tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post6538181343975628020..comments2024-03-28T10:18:00.370-05:00Comments on Gentlemen of Leisure: X-amining X-Men Annual #8Austin Gortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-71654966886141643872013-05-13T12:02:30.923-05:002013-05-13T12:02:30.923-05:00@Blam: her use of a "frigi-beam" on Wolv...@Blam: <i>her use of a "frigi-beam" on Wolverine, too, considering that her mind will end up in Iceman's body for a while.</i><br /><br />Ha! Good point. I hadn't thought of that. <br /><br /><i>I thought so, too, but then again Nightcrawler and Colossus are still throwing out their German and Russian phrases.</i><br /><br />Good point. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-87336422795244040092013-04-28T21:38:16.581-05:002013-04-28T21:38:16.581-05:00I've always had a love/hate — well, like/disli...<br>I've always had a love/hate — well, like/dislike — thing with that cover. At first glance I think that the design, colors, and clean lines make a great impression, but it goes sour when I look at the faces and figures at right.<br /><br /><i>In a 100% unintentional bit of foreshadowing, the White Queen in Illyana's story can transform things into crystal</i><br /><br />Despite not being too up on latter-day X-Men stuff, I found that funny — her use of a "frigi-beam" on Wolverine, too, considering that her mind will end up in Iceman's body for a while.<br /><br /><i>The characters in Illyana's story compare some mountains to the Himalayas, which seems an odd point of reference for star-faring characters who aren't from Earth.</i><br /><br />I thought so, too, but then again Nightcrawler and Colossus are still throwing out their German and Russian phrases.<br /><br />On the other hand, Logan uses the word "supernally" on the splash page. <i>Right.</i> The caption states that he's being "unaccustomely elegant" (Claremont and/or Orz dropped a "d") but still. Plus, I realize it's just a story and Kitty then asks Logan if he was making reference to her recent Japanese adventure, but while there were women in the samurai class in feudal Japan I'm pretty sure that they didn't have swords and didn't stand guard; they went from being daughters to wives and mothers who were mostly trained only to defend their homes with bo staffs and knives.<br /><br /><i>The end of the Illyana's story (and the issue itself) suggests a romantic relationship between Lockheed and Kitty, which is... yeah. </i><br /><br />Yeah.<br /><br />And that after Nightcrawler tells us that Lockheed is worn out from a heap o' dragon nookie.<br /><br />I agree both that the law of diminishing returns has set in and that Illyana is none too subtle in terms of her messages.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-27458352092776008442013-04-22T10:18:04.912-05:002013-04-22T10:18:04.912-05:00@Matt: If you're so inclined, I'd love to ...@Matt: <i>If you're so inclined, I'd love to see a post on your overall thoughts on those volumes, even though they don't really fit in with "X-Aminations".</i><br /><br />My plan, after reading them, is to do some kind of post about them, sometime shortly before we dig into <i>Excalibur</i>, an X-aminations post in spirit even if the format is a little off model. <br /><br />And yeah, flipping through the two volumes some of that material looks pretty rough, though I agree that some of the Trimpe and Buscema art looks intriguing. <br /><br />I'm much more interested in the Alan Moore material that follows it, though I still need to get my hands on the latter half of what's covered in the omnibus (I have that trade you mentioned that covers the "Jaspers Warp" stuff). Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-86302041176581300842013-04-18T11:27:52.837-05:002013-04-18T11:27:52.837-05:00Teebore... Teebore, Teebore... Good luck with thos...Teebore... Teebore, Teebore... Good luck with those two Captain Britain collections. I <i>just</i> finishined reading them last week before opening the omnibus. The only pre-<i>Excalibur</i> Captain Britain material I had ever read was the Alan Moore "Jaspers Warp" storyline in a trade years ago, and I've been wanting to read up on his full backstory for some time. So I picked up the two hardcovers, <i>Birth of a Legend</i> and <i>Siege of Camelot</i>, as well as the omnibus.<br /><br />Let's just say, there's a reason why you were able to get those two books cheap. They start off pretty good, with some old-fashioned 1970's era Claremont -- rarely a bad thing in my opinion -- but soon Claremont leaves and editor Larry Lieber begins co-plotting the book with the succession of subsequent writers, starting with Gary Friedrich. And Larry seems to have a very Silver Age sensibility to him. I'm not sure he evolved with the times as his brother did. The stories are very simplistic and were a bit of a slog. I wish I could say they were so bad they were good, but they were really just bad. It took me a few weeks to finally get through both books, contrasted with the omnibus, which I'm halfway through in less that one week.<br /><br />But anyway, I'm not trying to discourage you! If nothing else, I enjoyed the Herb Trimpe art in volume 1, and there was a spot near the start of volume 2 where John Buscema, of all people, illustrated a few chapters, and black and white Buscema -- to my eye at least -- is a breathtaking thing.<br /><br />If you're so inclined, I'd love to see a post on your overall thoughts on those volumes, even though they don't really fit in with "X-Aminations".Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-19126438744019797502013-04-18T11:14:21.532-05:002013-04-18T11:14:21.532-05:00@Matt: I will soon be adding one more to the list ...@Matt: <i>I will soon be adding one more to the list of newly-read annuals though, as #11 is in the Captain Britain Omnibus I'm currently devouring.</i><br /><br />Oh, are you getting read for our coverage of <i>Excalibur</i>? ;) <br /><br />I just picked up on the cheap the pair of Captain Britain hardcovers Marvel released not too long ago, collecting his earliest appearances through to the Alan Moore/Jamie Delano stuff, I believe (which is what you're reading in the omnibus, I think). I want to get through it before I get to <i>Excalibur</i> (mainly because I've never read it and that's as good as an excuse as any), and then I'll have to track down the Moore stuff and read that. <br /><br /><i>Claremont may try to replicate it here, but as you note, without Cockrum to provide the whimsical touch, it just doesn't work</i><br /><br />Yeah, and as I noted in my review of #153, I'm not the biggest fan of "whimsy" in fiction, at least not in this series, but if you're going for whimsy, then go for it. This story is not nearly as whimsical as it's trying to be. <br /><br />@ShadZ: <i>Trina Robbins and Steve Leialoha are a couple who have been together for many many years. So that's the connection...</i><br /><br />I did not know that. Thanks! <br /><br />@Anonymous: <i>Was she intentionally designing shitty costumes, possibly a reference to Kitty's awful costumes from her early days? Because those outfits are fug-lee.</i><br /><br />They're certainly better than the rainbow colored on roller skates monstrosity from the second Cockrum run. Austin Gortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14281239771248780430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-20612796473822808962013-04-17T18:19:15.887-05:002013-04-17T18:19:15.887-05:00@Anonymous: To be fair, they aren't supposed t...@Anonymous: To be fair, they aren't supposed to be super-hero costumes, they are just clothes. On that level, I think 1 & 3 are fine, given the sci-fi setting. The poodle skirt is inexplicable, however.ShadZhttp://shadzane.livejournal.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-9318066388375421512013-04-17T13:52:45.330-05:002013-04-17T13:52:45.330-05:00Was she intentionally designing shitty costumes, p...Was she intentionally designing shitty costumes, possibly a reference to Kitty's awful costumes from her early days? Because those outfits are fug-lee.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-42598953471587160822013-04-17T12:59:44.187-05:002013-04-17T12:59:44.187-05:00Trina Robbins and Steve Leialoha are a couple who ... Trina Robbins and Steve Leialoha are a couple who have been together for many many years. So that's the connection...ShadZhttp://shadzane.livejournal.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7266470995513648978.post-16128760750353336512013-04-17T12:14:58.923-05:002013-04-17T12:14:58.923-05:00I have never read this issue. I have a pretty big...I have never read this issue. I have a pretty big blind spot for <i>Uncanny</i> annuals. Glancing at a list online, I see that of the 13 annuals published during Claremont's original tenure, I've read eight of them. And of those eight, I read three of those for the very first time within the past couple years via Marvel collected editions.<br /><br />I will soon be adding one more to the list of newly-read annuals though, as #11 is in the <i>Captain Britain Omnibus</i> I'm currently devouring.<br /><br />"<b> it lacks the fun, whimsical energy that Dave Cockrum brought to his story, an energy that really helped elevate that story</b>..."<br /><br />I think I said it after your review of issue 153, but I strongly believe that Dave Cockrum was the driving force behind "Kitty's Fairy Tale". He received no co-plotter's credit, but that issue had Cockrum's sensibilities all over it. Claremont may try to replicate it here, but as you note, without Cockrum to provide the whimsical touch, it just doesn't work (I assume -- again, I haven't read it).<br /><br />I general, we've seen before -- and will see again -- what happens when Claremont tries to do funny/whimsy on his own. It usually falls flat. He needs a strong collaborator to pull this sort of thing off, like a Cockrum or an Adams. I like Leialoha as an artist, but I've never associated him with this sort of story.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14580725636327122073noreply@blogger.com