't instantly grab me. I'm mostly on board because I was a fan of the last volume of the mantle and I'm always open to see some Vodou in my books.

You're not alone. I flipped through the issue at the shop and I wasn't the little bit impressed (ditto for the other relaunched Valiant books). I just have no desire to read yet another over the top gory and bloody superhero comic with TV-14 profanity. I'm just sick and tired of that type of faux "adult" superhero comic.

[Greg Anderson]

You're not alone. I flipped through the issue at the shop and I wasn't the little bit impressed (ditto for the other relaunched Valiant books). I just have no desire to read yet another over the top gory and bloody superhero comic with TV-14 profanity. I'm just sick and tired of that type of faux "adult" superhero comic.

Yeah, when I read people giving it 4 or 5 out of 5 rating, I kept thinking to myself, "Did we both read the same first issue?" But to each their own, I suppose.

[Johnny P. Sartre]

As horrible as it seems, that's what I really I liked about it. Because it showed that Pete was a desperate, lonely teenager who couldn't look beyond himself and his own desires. As icky as it is, it felt real. That's why I'm reluctant to label him a "hero". Once he got a sense that Harada was doing that to the whole world, he began to wake up.

The major problem with "teen titles" is that they're always so obviously written by a middle-aged guy. Dysart's work, at least so far, doesn't seem like that.

Nice interviews with his ideas on Valiant and comics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Re7BAWYHDzc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OH76pyXdhvI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCMevHlseZk

[SilverZeal]

Well, if it'll help get things back on track, I suppose I can share the titles Im collecting

From Marvel: ASM (I trade wait everything, i cant afford single issues.)

When they come out, I plan on getting Superior (unless its ock in Pete's body), FF, Fantastic Four, Red She Hulk and Young Avengers. No X-books. I am done with X-books. A book I am disappointed in was Captain Marvel. From the previews and reviews I read, it comes off like there is an overemphasis on Carol being a strong female character. We know she is, but I was hoping the book would have her going off in to space for high-end cosmic adventures. Carol is a lot like what a female Green Lantern from earth would be, and marvel really needs to explore its cosmic side.

From DC: Teen Titans (I hope skitter comes back soon) LSH (Very happy that Giffen is returning) Legion Lost(I hope they are brought back into the Legion Proper) Supergirl, Superboy, The Flash, Aquaman, Animal Man,
I also plan on getting Amethyst, Threshold, Earth 2, JLA, Vibe, and the Ravagers.

From Indies: Atomic Robo (everything a superhero book should be, but its not a superhero book) Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic Universe, Mega Man,(Looking forward to the crossover) New Crusaders, and Empowered. I also plan on getting the Hypernaturals.

I have currently been collecting the older Gen 13 trades, the original series, not the reboot. I am surprised by how much I liked it. I really thought that there would be a new one in the New 52 by now.

In terms of gender diversity, the industry has improved a lot, this past year but it still has a way to go. In terms of racial diversity, it seems like they are still operating by the rule of three, for fear of alienating people. They need to get over the fear. Minority characters, in the right hands, can do very well, we've seen that, its not a fluke, but they don't want to believe it.

Acrtually we'd prefer if Legion Lost stayd away frm LSH bcuz we all know once dey rejoin dey simply return 2 being wallpaper & few panel pop-up xcters every after a few issues...& we/SZ like d team betta dan LSH.