Marvel Comics Presents #4 (Man-Thing)
"Elements of Terror, Part 4 of 12: Rage and Design"
Writer - Steve Gerber
Art - Tom Sutton
Letters - Bill Oakley
Colors - Petra Scotese
Assistant Editor - Michael Rockwitz
Editor - Terry Kavanagh
Chief - Tom DeFalco
Welcome to this late-afternoon visit with Marvel Comics Presents. The morning sort of got away from me.
--
We open with a bit of a reminder of what we've read up to this point... and it's all horribly purple. When we finally get with the "now", we see that our investigative reporter, Mr. Ditillio has been picked up upon arrival in Florida... by those two goofballs from the first chapter of this feature. They push him into a car, and take him far away to "deal with him". When we rejoin them, they're way out in the swamp... where this whole story began. Looks like that house they were hangin' out in has been burned down. They baddies assume that the "Demon" had something to do with it. Just as they're about to "off" Mr. Ditillio, our mild-mannered reporter socks 'em in the face and runs away. Our "heroes" ain't too frazzled, however, as they're sure if the gators don't get the guy... the Swamp Devil will.
We shift scenes to Maryland, and the home of our "Freedom, Rah Rah" strawman, Mr. Jody Choate. He's meeting with a fella named Bressack... and he's got a plan. It's a plan that might get him in trouble... ya know, if he wasn't working in the name of FREEDOM. That's about all we get.
From here, we visit the Freedom Science Studies Institute. Hrmm, I wonder if that's the "freedom" Choate keeps talking about. Anyhoo, they're still experimenting on our sweaty Senatuh friend from Chapter Two... and, they've evidently transformed him into a super soldier. That is, until he pops.
We now rejoin Dumb and Dumber, as they're trying to track down the Devil Woman who they believe burned down their shack. They head into a... I dunno, dilapidated mansion or something... and are told that she's there... but, she's not looking to be bothered.
Our men ain't about to take no for an answer... which prompts Voodoo Mama Juju to show her face and tell them herself that she wants to be left alone. When our heroes try to press the issue... we come to learn that she actually isn't alone... there's a (Giant-Size?) Man-Thing in the house.
--
Welp, if you ever told me I'd be pining for another story featuring the Feral Man, I'd have laughed in your face. And yet, here we are!
This is... kind of a bore. A pretty weak outing, perhaps compounded by the knowledge that we know what Gerber is capable of with this character. Well, I don't personally... but, I have heard good things. Lots of good things, in fact!
I always worry when I start seeing writers rely on strawmen... though, I am hopeful that the "freedom" that big-bad Jody Choate is talking about is that Freedom Science joint... and not just the good ol' American jingoism that writers seem especially keen on deconstructing time and again.
The art, I will say, is still top-notch! Tom Sutton is doing all of the heavy-lifting here... and is really pulling out all the stops when it comes to the gore. Not my cuppa tea to look at, but I can't deny that it looks pretty much exactly like it ought to. Disturbing, dark, gross... just perfect. If only he were drawing a better story...
Tomorrow: Shang-Chi, back again... Whoomp, there he is.
Marvel Comics Presents #3 (Man-Thing)
"Elements of Terror, Part 3 of 12: Ritual and Belief"
Writer - Steve Gerber
Art - Tom Sutton
Letters - Agustin Mas
Colors - Petra Scotese
Assistant Edits - Michael Rockwitz
Edits - Terry Kavanagh
Chief - Tom DeFalco
Dunno what it is... but I feel like I need to get something of a "running start" each time we have a Man-Thing feature here in Marvel Comics Presents. It's just so daunting... and, in that sorta-kinda "try-hard" way that really makes it a chore to push through.
Let's see what we see...
--
We open with a small plane arriving at the Freedom Science Studies Institute that we learned a little bit about last chapter. A gurney is rushed off the rig and rolled into a waiting ambulance. On the gurney? Well, it's our believed-to-be-dead Senatuh Wycombe... and he don't look all'at hot. In fact, he's about to be injected with a shot of whatever the hell "Project: Glamour" is all about. Meanwhile, in the swamp... Man-Thing is absolutely smothered in precious narration panels. Woof. He's trying to cope with his new lot in life. If you recall (though, I might not be the best "tour-guide" for this story), our hero "merged" with one'a dem crispy critters... and was left looking much worse (and weaker) for wear.
Now comes... well, a lot of exposition... not all of it interesting. First, we meet a reporter named Mick Ditillio who is interviewing another Senator about Wycombe's "murder" and the nebulous "Project: Glamour". This new Senator (Miller) doesn't have much of a comment... but hopes Mick uses a bit of discretion when it comes to putting together tomorrow's newspaper headline. We follow Mick home, where he's trying to connect the dots... while his very, uh, "perky" girlfriend tries to entice him into maybe putting work aside for a bit. They must keep the apartment pretty chilly, I tell ya what.
Next, we meet Colonel Jody Choate, who is on the phone being sinister as all get-out... talking about a Demon (that he's totally not scared of!) and everything. His wife pops her head in to check on him... and we learn that he's doing... whatever it is he's doing... for "freedom". So yeah, it looks like we might be getting one'a those stories.
Back to Man-Thing. He shambles through the swamp, before coming upon a... I dunno, witch's house? Whatever the case, she's just about to sacrifice a puppy dog when our Muck Monster bursts in the place.
The art doesn't really convey this... nor, unfortunately, does the story (unless I'm just completely dense), but I believe this scene wraps up with Man-Thing and Voodoo Mama Juju making a "deal". She'll fix him up in exchange for a "path to Hades". Alrighty then.
--
Y'all remember that little run on Swamp Thing that Alan Moore had back in the long ago? Ehh, probably not... it's kind of obscure and nobody ever talks about it. It certainly didn't inspire a whole crop of writers to explore deconstructing superheroes or anything. Of course, I'm being facetious...
I remember the first time I read that stuff. Sure, there's a whole lot of "heady" concepts in it... but, it never felt (to me) like it was trying to be smarter than I was. It was just a well-told story, that felt accessible and inviting, regardless of how "heady" the concepts became.
Gerber's Man-Thing? Not so much. This is a story that is begging you to tap out. It wants you to know that it is so much smarter than you (or at least, me). The storytelling is really weird... and, at the risk of sounding like a complete jackass, "insists upon itself". The precious and few scenes where our titular hero actually shows up are the worst of all! I think I'd have gotten more out of his scenes if they were completely "silent"!
As for the rest... ehh, government conspiracies... some "good ol' boy" doing what he's doing in the name of "freedom". A reporter hot on the trail of the hoo-doo. Nothing we haven't seen before, and presented here with the subtlety of a sledge hammer.
The art still continues to impress! Really excellent stuff here... even if, in more esoteric scenes, it's really hard to follow.
Tomorrow: Fuhgeddabout Shang-Chi fish "references", this story's just called "Fish"!
Marvel Comics Presents #2 (Man-Thing)
"Elements of Terror, Part 2 of 12: First Witness"
Writer - Steve Gerber
Art - Tom Sutton
Letters - Agustin Mas
Colors - Petra Scotese
Assistant Edits - Michael Rockwitz
Edits - Terry Kavanagh & Michael Higgins
Chief - Tom DeFalco
Hey, hey, hey... WHAT is going on here? < / belding > We're only one issue in, and Doug Moench and Steve Gerber have already swapped features???
Okay, okay... as some eagle-eyed readers have already noticed, there was a bit of a goof-up (on Marvel's end) on the credits page of MCP #1. The Shang-Chi story is incorrectly attributed to Gerber and Company, while Man-Thing was credited to the Moenches. I chose to "play along" with the goof last issue, though I was tempted to tip my hand... I mean, if there's a Man-Thing story, in an anthology with Gerber-involvement... that's sort of a no-brainer, right?
I played along for a simple... silly, and probably a little bit precious reason. If you're following us over on Morituri Mondays, and really... why wouldn'tcha be... we're currently covering issues of Strikeforce: Morituri that hit the shelves right around the time of the launch of Marvel Comics Presents. There's a big push for this book in the house-ads and Bullpen Bulletins... so, MCP is like a big-deal (newish-EiC) DeFalco project. Another big DeFalco project at the time is something along the lines of an "Editor Bootcamp", where he and his right-hand Mark Gruenwald are making sure their editors are on top of things.
Welp... it feels like ever since they made this proclamation in the Bullpen Bulletins, more and more errors have begun to surface... where there weren't all that many before (especially under the prior regime). Looking at a "current year" Marvel Comic, which is rife with basic spelling and grammatical errors (not to mention continuity errors, ay yai yai)... it feels like the DeFalco/Gruenwald Editor's Bootcamp might've been the "beginning of the end" of quality control!
So yeah, that's why I didn't "fix" the mistaken credits last issue. No-Prizes are being sent out to the eagle-eyed readers who did catch the error before I "lifted the veil"!
And now... a properly credited, Man-Thing!
--
We open in a Washington, D.C. courtroom, where General Selbert (that fella from last issue who met up with those geeks in the swamp) is being grilled by a bloated, slow-tahkin' Suthin' Senitah. He's being questioned about possible involvement in the Colombian Drug Trade... and some nebulous book-keeping involving a Swiss Bank Account... which, is like a sure-sign of not being on the up-and-up in the 1980's, right? Selbert manages to "massage" an explanation that almost makes sense (if you squint). All the while, there's a drug-deal going down in a parking structure. It's cash-for-coke... and then a car explodes. Okey doke.
The Senitah keeps Selbert on the hook for a bit... almost as though he knows more than he's letting on, and might just be giving the General enough rope to hang himself. The line of questioning shifts to a facility called the Freedom Science Studies Institute... a place where General Selbert sits on the Board. The Senitah inquires about the goings-on inside, to which, we learn that they're working on your run-of-the-mill super-soldier studies. Our man is very nonchalant about this... could you imagine someone coppin' to this in real-life? It might come as no surprise, but these "super soldier" rejects look a whole lot like those abominations we met last issue.
As the courtroom back-n-forth continues, we a page featuring the one and only Man-Thing crawling from the muck. Senator Wycombe changes the subject to the matter of something called "Project: Glamour"... which, I believe is those pictures they take of you at the mall after coating the camera lens in copious amounts of Vaseline, right? Welp, Selbert plays ignorant... and so, the line of questioning ends. Now, this entire proceeding has been televised (which is friggin' nuts... I mean, they're casually talking about human experimentation and super-soldiering here). One fella (maybe the General?) who is watching the trial looks to have placed a target on owa ahn'able Senitah.
Later that night, we catch up with Wycombe... who is still trying to get to the bottom of the Glamourshots gambit. Unfortunately for him, an assassin (I assume) bursts through his window... and kills him! Well, maybe kills him... for all we know, it might've been a bloody abduction. The front page headline the next day attributes his murder to a "Cult"... though, it confirms that no corpse was found at the scene.
Speaking of the next morning, we next arrive at Sunshine Air Cargo in Florida, where a gawky burnout called "Skinny" has arrived... and he might have a package? Or he might've just done something bad? Or... who the hell knows... he's here, and he's greeted by another bloated fella who sticks a pistol in his face.
We wrap up with a preciously purple page of Man-Thing... still crawling outta the muck. He feels feels, sees memories, hears laughs... yadda, yadda, yadda. Hopefully we'll find out a little bit more... next time!
--
Well... I didn't love this, and I didn't hate this. I swear, this story in particular is really giving me Action Comics Weekly flashbacks. I feel like we're reading a blend of the first arcs of Deadman and Secret Six. Story, art, and that odd feeling of "what in the world are we reading?"... just so reminiscent of those two features!
So, we've got a trial... we've got ties to the Colombian Drug Trade... we've got a weirdo Science Institute trying to concoct Super Soldiers... we've got a Murder Cult... we've got Man-Thing being all goth and poetic... izzit me, or are we perhaps trying to cram a little too much graham into this little cereal... err, serial? We've seen that sort of thing before... Black Canary, we're lookin' at you! Though, in fairness... I do have a great deal more faith in Steve Gerber's ability to pull this all together than I did Sharon Wright.
The art here continues to impress... and now, I can finally give credit where it's due... to Tom Sutton! I'm still getting some underground comix vibes from his style... which feels very much right for a story of this tone.
I'd have liked our titular Man-Thing to do a little bit more than repeatedly rise out of the muck... but, I suppose I can give 'em a pass due to the "world-building" Gerber's engaging in during this early chapter. One of the reasons I'd started this project was to better familiarize myself with the "fringe" Marvel characters. So far, and yes... we're only 16-pages in... I'm not feeling all that confident. I'm optimistic this will pick up over the course of the next ten (ten???) weeks.
Tomorrow: Izzit Shang-Chi... or Bruce Lee?
Marvel Comics Presents #1 (Master of Kung Fu)
"Crossing Lines, Part 1 of 8: Ripples"
Writer - Steve Gerber
Art - Tom Sutton
Letters - Agustin Mas
Colors - Petra Scotese
Assistant Edits - Michael Rockwitz
Edits - Terry Kavanagh & Michael Higgins
Chief - Tom DeFalco
Here's another character I don't have all that much familiarity with. Never really got into Shang-Chi... or, honestly, martial arts comics in general. Sure, I've giggled at an odd issue or two of Richard Dragon Kung-Fu Fighter... but, that might just be more for the novelty of its outlandish title than anything else.
I'm not sure how prevalent Shang-Chi is in the "current year" Marvel Universe... but, I'm sure he's kicking around somewhere... uh, no pun intended.
This is going to be interesting. I'm looking forward to attending Master of Kung Fu 101! If anyone reading is more familiar with this fella, please help keep me on track!
--
We open with a man arriving to Hong Kong via boat. He's waxing fairly philosophical about the lives and times of... fish. As he walks the fairly cluttered streets a bomb goes off (huh?), our hero then proclaims that he has "returned to the world". From where? Haven't the foggiest... I might only assume this is a reference to an old Bronze Age tale? Anyhoo, our man keeps walking and philosophizing until he reaches, what he calls, a flophouse. He settles in, removing his tunic... revealing that he is (duh) Shang-Chi, and before long the entire place is swarming with warriors!
Shang-Chi appeared to be expecting these goofs... he even refers to himself as "bait". It doesn't take him long to beat the baddies... however, one manages to give him the slip. Our Kung Fu Master gives chase.
He follows the shadowy escapee back down the Hong Kong streets, and winds up at the Oriental Expediters Ltd. Building... which, is apparently a front for a "murder agency" based out of London. I apologize, I'm not following. Whatever the case, Shang-Chi enters... and makes his way through to the back side of the building. There, a man smoking a cigarette notes his presence, and announces that "he's here".
There's also a pool back there, where a woman named Leiko is having a late night dip. Gotta take a dip myself... into the Marvel Comics Wiki... one sec. Okay, Leiko is a Bronze Age character, and so it's not too strange that she and Shang-Chi already know each other. In fact, she beckons our hero into the pool with her... which facilitates him making even more fish metaphors!
Leiko reveals that a Xiao was instructed to bring Shang to them... which, I mean... there are probably worse fates. So, was the flophouse raid all part of this? In the pool they exchange chlorinated fluids... before emerging in front of a mustachioed gentleman named Black Jack Tarr. We wrap up with Jack informing Shang that it's time for "Games of Deceit and Death, Part II"... izzat a Bruce Lee reference? I suppose we'll find out!
--
Okay... here's a weird question... which might sound somewhat reminiscent if you've been with me since the Action Comics Daily days. Let's say, you're a kid... teen-ager... whatever, who's buying this first issue of Marvel Comics Presents because (duh) it's got Wolverine in it. Now, if you were that kid... what would you make of this story?
Let's not get it twisted... this isn't a bad story... and despite the fact that I had trouble following it, I rather enjoyed it. But, this is kind of an odd "entry point" for a (relatively) obscure character such as Shang-Chi. At this point, he hasn't been seen in five years. That's a long while. I mean, this isn't quite Secret Six levels of obscure... but, still. Add to the fact that we're steeped in continuity here (which, again... don't get me wrong, I love)... it's just a bit of a toughie to follow along with.
I mean, let's compare the way this rolls out with the way Claremont kicked off the Wolverine feature... Wolverine, a wildly popular character... still gets an introduction. We get the bit about the "unbreakable bones" and "mutant healing factor"... heck, he even mentions his nationality. Here, Gerber doesn't give us any of that. I suppose we could argue that Steve wasn't "talking down to the audience"... but, I tells ya what... when the audience (me) isn't quite sure what they're looking at, ya got a little bit of a problem!
I think there's definitely a middle ground between too much exposition and absolutely none... and Gerber would've done well to maybe drop a breadcrumb or two for us in this opening chapter. We gotta assume that this story was a lot of folks' first Master of Kung Fu story, no?
Anyhoo... the art was nice... Sutton really captured the grimy aesthetic of the Hong Kong streets... and gave us both a really nice fight scene, and an interesting pool make-out scene.
I'm looking forward to more.
Tomorrow: Let's go Surfin' now... everybody's learning how
ReMarvel, Episode One
Omega the Unknown #1 (March, 1975)
"Omega the Unknown!"
Writers/Creators - Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes
Art - Jim Mooney
Letters - John Costanza
Colors - Petra Goldberg
Edits - Marv Wolfman
Cover Price: $0.25
I know I've discussed a couple of episodes of ReMarvel here on the site... but, never the first one! This was actually an attempt at "podcasting with a purpose", so to speak. An attempt to rediscover everything I loved about Marvel Comics, and how I might break some of my own twisted "fandom rules".
Omega the Unknown #1 (March, 1975)
"Omega the Unknown!"
Writers/Creators - Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes
Art - Jim Mooney
Letters - John Costanza
Colors - Petra Goldberg
Edits - Marv Wolfman
Cover Price: $0.25
Hey everybody... don't have much of a pre-ramble today.
We're going to be looking at the first issue of Omega the Unknown, which was the book I chose to begin my ReMarvel podcast series with last Fall. ReMarvel was my attempt at rediscovering some of my favorite Marvel stories... after many years away... and I felt like Omega was a fun place to start that journey.
If you're familiar with my audio-exploits (which I highly doubt anybody is), you'll know that the story that goes along with Omega will be filled with personal anecdotes and tangents. I "discovered" this book during a very tumultuous time in my life... and, as such, can't help but to equate it with that wibbly-wobbly time.
Here's a link to the show in case anyone's interested (which... yeah, I know... you ain't):
Let's get into it!
--
We open with the scene of a man clad in dark blue with red trim and cape is engaged in battle with a small army of robots. There is an odd, uncertain narration accompanying this scene… it’s unclear who’s voice this is. The man wrecks havoc on these robots, before ultimately destroying them with a blast from his hands. Before the blast erupts, we can see that they sort form the “omega” symbol on his palms.
After blasting, he drops to his knees… exhausted. A previously unseen robot approaches to take advantage of the situation, and winds up shooting our man in the back with a ray-gun of sorts
He screams in agony!
… which segues into our next scene! A young boy sits up in his bed, also crying out as though he’s in pain. His parents enter the room to check on him, and address him as James Michael
When asked if he can remember what his dream was about, the boy says he cannot. He can only remember the “feeling”... cold, desolation… We learn that this family, the Starlings, lives up in the mountains… and to this point, James Michael has never *really* interacted with other children. He’s met a few, but wasn’t all that impressed. Tell me about it!
That situation is all about to change, however, because the kid’s going to be shipped into the city to attend school there. In fact, this scene is occurring at a motel near New York City... and, he’s not taking this change all that well. I can relate. The next morning, the Starlings pack up at the motel and head toward their destination.
James Michael still ain’t digging this. His parents try and psyche him up.
As they’re coming around a bend in the road, James Michael calmly suggests that his mother brace herself… because there’s going to be a collision. Just then, a truck veers right for them!
It nails them head on, pushing the car off the road… and off the side of a nearby cliff!
Hearing his mother’s voice, James Michael comes to… he follows her voice and discovers her… severed robotic head?! She warns him not to listen to the voices… as they’re the only thing that can harm him. Then… the head melts into slag!
As James Michael attempts to make sense out of the situation, whispers begin to arise in the back of his head… those whispers become roars, and he’s suddenly seeing some really psychedelic stuff! This is interrupted by the arrival of onlookers and passersby to check on the wreck... James Michael begins to panic.
Back to the big guy… our “hero” is shackled to a wall via energy beam restraints. He looks on as a battle rages between those robots… well, they look like robots… and humans… well, they look like humans. He is able to break free of his bindings, and launched into action… wrecking the bots. He steals a rocket and shoots off into orbit. As he draws further and further away from the planet, he is enveloped in darkness.
Which segues beautifully into the darkened hospital room of James Michael Starling! He calmly asks a nurse if he was in a coma… she confirms that he was. He’s at the Barrow Clinic in New York… so, it looks like he made it to the city after all! He asks why he’s been restrained… she tells him it’s to keep him safe in case he begins thrashing. He reminds her… calmly, that he’s not currently thrashing, and asks that the restraints be removed. He also… calmly informs her that if he can’t untense his muscles pretty soon, he might just begin to panic.
The nurse calls in Dr. Thomas Barrow to evaluate the creepily calm boy. After a brief introduction, the Doc is impressed with JM’s vocabulary. James Michael tells him he’s been home-schooled. The Doc asks where “home” is for the boy, to which he calmly replies that he doesn’t have one anymore… because, ya know, mom and dad are dead. When asked “when?” they died, JM responds with “this morning”.
We learn that he was actually in a coma for a month! The doc asks how he feels about losing his parents... and he calmly replies “They were good to me.” He then lets it slip that the only thing he has to fear are the voices... whiiiiich makes the Doc’s ears perk up a bit.
This reaction kind of freaks the boy out… but the Doctor apologizes for overreacting, and everything gets smoothed over.
James Michael asks if he still has to go to school… to which, the nurse laughs… this is the first “normal boy” reaction she’s seen out of him yet. The nurse gives him a sedative… and he asks her to explain the chemical composition of the pills… ay yai yai. The Doc lights up his pipe, and tries wrapping his head around everything concerning this boy. So fascinated is he, that he wants to keep him at the clinic to learn more about his situation. Unfortunately, James Michael doesn’t have any money… and the Clinic’s board of directors isn’t keen on doing charity… so, the lad’ll likely be on the street before long.
In the meantime, however, he instructs the nurse, Ms. Hart to “pump” the kid for information... and so, over the next few weeks she does just that. Well, she tries to anyway, this kid ain’t making a peep.
At the next Board of Directors meeting, Dr. Barrows makes his pitch to keep the boy at the clinic. They tell him to cough up the $500 a week himself if he’s so interested. Since the Doc ain’t willing to part with the funds, he and Nurse Hart move on to Plan B, which is: Ruth the Nurse and her roommate, Amber will take the boy home with them…
While still at the clinic, Amber discovers James Michael playing chess… and they briefly talk about playing games against yourself… some real weird dual-personality chatter here. Amber says sometimes “the voices” get into her head… to which, the boy perks up not realizing that she isn't referring to anything "specific".
Ruth enters the scene and informs the “punk” that he’s coming home with them. He’s surprised… but, is cool to go along for the ride… after all, it beats being shipped off to the “funny farm”.
Later, James Michael gets settled in bed… however, before he can fall asleep… one of those robot-looking dudes from the other world busts through his window! The creature “scans” JM with a sort of eyebeam to confirm he’s the right target... and although he’s not the right size… the bot is fine killing him anyway.
Just then… the “hero” arrives, and engages in battle with the bot!
After a lengthy, and room destroying tussle, the hero lets off an omega blast to destroy the baddie. He smiles at the boy, collects the bot-body, and leaves!
... Just as Dr. Barrows bursts into the room! He checks on the boy… who now has smoke rising from his hands. Upon further investigation, it looks like the boy has the Greek letter “omega” imprinted on his palms…
--
What a weird and wonderful first issue!
Now, the first time I laid eyes on Omega the Unknown, it was the Jonathan Lethem/Farel Dalrymple version from 2008...
... which, doesn't really look anything like a Marvel comic, does it? I was totally taken aback by the weirdness... and, upon picking up the first issue, was completely hooked by the premise... even though, I hadn't the foggiest idea quite what it was!
As I do, I started to research the character... and was pretty surprised to learn that this was a Bronze Age fella... created by Steve Gerber! I was also kind of surprised (though, I probably shouldn't have been!) by the fact that Gerber was... ticked off that Marvel was "reimagining" one of "his" characters. He didn't take too kindly to some "outsider" coming into comics and playing with "his" toys... and he made that abundantly clear on a web-site... Omega the Unknown-dot-com, which sadly no longer exists. All the site said was "Omega the Unknown was created by Steve Gerber and Mary Skrenes". That was literally it. Just a black background... and that line of text. Weird... just like this comic.
I decided to learn all I could about the Gerber "take" on the character... which led me to this original 70's run. Now, if we were to compare the two takes... which, at present, I'm ill-equipped to do (it's been awhile since I read through either series to completion), I wanna say there were plenty of similarities... but, also... enough differences to make the two feel like their "own thing", ya know? This '08 Lethem series wasn't like a straight-retelling of Gerber's '75.
Whatever the case... I enjoyed them both. I almost started a project comparing the two... but, realized that it would have, at best, very limited appeal. Sometimes I can be self-aware... thank heavens.
Let's go ahead and talk about this issue.
It's... really "in your face", innit? Very cerebral... and visceral... just really has a way of getting under your skin. It's a haunting story... that, you'll likely be left thinking about for the rest of the day. Least that's how I received it (even on subsequent rereads). It's very dark... and, uncomfortable.
Like, the way James Michael's story begins... we don't get to see him in his "natural habitat". We meet him at a point of upheaval in his life... in a motel, on the way to a school he doesn't want to go to. Any semblance of a "real life" is missing. It leaves the reader kind of nebulously "along for the ride", ya know? We don't get any touchstone for J.M., which is difficult. We don't know much of anything about him. It's a very different way to start a story.
But, it's that discomfort that fuels this book. We don't get any feelings of "home" or "family". We're sort of passively receiving all of the information... but, only the information Gerber and Skrenes want us to have. They're building a mystery... on several fronts. I don't wanna say that this is "ahead of its time", as I wasn't a living nor breathing human back in 1975, and so I lack the proper context to do so... but, to me... this feels sort of head-and-shoulders above many mainstream comics of the day, insofar as its depth, and I dunno, "headiness".
The scene where James Michael's mother.....'s head tells him to protect himself from "the voices"? Horrifying, wunnit? Just from a visual... and visceral standpoint... that's a mind-screwy bit, innit? J.M. going from watching his mother's head melt away... to full-blown psychedelia... what a visual! Amazing storytelling from all involved. Does it make sense? No... not yet, anyway... but, damned if I don't wanna know what happens next!
Nurse Ruth and her Roomie taking James Michael in... is a bit convenient... and makes me wonder just what sort of paperwork went into (even temporarily) adopting a weird child back in the mid-70's... but, it keeps the story moving forward, so we'll allow it.
Then... there's Omega. These were always the parts of the story that, comparably speaking, sort of bored me. It was the sort of "grounding" of this book into the superhero realm... for better or worse. I mean, for this story to "work", we can't have one without the other... so, we gotta allow it. I will say, however, that these bits were the least strong... and, I have a sneaking suspicion that might've been by design.
Overall... should you check out Omega the Unknown? And if so, which version? I hate being "that guy"... but, my answer is "Yes." Read it... read 'em both. As has become the cliche of these Marvel posts... I know neither diddly nor squat about Marvel Unlimited... but, for all I know, this book/these books are up there. I'll advocate for Omega the Unknown 'til the cows come home! This one's worth the effort.
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(Not yet the) Letters Page (with a Marvel Value Stamp):
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Bullpen Bulletins & Interesting Ads:
