I don't think it's a satire of the excesses of 90s comics. If anything it felt like a tribute to all the 90s and 00s legacy characters who were swept away with the New 52 relaunch. That's why it was depressing, their inability to fulfil their potential as superheroes due to Superman's robots is a metaphor for their potential as characters being cut short by the New 52 relaunch.
And that's not even getting into the idea that superhero comics are parasites that corrupt all other superhero comics they come into contact with.
As depressing as it was, I liked the comic. It felt like Morrison doing a riff on Kingdom Come and even more its sequel, The Kingdom. Which I now realise had the same release format as Multiversity, a two part story bookending a series of one shots.
I could see it reading that way, too, and that is a more interesting way to look at it. However, I still feel like the vibe and the characterizations made for a book full of vapid, self-obsessed, spoiled characters. If this was a tribute to these characters, they don't come off as being celebrated to me. Maybe with the exception being Damien (perhaps treated most kindly as Morrison may see him as "his" character).
I like your interpretation that the reflection is more about the next generation of heroes being kept eternally adolescent because they never get out of the shadow of the never-aging characters in their prime. But even if there is that good, meta-textual reason for most of these characters being the way they were, they will still unpleasant to spend time with. It still felt like this was a comic about characters that shouldn't be the way they are, and therefore a commentary on them, and a story coming from a place of judgment.
I don't think it's a satire of the excesses of 90s comics. If anything it felt like a tribute to all the 90s and 00s legacy characters who were swept away with the New 52 relaunch. That's why it was depressing, their inability to fulfil their potential as superheroes due to Superman's robots is a metaphor for their potential as characters being cut short by the New 52 relaunch.
And that's not even getting into the idea that superhero comics are parasites that corrupt all other superhero comics they come into contact with.
As depressing as it was, I liked the comic. It felt like Morrison doing a riff on Kingdom Come and even more its sequel, The Kingdom. Which I now realise had the same release format as Multiversity, a two part story bookending a series of one shots.
The Just was my least favorite so far. I feel like this one, as it feels like it was written to be a satire of the worst excesses of 90s comics combined with the worst excesses of current navel gazing social media and celebrity culture. Unlike the first two issues, which felt like they were created with the excitement of "this is stuff I LOVE!" this was written to slosh around in things that were to be judged and hated. And I agree with @Brack that the results are depressing. The first two issues gave me characters and Earths (in combination with creative teams) I wished I could read every month. This one i was glad to finish and get away from.
I hope more of the issues ahead are explorations of the places that Morrison and the different artists WANT to be, rather than as commentary on how comics and superheroes shouldn't be.
The Just reminds me of when I watch an actor (usually a younger or less experienced one) play a character that you know they themselves judge and hate. Their performance becomes their commentary on a kind of person, rather than an embodied, fully formed, and honest performance of an individual. That is what this issue reminded me of. That kind of judgmental, outside of it, at-arms-length performance.
This issue makes me even more wary of what he is going to do with the Charlton heroes Earth, as I am guessing that will be written more like this issue than the Society issue. But, we'll see.
I don't think it's a satire of the excesses of 90s comics. If anything it felt like a tribute to all the 90s and 00s legacy characters who were swept away with the New 52 relaunch. That's why it was depressing, their inability to fulfil their potential as superheroes due to Superman's robots is a metaphor for their potential as characters being cut short by the New 52 relaunch.
And that's not even getting into the idea that superhero comics are parasites that corrupt all other superhero comics they come into contact with.
As depressing as it was, I liked the comic. It felt like Morrison doing a riff on Kingdom Come and even more its sequel, The Kingdom. Which I now realise had the same release format as Multiversity, a two part story bookending a series of one shots.
I think you're both correct. it's an odd read, because on one hand there's an obvious affection and nod to the idea of legacy. Something that I desperately miss. And, on the other hand there's a distaste for the angst ridden, self loathing that was the hallmark of 90's prime time soaps. After reading the book, my first thought was "DCU 90210". Like Brack, I liked the book. I think my pining for the "good old days" of Wally & Connor & Kyle may have clouded my judgement. However, I hope that the other issues read more like SOS.
Thanks for posting this. I had intended on going back and reading The Just again and the background on characters like Chris Kent will add to the experience.
While Pax Americana was technically more impressive, Thunderworld Adventures is my favourite of the Multiversity titles so far. The fact it works as a both a straight ahead Captain Marvel adventure AND a clear, pointed critique of DC Comics' handling of the character, is a wonder to behold.
While Pax Americana was technically more impressive, Thunderworld Adventures is my favourite of the Multiversity titles so far. The fact it works as a both a straight ahead Captain Marvel adventure AND a clear, pointed critique of DC Comics' handling of the character, is a wonder to behold.
After reading Morrison's Billy Batson in Superman Beyond, I just knew that he would nail a "straight ahead" Captain Marvel story. CAN NOT WAIT TO READ THIS!
It is really going to be a bummer when Multiversity stops.
I also really loved Thunderworld. I am generally not a big Marvel Family reader, so there may be some nuances that I missed, but it felt like Morrison and Stewart were really on, and telling a story that was completely immersed in what is fun and great about the world of those characters but still felt like Morrison was writing in his own voice.
Which was not the case with Pax Americana. To be clear, I still enjoyed it, and totally feel like I got my money's worth from it. Great seeing Quitely and Morrison together again and that money was "on the screen". It was a really skillful comic. But it also felt like a parody. And parody is a pretty low form, in my opinion. I would have loved to see what Morrison and Quitely would do envisioning a world of Charlton characters. Maybe their own take. But this issue was basically 'let's visit planet Watchmen', starring the originals they were based on. And that's fine, if they wanted to tell a Watchmen-y story. But I feel like there was some mockery or insult intended in the way that they also parodied the storytelling style of Watchmen. Like the scene or page transitions.
And it could be that part of this is because I am coming to this with the knowledge of what Morrison has said and written about Moore, and his takedowns of Watchmen, but it took me out of the story. It felt as if he was saying, 'Look. I'm writing Watchmen. It's not so hard! Oh, look. More clever Watchmen stuff, here on Earth-Dark and Clever.'
So, as I expected, Pax Romana felt not like he was immersed in something he likes or enjoys, but instead was him imitating something he doesn't like, writing from the spleen. And that makes it less enjoyable to read. In that way, an opposite of Thunderworld or Secret Society.
Which was not the case with Pax Americana. To be clear, I still enjoyed it, and totally feel like I got my money's worth from it. Great seeing Quitely and Morrison together again and that money was "on the screen". It was a really skillful comic. But it also felt like a parody. And parody is a pretty low form, in my opinion. I would have loved to see what Morrison and Quitely would do envisioning a world of Charlton characters. Maybe their own take. But this issue was basically 'let's visit planet Watchmen', starring the originals they were based on. And that's fine, if they wanted to tell a Watchmen-y story. But I feel like there was some mockery or insult intended in the way that they also parodied the storytelling style of Watchmen. Like the scene or page transitions.
And it could be that part of this is because I am coming to this with the knowledge of what Morrison has said and written about Moore, and his takedowns of Watchmen, but it took me out of the story. It felt as if he was saying, 'Look. I'm writing Watchmen. It's not so hard! Oh, look. More clever Watchmen stuff, here on Earth-Dark and Clever.'
So, as I expected, Pax Romana felt not like he was immersed in something he likes or enjoys, but instead was him imitating something he doesn't like, writing from the spleen. And that makes it less enjoyable to read. In that way, an opposite of Thunderworld or Secret Society.
Couldn't agree more. Really hard not to read it without the knowledge of their (Moore/Morrison) public, and publicised, disagreements.
I took a big break from reading this series after Society of Super Heroes. It was the book I was most looking forward to given the pulp theme, so I kind of lagged on the three new releases. Last night I started from scratch and read them all in successive order.
The Multiversity: This is one crazy book, I love Ivan Reis and it was a treat to see him draw so many different characters. Loved the action scenes on Earth 7 and Earth 8.
The Society of Super-Heroes: I think I like this even more the second time through. Out of all of the one-shots so far, this is the Earth I want to read more about. I liked the more overt, and subtle pulp themes in this issue.
The Just: I thought this was pretty good, wasn't expecting much from it, but as usual you can count on Morrison for some cool concepts. Kon El turning into a Bizzarro, as..he's a Superman clone after all. I also think the reference to the Grey Lady is the character from the Multiversity referred to as Dame Merciless.
Pax Americana: I really enjoyed this, felt like I was reading a new issue of Watchmen. Loved how they aped the style of Watchmen, from the page compositions, to using Captain Adam's fourth dimensional existence.
Thunderworld Adventures:This was what a Captain Marvel book should be, fun, colorful, and a cool ending. Although that Psycho Sivana who seems to be fixated on Mary Marvel kind of scares me.
Regarding Thunderworld Adventures. I especially liked the little tweak that Morrison gave DC in making the Shivana Family's magic word and their name the same.
Regarding Thunderworld Adventures. I especially liked the little tweak that Morrison gave DC in making the Shivana Family's magic word and their name the same.
Bad idea, DC.
I don't know my Marvel Family history that well-- I feel like there is a layer to this I am missing? I took it to be a facet of Silvana's megalomania. But is there another meta twist to this?
Regarding Thunderworld Adventures. I especially liked the little tweak that Morrison gave DC in making the Sivana Family's magic word and their name the same.
Bad idea, DC.
I don't know my Marvel Family history that well-- I feel like there is a layer to this I am missing? I took it to be a facet of Sivana's megalomania. But is there another meta twist to this?
Historically, it was the joke concerning Captain Marvel Jr. The character's magic word being "Captain Marvel" meant the he couldn't tell people his name. DC continued this history with the character when they gave Freeman the "lead" roll in the Marvel Family during Trials of SHAZAM. The character being called Shazam and his magic word being SHAZAM. And now, you have the New52 Billy Batson saddled with his name and magic word being the same. Perhaps @nweathington can chime in and add more historical context. I took what Morrison did in Thunderworld Adventures as him giving an example as to why this isn't a good idea. Hope I didn't ramble on too much. It's very early.
Edit; I should have mentioned that in the GA Captain Marvel Jr. stories, the stories themselves don't mention or reference the awkwardness of name=magic word. As I recall, Jr. typically didn't reference himself at all. There was always someone on panel saying, "Hey look, it's Captain Marvel Jr." as the hero made his entrance. I can't think of Jr. referencing himself until the Power of SHAZAM series when he tags himself "CM3".
Regarding Thunderworld Adventures. I especially liked the little tweak that Morrison gave DC in making the Sivana Family's magic word and their name the same.
Bad idea, DC.
I don't know my Marvel Family history that well-- I feel like there is a layer to this I am missing? I took it to be a facet of Sivana's megalomania. But is there another meta twist to this?
Historically, it was the joke concerning Captain Marvel Jr. The character's magic word being "Captain Marvel" meant the he couldn't tell people his name. DC continued this history with the character when they gave Freeman the "lead" roll in the Marvel Family during Trials of SHAZAM. The character being called Shazam and his magic word being SHAZAM. And now, you have the New52 Billy Batson saddled with his name and magic word being the same. Perhaps @nweathington can chime in and add more historical context. I took what Morrison did in Thunderworld Adventures as him giving an example as to why this isn't a good idea. Hope I didn't ramble on too much. It's very early.
The Just: Not my favorite, but not bad. I'm going to leave it there.
Pax Americana: My only real problem with this issue is that it feels like a Reader’s Digest version of a Watchmen take-off. Grant matches the panel-to-panel pacing of Watchmen, but at the same time it’s like he’s taking bits and pieces from an eight-issue series to make one 40-page story. I’m all for compressed storytelling, but to me this issue felt like there were pages/scenes missing. All the other Multiversity books felt like a random issue of a comic book series and not an entire story arc, and I wish he had kept that approach here.
I think Grant was relying on the reader’s memory of Watchmen to “fill in the gaps” as it were, and I found it to be distracting. I wanted to read Multiversity, not Watchmen. Granted, meta-fiction requires the reader to step out of the story on some level, but this was a bit too specific in its approach for me, if that makes sense.
Thunderworld Adventures: As I projected, my favorite issue so far. I mean, it didn't quite capture the tone of the Fawcett stories, but it wasn’t too far off.
Regarding Thunderworld Adventures. I especially liked the little tweak that Morrison gave DC in making the Shivana Family's magic word and their name the same.
Bad idea, DC.
I don't know my Marvel Family history that well-- I feel like there is a layer to this I am missing? I took it to be a facet of Silvana's megalomania. But is there another meta twist to this?
I don't think this was a meta-fiction decision, but rather comic book logic. Sivana is duplicating the wizard’s magic, but whereas Shazam is the source of the Marvel Family’s power, the Multi-Sivanas are the source of the Sivana Family’s power. Sivana just did too accurate a job of duplicating the magic for his own good. It's exactly the sort of result you would expect from one of Sivana’s evil schemes.
Comments
I like your interpretation that the reflection is more about the next generation of heroes being kept eternally adolescent because they never get out of the shadow of the never-aging characters in their prime. But even if there is that good, meta-textual reason for most of these characters being the way they were, they will still unpleasant to spend time with. It still felt like this was a comic about characters that shouldn't be the way they are, and therefore a commentary on them, and a story coming from a place of judgment.
it's an odd read, because on one hand there's an obvious affection and nod to the idea of legacy. Something that I desperately miss. And, on the other hand there's a distaste for the angst ridden, self loathing that was the hallmark of 90's prime time soaps.
After reading the book, my first thought was "DCU 90210".
Like Brack, I liked the book. I think my pining for the "good old days" of Wally & Connor & Kyle may have clouded my judgement. However, I hope that the other issues read more like SOS.
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2014/10/30/go-on-lets-have-an-annotated-reading-of-multiversity-the-just/
CAN NOT WAIT TO READ THIS!
I also really loved Thunderworld. I am generally not a big Marvel Family reader, so there may be some nuances that I missed, but it felt like Morrison and Stewart were really on, and telling a story that was completely immersed in what is fun and great about the world of those characters but still felt like Morrison was writing in his own voice.
Which was not the case with Pax Americana. To be clear, I still enjoyed it, and totally feel like I got my money's worth from it. Great seeing Quitely and Morrison together again and that money was "on the screen". It was a really skillful comic. But it also felt like a parody. And parody is a pretty low form, in my opinion. I would have loved to see what Morrison and Quitely would do envisioning a world of Charlton characters. Maybe their own take. But this issue was basically 'let's visit planet Watchmen', starring the originals they were based on. And that's fine, if they wanted to tell a Watchmen-y story. But I feel like there was some mockery or insult intended in the way that they also parodied the storytelling style of Watchmen. Like the scene or page transitions.
And it could be that part of this is because I am coming to this with the knowledge of what Morrison has said and written about Moore, and his takedowns of Watchmen, but it took me out of the story. It felt as if he was saying, 'Look. I'm writing Watchmen. It's not so hard! Oh, look. More clever Watchmen stuff, here on Earth-Dark and Clever.'
So, as I expected, Pax Romana felt not like he was immersed in something he likes or enjoys, but instead was him imitating something he doesn't like, writing from the spleen. And that makes it less enjoyable to read. In that way, an opposite of Thunderworld or Secret Society.
The Multiversity: This is one crazy book, I love Ivan Reis and it was a treat to see him draw so many different characters. Loved the action scenes on Earth 7 and Earth 8.
The Society of Super-Heroes: I think I like this even more the second time through. Out of all of the one-shots so far, this is the Earth I want to read more about. I liked the more overt, and subtle pulp themes in this issue.
The Just: I thought this was pretty good, wasn't expecting much from it, but as usual you can count on Morrison for some cool concepts. Kon El turning into a Bizzarro, as..he's a Superman clone after all. I also think the reference to the Grey Lady is the character from the Multiversity referred to as Dame Merciless.
Pax Americana: I really enjoyed this, felt like I was reading a new issue of Watchmen. Loved how they aped the style of Watchmen, from the page compositions, to using Captain Adam's fourth dimensional existence.
Thunderworld Adventures:This was what a Captain Marvel book should be, fun, colorful, and a cool ending. Although that Psycho Sivana who seems to be fixated on Mary Marvel kind of scares me.
Bad idea, DC.
Perhaps @nweathington can chime in and add more historical context. I took what Morrison did in Thunderworld Adventures as him giving an example as to why this isn't a good idea.
Hope I didn't ramble on too much. It's very early.
Edit;
I should have mentioned that in the GA Captain Marvel Jr. stories, the stories themselves don't mention or reference the awkwardness of name=magic word. As I recall, Jr. typically didn't reference himself at all. There was always someone on panel saying, "Hey look, it's Captain Marvel Jr." as the hero made his entrance. I can't think of Jr. referencing himself until the Power of SHAZAM series when he tags himself "CM3".
The Just: Not my favorite, but not bad. I'm going to leave it there.
Pax Americana: My only real problem with this issue is that it feels like a Reader’s Digest version of a Watchmen take-off. Grant matches the panel-to-panel pacing of Watchmen, but at the same time it’s like he’s taking bits and pieces from an eight-issue series to make one 40-page story. I’m all for compressed storytelling, but to me this issue felt like there were pages/scenes missing. All the other Multiversity books felt like a random issue of a comic book series and not an entire story arc, and I wish he had kept that approach here.
I think Grant was relying on the reader’s memory of Watchmen to “fill in the gaps” as it were, and I found it to be distracting. I wanted to read Multiversity, not Watchmen. Granted, meta-fiction requires the reader to step out of the story on some level, but this was a bit too specific in its approach for me, if that makes sense.
Thunderworld Adventures: As I projected, my favorite issue so far. I mean, it didn't quite capture the tone of the Fawcett stories, but it wasn’t too far off. I don't think this was a meta-fiction decision, but rather comic book logic. Sivana is duplicating the wizard’s magic, but whereas Shazam is the source of the Marvel Family’s power, the Multi-Sivanas are the source of the Sivana Family’s power. Sivana just did too accurate a job of duplicating the magic for his own good. It's exactly the sort of result you would expect from one of Sivana’s evil schemes.