I'm sure some of you comic book know it alls will tell me that Marvel Diva’s looks like Wolverine: Babies On Skewers in comparison to certain books of yesteryear (maybe Dazzler could give it a run for it’s money) but it’s got to be one of the GAYEST Marvel superhero books ever! What happens?! Nothing! Nothing that is apart from four washed up d-list superheroines (Black Cat, Hellcat, Firestar and Photon – although she seemed to be called Captain Marvel last issue) slagging off their boyfriends, glugging Cosmopolitans and getting cancer!
Yes, so that last bit wasn’t so giddy and fun filled. In fact, it’s a twist that had me sighing in disbelief when I went through my new purchases last month. I’m not a fan of mixing real world terrible illnesses (see also Star Boy’s schizophrenia) with fantasy superhero elements. But to be fair to writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (crazy name, probably crazy guy!) he does sort of address it here and sidesteps the issue:
This is really the logical conclusion to all the night-time soap drama that has engulfed comics over the last 10 years or so. Who can remember the crazy plot resolutions in Birds of Prey for example? But I’m sure we can remember the soapy twists (I haven’t read it for years but vaguely remember Blue Beetle was being set up as a love interest for Babs Gordon, although I can’t remember any villains they duffed up.)
It still leaves a bit of a bad taste in the mouth when Green Lantern and Green Arrow chat about having debauched group gang bangs with the Huntress and Lady Blackhawk though.
However, by making this out-and-out soap Firestar’s breast cancer isn’t portrayed in such a horrific cringey way as it could have been. And it sets up the best twist in any comic book I’ve read this month!
I had high hopes for Pet Avengers but this has proved more fun. Mainly because Tonci Zonjic’s art hits absolutely the right note. If Greg Land had done the pencilling things would have gone very badly wrong indeed…
What was the twist, I can't remember...
ReplyDeleteIt irks me that Firestar and Patsy have the same hairdo.
Shame Firestar never really caught on in comics innit. Weird, when you watch those old SpideyAHAF cartoons. She was great!
The twist involved the Son of Satan and a moral dilemma! It was pretty nifty!
ReplyDeleteYeah the matching hair dos are a shame...
Aaaaaargh, that scared me. I thought I'd been posting comments and forgotten all about it. But it's a younger, better-looking Mart who works as an editor. Great, I've been relegated to Earth 2.
ReplyDeleteHi namesake!
Anyway, never seen Firestar on telly but I do like her. This was much better than last issue, how I love Night Nurse - so are they saying she's Marvel's old Linda Carter, Student Nurse? The twist was clever, but since when has Damon ever acted like that?
ha ha sorry Mart-2!
ReplyDeletei got confused as well.
you can check out Firestar here - she was dreamy...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBesVytdAYQ&feature=related
Ooh I've never thought of Night Nurse as Linda Carter... She's a bit young for Doc Strange if you ask me...
I'm neutral on this comic. Don't really like it, but don't hate it. (Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers blew me away, just for the record.)
ReplyDeleteBut I gotta say, Dr. Strange is so frickin' useless, it's starting to cheese me off. The guy is the most powerful sorcerer in the Marvel universe, and he can't do anything.
Kind of an aside, but wanted to put that out there. Enjoyed reading your thoughts.