I’ll refrain from further comment at this time, except to note that I can never see a reference to the Will Payton Starman comic without remembering that cover.

You know which one I’m talking about.

“STOP! You’re killing SUPERMAN(TM)!”

You’ll laugh, but I was in favor of Superman Blue and Guy Gardner: Warrior. To defend myself, I knew the Superman Blue storyline would be temporary, so I was interested to see where they would take it. I was also a fan of the Silver Age Superman Red/Superman Blue stories, so I thought this modern-day version might be fun. In regard to Guy Gardner Warrior, it was initially done by the creative team of Beau Smith and Mitch Byrd. This comic totally rocked! Powerless Guy Gardner fighting Nazis, dinosaurs, and Zombies! Does it get any better than that?!?! I wasn’t thrilled with the Vuldarian stuff, but Guy’s personality was great. Beau Smith didn’t intend for the Vuldarian stuff anyway. That was a mandate from editorial.

I think changing Firestorm was the right thing to do. Firestorm was an up-beat, standard superhero book. Unfortunately in the late 1980s and early 1990s, standard superhero books weren’t selling well. Look at the Will Payton Starman book. It was a GREAT series! A very traditional superhero comic, however, it couldn’t sustain the sales. I’m sure the folks at DC knew if they didn’t take a chance and change the book it would definitely get canceled.

I think the change to the Elemental Firestorm was fascinating. We’d already seen the Plant Elemental (Swamp Thing) and the Air Elemental (Red Tornado), so a Fire Elemental wasn’t that far-fetched. Also, as I mentioned in the post, the stories were really good and thought-provoking.

I hope that addresses your question. Thanks again for visiting!

Shag

As a question: What sets apart that big change from others — usually greeted with eye-rolling by fandom? (Kung Fu-era Wonder Woman, Superman Blue, Guy Gardner: Warrior, etc.)

As a fan, the slogan “Only the name is the same…” would be a red flag to me. (“Sure, the character is still named ‘Sherlock Holmes,’ but as a jive-talking street-smart sexy android, she’s not what you might expect…”)

Did Firestorm do anything more “right” than normal that made it work for you? (Was pre-reboot Firestorm that dire?) Or is it just that you seem to have a higher willingness to “trust” creators to take characters you like in interesting directions?

Sure it was a HUGE departure from what came before, but I think that’s okay. Sometimes a big change is what a book needs (i.e. Giant-Sized X-Men #1). Gerry Conway wrote an amazing run on Firestorm. If Ostrander had just done more of the same then he’d forever be compared to Conway. Instead Ostrander took the character in several new and unexpected directions. And he didn’t just change the character and let it stay that way. He kept evolving the character making him more and more interesting.

I think the Elemental Firestorm had some really thought-provoking stories, was gorgeously drawn, and was one of the more engaging books on the market at the time.

In regard to the costume, keep in mind the Elemental Firestorm look was designed by Tom Grindberg during his short run on the series. I think Mandrake took that look and made it fantastic! For me, the Elemental Firestorm drawn by Mandrake is as iconic as the Firestorm interpretations by Al Milgrom, Pat Broderick, Rafael Kayanan, and Jamal Igle.

Shag