Superman Smashes Your Summer Malaise
Somewhere outside three-dimensional space lies the Akashic Library, its majestic shelves stretching off past the horizon. What arcane esoterica shall we uncover amidst the stacks? Gird your loins, wayfarer, and see . . .
I suspect this is going to be a short one, friends, because I am soon leaving for Gen Con and once I’m there I won’t have time to work on a newsletter. Gen Con, as you may or may not be aware, is the biggest gaming convention in the USA, held every year in Indianapolis. I’ll be running some games, Million-Colored Sun and Laser Ponies, and hanging out with my old pal Josh Burnett. Should be fun!
BEOWULF VS. GRENDEL UPDATE
Hooo boy, this has been an ordeal. Last time I wrote, “I’d hoped to have a picture of the printed book for you this time, but it hasn’t arrived yet.” The proof copy showed up the day after I sent out the June newsletter and, friend, it was NOT good news.
I’d been worried about the cover file. The printer rejected it a few times, I kept tweaking it, and I thought I had it, but I couldn’t help but worry. So when the package arrive I tore it open, eager yet frightened. And when I saw the cover, it was a huge relief. It looked perfect! I relaxed, smiled, felt good about life. Then I opened the book to check the interior. And . . .
Black bars. Over all the text (except for the section headers, strangely.) The book is entirely unreadable. It’s like a terrible joke.
I asked around and eventually learned that I’d used the wrong PDF type. I’ve been using Microsoft Publisher for layout and, it turns out, it CAN’T export the file in the correct format. Damn! Long story short, my friend Ray the computer whiz is helping me and hopefully we’ll get this problem solved soon.
It’s very frustrating; the book should’ve been done months ago. The positive note is that I updated the Kickstarter backers on what was happening and they were all very supportive. Thanks for your understanding, backers!
FIVE SUPERMAN COMIC RECOMMENDATIONS
As you are probably aware, there’s a new Superman movie out. And, surprising no one, I really enjoyed it. That inspired me to look through my Superman books, and to curate a list of recommendations for folks who want to read a Superman comic but aren’t sure where to begin. So here you go:
1. Superman Smashes the Klan, by Gene Luen Yang and Gurihiru
Wonderful all-ages story inspired by the Superman radio show of the 40s that tackles timeless themes with great characterization—even a character arc for Superman!—and a lovely modern animation-influenced art style that the kids can get into. Fun for the whole family! Punch a racist today!
You can order a copy here or here, for instance.
2. All-Star Superman, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely
A perfect distillation of the Superman mythos into a modern epic, gorgeously illustrated by Quitely (why don’t more artists use his technique of placing each line in exactly the right place?). Superman is facing his inevitable death, but first he must complete twelve labors, which leads to all sorts of imaginative adventures. There are pages in this that always give me chills and pages that always make me tear up.
You can get a smaller paperback copy of this for only $10, or discounted to $6 if you get it from instocktrades.com. There’s also a regular sized paperback, a hardcover, a deluxe hardcover . . . choose the format that’s right for you!
3. Superman Vs. Muhammad Ali, by Neal Adams with Denny O’Neil
So the title makes this sound silly and it may seem dated, or like a gimmick, but it’s unironically a great story and Neal Adams does maybe the best artwork of his justly celebrated career. Superman and Muhammad Ali team up to save the Earth in an interstellar boxing match, thrills aplenty ensue. The only problem is, it’s out of print; you may have to read it digitally, but if possible, you should read it BIG.
4. Superman: Secret Identity, by Kurt Busiek and Stuart Immonen
Not technically about SUPERMAN Superman—it’s about another guy called Superman, read the book and that will make sense—but it’s a thematically rich, grounded story of a man’s life, vividly brought to life in Immonen's subdued-yet-lovely style.
The print collection of this is shamefully out of print, but you can get it electronically, and it’s included in Superman by Kurt Busiek volume 1. And who knows, maybe your local library has a copy!
5. Superman: The Golden Age volume 1, by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster and a dozen ghost artists
This is undeniably crude by any standard, but this is the ORIGINAL, man, this is what all that other stuff is riffing on. I couldn’t get into this when I was a kid but when I tried again in my forties it really clicked; this is a story made by kids, for kids, but there’s something there, a rage at social injustice, a dream of a better world, pure creative inspiration, that’s the reason we’re still talking about this character almost 90 years later. SIEGEL & SHUSTER 4EVER
This particular book may no longer be available but they just put out a new one, DC Finest: Superman: The First Superhero, that reprints the same stuff.
LIGHTNING MAN UPDATE
I have begun work on Lightning Man volume 2! You can see the almost-but-not-quite-finished first page above. More on that next time.
The Adventures of Lightning Man volume 1 is still available for purchase in a handsome hardcover edition.
PUMP IT INTO YOUR VEINS
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THE TREES HAVE COLOR NOW
I’m still selling art in my Etsy shop. Right now the most popular drawings are the trees. I like drawing trees, and I’ve done a lot of ‘em. Traditionally I’ve been doing black and white art, because that’s my favorite, but in the spirit of experimentation and personal growth I’ve recently been trying out color. Here’s an example:
That one already sold, but as I’m writing this there’s another color tree drawing still available.
As always, I’m donating every dime I make from art sales to help people in Gaza. I’m currently donating through Gaza Funds. Even if you don’t want one of my drawings, consider clicking that link and donating to someone in need. And if you want to get yourself something pretty AND support a good cause, visit my Etsy shop.
BOOKS I'VE READ SINCE LAST TIME
Dimwood, Richard Corben
Spinning Silver, Naomi Novik
I’ve also read a lot of individual issues of comic books but I don’t list those.
Spinning Silver was good; I’ve now read every Naomi Novik book that’s not about dragons (she’s written a 9 book series about dragons.) This one, like Uprooted, is inspired by Eastern European fairy tales. There’s a young woman who can turn silver into gold, metaphorically but then not so metaphorically, and a faerie ice king, and a demonically possessed tsar, and all sorts of other plot lines that combine to create the sense of a living, breathing world that I really enjoyed spending time in.
TV SHOWS I’VE WATCHED
The Righteous Gemstones season 4
Midnight Mass
Leverage season 4
KAOS season 1
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3
Severance season 1
Steve Johnson sold me on watching Kaos with “Jeff Goldblum plays Zeus,” but when I learned the show had been cancelled after one season, its storylines never to be fully resolved, I decided not to watch it. Recently, though, my wife cleverly tricked me into watching it, by turning it on and saying, “Hey, you should see Kaos, it’s good.” And she was right, it’s a fun show, and features fan-favorite characters like Prometheus, Dionysus, Orpheus, Eurydice, Ariadne, and more, all in a modern setting. We just finished the first-and-only season and I’m happy to report that, while there is set-up for season 2, the major storylines are resolved and it’s a satisfying ending.
MOVIES I’VE WATCHED
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Superman
The Amateur
Fantastic Four: First Steps
The thing about Superman is that, for the first time, they didn’t try to take the Superman comics and translate them into something that would make sense as a movie for a traditional movie-going audience. Instead they just made a movie of the comic book character Superman and his supporting cast. The Superman comics have been going since 1938 so there are many wildly different versions of the characters, but looking at their most consistent traits across the decades, this was an extremely comics-accurate portrayal of Superman, Lois Lane, and Lex Luthor.
The movie is set in a comic book world where superheroes have existed for some time and no origin stories are required; it’s just taken for granted that bizarre things are constantly happening. This may not be ideal for you if you’re a movie person who likes their entertainment to be firmly grounded in reality, but as a comic book guy, this was exactly what I’ve been wanting for decades.
Superman defined the direction of the American comic book industry in the 1930s, and then the Fantastic Four redefined it in the 1960s. They’re two pillars of the medium. And while the early Superman comics by Siegel and Shuster were crude-but-exciting, Jack Kirby’s 102 issue run (plus annuals) on Fantastic Four is one of the great works of art of the 20th century. A towering achievement, imitated but never equaled.
The Kirby FF issues are great comics which stand on their own and don’t need to be adapted into movies. HOWEVER, after the dismal failures of previous attempts, it’s wonderful to see a good, entertaining, faithful-to-the-characters FF movie. The four leads were great, as were the costumes and designs, and the movie held my interest all the way through.
In the Galactus Trilogy (Fantastic Four #48-50) Kirby and Lee created an apocalyptic mood, a feeling that the world really could end at any moment, that had never been seen before in superhero comics. I was happy to see that the movie ran with this vibe and created a genuine sense of menace around Galactus.
So no matter what happens, even if the sequels are terrible, we have a really good Superman movie and a really good Fantastic Four movie now and no one can take that away from us.
Well what do you know, that newsletter ended up longer than I expected. But I have to go get ready for Gen Con, so our time together must draw to a close.
See you next month!
Your Friend,
Leighton