Growler on Superhero Fiction!

Superhero fiction is one of the hottest storytelling genres out there. Here's where I comment on everything you need to know!

See also, Essential Comic Book Links and Growler on Superhero Comic Books.

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Soaring through the skies and the depths of space!

Definitely one of my favourite Marvel characters, Monica Rambeau aka Captain Marvel first appeared on the scene in a Spider-Man title that told her origin. Trying to destroy an energy weapon Monica was exposed to radioactive energies from another dimension and was transformed into living energy. She was able to convert back to human form at will with difficulty. Adopting the name Captain Marvel she decided to use her new found abilities for good. She sought help from the Avengers to learn to master her new found powers. This was seen in Avengers issue 227. These powers were based around the ability 'to use her body's dimensional interface to convert herself into pure energy by temporarily swapping her body's phyical matter for otherdimensional energy'. Basically, she could turn into any form of radiation (e.g. x-rays, gamma rays) or energy and use it to fly at the speed of light and project beams of solid energy and/or radiation for defensive or offensive use.

She was one of the powerhouses (excuse the pun) of the Marvel Universe.

Created by Marvel writer Roger Stern and artist John Romita Jr, Stern nurtured the character and together with illustrator John Buscema took her to new heights.

The Avengers rookie quickly grew in stature and experience taking on some of the teams most seasoned foes and travelling the galaxy.

Avengers issue 279 saw Captain Marvel take on the leadership duties of the team and led the group through some difficult and dangerous adversaries including a dramatic adventure to Olympus, home of the ancient Greek gods.

Her final mission saw her catastrophically lose her powers in an almighty team battle against Leviathan, a gigantic sea serpent. This episode forced her to retire from the team.

After an extended convalescence period her powers began to return but were drastically altered due to the physical trauma she had went through.

Helped by Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four she learnt the extent of her new powers and though they were not as extensive as before they were still formidable. This new chapter was told in a one shot by writer Dwayne McDuffie and artist Doc Bright.

Shortly after Monica Rambeau took the new name of Photon to reflect her new life.

Still a reserve member of the Avengers and recently the leader of the NextWave team (written by Warren Ellis and drawn by Stuart Immonen) I'm looking to see her eventual return to the spotlight of high adventure in the Marvel Universe!

"Witness an evolutionary offshoot of humanity living on Earth who possess greater powers and longer lifespans than the mainstream human race!"

Jack Kirby created gold when he brought to life these characters! Imagine being able to live forever. Or a very long time (I believe the term used is long lived). Coupled that with a simply fantastic back story about beings created by gigantic ancient space beings, Celestials, who would return sometime in the future to judge their fate. Imagine being twinned with a race so opposite that conflict is a near certainty. Both beings genetically cloned from the first humans to walk the earth but those early men and women had no idea of their existence. So set the scene for the coming of the Eternals and the Deviants. Two races at war with the human race caught inbetween. Loosely modelled on the mythical ancient Greek gods, Ikaris was a kind of Hercules, Sersi named after Circe the sorceress, Thena based on Athena, Makkari after the speedster Hermes (or Mercury) and the father figure Zuras (after Zeus).

Jack Kirby wrote and drew this ground breaking series which brought to the fore many original concepts that have entered the rich tapestry of the Marvel Universe and have become classics.

I just loved Kirby's costume designs and the whole energy and conflict he brought to the table.

The wealth of superhuman abilities displayed by the key players and the cosmic drama and tension that took place on Earth was a real page turner.

A second series written by Walt Simonson and illustrated by Sal Busema, Keith Pollard and Paul Ryan. It introduced new characters such as the Eternal Phastos (based on Hephaestus) and the Deviant Ghaur.

This became a successful sequel to Kirby's epic and the Eternals continue to thrill today with a recent mini series by Neil Gaiman and John Romita Jr. This would make a fantastic TV series and the special effects now exist to do it justice.

I eagerly await the further adventures of the Eternals!

Back in February 1993 a new universe of superheroes sprung on the scene. The Milestone Uinverse!

An imprint of DC Comics this line of superheroes were created by many of the great and the good creative talent in the industry. A fresh break from the long established Marvel and DC heroes, these new heroes forged ahead with quality stories and fantastic superhero fiction. Effortlessly merging science fiction with fantasy a new era was born! Icon, originally an alien who crash landed on earth 200 years ago, took the form of the first being it saw and kept changing that identity to hide the fact that he aged very slowly. Being on earth gave him amazing powers which he used for the greater good. Fast forward to the present day he gained a sidekick, Rocket, and the two of them began a fruitful partnership fighting for truth and justice. Icon was written by Dwayne McDuffie and illustrated by M D Bright and was a fantastic read.

The Hardware armour was the creation of the most brilliant inventor alive, Curtis Metcalf. It was a protective bodysuit which had a whole arsenal of technological wizardary and weapons. Using this armour to go after his corrupt boss, Hardware began his quest for justice.

Hardware was written by Dwayne McDuffie and drawn by artist Denys Cowan.

Blood Syndicate was the name given to a collective of individuals who gained their powers as the result of a massive biological catastrophe, known locally as the Big Bang, in a residential neighbourhood.

These survivors based themselves in an abandoned warehouse and fought to protect their territory, the Dead Zone, from threats that attempted to destroy them. Their members were Holocaust, Tech 9, DMZ, Brickhouse, Morph, Flashback, Fade, Wise Son and Third Rail.

The stories were superhero fiction with a raw, gritty feel focusing on the lives of these individuals and how they adapt to their new status quo. Blood Syndicate was written with a sci-fi and fantasy flavour by Dwayne McDuffie and Ivan Velez Jr and pencilled by Trevor Von Eeden.

Static was also a survivor of the Big Bang and gained the power to emit and control powerful electrical discharges.

A young teenager (and self confessed geek) named Virgil Hawkins, the adventures of Static were split between the superhero fiction action adventures and the everyday drama and growing pains of his secret identity. This series was a lot of fun and a great read.

Static was written by Dwayne McDuffie and Robert L Washington III and illustrated by John Paul Leon.

Milestone met with a roaring success and quickly expanded to include titles such as Xombi, Shadow Cabinet and a crossover with DC Comics superheroes entitled Worlds Collide.

Milestone produced some great stories during its existence but ceased publishing in early 1997. The comic book market was shrinking fast and publishers across the board were disappearing.

Readers were tightening their belts economically and there was a noticable 'flight to the core', the core superhero universes of Marvel and DC Comics.

I read Milestone for their first year of publication before drastically cutting back my consumption of comic books. As such, I never got to read the complete adventures of the above characters.

I would welcome a series of trades/graphic novels reprinting the complete Milestone line and believe it would introduce a whole new audience to quality superhero storytelling and some wonderful stories.

Static has gone on to be seen by a wider audience when it was adapted into the hit animated series Static Shock.

I'm hoping that Milestone will return in some form in the future, both as reprints and new material to give the world more original superhero fiction to enjoy.

Alpha Flight published by Marvel Comics was one of the earliest titles I collected, read and enjoyed way back in 1985.

It was the ongoing adventures of a team of superheroes that worked for a branch of the Canadian government. The same branch that created Wolverine.

I actually started this series with issue 29. The first one after the original creator John Byrne left to take over the Hulk title. The Hulk's creative team transferred onto Alpha Flight. This incarnation of the team was a favourite as it brought me up to speed with the team and moved quickly onto new challenges. Written by Bill Mantlo, the run I enjoyed lasted 12 issues up to issue 40. The artwork really sold me during these quality tales. The penciller was none other than Mike Mignola, now best known for his own creation, Hellboy. He brought a cool look and feel to the storytelling. He stayed for only three issues and was followed by artists John Bogdanove, Sal Buscema, and David Ross. The fantastic inker Gerry Talaoc worked on the title until issue 38 and kept the look consistent throughout the numerous changes. He was followed by Whilce Portacio in issue 39.

I personally found the artwork at this time too jarring a change from what had come before so issue 40 was my last on the series.

The run had some incredible storylines and character arcs and featured guest appearances from the X-Men and the Avengers. Issue 29 had the team up against the Hulk which was a baptism of fire in itself.

Issue 33 shed new light on the origin of Wolverine going back to his Canadian roots and showing his life soon after he gained his adamantium claws.

It also showed the close friendship he had with the then leader of Alpha Flight Heather Hudson known as Vindicator. She was coming to terms with the loss of her husband, the previous Alpha Flight leader Guardian who was killed on the job.

Her assuming the electromagnetic battle suit draped in the Canadian flag was a nice bit of closure to her story.

Another favourite arc of this run was that of Shaman. After temporarily losing his magical based powers he went on a quest to regain them. This involved many trials and tribulations and eventually resulted a new costume and abilities.

These are just a few of the many storylines, twists and turns in this extraordinary run and are well worth a read and great entertainment.

Quality superhero action adventures with a healthy dose of drama within. The hallmark of Marvel goodness.

As I mentioned earlier, I started reading Alpha Flight by chance just after John Byrne, their original creator left the series.

I only read his original issues, numbers 1 to 28, in the last five years. It was difficult and expensive to get hold of those issues in the early days. You see there were no reprint trades in those days so the only way to get hold of back issues was to hunt them down far and wide.

The most popular ones often sold for many times their original price. And John Byrne's Alpha Flight was very much sought after in those days.

After finally reading them I found it an excellent original creation and the first 8 issues are now available in the Alpha Flight Classic trade/graphic novel.

The title has recently been reincarnated as Omega Flight and I'm looking forward to reading the trade.

Pure class.

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