Talking about comic books, TV shows, movies, sports, and the numerous other pastimes that make us Gentlemen of Leisure.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

"3 Questions About Comics and You" Meme

Here's another little meme that's been circulating around recently. I invite my fellow Gentlemen to answer as well, if they are so inclined.

What was the first comic you remember reading?

New Defenders 129, in which the New Defenders battle Professor X and the New Mutants (who were actually just mental illusions cast by the slightly whacky New Defender Moondragon.

I have no idea how this issue of a B-List (at best) comic that I had never heard of at the time came into my possession; it just showed up in the house one day. I remember reading it and having no clue who the New Defenders were (except for Iceman, due to his role as one of Spidey’s Amazing Friends) or who the New Mutants were (but I did know Professor X, thanks to the cartoons of the era).

I do recall that Moondragon made a pre-teen Teebore feel kinda funny, like when you slide down the rope in gym class…

What was the first comic that made you realize that you might be in this for the long haul?

X-Men #8 and Uncanny X-Men #289, the two issues on the stand when the baseball-cards-to –comic-book-cards transition inevitably led me to comic books themselves. I have no recollection why I picked up two X-Men books with which to test the waters, but I did, and had no freaking clue what was going. Rather than be turned off by the dense and seemingly impenetrable continuity contained therein (the effect that many critics believe the similarly continuity-obsessed super hero comics of today have on new readers) I was captivated by it, and realized the door had opened on a rich and new mythology that I could learn, study and devour. From that point forward, as I did just that, I was hooked.



Also, Jim Lee’s infamous Psylocke-slowly-emerges-from-the-water bit of cheesecake art in X-Men #8 probably helped ease my confusion.

If you had to make a snap decision to take one comic or one comic run to a desert island, what would it be? Don’t think too hard!

My first instinct is to take the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe series with me, because that would be like having a whole ton of stories on hand.

Otherwise, probably X-Men 194 -137 (the Claremont/Cockrum and Claremont/Byrne runs). It's not my favorite run, but the one with enough variety to keep me interested whilst exiled.



5 comments:

  1. I love me a finely shorn lady. The world doesn't have enough bald chicks. Thank Allah for Warlock and the Infinity Watch.

    I still find it somewhat awkward you didn't start reading comics until well after I did. I think age-wise we were right around the same age, but for some reason it boggles my mind how I can date things by X-men issues.

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  2. Yeah, for a good number of years (from when I was more or less just reading the X-Men stuff, before I started reading tons of other stuff) X-Men issues were like a calendar to me.

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  3. I'm amazed that you can remember both a first comic and the first ones that made you into a comic nerd - i mean, i remember reading early editions, but hell if i can remember which ones i read first.
    Mostly i remember going into shinders with my dad and picking up a comic to "read" (it was an x-men book)- i think i was around 6-8.

    -S

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  4. The first comics I remember reading were a Dark Crystal adaptation and the Hawkeye mini-series from the 80's. My uncle would bring me to the local convenience store and let me pick one up on occasion. To this day Hawkeye is still one of my favorite characters.

    Not sure which comic made me realize that I was in this for the long haul. I honestly don't recall when I made the switch from random trips to the store to making it the weekly pilgrimage it now is. I think it must have been when I was caddying at the golf course and there was a Shinder's right next to it that offered a handy place to blow my hard earned cash. If I had to try and peg it down I would say it was probably around X-men 251. That cover of a crucified Wolverine seems to stick out for me.

    As for what to take with me on a desert isle? Hmm...tough one there. Right now I am thinking the James Robinson run on Starman. However that is probably because I just ordered the new hardcover version of it for dirt cheap and can't wait for it to arrive. If I think of something better I will let you know.

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  5. I should be picking up my Starman omnibus Friday. :)

    I've never actually read it before, but have heard nothing but absolutely glowing praise about it, so I am excited.

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