REVIEW: Howard the Duck, #1

[gdawz]

I really want to hear from readers who read and enjoyed Steve Gerber's (early) HTD. Didn't buy this because I've been so deeply disappointed with Marvel's treatment of Howard since then and really don't want to 'suffer' again. I'm mostly talking about respect for the character-- and while I'm glad he's finding a new audience, I'd like to hear from his first fans before I add a third Marvel title to my list, thanks!

Matt - Having just read the issue, and being a big Gerber fan, this issue hit a bad note from literally the first panel due to this narration from Zdarsky's version of Howard: "The Quacking Pumpkins once sang, "Despite all my rage, I'm still just a hairless ape in a cage." " Gerber was very clear that he thought the concept of Howard's home being a duck version of our world ('Duckworld,' where, for example, our celebrities have fowl-themed names) was a stupid and obvious idea, and I agree... and thus thought it was immediately a face-palm to go for this joke. While elsewhere in the issue, Zdarsky and Quinones definitely establish some fun stuff and found a good setup for a quirky character, it still doesn't feel like Howard; as said in the other reply, the humor's a bit forced, even moving past that initial gaff. HTD is a tough character to get right because he's not just a curmudgeon and he's not *exclusively* just a vehicle for satire, but those are the easiest traits to embellish.

To me, the best modern take on Howard was via Fred Van Lente's use of the character in Marvel Zombies. Even though that series went on for longer than anyone was expecting, the sudden appearance of the Duck there really matched the "what the Hell is going on?" randomness of Howard's original appearances in Man-Thing, and Lente seemed to get the put-upon voice of the character.

[sax]

Not feeling this, at all.