harry@ucbarpa.BERKELEY.EDU (& I. Rubin) (12/25/85)
In article <11900091@uok.UUCP> slrichte@uok.UUCP writes: > >>...there will also be a *as far as I know) one-shot PARADAX comic. >>Jerry Boyajian > > According to the latest CBG (#632, Dec. 27) the Paradax one-shot and > the planned Robo-Hunter comic will not appear. > --Steve Richter That's too bad, I would have liked to have seen a full-size Paradax story. I rather liked Paradax, in fact, I am finding that the characters and stories which interest me most these days are the of "reluctant hero" type, or of the "new-and inexperienced hero" type (they often are mixed, which is better yet). Paradax never planned to be or wanted to be a hero, he just stumbled into his special suit, and being a hero seemed like the right thing to do. What makes Paradax interesting, what makes it special in its reluctant-hero genre, is that Paradax, the person inside the suit, is basically a lazy slob. About all you ever see him do outside the suit is drink beer, watch television, and fool around with his girlfriend. So how come as soon as he gets this special suit he starts being a do-gooder? That's what I want to know. And what effect will it have on him, on his personality and behavior outside the suit? He is also a "new and inexperienced hero," obviously, and I like to watch how such heros learn to handle their situation, as well as how they learn to handle their powers and abilities. I think that for me, watching people learn to cope with having special abilities as a moral/ethical issue and what it does to them as people, and watching them learn to handle the abilities technically, is the most interesting thing going on in comics these (strange) days. (Sorry, I should post a "bad pun" warning.) Reluctant heros are the center of many good comics: * Mage is perhaps the most reluctant hero; he copes, sort of, by refusing to believe he is a hero. * Mike Moran in Miracleman is learning to cope with being a hero, as is his wife Liz. I like the way they are shown experimenting with Miracleman's powers (among other good things I like about Miracleman). * Whisper. I thought the Whisper special was really enjoyable. Unfortunately the segments in First Adventures have not been very good, I mean, I haven't enjoyed them much. Anyway, she is a confused person exploring what she can do with her abilities, not sure what she it is she wants to do with them, if anything. * The Power kids in Power Pack. * I like Dragonfly, a lady who gets zapped with powers by accident and doesn't want them. Along with the required WHAM!! BLAM!! and POW!!, there is some good exploration of how she feels about it and what she is doing about it. I recommend Dragonfly, and I will try to write a review of the first two issues someday. * The original idea of X-Men is to take teen-agers with powers and teach them how to cope with the powers themselves and with having the powers. * The only interesting thing about Thunderbunny is that the kid turns into a hero he thinks is really stupid, and there is some danger that he won't be able to turn back. This makes him a very reluctant hero. Unfortunately, the writer didn't explore this in the first couple of issues and I lost interest. There are lots more, but I think you get the idea. The converse is also true, hero who are too competent do not hold my interest. Superman is just too good at what he does; he knows exactly what he can do, and he has been a hero so long that he knows how to handle almost any situation. Spiderman similarly. I like Pressbutton and Laser Eraser, but they seem too good at what they do, it all seems too easy, too pat. Do you feel the same way? When a new book comes out, what determines whether you like the characters and situation? Have I voiced a common sentiment, or do I stand alone? Reluctantly yours, Harry (Please respond to the net. Thanks.)