Aquaman Eats Bologna

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After being tossed around as a minor superhero the last couple of years, it seems Aquaman will be reviving back to an ongoing series. Blackest night writer Geoff Johns says his work on Aquaman will continue through this year. The popularity of Aquaman has risen in Brightest Day giving DC the idea to launch a new upcoming series focused on the King of Atlantis.

The reason?
Geoff Johns giving the spotlight towards ‘minor league’ heroes such as he did with Booster Gold in 52. Aquaman was recently killed off in Blackest Night only to be revitalized in the aftermath.

Why Aquaman?
Outside of fans demanding DC for an Aquaman series and Geoff Johns motives on the underwater character, why not give one of DC’s oldest, and keen heroes another start. With heroes such as Booster Gold and The Blue Beetle getting their own series, perhaps Aquaman should have another shot in the spotlight.

Where does Aquaman go from here?
Fans if familiar with Johns’ writing will feel the action and excitement flowing back into the universe of Aquaman. They might not tell the difference between this series and Brightest Day. After Aquaman: Swords of Atlantis hiatus, the hero has yet to return to a solo series. Now, Johns has hinted this will end. Johns at MegaCon didn’t reveal too much about the upcoming series that will debut later this year other than confirming that Aquaman will have his own series.

Hopefully Johns will give add more to the villainous gallery of Aquaman as well. You can’t have Black Manta in every issue. Can you?

Josh Schauder is a fan of Superman.

So much that he had seen all the films, watched the original animated series in the late 90’s voiced by Tim Daly, and religiously read Action Comics. He had even visited the only city in the United States called Metropolis, all the way in Illinois. He labeled himself ‘Superman’s greatest fan’. Then he met Reggie Gray.

Kimberley Avenue is not your typical street in the city of Cleveland, Ohio. Though, you see typical middle-class houses, short grassy lawns, and potholes indented like craters in the middle of the road, something catches the eye of a spectator. A giant bright red ‘S’, your introduction to Metropolis.

On the street, there is a sign with a wooden gate with the insignia ‘S’ nailed to it. This is 16022 Kimberly Avenue, this is Krypton. This is where Jor-El and Lara-Jor-El gave birth to an American hero. This is where Jerry Siegel lived.

“This is something.” Josh says. He wonders if anyone lives there or if the house is just a memorial to a pop culture icon. “Looks like someone lives here,” he says. After several knocks, a tall, dark skinned man answers.

Issue #2: The house
Walking inside, the bottom floor is what someone to picture the average households. Pictures of family scattered around, a couch facing a television, and an unwanted cup of coffee sitting patiently on the lamp stand. Reggie Gray, a man whose family bought the Siegel house in 1983 welcomes us and we follow him upstairs.

“My family had no idea when they bought the house in 83’,” he said “that this house was Jerry Siegel home.” Reggie’s Dad dedicated his entire room to Superman. “This is my Dad’s room, he’s the Superman fan.”

The entire room is covered in Superman memorabilia. The carpet bled a bold yellow ‘S’ surrounded by a lake of blue. Shelves and shelves upon books, toys, and movies all relating to Superman was there. The entire room was a praising ritual to the man more powerful than a locomotive.

“It was the most Superman stuff I’ve ever seen,” Schauder said.

In 2008, novelist and comic author Brad Meltzer wanted to raise money in order to remodel the house for Superman. “That’s when my dad realized” Reggie said, “we got a phone call from DC comics, saying they wanted to remodel our home, telling us this is where Jerry Siegel was from, we couldn’t say no.” In 2009, the unveiling of the new Superman home was revealed to the public. Melter along with the Siegel/Shuster society spent $70,000 to make repairs and raised over $111,047 from donations. Now, a little house in Cleveland is no longer your average household, it apart of pop culture history.

“We get visitors all the time, people want to see ‘Krypton’” Gray said. “We should start charging people a small fine, then I won’t have to work again.” He added.

Final Issue: The Joe Shuster gate
A vacant space stands behind a wooden gate. This was where childhood friend of Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster once lived. Shuster’s home is forever lost to a fire. A wooden gate with large plastic replica issues of Action Comics #1 is nailed in place. A memoir to Shuster. Each page of Action Comics #1 stands alone. Every panel telling a story that would trend for the next 75 years.

These were the first pages of Superman. There is a panel of Superman using his strength to stop a car. “This was truly something” Schauder said, “now Cleveland has something more to offer other than Rock n Roll.”

Siegel and Shuster sold the rights of Superman to DC Comics for $130 in 1938.

We’re use to seeing Superman being the “goody-two shoes” of comics. The man dawning a red cape with the insignia of truth, justice and the American way bleeding into his chest, always looking for the best possible way to avoid direct, violent confrontations. Whatever we saw in Superman through the last 70 plus years of being a very non-physical hero- throw that out.

Director Zack Snyder says Superman in the upcoming film will be more physical. “I will say that Superman, in the film that we are making, is a very physical cat that does some physical shit. I don’t want to say anything about the last film, but I want to see Superman kicking some ass.” (Full interview) Finally, fans can see the true power of a being that has been labeled as ‘faster than a speeding bullet’, ‘more powerful that a locomotive’ and ‘able to leap over tall buildings’.

Perhaps Snyder will bring out the true power that Superman possess. Maybe fans will finally see just how powerful Superman can be. However, are physical confrontations the way of bringing that out onto a film?

Absolutely. Superman is from Krypton, but his adoptive home is Earth and his influence are human beings. Surely, Superman does represent human traits that we all carry, anger being one of them. Interesting enough, will Snyder use the quality of anger to fuel Superman into a violent rage, or will he play it safe like past writers and directors and use the ‘Christopher Reeve’ Superman, the polite, gentle giant that flies around and slaps the wrist of Lex Luthor repeatedly?

I sure hope not. Snyder may unleash the monster that nestles in Superman’s heart, something we may have never seen or read before.

Alex Ross showed us in Kingdom Come that even when our heroes become old and weary, they can still look good in armored costumes. His close surrealism art in Justice gave every comic fan a darker version of the Superfriends. Alex Ross can arguably be the best artist in comic industry today, bringing out are cultural icons to life through watercolor only.

Through his art, Ross gives us the opportunity to see what he sees.

His art has become a desire for collectors across the country, selling up to $45,000 on his website. A small 9 X 12 pencil sketch of the Flash goes as low as $500. His art never comes cheap but the best usually never do.

Ross continuous work in comics have establish a sense of nostalgia through his art. In Justice, we had the legion of doom vs. the superfriends type of theme similar to what the old 70’s cartoon once gave us. Ross’ art gives the characters the identity of being more than “super”. His art tells the reader a certain story of each character through his water color nostalgia.

In adaptations where artists see things different than others, Alex Ross can be consider revolutionary.

If you ever decide to drive down the avenue of Parkwood you’ll see just your ordinary neighborhoods in the Cleveland district. Dodging pot holes, contruction and cars parked too close to the median, you’ll notice that the street of Kimberly bleeding in bright white letters and blue surrounding color as a symbol of an “S” next to it. This is where “Krypton” was, and still is. The home of Jerry Seigel.

If you drive a little further past Kimberly avenue in Cleveland Ohio, you’ll come across the Amor avenue branching off Parkwood. A large wooden fence welcomes you inside. Inside the fence is empty space and dirt. Nothing, but a wooden fence with large comic panel nailed on the fence. This is where Joe Shuster lived.

Both men in 1938 changed the world, giving birth to an international icon.

A man who is thought to be faster than a speeding bullet, more power than a locomotive.

If you enter in the house on Kimberly avenue where Jerry Seigel once lived, you’ll meet a man named Reggie. He’ll invite you in, and tell you that his family bought the house back in 1983. Not knowing that they lived in planet Krypton. Reggie will tell you that one day in 2008, the family recieved a call from a major comic industry wanting to rectify history. To restore something that was once forgotten.

In 2009, a small wooden fence was placed in front of the house with an insignia “S”.

A hero returned home.

The old saying of Green Lantern is this, “In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight.” Escaping Green Lantern’s sight would be impossible this summer.

DC comics announced that this May that 9 new comics involving Green Lantern will be released in honor of the film’s release on June 17 starring Ryan Reynolds including Green Lantern Super Spectacular #1 with long-time Lantern writer, Geoff Johns teaming up with Watchmen’s author Alan Moore. Just after last summer’s hit with “Blackest Night“, now the Lanterns are war again, but with each other in “War with the Green Lanterns“. Seemingly, DC is riding the wave this year hoping that Green Lantern will keep DC up in competition with their rival industry, Marvel. Green Lantern has been the best selling comic for the industry since the Sinestro Corp Wars debuted. Now, with summer vast approaching, DC looks to show fans that the Green Lantern will be its brightest star for now.

Is all this Green Lantern really too much though?

Does the hype really need to be shoved in our faces? Comic industry tend to really hype their beloved creations up when major Hollywood productions decide to use film adaptions to tell tales of our heroes. Even if many of them become a flop. (I.E. Batman & Robin).

Whatever fans feel, we’re going to have a lot of Green Lanterns on our plate this summer. And on another bright side,

Joel Schumacher isn’t directing the Green Lantern film.

One of my earliest memories in life is laughter. By The Joker that is. His wide-grin smile frighten as a child but held such an imagination on me. Later, stories such as Men who are faster than a speeding bullet, Batarangs, and costume masks with colored capes came into play. My imagination exploded and I was sucked into the world of comics. DC comics. Each hero and villain is a metaphor of good and evil, or right and wrong. Of what our society and what could be. Comics have held such a history throughout time, dating to the dawn of Hitler invading Poland with Superman and later Bat-man debuting. Now, they are a international icon and symbol of pop culture with numerous films, novels and other accessories being publish displaying the men and women some lust to be.

But why do I blog about fictional characters that appear in only panels? For one, they are important not only to me, but to the world. Each DC character displays a story that captures my attention and maintains it. That is a difficult thing to do. I love reading about a man who can run fast to break the time barrier, or a man who uses a tiny green ring to protect the universe. I consider these men and women, the most creative beings ever. They can accomplish feats that deem impossible for people like myself. Their conflicting issues with identity and struggle from society of accepting them is what people in the real world struggle with daily. In the end, these comic characters are more real than any of us.

My name is Matt Lovett, and this is why I blog about DC comics.

Bob Dylan sang it best once- “Times they are A-changin”.

From the non-violent, family friendly pages to now blood spilling intensified language, comics have now given fans the dark side of the pages. Animation has done the same, from Batman and Robin “slapping the wrist” of The Riddler and pointing the finger on how robbing banks is morally wrong in society. We all know what will happen in the end, The Riddler will be placed in jail to reflect on his wrong actions, only to escape to repeat the cycle later. That was the trend for the heroes vs. villains in 60’s animation/comics. In the episode “The Jigsaw Jeopardy”, The Riddler does exactly that, escape from jail, only to return after a failed attempt.

Now, fans want the sense of realism. A dark-toned setting with no repeating cycles of jail time. A violent world that their comics reflected starting with “Joker’s Five-Way Revenge“, “Arkham Asylum A Serious House On Serious Earth“, and “Infinite Crisis“. Animation is following this trend, feeding DC fans their hunger for a more violent, twisted realm of stories.
In the video above, the episode “Mad Love” produce in the 1990’s, 30 years after “The Jigsaw Jeopardy” animation evolved with sexual innuendos such as Harley Quinn asking The Joker “Don’t ya want to rev up your harley?” in addition with wearing a night gown. In addition, a man shoving a woman such as The Joker shoving Harley Quinn off the desk would be unheard of during the 60’s.

Animation has adapted to violence, sexual innuendos, and dark language. All in 30 years- just imagine what the next 30 years will bring fans to DC comic fans.