There are some Bigfoot problems that hit harder than others — and for certain legendary figures, male pattern baldness anxiety isn’t just about looks… it’s about legacy. Today’s comic imagines what happens when one very famous cryptid starts wondering if his myth might not survive a receding hairline.
What I’m Watching: Invincible, JJK, and the Great Animation Trade-Off
I’ve been watching Invincible with my sons, and I’ve got… thoughts.
First off: the story? Very, very good. Genuinely compelling stuff — even though the violence and gore is way past my personal comfort range. I'm not super comfortable with one character shooting another. The stuff that happens on a median-level episode of Invincible is a real challenge for me.
As someone who does NSFW comics, I'm constantly amazed at how perfectly acceptable Invincible is... yet an animated series based on Phil Foglio's XXXenophile would have people losing their ever-loving minds.
Further, it's a little disappointing to go from watching Jujutsu Kaisen (which we're also following at the moment) to watching Invincible.
JJK features jaw-dropping visuals and animation that constantly raises the bar episode after episode. It's phenomenal.
On the other side of the spectrum, Invincible clearly put all of its budget into getting celebrity voice talent. Some of them are very good.
I just wish a few of those Amazon dollars had been spent on the animation. Some of the scenes are pretty clearly PNGs that get enlarged to show an object moving through space, and it's a goddamned embarrassment.
But the story itself is very, very good.
Taking stock of super-villains
Green Goblin: Stormin’ Norman Osborn has been on a delicious slow burn since the start of the post-Registration Act Thunderbolts. With Warren Ellis taking the helm of the title, Osborn has been handled with tremendous aplomb.
In
Thunderbolts #120, Osborn makes the long-awaited transformation into the Green Goblin. After the last issue, in which Norman single-handedly wiped the floor with former Masters of Evil alumni Tiger Shark, Cyclone and Mister Hyde, I was beginning to wonder if Norman was ever going to don the classic Goblin gear. After he explained his super-strength by mentioning bio-engineering, I was starting to expect some sort of mutation into a new goblinesque creature.
Seeing the latest incarnation of the Green Goblin costume (he refers to it as his “kit” in a wonderfully written passage), I’m very happy that didn’t happen.
I don’t think anyone writes the demented madman Osborn as well as Ellis. The first few pages of #120 are nothing but Norman ranting to himself in a nut-job rage. Click on the thumbnails below to read several of the choicest pages in the intro. Here are a few quotes:
— “Norman Osborn. America’s Last Hero. That’s what I am.”
— “I’m so glad I never washed this particular costume. Smells like death, blondes and victory.”
— “‘So says President Goblin!’ … Actually, that’s a bit more Doctor Doom isn’t it?”
— “Note to self: Give naked dictation more often. The ideas seem to flow more freely.”
— Brad Guigar
(If you have a suggestion for “TWiV,” please e-mail me.)
