Truth, Jawlines And The American Way: The Changing Face Of Superman
Superman has gotten a makeover — well, another makeover — two years ahead of turning 75 years old in 2013.As the first and most widely known representative of the spandexed set, Superman remains the...
View ArticleCatharsis In A Cape: On Comic-Book Heroes And Real-World Violence
What is Batman for?The whole idea's ridiculous, always has been. Guy dresses up like a bat to scare criminals. Shyeah. Not something that can truly chill the blood — a snake, say, or a spider — but a...
View Article'Take This Job And Planet!': Why Clark Kent Quit His Day Job
By now you've likely heard that in the pages of Superman #13, on stands today, Clark Kent quits his once-beloved great metropolitan newspaper.Disillusioned by his employer's increasing predilection for...
View ArticleA Foolish Inconsistency: The Saga of 'Saga'
"Comics," a wise newspaper features editor once opined, back when the Earth had not yet cooled and icthyosaurs swam the turbid seas, "Aren't Just For Kids Anymore."Her fellow editors, incredulous,...
View ArticleCook, Illustrated: A New Graphic Novel That Live-to-Eat Types Will Savor
Lucy Knisley eats better than you do.Face it: she knows more than you about what makes food delicious and satisfying. She's a former cheesemonger who monged her odoriferous wares with verve and aplomb....
View ArticleSuperheroines, Fighters, And Why Isn't There A Wonder Woman Movie?
Any comics fan of any seriousness can rattle off female superheroes who have either had their own books or appeared in other or ensemble books.But what about ordinary absorbers of culture?The same...
View ArticleWhich Comics Should I Get? Your Free Comic Book Day Cheat Sheet
This Saturday, May 4th, is Free Comic Book Day, the comics industry's annual attempt to sail out past the shallow, overfished shoals where Nerds Like Me lazily and inexpertly spawn, to instead cast...
View ArticleArmor And Anxiety: Tony Stark Is The New Captain America
Meet Tony Stark at the opening of Iron Man 3: insanely wealthy, possessed of every toy, and traumatized by an attack on New York that has left him restless, anxious, belligerent, and given to both...
View ArticleAuctioning Comics to Restore Jersey Shore Staple Post-Sandy
Comics have always been a big deal to the men in Brick Wenzel’s family. But when Sandy devastated his home and his business, Wenzel realized that the books had more than sentimental value – they had...
View ArticleComikaze: Not Just The Other Comic Convention
You may be familiar with the San Diego Comic-Con, a constantly expanding convention for fans that started as a niche event for comic-book nerds and is now a sprawling pop-culture event.You may not be...
View ArticleMy Favorite Superman Story: When Jimmy Olsen Created Beatlemania
Hey, Monkey See readers. It's me, your old pal Glen. Look, I know you haven't seen me around these parts very much over the last year or so, but ...Mm? What's that?Why, yes, I have "put on a few," as...
View ArticlePride of Baghdad
Brian K. Vaughan is one of the most interesting graphic novelists working today. In his series Y: The Last Man he depicts an apocalyptic future in which the male half of humanity has been wiped out,...
View ArticleYou're a Complicated Man, Charlie Brown
At its peak, over 350 million people around the world read "Peanuts" every day. Its creator, Charles Schulz, led a much darker life than anyone realized, and he put his troubles into the funny pages....
View ArticleYou're a Complicated Man, Charlie Brown
At its peak, over 350 million people around the world read the Peanuts comic strip. Its creator Charles Schulz led a much darker life than anyone ever realized, and he put his troubles into the funny...
View ArticleAha Moment: Love and Rockets
Comic book author-illustrator Jessica Abel has a gift for depicting paralyzing awkwardness. She works from experience: a punk-rock teenager, Abel went to college in a Midwestern town and found herself...
View ArticleWatchmen
Alan Moore's ambitious graphic novel Watchmen wowed a generation of readers when it came out in 1986. Twenty-three years later, it's making its big-screen debut. Meanwhile, some of its key innovations...
View ArticleComic Con Descends on New York City
Costumed superheroes and villains, comic book lovers, sci-fi fans and video game avatars will descend on the Javits Center this weekend for New York Comic Con. Industry-watchers will be keeping a close...
View ArticleA Comic-Con Diary: The Eisner Awards
Monkey See contributor/longtime nerd Glen Weldon recently attended San Diego Comic-Con. He kept a diary during one of the largest media events in the world.8:28 p.m.: Jennifer and Matthew Holm are an...
View ArticleTruth, Jawlines And The American Way: The Changing Face Of Superman
Superman has gotten a makeover — well, another makeover — two years ahead of turning 75 years old in 2013.As the first and most widely known representative of the spandexed set, Superman remains the...
View ArticleCatharsis In A Cape: On Comic-Book Heroes And Real-World Violence
What is Batman for?The whole idea's ridiculous, always has been. Guy dresses up like a bat to scare criminals. Shyeah. Not something that can truly chill the blood — a snake, say, or a spider — but a...
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