Mission Statement
I’m pretty sure that the world doesn’t need yet another comic-related blog, but blogs – if nothing else – are quintessential exercises in self indulgence. A blogger's call to arms seems to be “I have something to say and I’m going to say it whether anyone wants to listen or not.” Of course, that irreverence is one of the things that make so many blogs great. In any case, I love reading many other peoples' blogs and have been inspired to start my own. Based on my “research,” here are a few of the elements that seem to be necessary to be a comic book blogger (and an assessment of my qualifications):
1. A large comics collection (Check)
2. A genuine love for all things comic (Check)
3. A genuine appreciation for the absurdities of many things comic (Check)
4. A comic store inventory to pimp (Nope, not here)
5. The chops to convincingly use the word “pimp” as a verb (Unlikely, but I’ll try)
6. A seemingly remarkable amount of free time (No, I’ll cut back on my sleep)
7. Mediocre grammar and punctuation skills despite going to college (Check)
8. Well-honed sarcasm and a biting wit (er….I guess we’ll see)
So what am I going to blog about? I’m going to write about the best and worst comics that I’ve read, with a particular focus on what I consider to be my personal Golden Age of comics: Yes, the 80s. I really started reading and eventually collecting comics in 1982 with Chris Claremont and Paul Smith’s X-Men, John Byrne’s Fantastic Four, John Romita’s Spider Man and lots of other goodies. Those were really great days for comics and I’m looking forward to sharing my recollections and thoughts about them and also evaluating how the stack up today as compared to what I thought about them 20+ years ago.
Here are scans of a few of my first comics that I'll be discussing in future posts. I'll probably start with a brief history of my early exposure to comics and what led me to the fateful day that I bought Uncanny X-Men #167 off the spinner rack at the Store 24 in West Newton, MA that has led to a lifelong addiction to er...love of comics.
