Easily my favorite collection of stories in the Archives series, this volume offers the finest color reproduction of tales that warrant the format. The edition begins with the 1988 mini-series by J.M. DeMatteis and Mark Badger, whose reinterpretation of the character has defined his representation across all media ever since, as well as a follow-up from an annual. Next comes the Secret Origins story by Mark Verheiden and Ken Steacy that strongly influenced Cooke's J'Onn J'Onzz in New Frontier. Finally, the complete American Secrets prestige minki-series, gathered in one English language volume, and possibly the greatest Martian Manhunter story ever told.
For individual page listings from this Table of Contents, download the PDF here.
I love American Secrets. I guarantee that if it was a batman story instead of MM then people would have loved it. It was only 4 dollars when i bought it on ebay. I also loved the Master Gardner in it.
ReplyDeleteA trade paperback of BATMAN: AMERICAN SECRETS would have gone through multiple printings over the past 18 years, and we would be looking forward to the fancy 20th anniversary hardcover in 2012 (which would probably be a reissue of the fancy 10th anniversary hardcover).
ReplyDelete"Possibly" the greatest Martian Manhunter story ever told, Frank? There's no possibly about it.
I have a question for Frank or anyone who knows, I have never read AS but I looked at the pics on this site. How come the master gardener is blue. Also what powers did he have.
ReplyDeleteThe Master Gardener is only shown in three panels of MM:AS in his(?) true form. Of those three, two are spent under moody lighting, and the last in plain view while alight. In this final panel, the Master Gardener is green-skinned, so there's visually no difference between him and J'Onn J'Onzz in the natural Martian form depicted in the series.
ReplyDeletePresumably, the Master Gardener enjoys all the same powers as J'Onn J'Onzz, telepathy and shape-shifting being a certainty.
Wow that would be a cool volume I wish I had that. I appreciate you noticing how they've swiped my work ever sense. But I doubt DC would ever reprint this stuff. You can check out what Gerard Jones and I are doing now at http://www.privacyactivism.com you can read the comic there or if your old fashioned and like print check it out at NBM http://www.nbmpub.com/
ReplyDeleteIt should be in stores and Amazon in the next week or two
Mark Badger
markbadger.org