XPost: rec.arts.comics.marvel.universe   
   From: kenmlin@aol.com   
      
   I don't like "realism" in comics because the whole point of putting on   
   flashy costumes is defeated.   
      
   Also, if this is real world, why are all females super hot and there are no   
   plain-looking female heroes?   
      
   I like it when Superman and Batman wore their underwears outside.   
      
   "Ubiquitous"  wrote in message news:o7t03f$jh3$3@dont-email.me...   
      
      
   For a lot of comics fans, Marvel just isn't what it used to be.   
   While the comic line that gave us Thor, Captain America, The Hulk,   
   and the X-Men has often been tinged with a bit of politics -- for   
   example, discrimination against mutants is common in the Marvel   
   universe -- recent comics from the company have been overwhelmingly   
   political, and always politically left.   
      
   Many fans have been less than appreciative. Luckily, it now seems   
   those days are over:   
      
   Of late this kind of storytelling has become more   
   pronounced, probably kicked off with the likes of  The   
   Authority, Ultimates and  Civil War, with more recent   
   stories in comics such a s Captain America, The Champions   
   and Ms. Marvel wearing their politics firmly on their   
   spandex sleeves.   
      
   There has also been reaction from some fan communities and   
   retailers to these kind of stories as having no place in   
   superhero comics, despite all the many examples that have   
   preceded it. Maybe it’s a little more obvious now? Maybe   
   everyone is interpreting everything politically? Maybe fans   
   wish for a time when they didn’t realise their superhero   
   comics had political elements?   
      
   Either way, Marvel Comics has been a focal point for this   
   kind of discussion. And last week’s Marvel creative summit   
   I am told by well connected sources who have proved   
   themselves in that past there was more of a focus on what   
   DC Comics internally called “meat and potatoes” comics that   
   preceded their doubling down on the popular characters and   
   bringing back old favourite takes with DC Rebirth.   
      
   I am told, as Marvel brings back the X-Men line with a bang,   
   to expect a return to more of a status quo for titles such   
   as Thor, Iron Man, Hulk and more. A more familiar looking   
   Marvel Universe by the autumn -- although, just as with   
   Captain America, as classic-look-characters return, expect   
   new characters to keep a number of their books.   
      
      
   The truth is, readers don't like to be lectured to.   
      
   If you agree with the message in these comics, then you may not take   
   any issue with what you're seeing lately from Marvel. However, for   
   readers who are either neutral on these issues or disagree with the   
   message, the comics portray _them_ as the enemy. People don't want   
   to spend their hard-earned money to be told how awful they are.   
      
   Meanwhile, sales of comics are nosediving.   
      
      
   With a renewed focus on just telling good stories, Marvel can now   
   seek to regain valuable market share from DC. Great storytelling   
   appeals to conservatives, liberals, and all points in between.   
      
   It seems Marvel remembered that before getting run out of business.   
      
      
   --   
   I would rather listen to a herd of cats trying to climb a chalkboard   
   than the Left sore losers polluting the Grammys.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)