What Are Your Thoughts on Kate Spencer Manhunter?

[Big Bad Voodoo Lou]

I know I read the first TPBs and some random other issues many years ago, but barely remember anything from them. I recently found volumes 1 and 5 at Ollie's Bargain Outlet and bought them. I'm not sure how much I'll like the series, but the talk in this thread is making me more enthusiastic. I'd love to get volumes 2-4 at those deep Ollie's discounts. If anyone is on the fence, check your local Ollie's, because you might find those and a lot more at clearance prices.

[married guy]

Respectfully disagree. The Archie Goodwin/Walt Simonson Manhunter series will NEVER be surpassed in terms of quality (in my opinion, of course). For those of you too young to have seen this when it first came out, it has been reprinted numerous times and you should have no problem scoring a copy.

Testify!!!

It's definitely worth every cent. I got the Special Edition trade from 1999 for peanuts.

[Stanlos]

Manhunter has been described as a "critically acclaimed" and "fan favorite book". What makes this the case?

This was excellent! When they were discussing the whole DCEU and HBO MAX thing I thought her series and Gotham Central were natural and cheap ways to build the world and develop compelling streaming content

[Stanlos]

Solid series, best take on Manhunter.

And it smartly utilized the rich and complex history of the character rather than viewing it as a problem and being dismissive. It made for a stellar reading experience

[OBrianTallent]

On a related note...what has Javier Pina been up to lately? His work was beautiful on the series.

[Timothy Hunter]

Respectfully disagree. The Archie Goodwin/Walt Simonson Manhunter series will NEVER be surpassed in terms of quality (in my opinion, of course). For those of you too young to have seen this when it first came out, it has been reprinted numerous times and you should have no problem scoring a copy.

I do think the Goodwin/Simonson iteration is better, although it's hard to compare the two runs because the Paul Kirk Manhunter is oriented primarily around the art while the Kate Spencer Manhunter is chiefly a writer-centric comic.

[K7P5V]

Testify!!!

It's definitely worth every cent. I got the Special Edition trade from 1999 for peanuts.

Agreed. Along with Simonson's artwork, I loved the shiny/gold cover...

[j9ac9k]

I do think the Goodwin/Simonson iteration is better, although it's hard to compare the two runs because the Paul Kirk Manhunter is oriented primarily around the art while the Kate Spencer Manhunter is chiefly a writer-centric comic.

It's apples and oranges in my mind. Different characters, different ideas and tone. The name Manhunter is the only thing in common. Also, the Goodwin story was one complete story and written as such. Kate's Manhunter was a monthly serial.

[Big Bad Voodoo Lou]

I bought Manhunter Volumes 2, 3, and 4 on Friday, so I can finally read the whole series now. I already read Volume 1, so I look forward to seeing where it goes next.

[Stanlos]

It's apples and oranges in my mind. Different characters, different ideas and tone. The name Manhunter is the only thing in common. Also, the Goodwin story was one complete story and written as such. Kate's Manhunter was a monthly serial.

Didn't Kate's Manhunter use some of the items previous Manhunter's gear?

[Thirteen]

Kate Spencer felt like a Marvel character in the DC universe. The comparisons to Jessica Jones are pretty accurate in tone.

[Big Bad Voodoo Lou]

Kate Spencer felt like a Marvel character in the DC universe. The comparisons to Jessica Jones are pretty accurate in tone.

Makes sense. She smoked, cursed, and was sometimes unlikable. Marc Andreyko is a friend and collaborator of Brian Bendis, and Jessica's co-creator and artist Michael Gaydos drew some of the later Manhunter issues.

[MajorHoy]

From Manhunter #1 (October 2004);


To be continued . . .

[MajorHoy]

From Manhunter #1 (October 2004)
-------------------------------------
To be continued . . .

To be continued . . .

[kcekada]

Kate Spencer isn't the greatest super-hero, but her book was so well-written that she probably gets more acclaim than she's due. As far a superhero, I found her very generic. But her stories were very well-written, and her characterization was superb.

My favorite Manhunter will always been the Goodwin/Simonson version -- even though as a kid in the 70s, I never read his stories in the back of Detective. They were a bit too stylized for my tastes back then (ahead of their time).