Superheros [extra long post for final]

Superheros are still a new experience for me. While I've heard of them on and off since I was young, I've never actually read, cover-to-cover, a superhero comic. I consider myself ignorant of the genre. When people start throwing out Marvel and DC characters and stories, it soars right over my head like Superman. For this week, I decided it had to change. At last, Katherine shall enter the world of western comics!

I began with a Hellboy comic off the webshare. The issue I picked up was obviously in the middle of a story already. What? Am I really supposed to believe that's Hitler in a robot? I was stunned. I had no idea what was happening. Monsters were coming out of trains, and bad guys were everywhere plotting things. Hellboy's universe seems quite accustomed to monster-people, which I thought was unusual and refreshing (superheros usually hide their power/appearance, right?). I loved seeing that big Dragon man character having a nice Christmas moment with a normal family. Rather comical.

Realizing that jumping into something wasn't a great idea, I decided I should start at the beginning. Yeah, I'll just read the very first issues of all the big names I'd heard of -- Superman, Spiderman, the Xmen, etc. Good thinking, Katherine. Doin' it right. I began surfing the web to see if I could purchase them used for cheap. Here's Spiderman #1 for $23,000.

I returned, defeated, to the webshare.

Alex Ross's Wonder Woman Spirit of Truth was my second attempt. I loved it! Stunning artwork aside, I followed the daring rescues by Wonder Woman with ease, taking in each painting one at a time. The story--or, moments--flowed like a montage, due to the lack of hard-edged panels and the placement of each scene all over the page. There were no words--not even on (what I assume to be) the cover. Because of this, it was up to me to piece together what I was seeing. It made me think about the order of events, and what Wonder Woman has gone through. While the comic itself was fairly short, it had that timeless aura about it. It felt like I had read it for several hours. At the very end, on a double page spread, there is text that describes her back story. Who knew Wonder Woman had any connection to Greek Mythology? Not I! What a perfect work for me to pick up--It felt like a great introduction to the classic Superhero.

Next I opened up  Y - The Last Man. Right off the bat I'm greeted by a guy in a straight jacket with a monkey. Oh boy. First impressions are not always correct, as I found out. This comic is good. Really good. The story itself if captivating--some unknown disease killed all male creatures on Earth, except one (our protagonist, Yorick). It feels like the authors were playing with "what if-" situations, then decided to fully flesh one out. The feminism is important in this comic, especially in the first chapter. Reading all the statistics at the end were eye opening. Wow, 85% of all government representatives are male. I thought we were essentially equal genders this day in age, but let's face it- women still get paid less. This comic is radical and educational, addressing real problems, while also telling a captivating story.
But wait, aren't I supposed to be reading about superheros? I had to dig deeper, but it's there. Our 'hero' Yorick finds himself in an unforeseen responsibility and is forced to deal with it. He's capable of things that no other person can (now) do. I suppose it equates.

 

Lastly, I gave The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen a shot. Right away the scenery reminds me  Edgar Rice Burroughs' A Princess of Mars. Perhaps it's intentional. The artwork got in the way of storytelling every now and then--I couldn't tell what I was seeing and how it connected to the proceeding panel. The artwork is busier than most comics. Like Hellboy, I'm not sure I 'got it'. There was a long article at the end of the comic that might have explained some things, but who wants to slow down and read that when you've been cruising through colorful pictures? 

There are immense quantities of superhero comics in the world. After having a taste of them, I realize that, just like every art form, comics vary greatly from artist to artist, even if those comics are in the same genre. Each one I read felt completely different from the last. I've just scratched the surface, but intend to further my research.