Why Is This Blog Called Key Issue Comics?

If you've been reading this blog you may be wondering, "Why the hell is it called 'Key Issue Comics?'  The only thing here is a bunch of comic reviews and links to comic related stuff."  Well, I started this blog so that I could put together lists of key issues of various comic book titles.  That was and still is my intention.  I got back into collecting comics after an absence of nearly 13 years.  Triggered primarily by a couple of articles I read about the new Wonder Woman costume and the new X-Men title.  Probably more important is that I can actually afford it now.

I enjoy reading comics and I also hope that someday someone will pay outrageous amounts of money for the ones I've collected.  So I'm always on the lookout for "REALLY good deals" on collectible books.  Like the New Mutants #98 that I found for about 80 cents.  I haven't had it graded yet but my guess is that it's probably VF/NM 9.0.  That's what I mean by really good deals.  If that book had been 40 bucks or more I probably would have passed on it.  Thanks to many generations of my family, I'm what you might call a tightwad.

Key Issues for the Mercs from Deadpool & the Mercs for Money

Deadpool & The Mercs For Money #5
Cover by Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire

Caveat to this entire post: I started writing this entry several months ago when Deadpool & the Mercs for Money was just a limited series.  I had no idea it would turn into an ongoing title with a switch in the cast. Though the new team is interesting, it has a different dynamic than Deadpool's original choices.  They definitely feel less like D-listers.  I'm also aware that Solo, Foolkiller, and Slapstick are getting solo series. Something tells me these won't be around very long.

     Deadpool is everywhere right now.  His movie just came to Blu-ray/DVD/Digital after a nice run in theaters grossing over $700 million.  He's currently starring or co-starring in at least three ongoing series and at any given time there is at least one limited series featuring Wade Wilson.  If you are a Daredevil or Power Man and Iron Fist completist with OCD, Deadpool's popularity might really be pissing you off because in order to get Daredevil issue #7.1 or Power Man and Iron Fist issue #4.1 you'll need to buy Deadpool #13 with a price tag of $9.99.  Deadpool may piss you off simply because you'll be standing in line behind at least 20 to 30 people cosplaying him at the next con that you attend.

     I, however, love Deadpool.  Is he overexposed?  Definitely.  Is Marvel trying to cash in on the movie's popularity? For sure.  Do the comics suffer for it?  Absolutely not.  Fortunately, the folks writing Deadpool currently all have the same take on him, deeply flawed but likable unwilling hero. Joe Kelly handled Deadpool in the earliest days of the character by defining him and creating much more than a Deathstroke ripoff.  Gerry Duggan has grown and refined all of the traits and flaws that fans love in addition to creating a rich supporting cast.  Finally, Cullen Bunn has given us almost every brilliant limited series starring Deadpool in the past four years.

Slapstick #1
Cover by James Fry and
 Terry Austin

     Currently in both Deadpool by Duggan and Deadpool & the Mercs for Money by Bunn, Deadpool has on his payroll a team of mercenaries from around the Marvel Universe.  I was familiar with some of these characters from past Deadpool stories, but for several of them I knew next to nothing.  I love the "Mercs".  Maybe because I can empathize with their lot in life.  They're not the most popular characters, but they've likely done quite a bit of the grunt work to get things done in the Universe that no one will ever know about.  Their boss is eccentric and doesn't always make sense, but the pay is really good so they put up with it.  They may have aspired to do something else in life, but now they have a wife, some kids, and a mortgage.  This is the story of the C students that know they'll never be Avengers and don't have time to debate the morality of profiling future criminals based on predictions of the future.  I wanted to give a little recognition to these poor guys who will never get a list of their own so I did some research on them and came up with this list of key issues for the character's that make up Deadpool's Mercs For Money:

Agent Scott Adsit

Deadpool Vol 3 #1 (2013) - 1st appearance of Agent Scott Adsit.

Foolkiller (Greg Salinger)

Sub-Mariner #19
Cover by Marie Severin,
Johnny Craig, and
Artie Simek

Omega the Unknown #9 - 1st appearance of Greg Salinger.

Defenders #74 - 75 - Battles the Defenders.

Amazing Spider-Man #225 - Thrown into a mental institution after Spider-Man stops him from killing "fools" at Empire State University.
Foolkiller #1 - 10 - Greg helps the new Foolkiller (Kurt Gerhardt) after being committed to an institution.

Masacre

Deadpool Vol 4 #3.1 - 1st appearance of Masacre.

Slapstick

Slapstick #1 - 1st appearance of Slapstick.

Solo

Web of Spider-Man #19 - 1st appearance of Solo.

St. George #2
Cover by John Muth

Stingray

Tales to Astonish #95 - 1st appearance of Walter Newell.

Sub-Mariner #19 - 1st appearance as Stingray.
Avengers #262 - Sort of joins the Avengers.  There doesn't appear to be an issue where he actually joins.  Just this one where he lets the Avengers move into his Hydro-base. Afterwards, he's kind of just around trying to please Captain America.

Terror

St. George #2 (Epic Comics) - 1st appearance as Shreck on Earth-88194.
Daredevil #305 - 1st appearance as Terror in 616 universe.

Deadpool Red Band Trailer and 1st Appearances

Though the prices are skyrocketing into bubble territory for all of these first appearances (several of these were in the $1 box just a year ago), I wanted to make a list of them just to highlight the awesome red band trailer for Deadpool.  I'm almost as excited for this movie as I was for Star Wars The Force Awakens.  In case you don't know, Deadpool was written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick who wrote the the funniest zombie movie ever, Zombieland.  The director, Tim Miller, doesn't have a long list of credits behind his name, but he did direct the opening sequence of Thor: The Dark World which is incredible.  Red Band Trailer (NSFW) below followed by the list of 1st appearances.

New Mutants #98 - 1st appearance of Deadpool. 1st appearance of Copycat posing as Domino.
X-Force #19 - 1st appearance of Copycat as Copycat.
Morlocks #1 - 1st appearance of Angel Dust.
Deadpool #14 - 1st appearance of Ajax.
Cable #3 - 1st appearance of Weasel.
New X-Men #115 - 1st appearance of Negasonic Teenage Warhead.
Giant-Size X-Men #1 - 1st appearance of Colossus.
Deadpool #1 - 1st appearance of Blind Al.

The Best Deadpool Story in Years

A handful of comic readers I know have told me that they don't like Deadpool and don't understand his appeal.  Depending on how the character is written, I can see their point.  Fortunately, for those of us who want Deadpool to be a good comic book, Brian Posehn and Gerry Duggan are evolving him into more than the one note character he has been recently.

Posehn and Duggan began sowing the seeds for "The good, the bad and the ugly" story in the issues after their first arc.  The premise is that every so often mysterious people are drugging Deadpool and harvesting his organs without his knowledge. Starting in issue #15 Deadpool decides to enlist some help and track down the folks doing this to him.  I don't want to give anything else away because it was such a good read.  The fact that I almost cried during issue #19 should suffice.  Posehn and Duggan have brought a tragic comedian sensibility to Deadpool that is perfect for the character.  The Declan Shalvey artwork is superb.  Let's hope it continues.  "The good, the bad and the ugly" runs from Deadpool #15 through #19.

I Won't Buy "Fear Itself" Comics Except These 3

Fear Itself: Deadpool cover, Ryan Stegman

At this point Marvel hasn't done a good enough marketing job to persuade me to buy any of the comics related to this year's Fear Itself event. Then they issued this press release.  Chris Hastings, the creator of Dr. McNinja, will write Fear Itself: Deadpool.  Whether or not you're a regular, occasional, or never have reader of The Adventures of Dr. McNinja, this article over at ComicsAlliance clearly demonstrates why this guy should write a Deadpool story.  Maybe not key issues, but it's always nice to see a fan/writers picking their favorite stories.

Christopher Hastings Picks Deadpool's 5 Most Awesome Moments

Key Issues - Black Tom Cassidy

Cover, Michael Ryan and Rick Ketcham

Do you like Juggernaut?  Most people do.  He's unstoppable and that has created some fantastic battle scenes against heroes like Thor, Colossus, and the Hulk.  In this post I'd like to give a little recognition to the man who is responsible for many of those battles, Black Tom Cassidy.  Tom was created by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum back in 1976.  He and Juggernaut first fought the X-Men at Cassidy Keep in X-Men #101 - 103.  Unfortunately, we only get to see Tom in issues involving either his cousins, Banshee and Siryn, or the man I can't believe is still is friend, Cain Marko.  He's primarily portrayed as a killer for hire, usually as the brains behind some plan that unleashes Juggernaut.  He hasn't shown up, except for flashbacks, since New Excalibur #13 back in 2007.  I believe there is more to Tom that would make a very interesting story and hopefully someone at Marvel will figure that out.  If you work for Marvel and you're still reading this, take a look after the list of key issues to see what you could potentially do with the character.

Key Issues - The New Mutants Volume 1

Cover by Bob McLeod

Cover, John Byrne

My entry into comic books was through the X-Men, primarily through X-Force.  Those characters will always hold a special place in my heart.  I felt a kinship with Sam Guthrie aka Canonball in that we were both from Kentucky.  Though I must admit Sam is from a little deeper in the hollow than I was.  It was nice to see a Kentucky boy who appeared to be destined for much greater things.  This is where Sam and his fellow students got their start.  While compiling this list I was amazed at how many new characters Claremont created in just a few years.  Without further ado, here's the list for key issues of The New Mutants Volume 1:

The New Mutants #1:  Origin of Karma
The New Mutants #8:  1st appearance of Amara Aquilla
The New Mutants #9:  1st appearance of Selene
The New Mutants #10:  Amara Aquilla becomes Magma after Selene pushes her into a volcano.
The New Mutants #13:  1st appearance of Doug Ramsay (Cypher)
The New Mutants #16:  1st appearance of The Hellions, 1st appearance of James Proudstar as Thunderbird (later Warpath)

Cover, Rob Liefeld

The New Mutants #18:  1st appearance of Warlock
The New Mutants #21:  Origin of Warlock
The New Mutants #25:  1st appearance of Legion (cameo)
The New Mutants #26:  1st appearance of Legion (full)
The New Mutants #29:  1st appearance of Guido (Strong Guy)
The New Mutants #35:  Magneto becomes headmaster of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters
The New Mutants #38:  Frog Thor visits Dani Moonstar
The New Mutants #60:  Death of Cypher
The New Mutants #75:  Magneto battles Sebastian Shaw. John Byrne pencils. Bob McLeod inks.
The New Mutants #86:  1st appearance of Cable (cameo)
The New Mutants #87:  1st appearance of Cable (full)
The New Mutants #95:  Death of Warlock
The New Mutants #98:  1st appearance of Deadpool, 1st appearance of Gideon, 1st appearance of Copycat (posing as Domino)
The New Mutants #100:  1st appearance of X-Force
The New Mutants Annual #1:  1st appearance of Lila Cheney
The New Mutants Annual #2:  1st US appearance of Psylocke
The New Mutants Annual #6:  1st appearance of Shatterstar
The New Mutants Special Edition:  1st appearance of Brightwind (Dani Moonstar's horse from Asgard)

Though not technically from volume 1, Marvel Graphic Novel #4: The New Mutants kicked off the entire series.  Here you'll find 1st appearances for Canonball, Dani Moonstar, Sunspot, and Rahne Sinclair (Wolfsbane).

Uncanny X-Force #4

I've mentioned before that I was away from comics for quite a few years.  One of the things that I missed during that time was the New X-Men series from Grant Morrison and Igor Kordey and with it the introduction of Fantomex.  When the new X-Force (Vol. 3) was announced, I had to do some reading on him and his background.  Even after digging through several wiki's and issue recaps I was still a little confused as far as what exactly his powers were and what the hell E.V.A. was.  Well, we're four issues into Remender and Opena's Uncanny X-Force and Fantomex is quickly becoming one of my favorite characters.

I've seen some Fantomex detractors on a few forums but this issue alone should change any doubtful minds.  Remender had me thinking that Wolverine would have to step up at the end.  And then...  Bam!  It's Fantomex that comes through.  Outside of the disturbing scene with Deadpool and Archangel, the issue was great.  Depending on what Remender has planned for later, this issue could end up being a key issue.  Of all the X-books, I've given up on everything except for Uncanny X-Men, X-Force, and X-Factor, but this series is by far the best.

Deadpool #30 & #31 (Curse of the Mutants)

Like many X-Men fans when I heard there would be a third ongoing series with X-Men in the title, I was skeptical but still had to have it.  After finishing X-Men #6, the final issue of the first arc titled "Curse of the Mutants," I have decided I no longer have to have it.  I enjoyed it, but just can't figure out where it fits with all of the other X-books.  I read an interview with Victor Gischler where he said it was supposed to tie the X-Men to the rest of the Marvel Universe.  I guess that's the case if you count Blade showing up in the first arc and in the next they will be with Spidey in NYC.  However, Fraction and Gillen have the X-Men quarantined on Utopia fighting off a mutant virus.  This isn't like the old days of Blue Team and Gold Team X-Men.  They are using the same characters with no mention of what's happening in the other books.  This is really pissing me off so I'm going to drop X-Men (Vol 3?) and pretend that it doesn't exist.

Okay so I'm moving outside of what I really wanted to tell you about which is the highlight of this 'Curse of the Mutants" arc.  Not even really a part of the story but Deadpool #30 and #31 have the "Curse of the Mutants" tag on the cover.  That's the reason I picked it up.  I normally don't read Deadpool but this story is awesome.  Wade gets hired to protect a group of vampires who didn't buy into Xarus' uniting of the vampire clans (there's the tie-in) from one of the clans who did.  Deadpool is simultaneously killing vampires and falling in love/lust with a sexy doctor who works at the hospital sitting on top of the vampire lair.  The dialogue is hilarious and there is plenty of action.  That's all I really want from a Deadpool book.  I like Deadpool the most when he's written like Evil Dead/Army of Darkness Ash.  Daniel Way has been writing Deadpool since the first issue so based on #30 and #31 looks like I've got quite a few back issues to catch up on.

Pip's Pick Up's - 12 January 2011

So I didn't actually pick up my 1/12/11 books until Friday.  Due to the snowstorm in Atlanta and Tennessee on Monday, shipments to my LCS were delayed and nothing arrived until yesterday.  Only three this week.  I was tempted to get the Spawn #200 because I had heard that it sold out in a day but decided against it.  Maybe I'll regret that in a few years.  Anyway, here's what I got:

Black Panther:  The Man Without Fear #514
Heroes For Hire #2
Deadpool #31

I'll let you know how they turn out.

Key Issues for Deadpool (Character, No Particular Volume)

Here's a nice list of "must read" Deadpool appearances in various books:

http://www.thedeadpoolsite.com/deadpool_history.aspx

Though it doesn't list key issues, another site for all things Deadpool is:

http://www.deadpoolbugle.com/

What If?

Recently I decided to start collecting all of the Marvel What If? comics. These appeal to me probably because I'm such a stickler for continuity. Let's please have continuity in the 616 universe and either make more What If books or multiverse titles.

To get started I picked up the latest three: Iron Man Demon in an Armor, Wolverine Father, and Spiderman. The standout of these three is by far Wolverine Father. The writing by Rob Williams is beautiful. It's been awhile since I read a comic that took me through such a wide range of emotions so easily in just a few pages. Though it was really brought to life by Greg Tocchini's art and Chris Sotomayor's colors. The panels of Wolverine holding the baby Daken over Itsu's body were touching. I highly recommend this one.

In a clever move on Marvel's part, there is a four part Deadpool story, "What If: The Venom Symbiote Possessed Deadpool," written by Rick Remender running through these three and next week's What If Dark Reign. This story alone is worth the 16 bucks it'll cost for all four books. This is the funniest thing I've read in a comic book in ages. Based on some of the interviews I've read Remender is big on continuity and there are loads of jokes in here about how bad it is in the Marvel universe. I hope Marvel publishes this story in maybe a thin TPB (trade paperback) so that more people will get to enjoy it.

UPDATE:  Thanks to Geek Elixir who pointed out that Marvel will release this four part Deadpool What If? series in a one-shot on 16 Feb 2011.