I think Rob should do the plot synopses. I don’t think he’s all that bad, and it seems odd that Mike is there just to do them. It pulls me out of “the moment.” Besides, do you really think anyone is listening to this who hasn’t already read the issue in question!?

I really liked AQUAMAN 27. I think the “reporter” or “spy” or whatever he turns out to be will bring something exciting. It means Aquaman and Mera will get back to Maine, even if the plot thread itself doesn’t pan out! Me, I’m hoping this guy has a connection to the new Aqualad. Could “Richard” be Dick Grayson?? Could this be Mal Duncan!?

I like Paul Pelletier’s work. I don’t mind Nethro Diaz, but I do wish one artist could draw one book.

I have a question about what actually happened in this story, though. Aquaman hammers his trident THROUGH the monster, and it slams into its brain. There it is on the bottom of the fifth page from the end. Yet Aquaman appears on the next page and pulls the trident out of a wall. So the guys in the Triton sub pull the brain off the trident, then stab the trident into the wall? Seems odd. At first I thought there were two tridents. It was confusing.

As for FIRESTORM #7….well, I can’t speak for 12 year old fanboys, but this middle-aged man found it pretty badly done. Sorry, Shag!!
Sure, the main plot of “Die Hard in a newspaper building” IS exciting. I agree with you both that the drama shared between Prof Stein and Ronnie over whether they should reveal their identity to save lives is done very well. And I have no complaints about the art. In fact, I think I bought this issue back in the day because of Pat Broderick’s art. However, all of the little bits of the issue just made me mad. A few examples…Firestorm posing for five pages almost gets dozens of people killed. Let’s face it, in his face-off with the initial terrorist Firestorm is an idiot. Speaking of the male terrorist, why is HE masked and hiding his identity, while Plastique flaunts her name and face (among other things)? It doesn’t make sense. Next, on page eight writer Gerry Conway gets away with two (count ’em two) shortcuts in his narration: he uses the theatrical contrivance “The Scene:” as he explains where we are. Editor Gerry Conway shouldn’t have allowed him to get away with this silly verbiage…especially since we can tell where we are in both cases without any help from the narrator, anyway!

And the story ends with Ronnie and his Dad maybe making up? Sorry, but this type of melodrama isn’t my cup of tea.

Next issue features Typhoon, who I seem to recall fondly. Let’s hope that story is better written.

Then when you see how hard some of the other guys suck at it, you realize how good you really are. 😉

Not familiar with Charles J. Sperling. T.M. Maple and Elvis Orten were the top letterhacks when I was growing up, and I met Rich Morrissey at SDCC (he may have been the first person to mention Harry Potter to me.)

Rob, if it makes you feel better, I can totally throw Michael Bailey under the bus and demand your reinstatement. I hear he always sweats when he podcasts and smells like Zamorano sheep milk cheese. My source is Sha-ahh-anonymous.

Reading up on some Doctor Fate…is Frank actually Charles J. Sperling?

Genius!

The interview came out? I’m a backer but never got a copy. I guess I’m going to go ask about it over on Kickstarter.

2) Shag’s recommendation of Salvation Run negates any criticism he could level against me regarding the 1993 Bloodlines annuals. Unfortunately, that doesn’t work as a ward against Rob, who takes most of those potshots. Matt Sturges’ script (Willingham only did the first couple of issues) was a hate crime against DC villains not EXTREME enough for the current regime, and its banal nihilism-for-hire cemented my dislike of the writer. If this is your bag, quit half-assing it and go directly to Johnny Ryan’s Prison Pit instead.

3) Rob is much too hard on his Aquaman synopses. I thought they were perfectly fine for this sort of thing, which I’m not into anyway, so admittedly he could be crap and it wouldn’t matter much to me personally, but objectively they’re about as good as anybody could reasonably expect someone talking about the major plot points of a friggin’ single issue comic book could be, I guess. So we’re going to be doing this with a third or even fourth title in the months to come, eh?

sigh.

4) Aquaman #27 had the best cover of the Paul Pelletier period to date. I loved the contrast of scale, and the Sea King’s figure recalled Mike “Zowie” Zeck. Very impressive expression of Aquaman’s abilities. I still prefer Aquaman as a lithe, Spider-Man level hero, which is reflected better on this frontpiece and with the girder “hammering” than with hurling cars like softballs (more Sub-Mariner’s shtick.)

5) Hey! An issue of Firestorm that I currently own, have read, and liked! Those aren’t as common for me as one would hope. Plastique is like a gender-flipped alternate universe Batroc ze Lepair. She’s still a ridiculously broad Francophobic caricature who is deceptively formidable, but Plastique is much more threatening. Also, I doubt any girls ever found the Master of Savate as sexy as us boys find Bette Sans Souci. This story won a coveted Canuck Consciousness Award for it’s in-depth look into the cruel face of the Quebec sovereignty movement as it stood in 1982, only nearly a decade after legit scary terroristy stuff had been snuffed out. “This Issue: Plastique will have her referendum on political sovereignty with economic association to Canada, or she’ll demand a constitutional clarification written in blood!”

6) Panel direction arrows are only ever not a cheat if the series heroes are teaming up with the Family Circus.

7) Wasn’t the Sgt. Rock line of toys a combination of limp response to G.I. Joe and anticipation of the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie that never happened (see also: Steven Spielberg’s Blackhawk?) Anyway, I had one or two of those, and I got more play value out of Remco’s line of the previous year, Dukes of Hazzard. Bo Duke had something like twice as many points of articulation. He could go all Chuck Norris on Sgt. Rock’s arthritic Lew Ayres. “Hold still, you dang Jap lover! I can only punch and kick in one straight line! Quit swivelin’ your pelvis, ya limber prevert!”

8) Whew! I’m sure glad my forgotten month old easter egg comment closing out #FWPodcast #75 discussion was available to salvage #78! I’m so amusing to me, I cannot tell you, not that your opinion matters, because me, me, me. I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me.*

@Kyle Benning reminds me, did that Gerry Conway documentary ever come out? I’d pay $20 for that; $30 if it ultimately topped out at 3+ hours.

*I’m getting as bad about late ’80s SNL references as Rob is with The Simpsons.

I am glad you name-checked ARGUS Shag. I have really liked that book. It reads like the Ostrander Suicide Squad a little. You are right, these are anti-heroes, doing good but for their own reasons. Trevor is a simple Rick Flag equivalent.

And Vibe was a great book with a young idealistic hero trying to figure out his place in the world.

I also loved the issue of Fury of Firestorm. There was a lot of tension as you hoped the super-hero would make an appearance while the Ronnie and Prof Stein try to be ‘everyday heroes’ and save the day.

Like Vibe, I always thought this Firestorm was still young and learning what he could do and should do. That is why I assumed he didn’t change the bombs with his powers. He was intent on getting the bombs out of the building and in that rush, didn’t think of the simpler answer of transforming them. I also think he wanted to embarrass Plastique so changing her clothes added to that effect. It is a simple mistake of a young hero, probably one he will learn from. But it makes sense that a newer hero might not be cool and collected enough to do things neater and cleaner.

Glad Fury of Firestorm will continue to be reviewed here!