tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post5467008806763617816..comments2024-03-21T06:36:04.196-05:00Comments on The Idol-Head of Diabolu, a Martian Manhunter blog: Erdel Say RelaxDiabolu Frankhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04685199809207954223noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post-18217082610920545202010-05-21T06:39:31.249-05:002010-05-21T06:39:31.249-05:00Tom, if Johns were telling his John Stewart as Mar...Tom, if Johns were telling his John Stewart as Marine stories through gritted teeth, he'd have ground them to the gum through repetition. Architect schmaritect, Jarhead Stewart reigns.<br /><br />Liss, we walk away from the Martian Manhunter buffet with virtually the same plate, though I heap on more. I recall one of the reasons artists love drawing J'Onn is because they can go far "off-model" without fans ridiculing them as they would on Superman. I try to keep an open mind on the writing front as well, instead of suffocating stories with "different=bad." Hell, I had to digest "American Secrets" for a few days before I could figure out my feelings about that. My problems come into play when things like questionable ethics crop up (see: Ostrander.)Diabolu Frankhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04685199809207954223noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post-54441641881896283562010-05-20T21:23:55.601-05:002010-05-20T21:23:55.601-05:00Maybe it wasn't Johns but someone higher up at...Maybe it wasn't Johns but someone higher up at DC who insisted on giving the comic book Stewart the same origin as the animated version, so that fans of the TV show, who outnumber the comics fans, would not be confused if they happened to read a comic. Johns could have said "no" of course, but then DC would have someone else write the new origin.Tomnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post-26337837450967170072010-05-20T21:23:55.602-05:002010-05-20T21:23:55.602-05:00Well, this is quite brilliant, and could serve as ...Well, this is quite brilliant, and could serve as a "history" of the character of the Martian Manhunter.<br /><br />I forgot what I was going to say this morning when I read this, of course, but thinking a bit about this throughout the day, something did strike me. The retcons that J'onn's been through seem to be the type in which a writer just wants to try out an idea based on their own interpretation of the character. You don't really see Batman handled that way. So J'onn is kind of a blank slate who begs to be tinkered with by writers, an archetype for writers to interpret however they want. I don't know if that's a good thing or bad thing.<br /><br />Anyway, with all these multiple origin stories, J'onn's getting to be like Joker's "multiple choice" origin or The Phantom Stranger's "here's some options, pick your own" origin. I want to say I'm a purist, but I do seem to pick and choose. In my mind, Mars is (mostly) peaceful and socially advanced, Erdel dies from fright, J'onn had a wife and daughter, he decided to be a cop on his own merit (no impersonating a dead John Jones), there was a plague/war/somesuch and Blanx fits in there somehow, and Malefic doesn't exist. That's pretty much my selective origin story. Anything to the contrary is just an "author's mistake" which needs correcting at a later date. I know it doesn't make sense, but hey, it's my world and I can make up the rules.<br /><br />Though I am annoyed at yet another retcon, I'm willing to give Geoff Johns a pass only because he's a pretty capable storyteller. I can't wait to read it when my comics come...my opinion might change.LissBirdshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17059648604602469375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post-57344994135051794912010-05-20T18:41:48.118-05:002010-05-20T18:41:48.118-05:00Well said, through and through. Retcons schmetcon...Well said, through and through. Retcons schmetcons. This at least fits with my worldview. My way or the highway, ya ken?mathematicscorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15439579069513071094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post-50917250129810427642010-05-20T18:20:49.512-05:002010-05-20T18:20:49.512-05:00Tom, I'm just glad that ramble made sense to s...Tom, I'm just glad that ramble made sense to someone besides myself.<br /><br />antididio, I definitely feel where you're coming from. A supposed fan of John Stewart adapts that Green Lantern to animation, but the hardnosed military type of <i>Justice League Unlimited</i> bears no resemblance to the actual character in the comics (down to even his hair styles.) Johns then turns our Stewart into the animated version, and I'm not so much a fan of that guy, not that he got much play in Johns' books anyway. Maybe the new universe formed out of <i>Infinite Crisis</i> is to blame?Diabolu Frankhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04685199809207954223noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post-44930365649770612962010-05-20T03:15:51.656-05:002010-05-20T03:15:51.656-05:00Best post ever! (I don't need to say more than...Best post ever! (I don't need to say more than that because you've said everything.)Tomnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6620698560611640068.post-26215109671924834822010-05-20T02:50:29.270-05:002010-05-20T02:50:29.270-05:00I don't particularly have a problem with the r...I don't particularly have a problem with the retcon....I just find it rather annoying how Johns has been doing retcons of late. He used to be the guy who made everything fit into continuity clearly. Now he is just doing plain old retcons for no reason. Aquaman is half-human again, John Stewart was a marine, firestorm is a college frat boy again....and then he shoves it down your throat.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com