Pick of the Week
What did the
iFanboy
community think?
Pulls
Size: pages
Price: 3.99
I’m going to gush for moment, so please indulge me for a moment.
I LOVE THIS BOOK! Love, love, love it. Just when I think I can’t love it any more, issue #5 comes out and I just fall in love all over again.
Why do I love this book so much? Because it’s clearly Mark Millar’s love letter to the world of loving comic books, and in doing so, he’s created such a creative and unique world for this mini series to exist in that has completely entranced me. If I had any complaints, it would be that the issue is too short and I simply cannot wait until the next issue. I don’t even want to think about the moment when the next issue, #6 and the final issue, is released. But that’s okay, because I don’t have to think about that right now. No, today I revel in the glory of Marvel: 1985 #5.
If you’re not reading this book, you may be wondering why I love it so much. Let me recap for you. The story is set in 1985 in the real world, our world (or Earth: Prime as we like to call it) and features a little boy with separated parents, a Dad who seems to be a bit of a loser, with the only thing they have in common is their love for Marvel Comics. Set in a small town, the story has a Stephen King-esque feel to it, as the boy discovers that what appears to be villains from the Marvel Universe have settled in his town. That was the first couple of issues, but in issue #5, the villains are full on attacking the town, as villains often do, and the results are as you would expect. And that’s what’s wonderful about this series. How often have you wondered or talked to your friends about what it would be like if the heroes and villains that we’ve read about in these comics were “real”? We make fun of and explore the complexities and realities of comic book science and the social impact of the world of super heroes, but very few books have successfully crossed that line of showing us what would happen. This small town is just being laid waste to as each of the various villains do their thing. And what Millar has them doing is spot on with their characters. Klaw and Batroc are burning a church while Sentinels are vaporizing children, just awful awful things. But a ray of hope occurs as last issue ended, as the main character, Toby the kid, stumbles through the portal to the Marvel Universe and in issue #5 we see him try and find help for his world, his town and his family.
It’s this split between reality and the Marvel Universe that makes this issue stand out for me. Visually, artist Tommy Lee Edwards is just rocking this concept. The obvious yet wonderfully subtle change in the art style between the “real” world and the Marvel Universe is done in such an elegant manner. Not only does the color palette change, going from dull and muted to bright and airy, but the art style also becomes simpler, representative of the Marvel Universe at the time of 1985. Using jagged/rough lines in the real world and clean minimal lines in the Marvel Universe, it’s a clear distinction between the two worlds that partners with the story that Millar provides to make the experience complete. Toby enters the Marvel Universe yelling for The Avengers, and he finds out how difficult it really is to find a hero, getting the brush off by Jarvis and then by the bureaucracy of the Fantastic Four, finally settling on reaching out to the natural everyman of the Marvel Universe, Spider-Man, by using Toby’s knowledge of Spider-Man’s identity and powers.
I never thought that there would be such a great comic book that would merge the universes of comic books and the real world in such a relatable manner and yet Millar and Edwards are totally doing it, making that boyhood wish a reality with Marvel: 1985. Sure I know that the next, and last issue, will feature the heroes coming to save the day, but it doesn’t even matter, because watching how it happens is just way too much fun for this Marvel Zombie.
Ron Richards
Millar enjoys using Galactus maybe too much…
ron@ifanboy.com
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Man, I’m right with you on this. I’m having a ton of fun reading this book. The last page of this issue made me grin from ear to ear and just think "sure, why the hell not?".
What is great about this book is, in showing how scary even the C-Level villains would realistically be, it shows how much more important it is for those with the means and ability to do so to stand up against them. This book has made super heroes that much more important in their universe.
I Love this book. This book IS me circa 1985. I would cry from nostalgia if it wasn’t so entertaining. My parents were divorced and I would spend the weekends with my unshaved dad who took me to comic stores in his VW bus. This book has so much heart. I am not afraid to say it…I Love Mark Millar. Anyone who can write something as F’ed up as Kick-Ass and then put out something as beautiful as this is a genius.
beautiful, fantastic book, even if you’re not a marvel fan. the art cannot be denied – every splash page in this series has been gold – big, bod, frightening images of these otherworldly villains.
dude, the concept is so simple and brillent, what’s not to like?
Has Millar now won over all the ifanboys?
@doddzilla – Certainly not the whole writing staff.
ahem.
Paul, we have a saying in australia, whinge, bloody whinge
Copper Ried said that
I was just answering the question, though he probably just meant the core team. I like what I’ve read of 1985, but I consider it an exception to the rule. I’m operating under the assumption that it was ghost written.
I was on the fence about picking up this series and ultimately didn’t. With all the praise going around about this title I’m kicking myself now. Can’t wait for the trade.
i know Paul, just joshing mate
I’ve been reading my back issues from 1980 up. As in, pulling all Jan 1980 comics, Feb 1980,etc. and reading them as they came out. I am currently smack dab in July of 1985! Didn’t originally want to like this series, but it has won me over. Pick of the week? maybe. It pales in comparison to the original comics of 1985,but i’m just an old fart.
@edward – I’m going to use ‘whinge’ in next week’s column. Somehow.
No where else could I image Batroc the Leaper as a scary villain until this series. I’ll be perfectly honest, I stopped reading this at issue #4. Why? Cause for some reason I feel this will be read better then trade and that’s my perogitive. But if the previous issues are any indication then there is a lot of fun to be had with this series. Great pick Ron, you always seem to pick the books that the least amount of people actually read, but should read because it is so great (cough)exceptforuncannyxmen(cough)
Oh and my pick btw was Captain America. Great end to a fantastic arc with teriffic art.
Great pick Ron. This series has been so much fun and getting better with each issue. It’s books like this that keep me buying comics.
Good issue. Only thing I’m worried about is that unless issue 6 is giant, than it will be very hard for Millar to wrap this all up in one issue. The part with Peter Parker was great.
Am I a bad person because I want Toby to be dismembered horribly in the last issue?
@edward- whinge might be my new favorite word. I going to try and work it into my everyday conversations.
Fair dinkem? Struth! Stone the crows and fair crack of the whip
I can’t wait for this trade.
Dang, another podcast I have to skip. I’m waiting for the trade,
@edward: Copper Ried? Fair suck of the sav!
chopper, shit
@Ron,
So this is your love letter to Millar’s love letterto the world of loving comics. Fucking good shit man. That is hillarioius.
Amen, brother. This issue blew me away yesterday. It seems like my comics kept getting better and better as I went through my stack yesterday. Fantastic Four was great, Captain America was really good. But when I read Marvel 1985– holy crap, it was awesome.
As soon as I saw the final page I said "There’s no way Ron’s NOT going to pick this." My only concern is it seems like an awful lot to wrap up in one more issue.
That being said, this was a great issue!
This has been promising. I shall pick up the inevitable collected edition that will be out soon.
Hey Jumping Jupiter…dont wait for the trade, go buy the issues now..I am sure if you live near a local comic shop they have them in the back issue bins!!! It is well worth it!!
I’ve been delving into Millar’s stuff recently, and I’ll think I probably grab this trade. I’m loving Old Man Logan, War Heroes has potential, and Wanted is entertaining.
So looking forward to picking this up tomorrow. THis has been such a guilty pleasure – easily the best thing Mark Millar has done since his under-rated Swamp Thing.
Of course it has been mooted for years – and he was trying to do it Fummetti style – I don’t thing those amazing Single Panel pages would have worked so well that way
Who called the POW? I called the POW.
I wasn’t sure about this series until this issue, which was terriffic. Millar’s a great writer, but usually what he does best is dark political commentary on the state, celebrity culture, adolescence, office masculinity. We get dark Millar sa little in this series – cornball eighties villains come to the real world and start murdering people en masse – but what stood out for me in this issue is that we get Millar doing Busiek or Bendis, exploring the wonder of a very old set of characters and stories with fresh eyes and making comic books seem magical again. And it’s pretty awesome.
Wow, I’ve rarely been in the minority so badly. While I’ve read all of the issues, it never seemd more than average at the beginning and, while I agree it’s gotten better, there’s no way tossing in Galactus at the last minute makes it the pick.
Personally, I’m skeptical of all Scottish comics writers.
i agree Ron, only thing bad about this series is we only have one more issue. Sure is going to be a lot to do in just one issue so maybe we’ll need a Marvel: 1986 to wrap everything up.
This really was an awesome issue. its sad there is only one more issue left. its an awesome series!!
Somehow I missed that this came out. I read through my stack and ended up with Captain America as my pick (although i have to say, Jason Aaron’s Black Panther-Secret Invasion story was really good. I know he’s new, but I don’t know that there’s a more promising talent out there. Reminds me of when Greg Rucka busted onto the scene.)
Then I saw that this was the pick and I realized I’d missed it. I went back today, before reading the review, and jeez. This was amazing. I had a grin on my face from the beginning that grew into a full-on smile during the Peter Parker section, and then turned into a laugh on the last couple of pages. Marvelous.
Marvel 1985 is best thing Millar ever wrote and easily the top mini of the year.
@ThingsFallApart,
Thanks for bringing up Millar’s Swamp Thing run. I think there are a lot of people who have not read these issues. I don’t think they have ever been traded. Didn’t he tag team his first arc with grant Morrison? Too bad my long boxes are inaccessable right now. I would love to pull these old issues out.
As for 1985. I like it a lot. The tone and pacing also remind me of mid 80s kid adventure movies like Monster Squad, Cloak and Dagger, or Goonies. It almost seems to be a love letter to this sub-genre as much as a love letter to mid 80s comics.
Bean
so does that mean galactus is gonna show up in old man logan soon?
This book is like "Gremlins" with supervillains. Best thing Millar’s ever done.
I am enjoying this book but I had a thought.
If Toby gets the heroes on his side and they go back to the ‘real’ universe and fight and win, this series will be a fun, but ultimatly unimportant and forgettable, mini.
On the other hand, if Toby gets the heroes on his side and they go back to the ‘real’ universe and fight and get their asses kicked (possibly with a line along the lines of, "We always win on our world. We just can’t win in your world.") and Galactus gets to eat the plane, this will be my favorite mini of all-time and will be unique and poignant.
Who’s with me on this?