Marvel Fanfare #2

I got this last summer from a dealer at NJ Gamer Con.

Title: Marvel Fanfare
Issue: 2
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Date: May, 1982
Writer: Chris Claremont, Michael Golden, Roger McKenzie
Artist: Michael Golden, Trevor Von Eeden, Armando Gil
Colorist: Michael Golden, Glynis Wein
Letterer: Joe Rosen, D. Albers
Editor: Al Milgrom

Marvel's (mostly) out-of-continuity anthology series from the 1980s had some real gems. The main feature here is a Spider-Man/Kar-Zar/Angel team-up set in the Savage Land by the team of Claremont and Golden. This was the second part of the story, and it had Angel and Spider-Man "devolved" into monsters as Kar-Zar tried to free them from the control of a group of Savage Land mutants. This had a very 1980s X-Men vibe to it, and it featured a decent amount of plot twists and left an opening for continuing the story.

The backup story is a Fantastic Four story done in the style of their early adventures in the 1960s when Reed Richards was trying to find a way to cure Ben Grimm of being The Thing. There's a recap of the FF's origin here, and solo battle between Reed and Annihilus. This was fun for the nostalgic feel.

Rating: 7/10

Life With Archie #16

Picked this one up at Barnes & Noble tonight.

Title: Life With Archie
Date: February, 2012
Publisher: Archie Comics
Writer: Paul Kupperberg
Penciler: Fernando Ruiz, Pat Kennedy, Tim Kennedy
Inker: Al Milgrom, Bob Smith
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Colorist: Glenn Whitmore
Cover: Fernando Ruiz, Bob Smith, Glenn Whitmore

The first gay marriage in the history of Archie Comics is really two marriages, thanks to the unique format of this book. Life With Archie contains two stories set in parallel, but distinct universes, one with Archie married to Veronica and one with him married to Betty.

The format allows a variety of interaction and subplots and the whole magazine-sized book manages a high degree of complexity without being inaccessible to a new reader. There are even some hints of some subtle supernatural or fantastical forces working in the background amid all of the soap opera drama between the adult versions of the Riverdale gang.

And spanning the whole thing as a single plot is the story of Kevin being wounded while serving as a US soldier in the Middle East, and eventually falling in love with a physical therapist who helps him to recover from his injuries. The action scenes are good, and the romance is handled in a way that feels real and makes sense.

I came into this with high hopes for the kind of positive story on gay marriage that we need to see more of across the spectrum of media. The handling of the marriage was excellent. The rest of the book was just as good.

Rating: 9/10