April 09, 2008
She Hulk #30 preview
We think the artwork speaks for itself here.
Careful there, Herc.
After all, you know what they say: once you go green...
(anyone want to take it from here?)
TWL
Heh. For a second I thought Herc was shackled to the bed. Which, you know, would be fine.
Geez, doesn’t the guy take off the boots, bracelets or headgear for anything?
Question: Is Hercules "the one" for Shulkie? Will she ever find the right man for her or is she just a confirmed bachelorette?
And, should she find the right guy, will she make a deal with Mephisto to (oh, let's not go there.)
Talk about a Herculean effort....
(Hey, it was either that or saying this is one of his more pleasant tasks.)
"No no, Herc, leave one of your leg brace thingies ON!" ;-)
Actually, upon closer inspection, it looks like Jen just crushed Hercules' junk under her thigh and he just fainted.
Well, based on the scales on her side, and the unobstructed way her leg has nestled into his crotch, Shulky must be Skrullky, and Herc must be gay.
So I guess Jen now knows why the call him the Incredible Hercules.
Sorry, couldn't resist.
Boy, ya never saw covers like this on Bruce's book!
But I guess he and Herc weren't so inclined.
Honestly, I wish the T&A factor wasn't such a big part of selling the book but the fan-boy audience is what it is. I'm consoled by the fact that there's a lot more going on inside the book than a casual observer would guess from its cover.
"She-Hulk: Come for the cover. Stay for the story!"
Boy, ya never saw covers like this on Bruce's book!
But I guess he and Herc weren't so inclined.
Honestly, I wish the T&A factor wasn't such a big part of selling the book but the fan-boy audience is what it is. I'm consoled by the fact that there's a lot more going on inside the book than a casual observer would guess from its cover.
"She-Hulk: Come for the cover. Stay for the story!"
Ron: I'm not so sure that's the cover.
Luigi Novi: According to the file name of the image, it's Page 1.
Luigi, according to the Marvel Previews solicit for that issue, the art is by Val Semeiks.
Also, that image seems to answer the question posed by that solicit:
"From the pages of INCREDIBLE HERCULES, comes . . . yeah, you guessed it, Hercules! The Lion of Olympus, still wanted for crimes against S.H.I.E.L.D., collides with our bounty-hunting She-Hulk. The question is, given these two combustible characters' current mindset and situation with the law, will they meet as longtime friends. . .or bitter foes?"
Looks to me like "longtime friends....with benefits".
John Judy
Well, She Hulk just isn't that great a character and needs the T&A. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure that Peter has more things going on in that comic than meets the eye. :)
IMHO Female characters that get their mantles from male characters aren't very good. The best female characters are the ones that are unique.
Wonder Women,Invisible Women, Mary Jane, Storm, Rogue,Songbird and Moonstone etc. Think about it, when was the last time a male Marvel character took up a female characters mantle? Why is the female character always weaker than the character they are based on?
John Judy: "She-Hulk: Come for the cover. Stay for the story!"
Is that legal in this state?
Moonstone got her powers by taking them from a male villain.
Songbird's powers are partially derived from the abilities of the supervillain Klaw.
Therefore, they are both derived from male characters. They're also both far superior characters to their male counterparts.
I was considering dropping this book, but I think I'll at least get iot up to this issue and see what happens. I really like Hercules (so much cooler than Thor) and Jen actually seems HAPPY in this picture (getting so tired of "Angry Jen", don't care how in-character it is right now).
I was considering dropping this book, but I think I'll at least get iot up to this issue and see what happens. I really like Hercules (so much cooler than Thor) and Jen actually seems HAPPY in this picture (getting so tired of "Angry Jen", don't care how in-character it is right now).
I don't want to be a wet blanket here (oooh, that's nasty!) but having She-Hulk bed every hero she comes in contact with doesn't help he story development. It just seems that something like this was better left for Penthouse comics.
It's hard to take her seriously as a hero.
Besides what's the big deal about being laid by a green amazon.... hold on... I need a moment with that thought...:)
You know, I'm really disappointed with the group here. I dropped a challenge in the first post of the thread, and nobody has picked up the gauntlet yet. :-)
It can't be THAT bad, can it?
TWL
Looks like Jen has just received The Gift.
(There's a callback hardly anyone will get...)
Posted by: Anthony W
"Wonder Women,Invisible Women, Mary Jane, Storm, Rogue,Songbird and Moonstone etc. Think about it, when was the last time a male Marvel character took up a female characters mantle? Why is the female character always weaker than the character they are based on?"
Any character based on another, male or female, is usually weaker than the original. Superboy was weaker than Superman, Kid Flash was weaker than the Flash, etc.
And the reason there are so few male characters taking up a female character mantle is because most of the old-school heroes were male, and none had there own solo title (except for Wonder Woman).
Hmmm ... well, Jen's been pining over Herc since the late-80s Avengers books, where every thought bubble seemed to be filled with some sort of innuendo toward Zeus' favorite bastard son, so ... damn.
I got "the gift" reference, but if Hercules gave her "the gift", that would mean they'd be beating the crap out of each other. Which granted, could very likely lead to the featured scene. Kind of a David-Maddie thing, except with super-strength.
Maybe it will Make Herc interesting. Not sure. I know I wound up dropping the Incredible Hulk when it turned into the Incredible Herc.
As said above its not out of character.
Though I am sure it will be interesting. (I DO have faith in you PAD)
Posted by mister_pj
Geez, doesn’t the guy take off the boots, bracelets or headgear for anything?
Hey - one boot...
Remember the "Buffy" episode tease that opoens on a scene of incredible destruction, entire room wrecked, obviously the after math of a terrific fight...
Pans slowly, revealing occasional items of clothing among the wreckage...
Finally comes to Buffy and Spike, naked with the carpet pulled over them ...
"Maybe next time we'll actually get as far as the bed..."
"Once you go green..."
Um..."your arrest record's clean."?
'Cause, you know, she's a lawyer and...yeah, I got nothing...
I'm starting to lean towards "it's not obscene."
Which means, of course, that they're not doing it right.
TWL
Wait, I got one---
"---you'll forget all about cleaning that horses' latrine!"
Y'know, there just isn't enough funny stuff that rhymes with green and would fit this case. I was thinking "she won't rip out your spleen" but that's mainly because the word spleen has a special place in my heart.
...Y'know, it's PAD's fault I started reading comics in the first place, so it's no wonder that it's his fault (well, the fault of a comic he writes) that I'd sell my soul to the devil- Girl Wonder. But, my mom, who is an avid New Frontier fan, just picked up the comic. And I just came to terms with the fact that several comics I have on my pull list I can't leave lying around because of the cheesecake covers. If she does start to read comics (she liked the FF movies, and the spidey movies)... well... is this the kind of stuff you want your mom to be reading? And, yeah, the comments only confirmed the GW thing.
...oh, and... once you go green... the best won't be seen (even without the Comics Code!);)
"... well, you know what I mean!"
Given the omnipresent amount of t&a, and violence in comics, it's nice to see a loving (or at least post-coital) scene where there's as much male nudity as female nudity.
Of course, since Jen's been with the Juggernaut and Hercules, I suspect she'll either have to pass on dating mere mortals ("My last two boyfriends were some of the strongest beings in the universe. So, you're an accountant?") or invent in an adamantium vibrator (and I look forward to *that* art making its way into the comic!).
Um, that shoulda been "invest," not "invent." My bad.
Posted by: Alan Coil at April 10, 2008 11:57 AM
I thought Val Semeiks was deceased.
Well, not unless it happened very recently but I hadn't heard anything about it.
"Once you go green,
"You've beat Charlie Sheen?"
And, I just checked on Wikipedia, and, according to them, Val Semeiks is still alive."
A good thing, as we've already recently lost Dave Stevens and Jim Mooney. *sigh*
I'm actually a little disapointed. Nothing personal, but the apparent need of all comics to become more and more "adult" is the main thing turning me off of comics. I don't need characters to die. I don't need them having sex. I certainly don't need a superhero/villain battle turning into sex (see recent FF issue). It's just . . . disapointing, for me. Your mileage may vary. And based on comics sales, I guess they do.
Josh Wilhoyte
I have to disagree with Josh. Superheroes are supposed to be well-rounded characters, not just a walking collection of powers that exist to bash bad guys. Furthermore, I'd argue that most comics are written more for adults than kids these days, and sexuality is part of an adult life. This doesn't mean that comics should come in brown paper bags and sold only in the back of the store (though I'd be back there if they were), but it also doesn't mean a return to the 1950s TV shows where couples could politely kiss and that was the end of it.
Plus, who doesn't like seeing almost-naked green women?
"Once you go green...."
*thinks*
"...you'll want it ageen and ageen!"
(Whoever said there weren't many good things that rhymed with "green" was right.)
Posted by: Josh Wilhoyte at April 11, 2008 11:39 AM
I certainly don't need a superhero/villain battle turning into sex (see recent FF issue).
Which characters did that happen with?
Once you go green ...
A few others I've come up with in my copious spare time:
"... begin the beguine!"
"... you're a sex machine."
"... you must be a dean."
"... there's no need for caffeine."
"... you're betwixt and between."
TWL
Oh, almost forgot. And for statisticians:
"... you deviate from the mean."
Try the veal.
TWL
Furthermore, I'd argue that most comics are written more for adults than kids these days,
Which is one reason why the pie seems to be getting smaller and smaller. When comics were written mostly for kids they had a reasonable shot at a future--there is always a new batch of kids coming long to replace those who "outgrow" comics. The occasional adult reader was icing on the cake.
It seems like at some point mainstream comics began to age with their readership, which was great for those of us who read them but had the pretty severe side effect of choking off the supply of the next generation. Now they HAVE to do what ever it takes to keep the attention of an aging readership. Deaths, sex, crossovers, universe altering plots, whatever it takes.
I wouldn't classify this revelation as one of those--it's perfectly consistent with the characters. Anyway, PAD seems to be on of the exceptions to the rule--trying to appeal to readers with good plots and characterizations, instead of hotshotting it with the diminishing returns you get from stunts. But maybe that's just me. Maybe there's no point in going after the youth market if comics are going to be $5 a pop.
I don't think comics being aimed at adults at kids "makes the pie smaller" for the comics industry. First, adults have more disposable income than kids, allowing them to spend more on comics than a youngster who only has five or ten bucks to spend on a comic. Second, many adults with kids pass their interest in comics on to their kids -- sharing stories, letting them read their books, etc. -- so it's not as if kids of adult comic fans will never be exposed to comics. Third, having more mature themes in comics can keep adults reading them as the adults' tastes expand and change, instead of just "outgrowing" comics. And forth, there are still lots of comics specifically made for kids, from cartoon show adaptions to books with a specific kids' audience in mind.
I hope you're right, james, but from what i can see the sales of even the top selling books are at numbers that would have brought cancellization a few years back. It may well be that this has more to do with the hefty pricetag and competition from TV and video games than it does with the more adult nature of comics.
But look at the history--when comics were primarily a kids medium they were able to keep some books going on for decades. a TV show that lasts 5 or 6 years is considered a hit.
I could also be cruel and point out that the idea of comics fans passing on their love to their children requires that a greater percentage of them manage to actually have sex...but I'll pass on the cheap and easy mockery and instead mention that it isn't always easy to get one's kids to get into the same thing their parents are into. None of my 3 kids are into comics; one doesn't enjoy reading much, one only wants to read books and one likes superheroes but prefers controlling the action via online gaming.
And when they Do want to give comics a try they have easy access to my huge collection, which doesn't cost them a dime. If anything, I've come to believe that part of the problem is that it's become too easy to get issues. When i was a kid (and dinosaurs ruled the Earth) a lot of the fun was the anticipation, the adventure of collecting, having to make the rounds of the local drug stores to get particular issues, making the occasional pilgramage to a convention to fill in the gaps.It made it more meaningful.
Not saying I have the solution--there may not be one. Comics may just not be economical in their current form and I'm not sure that there's enough mopney in graphic novels and internet downloads to afford the quality of creators that we've become accustomed to.
(Then again, it amazes me that TV and movie producers don't just snap up every good writer who makes a name for themselves in comics so what do I know?)
Deaths, sex, crossovers, universe altering plots, whatever it takes.
I'd say an acceptable level of such things should mirror the Star Wars original trilogy.
There was plenty of death in that, but nothing horribly gruesome, and a lot of kids saw it and turned out fine.
There wasn't much, if any, talk of sex. What did happen, happened off-camera.
As for universe-altering events, those don't appeal purely to adults/teens and they aren't inappropriate for kids as far as I can tell.
So IMHO that's the level the comics industry should be striving for in its all-ages titles (as opposed to titles under the banner of MAX, Vertigo, etc).
Maybe there's no point in going after the youth market if comics are going to be $5 a pop.
Actually, one of the things that made me check out "Runaways" was not just the recommendation of somebody who'd read the series, but the fact that I came across a digest that contained the first six issues and cost me only around 12 bucks Canadian (or $8 U.S.). That's a pretty good deal these days, and I don't think too much to ask for a parent to spend on their kid.
The single issue prices, OTOH, are getting out of control, I agree.
"Once you go green..."
The trap is clean?
Gods, I'm a geek.
And now that's got a connotation I'll not be able to shed without copious amounts of scotch.
And Paul1963? Thanks heaps for putting that series back into the forefront of my mind. "'Chu gotta dem access codes, mon?"
I can see it now. Been with Juggsy, been with Hercules--next, the encounter that will forever change She-Hulk's views on men--
IRVING FORBUSH!!
(Sung to the tune of "Nothing could be finer")
Nuthin' could be keener
than to be inside a greener
in the mooooornin'
(Captain America has loaned me his shield to fend off the rocks you may now throw.)