Twas a few days before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring except for the cats running around knocking things off the tree and me, bagging and boarding comics and other stuff.
I decided when the most recent copy of FTF Geocacher Magazine arrived this week that I would go into the basement and pull all the issues I had (most contained the My Geek Odyssey Comic Strip) and at least do something to prevent them from being completely destroyed. I started this strip in 2009 when I received a Lilly Endowment Teacher Creativity Fellowship. In 2011 the fledgling FTF Geocacher Magazine approached me asking if I would contribute something. Over the years, as life got in the way FTF Geocacher there were times when FTF was the only time I actually committed myself to drawing. While I may have muttered when I got the reminder- it was wonderful to be forced into stepping away from the ledge and doing something I truly love. As my interest in Geocaching wained I still did the comic with help from friends who would tell tales of their exploits. Retired, I am now going back to caching, and still think it is a great way to explore and discover new places. Yesterday I went through over 60 issues and put in each in a bag with a board. Some were not in the best shape, and it looks like I’m missing two issues that like any good collector I will track down somehow.
To this week’s comics-
Jay Garrick the Flash #3 – I’ve always been a fan of the Flash. I remember trying to convince my mom to sew a lightning bolt on my red sweatsuit when I was in 3rd grade. I don’t recall if it were the comics or “Super Friends” cartoon on Saturday Morning but I thought the idea of going super fast was supercool. Thanks to a great Stargirl mini series all of these lost sidekicks from the 1940’s are back. One of them being the Flash’s (Jay Garrick’s) hitherto unknown daughter, Judy. So Judy is a teenager from the 40’s now in present time. So far it’s been a great story as part of DC’s return to the Golden Age which piques my interest.
The Original X-Men #1 – I fell for it, the original X-Men return… umm… I haven’t read an X-Men comic in years, probably because there just got to be too many of them and it became difficult to follow (as with a lot of comics Marvel or DC). I wasn’t sure what I thought this would be about, but it wasn’t what I expected. A multiverse spanning story dealing with the Phoenix (in X-Men the Phoenix always seems to be a part of it). Good story, but will I continue in the next Wolverine focused storyline… probably not. Like the X-Men, Wolverine has just been overused.
Spider-Boy #2 – You’d think after what I just wrote about the X-Men would also relate to Spider-Man titles and it does, to a point. They’ve created to convoluted Spider-verse that fortunately you don’t have to know too much about to follow what is going on. In this case (remember when Marvel only dealt with other universes in What if? ahh… simpler times…) at the end of one massive spider-verse encompassing arc all the versions of Spider-Man were released and one… was new, Spider-Boy. No one remembers him, (wait a second… like the Golden Age sidekicks in DC?!?) so we are discovering this young hero for the first time. He has slightly different powers, some of them a little creepy. I just hope this doesn’t become a trend – “Sales are sluggish, let’s bring in a new version of…”
Batman Santa Claus Silent Knight #3 – Almost Christmas, will Krampus win? More heroes are brought in to help Santa including that guy from Metropolis… No spoilers, but I am looking forward to seeing how Christmas will be saved from the evil monsters. (no spoilers there- we know the good guys will win… it’s in the Code)
Superman #9 – Everyone hates Lex Luthor… duh. but now after a death defying battle in the last issue, how will Superman save the day? What twist will happen so you buy the next issue? Vworp! Vworp! Vworp! (hint: but not really a spoiler)
Amazing Spider-Man #9 – Gang War continues… ’nuff said.
Star Trek Defiant #10 – General Order 7?!? What will Worf do?!?
Star Trek #10 – Whatever Happened to perpetual Ensign Harry Kim? Space Kaiju with dinosaur people and Romulans…
Undiscovered Country #27 – If you have not been reading this comic I don’t know what to say that won’t spoil it or just make you think I have lost my mind… Overall the story goes something like this- the United States has built a wall around itself and the rest of the world moved on while ‘Mericuh… well, no one knows. The world governments sent a team into America to see what happened, and to look for a cure for a plague that was doing what plagues do best. Over the course of 27 issues so many weird things have happened. All of which ask the question what is America? What makes America, America? I figured we were getting close to the conclusion, but… what do I know? Hint- Literal cliffhanger of a ending.