Mister Miracle #19: Why I Hate This Comic

When my local comic book store bellied-up over the summer, I picked up some back issues at bargain prices.

One of them was Mister Miracle #19, a comic that I absolutely hate not because of the creative inside, but because of what it represents: everything wrong with corporate comics.

Mister Miracle #19 (September 1977) is the first issue of a reboot of the Jack Kirby title nearly 3 years after the series was cancelled at #18 (March 1974). When DC revived an old title back in the day, they preferred to keep the numbering intact because of the demands of newsstand distribution. Quite the opposite of what happens now.

It’s a fun revival by Steve Englehart and Marshall Rogers, who’d achieve greater impact with their work on Detective Comics at around the same time. Their story in MM #19 picks up pretty much where #18 had left off and it reveals how comics used to be written.

Click to continue reading Mister Miracle #19: Why I Hate This Comic

New This Fall: DC Comics’ Arrow

As you all know by now, Green Arrow has finally gotten his own series. Only they’ve had to shorten it to just Arrow for reasons known only to Television Network Naming Executives.

Maybe that’s the secret to getting comic books on television though. Dropping the first part of their name must make them more dynamic and appealing.

Green Arrow sounds sort of old-fashioned and comic booky. But Arrow is hip and full of power and urgency.

With that in mind, I’d like to propose my own list of 10 classic DC characters that could easily be on TV with new dynamic - and shortened - names:

10. Twins

9. Miracle

Click to continue reading New This Fall: DC Comics’ Arrow