Hardy/Thompson Family Tree *Redux*

Now's as good a time as any to put out a new-ish family tree. This time we'll be revisiting and expanding on my previous entry to cover the Hardy's and Thompson's extended family. Both Felicia Hardy and Flash Thompson play significant roles in the Spider-Man mythos so it would be a disservice not to cover them with a bit more detail, even in this MC2-centric series.

First we have Eugene Thompson, better known as Flash who first appeared way back in Amazing Fantasy #15. Flash's initial role in early Spider-Man stories was that of an antagonist to Peter Parker and Number One Fan to Pete's alter ego Spider-Man. Over the years, Thompson's character would grow in depth, becoming a good friend to Peter. We'd learn much more about who he was and why he behaved the way he did.

We'd learn about Flash's family life for the first time in a backup story from Amazing Spider-Man #372. It's here that Flash tells Peter that his father was an intelligent and studious man who was always disappointed in his son and didn't care for his athletic talents. According to Flash, his father died of a heart attack years prior.

The issue with this backup lies in the subsequent stories that feature Flash's family. In the Untold Tales of Spider-Man #19, we see a young Peter Parker meet Sergeant Thompson who kindly takes Peter to socialize with his son Flash.

 So, Mr Thompson seems to be not only different from how Flash described him, but very much alive. Over in Spectacular Spider-Man #248-250 and Spectacular Spider-Man #-1 we learn that Flash's father, Harrison Thompson was an alcoholic who abused his children -Flash and Jesse- while his wife, Rosie Thompson struggled to keep up the pretence the family was supportive and happy in an attempt to prevent Harrison doing further harm to himself and his children. Spectacular Spider-Man #-1  shows Harrison in a somewhat more well-rounded if not sympathetic light, with his alcoholism clearly causing self-loathing after his violent outbursts.  We also learn that Flash would act out as a result of both his father's violence and self-pity and his mother's inability to address the family's problem.

Lining up with this story, we get another appearance of Sergeant Harrison in Untold Tales of Spider-Man #24, this time demonstrating his drinking habits, which coupled with Spectacular Spider-Man #-1 also integrated the police sergeant aspect into Harrison's story, combined the two separate series' depictions into one.

Through these far more extensive appearances in two separate series, both separated in-continuity by around a decade, it seems obvious the backup story from Amazing Spider-Man #372 was either cast aside or unknown to both subsequent writers to cover the Thompson family. Either way, the initial information Flash recalls about his father appears to be a continuity error. Or perhaps Flash was lying?

Let's move on to the far more straightforward Hardy family. Felicia Hardy, also known as the Black Cat first appeared in Amazing Spider-Man #194. In the same issue, we meet Walter Hardy, a former cat burglar who has been in jail for several years following his capture. Learning that her father was now terminally ill, Felicia conceived a plan to break her father out of prison so that he could be with his family before he died.

Despite interference from Spider-Man, Felicia (as the Black Cat) succeeded in delivering Walter to his family home. Having never wanted his daughter to follow in his footsteps, Walter is distressed when Felicia reveals her criminal identity to her father. We learn that Felicia's mother Lydia Hardy had concealed Walter's criminal activities and subsequent imprisonment, telling Felicia her father had died in a plane crash instead (Amazing Spider-Man #195).

Before Walter can tell Felicia his wishes, she leaves so that her mother Lydia can be with him. Due to Spider-Man's arrival and interference, Felicia does not see her father before he dies.

Beyond this, the only other member of the Hardy family I can find is a Lou or Louise Hardy, apparently Felicia's niece, though I can not find any appearances for this character. Just a mention in Black Cat's handbook entry. Anyone with more information, please feel free to let me know.

Now for the MC2 part of this entry. We meet Felicity Hardy in Spider-Girl #37 and we soon discover she has not only stolen May's Spider-Girl costume and figured out her secret identity, she dons her own costume and quickly adopts the Scarlet Spider identity in an attempt to become her...'partner.'

Despite a throwaway reference much earlier (which actually foreshadowed his later behaviour) we don't meet Eugene 'Gene' Thompson Jr until Amazing Spider-Girl #1. When we do finally meet him, he's already in a relationship with Mayday. Throughout the Amazing Spider-Girl series we discover Gene has a problem with May running for student council. I'm probably going to go in-depth on Gene at some point so I'll save that discussion for later.

Finally, Diana is Felicia's current partner, who first appears in Spider-Girl #47. We don't have a known last name for Diana but we learn that she met Felicia six years prior in the role of a contract operative in Felicia's detective agency. It's unclear if the two are married- at the time of publication it would not have been possible for real world same-sex couples to wed- as this is both a fictional universe and an alternate reality all bets are off. Regardless, I've chosen to include her on the family tree.

There are several interesting dynamics the combined Hardy/Thompson family presents, both implemented and untapped, that I feel it deserves more coverage than this post can do justice. I may touch on some in the future. For now, I just hope I've improved over the original family tree post.

Until I find more time to dedicate to this blog, I remain

frogoat

Spider-Girl by Erundel

Something a little different this time. I was pleasantly surprised to receive this wonderful piece today from up and coming artist and close friend Erundel: May 'Mayday' Parker aka Spider-Girl.

A huge thank you to Erundel for putting in all the hard work. It turned out Amazing and I'm extremely grateful! You can find Erundel here:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Erundel/

Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/erundel

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/user/XXLEONLEO

Tumblr: http://erundel.tumblr.com/



Until I learn to produce digital art, I remain


frogoat

Iron Fist in the MC2

I figured with Iron Fist Season 2 hitting Netflix, now was the time to talk about Danny Rand aka The Iron Fist in the MC2 Universe. Unlike Luke Cage and Misty Knight, Daniel Thomas Rand-K'ai actually makes not only one appearance, but a whole handful of appearances across various MC2 titles.

Iron Fist makes his first MC2 appearance in J2 #11, which I've briefly discussed in another post. Seen only briefly, Iron Fist is among many other fellow martial artists who were invited to a small island to participate in a tournament. When it is revealed the tournament was a death trap orchestrated by the mercenary Deadpool, Iron Fist and the other combatants promptly team up to end his plan. It's worth noting that this initial MC2 outing for Danny is seemingly contradicted by his next appearance.

When we next encounter Danny Rand in Spider-Girl #24, we learn a great deal about him. He married his beloved Misty Knight only to later lose her to cancer. When Misty died, Danny ceased using his Iron Fist and withdrew from the public eye. Opening up a dojo to teach a new generation martial arts, Danny trained many students including Spike Yi. 

After a new super villain calling himself Dragonfist begins committing robberies wielding what appears to be the chi of the Iron Fist while adorned in a tattoo resembling Shou-Lao, the legendary dragon of K'un-Lun. Implicated in the crime, Rand is drawn out of his self-imposed isolation. Believing his former pupil Yi - now a major action movie star - is responsible, Danny confronts him only to learn that Spike has instead chosen to squander his martial prowess making movies and selling merchandise.

When Dragonfist attempts another robbery, Spider-Girl confronts him but has no success, finding his entire body impervious to her attacks. Danny finally dons his Iron Fist gi and, believing Dragonfist unworthy to wield the power of the Immortal Iron Fist, battles the criminal in an effort to strip it from him by force.

The effort proves fruitless until Spider-Girl, using her spider-sense, directs Iron Fist to aim for Dragonfist's belt. Doing so, the heroes discover Dragonfist was merely Spike Yi's assistant using a personal force field to simulate the power of the Iron Fist. Safe in this knowledge, Danny returns to his dojo.

After this we get a few more appearances from Iron Fist in the form of cameos in Last Hero Standing #3-5. Danny is among the many heroes captured and corrupted by Loki in a plot to bring about the end of the Age of Heroes. He is eventually freed from Loki's spell by Captain America and witnesses the super soldier's death shortly thereafter.

Iron Fist's last appearances are also cameos in the pages of Avengers Next #4 and #5. When Loki's daughter Sylene attempts to restore the devastated Asgard by recreating it on Earth, she creates energy duplicates of various super humans to serve her purposes. Danny Rand is among those rendered comatose in the process of creating these duplicates. When Sylene is defeated, Iron Fist's duplicate dissipates and Danny is presumable restored.

Sadly that's all we see of Daniel Rand in the MC2. As I mentioned above his first appearance in the MC2 canon seems like a contradiction, with Danny in-costume and wielding his trademark Iron Fist. Perhaps that's a discussion for another day? For now, I'm off to marathon Iron Fist Season 2.




Until I stop pointing out continuity errors like a giant nerd, I remain




frogoat

Stinger Action Figure Review

As a recent birthday gift, I received the Marvel Legends Ant-Man and Stinger 6-Inch Action Figures 2-Pack which was initially intended as an exclusive release for Toys R Us but apparently saw release through Entertainment Earth after the formers collapse. Not only did I receive the 2-Pack, I also received a loose Stinger figure for display purposes. Today I'll be solely focusing my  review on the Stinger figure.

The Stinger figure comes bundled with a Scott Lang Ant-Man who wears his most recent comic costume. This makes it clear that - despite the MC2 originating the Stinger identity for Cassie Lang and her Main Marvel Universe counterpart recently adopting a version of the MC2 Stinger costume - this particular figure is modelled on the Main Marvel Universe Cassie Lang. This is further supported by one minor difference between Cassie's MMU and MC2 Stinger costume; shoulder pads.

The MC2's Stinger does not wear a costume that feature metallic shoulder pads. In relation to the figure, you'll notice it is barely visible in the picture above, owing to a lack of pain on the shoulder joint. It's a minor issue, but still worth mentioning. More noticeable is the different coloured purple paint on Stinger's legs when compared to the rest of the figure. 

I've checked elsewhere online and this appears to be the case for all Stinger figures, not just mine. It's even visible on the box art. Again, it's not a major issue, but still worth mentioning.

 Much like the Toy Biz Marvel Legends series of old, Hasbro's Marvel Legends are known for their super articulate figures and attention to detail. As for Stinger, the figure boasts amazing articulation, including poseable wings and a head joint that can tilt all the way up, allowing for fun flying poses.

Finishing on a positive note, this figure is a drastic improvement over the Marvel Comics 2 First Appearances set's Stinger figure released in 1999. Not only in size, but in proportions and articulation. The best figures are those that stand under their own power in various poses and that's something the old figure simply cannot do, whereas the new Stinger can be placed in many dramatic poses. The attention to detail is clear, if sometimes unevenly applied. All in all, I'm pleased to see another MC2-related figure following Hasbro's Marvel Legends Spider-Girl figure in 2015.

Until I have another opportunity to talk about a new MC2-related action figure and play like a child again, I remain

frogoat

X-People: Blue (Concept)

As you may recall, I discussed Blue Kelso aka Bluestreak, in particular pondering what her codename was -if any-before joining Clint Barton's group of special students later known as the Dream Team. Prior to this, Blue was a member of the X-People led by Jubilee. While we know nothing about this point in Ms. Kelso's life, it's fun to imagine her in a trainee X-Costume. With that said, here's my cruddy first attempt at photoshop:

Please be kind. Apologies to Ron Frenz.




Until I get better with Photoshop, I remain




frogoat

Mike Wieringo and the MC2

Recently I've been thinking about well-established artists in the comics industry who's take on the MC2 characters we've yet to see. Then I remembered there are a bunch of artists outside of MC2 mainstays such as the wonderfully talented Ron Frenz, Pat Olliffe, Paul Ryan, Ron Lim or Todd Nauck who've in some way worked on my favourite fictional universe. Every so often I'll try and dedicate a short post to each artist's brief foray into the MC2 Universe.

Mike Wieringo

Despite the passage of time, I still find myself missing the inimitable artist Mike Wieringo. I first encountered Mike's unique art style while still in school when I picked up Tellos from the local library and instantly fell in love with his work. It's truly a tragedy that he died so suddenly in 2007 of an aortic dissection. Today, I'll be looking at Mr Wieringo's affection for and contributions to the MC2.

Mike Wieringo first provided covers for the Last Hero Standing mini-series in 2005, specifically issues #2 and #4.

I personally love seeing Mike's rendition of MC2 characters, so it was wonderful when he returned as cover artist for the 2006 Avengers Next mini-series, this time for all five issues. Here's the cover to #5:

 Sadly, these would be Mike Wieringo's last published contributions to the MC2. However, over on his own website, Wieringo posted a sketch of Spider-Girl to accompany a heartwarming entry about the series:

I’ve never quite understood why SPIDER-GIRL isn’t just as popular and successful as ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN.

Sure, May “Mayday” Parker isn’t a young Peter Parker– she’s the daughter of Peter and Mary Jane in a book set in the M2 Universe of the not too distant future. But to my eyes, that just makes her cooler. Instead of a ‘reboot’ of the SPIDER-MAN mythos, SPIDER-GIRL is an exciting extension of that concept. Like ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN, there are re-imaginings of the classic villains from the parent book (as well as lots of heroes)…. but in my opinion, these characters are a lot more imaginative and fun than they are in ULTIMATE. I think that if you’re a fan of straight-out superhero comics, SPIDER-GIRL is just about a perfect book. Not only is it a comic you can enjoy yourself (if you’re anywhere NEAR as old as I am), but it’s also a comic you can give to children without fearing that it’s too dark and adult for them to understand or enjoy. In today’s comic world, that’s a rarity.

SPIDER-GIRL has had a tumultuous ride during its run…. to say the least. The book’s been on the chopping block more than once, and now, it seems, it’s in peril of cancellation once again. I don’t understand the rationale for this, personally. I know that Marvel has had immense success with sales of SPIDER-GIRL digests in places like TARGET. And why is that…? Because SPIDER-GIRL is something that will appeal to such a wide audience. Boys, girls, women, men… they can all enjoy this comic as much as I do. That’s a cash cow, really… so this is kind of puzzling to me. SPIDER-GIRL has a very loyal and vocal fanbase, so perhaps if we all pull together, we can stop this cancellation from happening, because if you ask me, we can’t afford– as an industry– to lose a book like SPIDER-GIRL; a book that has the potential (and seems to be realizing that very potential) to reach a wider audience outside of the direct market.

I recently bought issue #11 of WRITE NOW!. from TOMORROWS PUBLISHING. It’s got a wonderful interview with Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz inside… and they talk extensively about their collaboration on the creation of SPIDER-GIRL and their recent work on the book. These guys love working on SPIDER-GIRL. It’s a concept they both enjoy immensely… and it shows in every issue of the book. If you want any proof of a couple of comic book creators who are at the height of their powers and loving what they’re doing, then seek this magazine out, read the interview, and perhaps it’ll make you a believer and prompt you to try SPIDER-GIRL. Some fans need to be convinced (for some reason) to even try a new book…. so maybe that would do the trick. Barring that– Marvel just released a trade paperback of the recent LAST HERO STANDING miniseries (written by Tom D. and drawn by the talented Pat Oliffe). It’ll give you a taste of what the M2 Universe is like. That, or one of the several recent SG trades that you can also find on AMAZON.COM will give you a sense of the thrill ride that is SPIDER-GIRL.

Let’s keep fun and imagination alive, shall we…?

OK.

This is Entry 186.

Mike

You are sorely missed, Mike.


frogoat

Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 1

A few days ago I received my copy of Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 and I'd like to talk about it! I won't be going into too much detail about the stories reprinted in this collection, but it comprises What If #105 (not Spider-Girl #0) and Spider-Girl #1-15 as well as Spider-Girl Annual '99 and Spider-Girl #½.

Read as a whole, the individual issues really flow well together and form an overarching narrative, without feeling like they need to be read one after the other like the standard made-for-trade six issue arcs made commonplace in modern comics. This is most evident in the supporting characters and subplots, which weave through several issues and resolve at their own pace instead of being shoved into a set number of issues. In sharp contrast, it has sadly become standard practice nowadays to simply remove supporting characters and their storylines in favour of superheroes talking to other superheroes.

While I am a big fan of the series and I am admittedly bias about the series quality, I was more than happy to purchase this collection. Why? Because even though I own the individual issues and tracked down all the digests that were released, this will be the first time any issues of the Spider-Girl series have been collected in trade paperback form beyond the initial 8 issues. I consider it a major misstep that Marvel didn't release the series in this format until now; 20 years after the series began publication.

Much of the appeal of this release lies in potentially having the entire series sitting on my bookshelf in all it's glossy-paged glory someday soon. In addition, the last 16 pages are dedicated to various 'extras' such as variant covers, concept art and contemporary promotional materials. The most interesting of these for me was an article from the Marvel Catalog: August 1998. I'd never seen this piece before and found it fascinating to read through the article, which includes an interview with Tom Defalco and mentions the creative teams early plans for the nascent trio of titles that birthed the MC2 imprint.

If I had to make a negative comment, it's that the cover's card stock is rather flimsy when compared to other similar recent Marvel collections. While this doesn't really bother me much, it did mean my copy arrived in the post a little worse for wear, complete with a few marks and bends on the front cover. However, the blame for that surely lies with Amazon's frankly abysmal packaging, which consisted of nothing more than a brown envelop without bubble-wrap. Cheers Amazon!


Until I can gleefully announce the next volume of Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection, I remain

frogoat