#marvels annotated

Marvels Annotated #02 (2019)

This is an excellent insight into the psychology of J Jonah Jameson, and in such a brief passing moment that you could miss it. There’s no further analysis of what he says here, no attempts to re-state the case with additional clarity for readers, just a moment of Jameson almost explaining his beliefs before the plot moves on.

Busiek knows that nothing else is needed- the whole purpose of Marvels is to retell the history of the Marvel Universe, so it’s safe to assume everyone knows Jameson, and therefore everyone knows that his schtick is condemning Spider-Man as a criminal for whatever he does. And here we get a possible explanation as to why: heroes make us feel inadequate. If they are good and pure and righteous, self-sacrificing and honourable, what are we? Mere mortals scrabbling to survive, prone to selfishness and mistakes, unable to compare in any favourable way to the ‘Marvels’.

It resonates with the theme of the book, from the fear of mutants in the 2nd volume to the regular fickleness of the general public, celebrating their heroes one moment, condemning them the next, then accepting them once more once the villainous plot that swayed public opinion has been foiled. And repeat. (Jonah is at least consistent in comparison to just about everyone else when it comes to his anti-hero sentiment, I suppose, if you had a pick a positive to his Spider-Man attacks.)

This concept of the inadequacy of a ‘normal human’ helps account for one of the most popular recurring plots. “The public is persuaded by a villain’s manipulations to turn against hero” is a trope that can be found in just about any book multiple times in the period Busiek draws stories from, and far beyond, even through to the modern day Marvel comics, so it is logical to look at what might make this such a common occurrence. As Marvels looks to tie as many individual plots from all the original Marvel comic books together into one unified Marvel timeline, this psychological take on the relationship between human and superhuman helps the frequent repetition of this plot gain some plausibility- our narrator, our human eye on the world of superheroes, identifies this constant shift of allegiances, and the script gives it a plausible source in this scene, so we know that as long as this fear of inadequacy exists, the suspicion of a hero’s motivation is always there to be exploited.

The series can’t resolve this issue, however, as that would effectively remove one of the most traditional of comic book plots from the Marvel Universe, so Phil Sheldon really can’t fulfill his goal of clearing Spider-Man’s name. The hero is believed, in the court of public opinion, although not by the law, to have killed Captain George Stacy- Phil sees that this is because of Jameson’s propaganda, as well as the fact people are a little too willing to turn on their heroes, and wants to tell the truth, show that the Marvels really are heroes and not deserving of constant suspicion and regular betrayals by the people they want to help. But with decades of stories still to come, many using the plot device of public suspicion or badly behaved imposters, success in this mission wouldn’t fit into the wider timeline: without this mistrust, many Marvel stories just couldn’t happen. So, with the tragic inevitability that seems to haunt Spider-Man throughout his published history, the other Stacy tragedy that we all know is waiting in the future to derail Sheldon’s plan, and keep the public mistrust where it belongs in Marvel continuity.

Which is not to say this is a pessimistic book, this is simply a thread of the wider narrative, but quite an important one in terms of trying to add a little bit of psychological complexity to the (then) 30 plus years of Marvel stories (55 if you go back to the Timely issues that are used as the starting point of the mini-series) that made up Marvel continuity. The story itself is more optimistic than this reading might suggest- while the mistrust of heroes, and the fear-mongering of the likes of J. Jonah Jameson, might have a hard to break grip on the centre of the Marvel Universe, there is still a lot of hope- not just hope that heroes will save you when needed, but hope that future generations will complete the work that previous ones could not, that whatever stones are laid today will be the foundation of the better tomorrow that the Marvel Universe dreams of, as Sheldon passes on his role to a younger woman, and a next generation of heroes is hinted at.

Marvels Annotated #01 (2019)

Marvels Annotated #02 (2019)

According to the various bits and pieces that make up the Annotated part of this welcome Marvels reissue, Alex Ross was not a big fan of the X-Men and wasn’t keen on including them in the book. Which is a good indication of the advantages of being a collaborative medium, as they are pretty critical to the success of this chapter, and he draws/paints a good mutant regardless of his feelings for them.

While Spider-Man is ‘creepy’ and the subject of J. Jonah Jameson’s ire, or Ben Grimm is seen as ugly, they are not hated in the way mutants are, so the X-Men are a necessary ingredient if one is to highlight the darker side of the early Marvel universe. This scene, apparently lit by Cyclops’s ‘eye’ to give this demonic red palette, gives a subjective view of the team as seen from the streets- they are terrifying, provoking violence and accusations of crimes they have not committed, their most benevolent actions misinterpreted as assaults or manipulations, rather than the heroic deeds of the ‘Marvels’.

Contrasting their appearance with other events of the era that were effectively public events that attracted giant crowds- Sue and Reed’s wedding, the unveiling of the new Avengers line up, etc.- shows just how marginalised the mutants are. This was always a part of the book that Lee and Kirby created, but it was perhaps hard to reconcile the public’s fear and mistrust with the adoration every other hero seemed to get in the other Marvel comic books- in terms of weird powers and superheroics, there really isn’t much difference between an X-Man and certain Avengers, or the Fantastic Four. You could end up feeling that the token bigots were all getting herded into that one book, while everyone else got to look on in wonder at the adventures of the other heroes in (almost) every other title. Busiek and Ross do a good job here of making that fear wide spread- the same people that want to shop for Wasp clothes, or gaze up in amazement at Giant Man, are the same that look upon the mutants with a brick or gun in hand and a murderous rage born of fear in their eyes.

It shows that the various ‘Mutant Menace’ propaganda schemes did reach a wider audience, not just the handful of angry people seen in any given issue of X-Men, emphasising that those feelings were widespread within society, even if we didn’t really get a clear impression of that in the original comics, and it was all born out of the notion of evolution and mutation. No one seems to be afraid of someone created out of a freak accident or a science experiment, but the notion of mutation gave birth to the fear of replacement and extinction, and the fear of mutants is made to feel like a real concern for the people of this world, rather than a contradiction that exists withing the Marvel Universe simply to allow X-Men to have a theme of prejudice vs equality. The fact that people see red from the first public emergence of Xavier’s students is now a logical conclusion- the equality message is still here, just like any Lee/Kirby X-Tale, but it feels a little more convincing, more rooted in the wider Marvel universe, as the protagonist recognises the hysteria that he, and everyone else, is being dragged into as a result of irrational fear.

You’re all our valentines this week <3 <3 <3

Mister Miracle TP - Tom King and Mitch Gerads

Y’all know what it is. Come through on the 23rd and meet Tom!

Wonder Twins #1 (of 6) - Mark Russell and Stephen Byrne

Exiled from their home planet, alien heroes Zan and Jayna must navigate life as teens on Earth at South Metropolis High School, where they're even bigger outsiders than the typical awkward young adults. Under the watchful eye of Superman, the brother and sister pull monitor duty at the Hall of Justice as interns, while also trying to overcome the pitfalls of Zan's brash confidence and Jayna's shy but streetwise persona. If you think you know the Wonder Twins, think again.   

Marvels Annotated #1 (of 4) - Alex Ross and Kurt Busiek

Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the series that changed the way we look at super heroes, the landmark MARVELS is back! In the year 1939, young photojournalist Phil Sheldon attends the sensational unveiling of the fiery android Human Torch - little knowing he is witnessing the dawn of the Age of Marvels! Prepare to relive Marvel's Golden Age from a whole new point of view as Phil covers the superhuman sightings of the 1930s and 1940s - from the terror caused by the Human Torch's epic clash with the Sub-Mariner to the patriotism stirred by the debut of Captain America and more!  

A-

I WANNA SCREAM

I LOVED MARVELS & MARVELS: EYE OF THE CAMERA SO MUCH AND I JUST-

(In case y'all don't know Marvels back in 1994 was a 5 issue series that looked back at the very beginning of Marvel Comics, and I mean,

VERY

BEGINNING

way back in 1939 with the original Human Torch! The story followed Phil Sheldon, a freelance photographer following the Marvels wherever they went. Marvels mainly focused on the public view, and as the story continues you'll see they hint at previous Marvel stories such as

- The Invaders

- Origin of the Fantastic Four/Avengers/etc

- The Kree/Skrull War

- The Coming Of Galactus

- Death of The Stacy's

and so on,

Marvels: Eye of The Camera, continuing the slick to major pop ups of story arcs, shows us Phil Sheldon in his final days, looking back at the book and photos he's done, ending with his death.)

BUT MARVELS

AAAAAAA MARVELS

I have never loved a story this much!! If you're looking for a quick look on the early days of Marvel, I TOTALLY recommend you read it!!

So, Marvels: Annotated.

I really want to see how they take this when it comes to the side thoughts, or if they would re-draw.

But I'm really excited to see what they have for Marvels 25th anniversary!! (going on sale Feb. 13th)

(p.s. the variant covers are lookin great my personal favorite is FF #6)