Captain Marvel

I just listened to this week's podcast. I'd like to comment on the gang's (particularly Bobby's) reservations about Captain Marvel #1 not being a good jumping on point:

I don't think that a clean, spoon-fed break is necessary for a new #1 to be appropriate for or appealing to new readers. I could be wrong, but are readers really that scared off of trying new books if they feel at all confused? For me, personally, I'm not deterred at all. Any Big Two superhero book is steeped in continuity. Unless it's a full-on reboot (which nobody is pushing for, when it comes to Marvel), there's no way to craft a perfect jumping-on point when we're looking at characters that have 30, 40, 50 years of stories behind them. Even the previous volume of Captain Marvel began with a supporting cast and a backstory that I was unfamiliar with. And it was fine. Comics readers are open to a level of playing catch-up when they begin reading a title, whether it's a new #1 or #18. For me, if there's a supporting character or a villain I don't know, it's easy enough to ride with the story and after a few issues, and eventually I'll end up understanding the character and what works about them in the context of the book I'm reading. If I don't, I have Wikipedia, etc, to get me up to speed. And I don't think I'm that different from the majority of comics readers.

Now, for bringing in readers that have never read comics before, that might be a little harder. But if a writer does his/her job, I think that even the uninitiated can appreciate the richness that this ultra-long-form of storytelling can bring. We were all new readers at one time, right? And we all managed.

I really, really enjoyed the issue. The only previous Captain Marvel I've read was the Infinity tie-ins. There were bits and characters I wasn't to sure on, but I've been meaning to pick up the first trades, this has given me more incentive to actually get round to picking them up. Marvels cosmic stuff really does it for me, can't wait to see where the story goes.

I think the problem is that when something has a number 1 it means something to people as far as not having to do so much catch up.  When Marvel did this whole Marvel now thing last year they marketed maybe not as a reboot but as a good jumping on point.  As someone who had been away from marvel books for a while but had read them for years and years prior I thought great I'll get back in so I got into the X men books.  Well when you come in to find out that Cyclops is a villan teamed with magneto and recently killed professor x, I didn't really feel like this was a welcoming point and was left with more questions than not. I know theres not much that could have been done but I didn't feel that that was a comic that should have sent the message that its a great jumping on point at least not for me.  They moved full steam head with all kinds of stuff that came out of AvsX and even prior arc that I had no interest in going back to read.  

Yeah I dropped the x-books just felt lost to be honest thought the x-books were always hard to follow even back when I was reading them all lol.

I really enjoyed the #1 it was honestly like running into an old friend you havent seen in a while. i think i was smiling the whole time i was reading it!

Just finished the second issue; very funny, love where it seems to be going, but i do have two pretty massive gripes, i have to say.

1) $4.00 for a limited series like Sandman Overture is one thing. But i don't see myself shelling out $4 per issue into perpetuity for a regular ol' ongoing superhero book (which is why I don't buy Batman). How the hell is Hawkeye (for instance) $3, but this is $4? I'm loving this book, but i don't understand how they can justify that pricetag. It's insulting, to be honest. And disappointing. And it means i'm going to have to drop off sooner or later. And that makes me sad.

2) (And this is related to Gripe #1)HOLY CRAP, COULD THERE BE ANY MORE ADS IN THIS THING. I know ads in comics date back to the beginning of the medium, i get that, but when you're charging me a goddamn arm and a leg, and you STILL choke the thing out with an absurd number of ads, including at least one double page spread of ads . . gahhhhhhh. It makes me so mad. Especially in contrast to all the Image books in my stack, which read so smooth and clean and uninterrupted and feel longer (and they're all $3 or $3.50, to boot), it's just so behind the curve.  I read Cap Marvel #2, and I laughed, but ultimately by the end of it I was also very annoyed and felt taken out of the experience of trying to read the story. And then right afterwards I read Shutter #1 and the new East of West, and they were blessed relief to the anti-ad parts of my brain (which is, in fact, all of it).

Tons and tons of ads like that (and in the middle of action sequences, no less) make the book feel chopped up and too-short, and for four bucks there's just no excuse whatsoever. To be perfectly honest, I feel cheated, and i'm not happy about feeling cheated, especially considering how much I admire Kelly Sue's wit and heart and her incredible take on this character.  Earlier today I was listening to the third part of Fatman on Batman's recent interview with Denny O' Neil, and in it he says something to the effect of (paraphrasing), "My job is to give the reader enough entertainment so that they feel like they've gotten their money's worth at the end.  No more, and no less."  As much as I like the first two issues of this renumbered/reboot.whatever.now, i'm not feeling like i'm getting my $4 + tax.  I could look at the pages of Sandman Overture (the only other $4 book I buy) for literally hours; the reread/artistic value is immense.  This Captain Marvel is a great book so far, but it takes maybe 8 minutes to get through, and i'd put the reread/art value at average.  I'm struggling with the decision on this one, I really am.