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  1. #1
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    Default Why is it that a number of Marvel titles just seem boring nowadays?

    Seriously, a lot of Marvel titles feel so decompressed that they flat out become boring. Thor and Black Panther are prime examples of this. It’s like writers took the Bendis approach and ran with it without Bendis “wit” that keeps some of the books interesting within the decompression. Coates Black Panther reads like prose that was crammed into a Marvel comic and Cates Thor is regurgitating past storylines while stuck in a holding pattern of nothingness.

    Even besides the decompression, some titles nowadays are just so dull that’s it’s hard to get into them.

    I really struggled with GoTG and dropped it after its first arc, Slott’s FF has been dull (which is a bit of surprise considering how fast and snappy his past work was), Avengers has been all action but when said action doesn’t make sense, it just loses me as a reader. Cantwell’s Iron Man is terribly and unnecessarily decompressed (we didn’t need a full Hellcat issue and Tony’s side quest into the alien planet didn’t need multiple issues) and Saladin Ahmed’s Miles Morales isn’t as good as Bendis’s. Outside of this, some X-titles like X-Corp and Excalibur are also boring and the last Cable run was an utter failure IMO.

    That’s not to say all Marvel titles are bad. I’ve enjoyed Spencer’s Spider-man and Immortal Hulk has been brilliant. Captain Marvel’s current run has been much better than what’s come before and Gillen’s Eternal is probably one of the better books on the stands. The main X-book has been good and X-Force and Wolverine not far behind.

    I think writers sometimes need to understand that for its cost and length, the Jim Shooter/ Stan Lee classic Marvel approach is preferable. An issue should have a complete story i.e a beginning, middle and end. Yes, with serialization this could be a challenge but writing a title for trades alone (it seems it’s gone from writing for a single trade to writing for TWO trades) creates rather uninteresting comics.

  2. #2
    Leftbrownie Alpha's Avatar
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    I'm sure that's necessarily true. But then again, I read a lot more DC than Marvel. It's probably just about what you're picking up. When I was reading Hickman's X-men there were dozens of new threads with every issue of the book, but it always felt like major events had taken place by the end of the story, even if it was just the beginning.
    Last edited by Alpha; 09-18-2021 at 08:07 AM.

  3. #3
    small press afficionado matt levin's Avatar
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    For me it's due their seemingly run out of characterization, dropping the 'who they are' for bigger, vaster 'special effects/events' neglecting actual human interactions on the smaller, personal scale. And, yes, for me, too, the six-issue (or longer) single story has become so much the norm that the single-issue emotional grabber of a story seems a forgotten, lost art. Must admit I moved on from almost all Marvel and nearly all DC long, long ago.
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  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by matt levin View Post
    For me it's due their seemingly run out of characterization, dropping the 'who they are' for bigger, vaster 'special effects/events' neglecting actual human interactions on the smaller, personal scale. And, yes, for me, too, the six-issue (or longer) single story has become so much the norm that the single-issue emotional grabber of a story seems a forgotten, lost art. Must admit I moved on from almost all Marvel and nearly all DC long, long ago.
    I’m pretty much moving on from most Marvel and DC stuff too.

  5. #5
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    I agree with your views on Coates, Cates and Ewing on BP, Thor and GOTG but it is funny that I felt the opposite from you with Spencer's run on ASM, Ewing's Immortal Hulk and Gillen on Eternals. Their writing on these titles TO ME has been mind-numbingly dull but I know a lot of ppl enjoy their runs
    Last edited by Tofali; 09-18-2021 at 02:02 PM.
    "Dedra Meero is not just a woman in a men’s world, but a fascist in a world of fascists.” - Denise Gough

  6. #6
    Astonishing Member Captain M's Avatar
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    I've come to the realization a couple years ago that Marvel stories are just irrelevant. Creative teams will always keep replacing creative teams, this is an ongoing line but it's not some overarching story. Characters hardly ever carry any development or change that have occurred in their stories. It just simply does not matter what any writer does with a character because the next one might just ignore it, and if they don't, the next one surely will. Nothing matters in marvel comics and I've long stopped consuming marvel comics to satisfy my need for well crafted stories and characters. I just read whatever my favorite appears in, which is hardly anything, and that's it.

    Pick up independent comics or manga or novels if you want to read things that actually matter at all

  7. #7
    You guessed it mr_crisp's Avatar
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    Could it be burnout?
    The Gypsies had no home. The Doors had no bass.

    Does our reality determine our fiction or does our fiction determine our reality?

    Whenever the question comes up about who some mysterious person is or who is behind something the answer will always be Frank Stallone.

    "This isn't a locking the barn doors after the horses ran way situation this is a burn the barn down after the horses ran away situation."

  8. #8
    Moderator Frontier's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Captain M View Post
    I've come to the realization a couple years ago that Marvel stories are just irrelevant. Creative teams will always keep replacing creative teams, this is an ongoing line but it's not some overarching story. Characters hardly ever carry any development or change that have occurred in their stories. It just simply does not matter what any writer does with a character because the next one might just ignore it, and if they don't, the next one surely will. Nothing matters in marvel comics and I've long stopped consuming marvel comics to satisfy my need for well crafted stories and characters. I just read whatever my favorite appears in, which is hardly anything, and that's it.

    Pick up independent comics or manga or novels if you want to read things that actually matter at all
    Well, this wasn't always the case with the line even if it's become more of an issue with modern Big Two comics, but "creative teams replacing creative teams" wasn't so much a problem because they would build on what came before and introduce new stuff which lead to some great comics and stories.

    Of course sometimes writers go so far that you need a creative overhaul or cleansing when the next writer takes over.

  9. #9
    Astonishing Member Anthony W's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Captain M View Post
    I've come to the realization a couple years ago that Marvel stories are just irrelevant. Creative teams will always keep replacing creative teams, this is an ongoing line but it's not some overarching story. Characters hardly ever carry any development or change that have occurred in their stories. It just simply does not matter what any writer does with a character because the next one might just ignore it, and if they don't, the next one surely will. Nothing matters in marvel comics and I've long stopped consuming marvel comics to satisfy my need for well crafted stories and characters. I just read whatever my favorite appears in, which is hardly anything, and that's it.

    Pick up independent comics or manga or novels if you want to read things that actually matter at all
    The problem is a mix of too many comics and too few editors, and the editors aren't very good. As for decompression, in this day and age where other forms of entertainment are vying for my attention at a better price point I find it strange that some people are still trying to use decompression at Marvel or DC.
    Last edited by Anthony W; 09-18-2021 at 04:13 PM.
    "The Marvel EIC Chair has a certain curse that goes along with it: it tends to drive people insane, and ultimately, out of the business altogether. It is the notorious last stop for many staffers, as once you've sat in The Big Chair, your pariah status is usually locked in." Christopher Priest

  10. #10
    see beauty in all things. charliehustle415's Avatar
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    "Why is it that a number of Marvel titles just seem boring nowadays?"

    personal taste.

  11. #11
    Cosmic Curmudgeon JudicatorPrime's Avatar
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    You've gotta love potatoes if you're going to be a comics reader.

    Why?

    Because readers evolve beyond the content that creators provide all of the time. Their need to entertain you comes second to the almighty dollar. They'll keep telling the same type of stories with the same characters because it maximizes profit.

    But you don't necessarily care about that. You want them to grow with you, to change things up, to stop feeding you the same, predictable entrée. They, on the other hand, would rather just reimagine, repackage and rebrand, ultimately feeding you more and more helpings of the same thing.

    Hash browned, mashed, French fried, or scalloped, it's all just variations on a theme. Enjoy those Marvel spuds, folks. After all, they're only serving them up, because so many of you ironically kept feeding the beast.

  12. #12
    You guessed it mr_crisp's Avatar
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    You need to add 'appreciation' to your post's title.
    The Gypsies had no home. The Doors had no bass.

    Does our reality determine our fiction or does our fiction determine our reality?

    Whenever the question comes up about who some mysterious person is or who is behind something the answer will always be Frank Stallone.

    "This isn't a locking the barn doors after the horses ran way situation this is a burn the barn down after the horses ran away situation."

  13. #13
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    Because Marvel comics lost the map plot a long time ago. The better question is, when last did a marvel comic in the space of the last 10 years earn the right to become an all time classic as many of their bronze age of comics or 90s classics? if no one can name any, than the answer is pretty clear.

    Also does marvel even put in any real effort anymore in story telling comics? their movies did take 99% of all the priority. Hickman's X-MEN Krakoa run made a lot of noise in the last 2-3 years and has been hailed as the best marvel run in a long time but how much of that is true and how much of that is just the media and some critics projecting the classic Morrsion , Whedon and Claremont era to Hickman's run to hype it all up?

    the best way to love marvel comics is to read their classics only and even some of the 2000s guilty pleasure.
    Last edited by Castle; 09-18-2021 at 06:26 PM.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Castle View Post
    Because Marvel comics lost the map plot a long time ago. The better question is, when last did a marvel comic in the space of the last 10 years earn the right to become an all time classic as many of their bronze age of comics or 90s classics? if no one can name any, than the answer is pretty clear.

    Also does marvel even put in any real effort anymore in story telling comics? their movies did take 99% of all the priority. Hickman's X-MEN Krakoa run made a lot of noise in the last 2-3 years and has been hailed as the best marvel run in a long time but how much of that is true and how much of that is just the media and some critics projecting the classic Morrsion , Whedon and Claremont era to Hickman's run to hype it all up?

    the best way to love marvel comics is to read their classics only and even some of the 2000s guilty pleasure.



    I actually think I'm getting there.

    But I've enjoyed the Hickman X-men run though.

    It's been a breath of fresh air.

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by charliehustle415 View Post
    "Why is it that a number of Marvel titles just seem boring nowadays?"

    personal taste.
    Yeah...I think I'm getting old.

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