Which Comic Do You Read?

[Sam892]

This week so far I've read:

Nightwing #18

All new X-men #9

Secret Avengers #1

Nova #1

AvengersArena #1

Guardians of the Galaxy #0.1

X-men Dangerous

Superior Spider-man #6

And I'm just about to start Avengers forever.

[def]

_{Did any of you get in on that Comixology give away last week? Marvel gave away 700 different #1 issues for free, including all of the Marvel Now ones. That's pretty awesome. I got about 200 free issues for my iPad. Now I just need the time to read them}

[Fred Daniel Yam]

_{Did any of you get in on that Comixology give away last week? Marvel gave away 700 different #1 issues for free, including all of the Marvel Now ones. That's pretty awesome. I got about 200 free issues for my iPad. Now I just need the time to read them}

I got Captain America... weirded me out..

[Sam892]

_{Did any of you get in on that Comixology give away last week? Marvel gave away 700 different #1 issues for free, including all of the Marvel Now ones. That's pretty awesome. I got about 200 free issues for my iPad. Now I just need the time to read them}

I got loads of issues. X-men #1, giant size X-men #1, Hawkeye #1, Amazing Spider-man, AvX, among many others. Will take me a while to read them all.

Also Batman and Robin #18 arrived in the post today so I'm looking forward to reading that.

[Vindicare]

I've recently rekindled my affections for comics. How about some good recommendations? My mainstay is Spawn. I've been with him since the beginning up until about the 150's. I've just about caught up with him again, just a few holes to fill. I have a few other odds and ends that I liked the covers of, but never really got into anything else.

[Sam892]

I've recently rekindled my affections for comics. How about some good recommendations? My mainstay is Spawn. I've been with him since the beginning up until about the 150's. I've just about caught up with him again, just a few holes to fill. I have a few other odds and ends that I liked the covers of, but never really got into anything else.

I mainly collect Marvel and a couple of DC titles. I would recommend Batman from the new 52, while picking it up in singles will be difficult its available in trades. I would also recommend Batgirl and Nightwing if you like Batman as both these titles tie nicely in with the Batman stories. From Marvel there's a few really good titles. All New X-men, Wolverine and the X-men, Daredevil and Superior Spider-man.

[def]

Best thing of the month: The Private Eye

http://panelsyndicate.com

Digital only, pay what you like, free if you're a total mooch (though the more people who don't pay, the less likely issue two will come out). Brian K. Vaughn writing (Y the Last Man, Lost < the good seasons 4 and 5>), and Marcos Martin drawing it. Martin is one of the best artists out there these days. His Spider-Man and Daredevil work was gorgeous and elegant, and at the same time physical and exciting. Just amazing. It's colored for computer screens, and not print, so there's no plan to print right now. Really, really good.

That's an awesome 'two page' spread.

[Vindicare]

I mainly collect Marvel and a couple of DC titles. I would recommend Batman from the new 52, while picking it up in singles will be difficult its available in trades. I would also recommend Batgirl and Nightwing if you like Batman as both these titles tie nicely in with the Batman stories. From Marvel there's a few really good titles. All New X-men, Wolverine and the X-men, Daredevil and Superior Spider-man.

D'oh! Went and got (almost) all Superior Spider-man issues...except #1. So, now I have to wait to start reading till I can track it down.

[Oky]

I recently picked up and read the Avatar: The Last Airbender comic The Search, Part 1 and it's pretty good. As you may know, it finally goes into answers about what happened to Zuko's mother, and while it involves a cheesy love story, there are still some interesting new developments. I especially liked that twist at the end where it is revealed that

Zuko is not really Ozai's son! This actually explains a lot, like why Ozai always seemed to hate him and why Zuko has always been so much more like his mother than his father. Good stuff! So the answer to what happened to Ursa is that she went back to marry Ikem, but I guess we'll have to find out if she ever managed to, seeing as Ikem exiled himself.

The art and tone of the comic do a good job at capturing the feel of the show. If you're an Avatar fan, I can definitely recommend it, and I can't wait for parts 2 & 3! I also got The Promise Part 2 & 3, but I still need Part 1, so I'll hold off on reading those before I get that one.

[Spider-Man]

Heard some good new today from my guy at the comic store for those of us who aren't big fans of the new "Superior" Spidey!

One of his friends works at Marvel and apparently Marvel is going to leave Doc Ock in Peter's body for the rest of this year, and then switch it back to the way it should be with Peter back as Spidey I know I was really excited to hear that news!

Also, that is a really interesting find Oky! I have always been interested in Avatar and that spoiler of yours definitely makes a lot of sense. I might have to check those comics out!

Edited May 2, 2013 by Spider-Man

[Tanma]

Heard some good new today from my guy at the comic store for those of us who aren't big fans of the new "Superior" Spidey!

One of his friends works at Marvel and apparently Marvel is going to leave Doc Ock in Peter's body for the rest of this year, and then switch it back to the way it should be with Peter back as Spidey I know I was really excited to hear that news!

Also, that is a really interesting find Oky! I have always been interested in Avatar and that spoiler of yours definitely makes a lot of sense. I might have to check those comics out!

Thank the Phoenix Force. I have to say I am really disappointed in every Avenger and person Peter knows for not already figuring it out.

The comics I read are mostly ultimate comics, though I am trying to get all of Whedon's run on Astonishing X-Men. Only one more left.

But yeah, I like Earth-1610. Parts of it bother me, like the current state of the Ultimates, but other stuff I really enjoy. UC X-Men is killing it, and I have to say I am curious with what happens now to Miles. But mostly I am in it for Ultimate!Jessica Drew. Why isn't she used more, tell me why?

[Spider-Man]

But yeah, I like Earth-1610. Parts of it bother me, like the current state of the Ultimates, but other stuff I really enjoy. UC X-Men is killing it, and I have to say I am curious with what happens now to Miles. But mostly I am in it for Ultimate!Jessica Drew. Why isn't she used more, tell me why?

Yeah I really enjoyed how Ultimates handled the clone saga. Jessica is a pretty well developed character and it's a bit of a shame she doesn't appear more often

And don't even get me started on how frustrating the Avengers are in Superior. They came off as really dumb after I thought they were onto him and yet only thought he was a skrull...

Edited May 2, 2013 by Spider-Man

[Tanma]

Yes, I woud like to see more how Peter's death affected her. I mean I know your actions towards Miles tend to reveal some of it, but I want to know more. I mean, she was totally absent from that fight, maybe if she had been there it could ave gone differently. Why don't we see that?

I actually had to refuse to read anything connected to superior, as I could not deal with that headache. Same thing with Avengers Arena. It really upsets me that characters I liked, and teenaged heroes no less, some of which were only created in 2010, are being fed to a slaughter. I can't take that negativity.

By the way, what are your thoughts on Ultimate Peter's death verses the recent "death" of mainstream Peter. From what I hear Ultimate was a lot more respectful, but I haven't read mainstream.

[XimenaPaulina]

Became a fan of the TV series first, then I got to reading all the 18 volumes so far of this on-going comic book series by Robert Kirkman (the comics are way better than the TV series IMO).

[Spider-Man]

By the way, what are your thoughts on Ultimate Peter's death verses the recent "death" of mainstream Peter. From what I hear Ultimate was a lot more respectful, but I haven't read mainstream.

I definitely thought the Ultimate death was more respectful, but that could be for a number of reasons. In Ultimates Peter actually dies so you get to see some reactions to that which makes it a lot more powerful, where as now we just have a weird situation where Peter is actually still alive in his mind, but Doc Ock has full control of everything. Another reason I think it was more disrespectful to the character is simply because they choose Doc Ock to take control of Peter, and not only that, but you see Peter's physical body being disrespectful to people that he normally wouldn't be which frustrates me to no end. I don't think I will ever understand what made Marvel kill off Peter (twice!!!!), and the sooner things get back to the way they should be, the better!

[Tanma]

Yeah, not to mention Ultimate Peter's story had a nice bookend. He saved his aunt, while he couldn't save his uncle. Not to mention he took on like six super villains with a severe bullet wound he took in place of Captain America. He went out like a star, defending his loved ones and fighting against I possible odds.

Which reminds me, what is Cap's reaction to Jess. Does he even know? Because the whole Peter dying thing because of him might color their interactions if he knew.

[Aanchir]

I recently picked up and read the Avatar: The Last Airbender comic The Search, Part 1 and it's pretty good. As you may know, it finally goes into answers about what happened to Zuko's mother, and while it involves a cheesy love story, there are still some interesting new developments. I especially liked that twist at the end where it is revealed that

Zuko is not really Ozai's son! This actually explains a lot, like why Ozai always seemed to hate him and why Zuko has always been so much more like his mother than his father. Good stuff! So the answer to what happened to Ursa is that she went back to marry Ikem, but I guess we'll have to find out if she ever managed to, seeing as Ikem exiled himself.

The art and tone of the comic do a good job at capturing the feel of the show. If you're an Avatar fan, I can definitely recommend it, and I can't wait for parts 2 & 3! I also got The Promise Part 2 & 3, but I still need Part 1, so I'll hold off on reading those before I get that one.

Zuko MAY not be Ozai's son. There is still the possibility that the letter was forged, or that Ursa was lying for some reason. With that said, it is a major story development in any case because it calls into question something Zuko has long taken for granted. It gives us some possible insight into why it was such a hard battle for Zuko to meet Ozai's expectations. And it is a particularly dangerous bit of information in Azula's hands. Even with her own sanity compromised, her ability to manipulate people's fears and emotions does not seem to have dwindled.

I look forward to further installments in this series, which I have enjoyed just as much as "The Promise". I think that the graphic novels have done a good job matching the narrative tone of the show, and it's almost a shame that these stories may never be available with the voice acting and music that added a whole other level of life to the original animated series. I'm kind of curious how long these graphic novels might continue. It'd be great if they continue long enough for us to watch Aang and his friends grow to adulthood, though of course at the current pace that would be quite a wait!

[Tanma]

But doesn't that plot point nullify the whole thing with the Iroh and Azula dragons at the end of season two? And Iroh's belief of where his inner conflict comes from? And his development towards Iroh? And doesn't it kind of make his whole need to prove himself to his father, and pretty much his whole behavior in season 1, utterly pointless? Maybe if I read the graphic novels I would feel differently, but it sounds like they just stole/destroyed his whole characterization and backstory for a soap opera twist.

In other news, I finially have all of Whedon's run on Astonishing X-Men. That was money well spent.

[Aanchir]

But doesn't that plot point nullify the whole thing with the Iroh and Azula dragons at the end of season two? And Iroh's belief of where his inner conflict comes from? And his development towards Iroh? And doesn't it kind of make his whole need to prove himself to his father, and pretty much his whole behavior in season 1, utterly pointless? Maybe if I read the graphic novels I would feel differently, but it sounds like they just stole/destroyed his whole characterization and backstory for a soap opera twist.

In other news, I finially have all of Whedon's run on Astonishing X-Men. That was money well spent.

Not really. Iroh's comment on the conflict raging within Zuko was that it was "his nature; his legacy". And one's legacy doesn't have to do merely with who they are related to by blood. If Iroh had said "this inner conflict is in your blood" or something to that effect there would be a contradiction, but that would have been somewhat cheesy anyway, IMO.

And no, it doesn't at all make his need to prove himself to his father pointless. Again, even if Ozai isn't related to Zuko by blood — and even if Ozai knows or suspects this — Zuko is still the boy he raised, and Ozai was certainly more of a father figure to Zuko than a man he never knew (though of course, after Zuko's exile, Iroh was more of a father to Zuko than even Ozai — it simply took Zuko a while to recognize this). And on that note, it makes Zuko's reunion with Ozai in Season 3 even more darkly heartwarming. Zuko's act of (supposedly) killing the Avatar was enough that not only did Ozai welcome back into the family, but he directly addressed Zuko as "my son". In other words, regardless of any doubts he may have had, he was at that point willing to set those doubts aside and (figuratively) embrace Zuko as his heir to the throne. Zuko was proving himself against even greater odds than he could have imagined at the time.

Furthermore, it shouldn't be ignored that Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko have been in dialogue with the writer of these graphic novels. I have no doubt that a plot twist like this was far more than just improvisation on the writer's part. Rather, it fits very neatly into the context of what has come before, and quite possibly explains the great mystery of what changed in Zuko's family relations between the happy days he remembers on Ember Island and the flashback in "Zuko Alone", when he was already struggling to earn his father's approval.

I don't at all know what you mean about nullifying the events of Zuko's hallucinations in season two. Regardless, I encourage you to read the graphic novels. I feel like they do an excellent job keeping consistent with the characterization and narrative voice of the series, and they maintain cultural and political depth the series offered while still offering entirely new adventures that further develop the characters we know and love.

Edited May 3, 2013 by Aanchir

[Tanma]

The thing is I have heard a lot of anger online about the Promise and it's sequel, so I am a little wary.

I do see your point, but I interpreted the scene with the dragons and the season three flashback episode to imply that the battle was with his direct lineage. Azula represented Sozin, and Iroh represented Roku. Otherwise why would Iroh tell him about his kinship with the prior Avatar?

[Aanchir]

The thing is I have heard a lot of anger online about the Promise and it's sequel, so I am a little wary.

I do see your point, but I interpreted the scene with the dragons and the season three flashback episode to imply that the battle was with his direct lineage. Azula represented Sozin, and Iroh represented Roku. Otherwise why would Iroh tell him about his kinship with the prior Avatar?

I heard a lot of anger online about the TV series even when it was still airing new episodes. There are still people who complain about Zutara not happening, or who feel like the series finale was rubbish. There are probably people who feel the series jumped the shark even earlier. A lot of A:TLA fans take their headcanon very seriously and thus there's a large segment of the fanbase that is more or less unpleasable. Overall, this is why I only really check A:TLA fansites for news related to the series. That way I can do my best to enjoy each new development for what it is instead of having to frame it in the context of somebody else's personal grievances.

I framed that hallucination as just that — a hallucination. It was Zuko's subconscious speaking to him, and his subconscious at that time wouldn't have been aware of his lineage.

As for why Iroh told him about his kinship with the Avatar, it was to demonstrate to him that being true to himself didn't just mean following in his father's footsteps, and that there were more parts to his legacy than he had been raised to believe. Also remember specifically that Iroh didn't just ask him to read about his great-grandfather's (Avatar Roku's) life — he was told he needed to know how Avatar Roku had died. Roku's death was a grave inequity, and as Iroh said afterward, "What happened generations ago can be resolved now, by you. Because of your legacy, you alone can cleanse the sins of our family and the Fire Nation." In other words, the goal was to impart Zuko with a sense of duty to himself and the dual sides of his legacy rather than just to his father.

And on a side note, gosh I have to watch A:TLA again sometime. Reminiscing like this is filling me with so many feels.

[Oky]

Zuko MAY not be Ozai's son. There is still the possibility that the letter was forged, or that Ursa was lying for some reason. With that said, it is a major story development in any case because it calls into question something Zuko has long taken for granted. It gives us some possible insight into why it was such a hard battle for Zuko to meet Ozai's expectations. And it is a particularly dangerous bit of information in Azula's hands. Even with her own sanity compromised, her ability to manipulate people's fears and emotions does not seem to have dwindled.

I look forward to further installments in this series, which I have enjoyed just as much as "The Promise". I think that the graphic novels have done a good job matching the narrative tone of the show, and it's almost a shame that these stories may never be available with the voice acting and music that added a whole other level of life to the original animated series. I'm kind of curious how long these graphic novels might continue. It'd be great if they continue long enough for us to watch Aang and his friends grow to adulthood, though of course at the current pace that would be quite a wait!

Well, I guess that's possible (and that does seem like something Azula would do, forging the letter to control Zuko), but then again, what else would get Ozai so infuriated in that flashback? It would be an incredible tease if this turns out to be false, especially seeing how much sense it makes in the context of the show. If there is one thing A:TLA is not known for, it's cheap "soap opera twists" that go nowhere, and as you said yourself, the involvement of the original creators of the show gives this twist a lot more credibility. I also agree with pretty much everything else you said, about how this fits into Zuko's story and how much more awesome this would have been in animated form with the voice actors. And yes, it would indeed be great to see the characters grow up and form Republic City. Perhaps they could skip ahead a little? Either way, I look forward to more from this series.

And yes, it's never a bad time to rewatch the old episodes! I keep seeing reruns on Nick and every time I still get glued to the screen. They're just so darn good, way beyond all the other crap on TV nowadays. Seeing every other show with the same level of quality and potential getting cancelled makes me even the more glad that A:TLA exists and was given the chance to reach its full potential. It's also great that it's legacy continues to give us good entertainment in the form of Korra and these comic books.

[legoguy264]

This week I've read superior spider-man #5, but that's about it.

Edited May 6, 2013 by legoguy264

[RaincloudDustbin]

Scored 23 new comics at a second-hand store for a fiver and a few weeks before, 2 Novas and a Samarai for £2.20. Also got 10 'weird' comics at a car-boot for a pound. Recently bought the newest Dark Knight too.

[Vindicare]

Finally started reading Deadpool Killustrated. Really good series so far. Never read any Deadpool comics before, I love his way of talking and his sarcasm. I defnitely recommend this, especially if you read and know about Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe.