Hey there Bulleteers! It's Raph again
and it's time for this week's Raging Bullets column. I have a lot of
non-comic stuff to talk about. I don't think I'll be reviewing a comic
in the Raging tradition this week, as I'm writing this in advance of
Wednesday, but we'll see.
Why am I doing this? Well, let's
get into it...
I want to welcome Steve C aka
Esteban89 into the column fold. It's so awesome to have someone else
doing a column. At one point in the forums I called myself “the official
columnist of well, my column” and I am, but by no means am I the only
voice in the Bulleteers, and I want to thank Steve for stepping up and
providing a different voice. Heh, he has some good ideas for his format
and I'm going to swipe that little preview and blurb he does at the
bottom. Great artists are original AND they take the best of others,
with respect of course. I read Steve's column... and he's going to go
into why he's into comics next time. I also happened to love Matthew
Guy's essay in the Bullet Points section. I've been teasing this for
sometime... so here is
RAPH'S ORIGIN STORY!!!!
Special one-shot issue
Writer: Raphael Soohoo
Pencils: My parents and this plane of existence
Inks: God, the Universe
Editor: Matt Idleson... wow he has time
to edit ME?!? No I kid, I kid. I am my own editor.
I can't remember the first comic
I've ever read. It must've been when I was 5 or 6, in the early 1990's.
My very first exposure to comic book characters was George Reeve's
Superman and Christopher Reeve's Superman. I also saw Tim Burton's
Batman in the theaters. I also would buy trading cards (REMEMBER
THOSE?!?) and I would read the stories of the heroes and villains and
check out their stats. So my fist exposure to the world of comics
through other medium started when I was 3. My first comics are out of my
memory, but the one I remember most, The one I read the most, was
Superman #75.
I can't forget that night. I was
watching Superman: The Movie, it was on TV, and I run into my parents
room. My mom opens the drawer and there's a comic in there. I pull it
out and I see the Superman flag hanging on a stick, and the words “The
DEATH of SUPERMAN!” I looked up at Christopher Reeve, and I couldn't
grasp it. I flipped through the book casually, as my dad had just come
home and I put it back in it's place. He gave it to me properly later. I
read it thoroughly. It was the most shocking moment of my life, at that
point.
My first comic store is the same
one I go to, I started in the 8th grade. I learned a lot in
my times there. I remember the reason why I got back into comics, they
changed Superman. My best friend at that time told me Superman had
changed. He loved Superman, but not at the level I did. I pride myself
on being one of the most hardcore Modern Age Superman fans, I'm sure
there are older guys than me who know more and/or like Superman more;
but I'm plenty dedicated to the Man of Steel. When my parents were off
working and it was me and Mr. TV, I watched Superman be an example of
what a good person should be. I never jumped out the window to try and
fly, but there are times I just want to fly to school instead of taking
the subway.
Anyway, this is my love letter to
comics and not Superman. When I started, comics were $1.25. My dad would
give me 20 or 40 dollars for the week to buy food and take care of
myself. My mom would give me 20 if I needed extra... and a lot of times
I did. I remember in one month, I spent $125.00 almost. That's 100
comics a MONTH! I miss those days. Now I'm down to 50, but I'm trying to
get down to 32... Thanks Sean and Jim, for giving me an excuse not to go
down to 32.
I've been following comics pretty
much since. I may have dropped out for a year or two here and there, but
I kept comics close to my heart. When I was a junior or senior year
(2001/2002) in high school, they had announced McG would be directing
Superman's new movie. I was infuriated that such a hack would touch my
beloved hero, so I decided I wanted to become a film director... that
fizzled, and I decided to become a writer. I wrote a few comic scripts
when I was bored at my cousin's store, and I showed them to the local
comic shop guys, and they liked it. My destiny changed. I wanted to
write comics.
Comics to me are so many things.
They are entertainment, they're an escape, they're adventures that amaze
us with the imaginations of others, they are deep pieces of literature
that make us questions things, they are pieces of art that inspire hope
and wonder. I love this medium. I love superheroes. I love challenging
stories. I want to someday work in this industry somehow. I'm not the
only person that feels that way, a lot of you, my fellow Bulleteers, do
also. That's why you're here. That's why you love comics so much, that's
why you talk with a passion on the forums. That's why Sean and Jim
started this. That's why Comic Geek Speak exists. Marvel recently has
locked up mainstream writers to do their books... I think that's great,
but the best people to write the stories are the fans. Some of the
greatest writers are fanboys, Johns, Waid, Levitz, Shooter... these
names are synonymous with comics.
I don't want to overshadow
anybody's passion for comics or anything, I'm just so very fortunate
that Sean lets me rant on and on on his website and that you guys even
read this. Steve C. represents the teenage voice in this community. Sean
and Jim represent the well established comic book fans, who remember the
Silver Age and how the Modern Age formed. I guess I represent the young
adult (20 – 25) comics fans. I certainly hope I do. I'm still young
enough to not be established in anything, but old enough to have read
comics for nearly a decade and have a sense of history.
So now that I've ranted on and on
about my ORIGIN STORY and why I love comics, let's get to some SILVER
BULLETS OF THE WEEK!!
RAPH'S SILVER BULLETS OF THE WEEK!!!
The “YEAHBUHWHA???” Bullet – Yeah that's
a Marvel phrase, but I had to use it because SUPERMAN/BATMAN #30
was just so convoluted... aliens and what-not. (A board shatters in the
distance) ... oops. Forgive me Sensei Seguilin, I still have not
mastered control over my What-Not powers.
The “It Ain't Easy Bein' Green” Bullet –
It's a tie between Green Lantern #15 and Ion #8, although Hal gets the
rougher treatment. Kyle gets the “Captain Kirk Green Woman” bit. Buy 'em
to find out more!
The “Comic Book Mooch Must Buy this Bang
for the Buck” Bullet – 52 #30: Bat-Family, Renee/Question. Two words:
Batman Re-Begins (No Jim this isn't a word. I made it up, you don't have
to make a stink about it oh wise Sensei. Ah, but I'm thirsty, I must
rehydrate.)
I hope you guys enjoyed my little column
this week. Leave me some comments on the forum, tell me how you feel
about comics, or send me a message, I'm always up for talking comics.
Until next week, keep Ragin'!
NEXT WEEK: The explanation of the
username “Wraithmaker” and MANHUNTER CHALLENGE!!!
Raph is a 22 year old Hunter College
student. He also has questionable sanity. Read his column at
www.ragingbullets.com
and make yourself a BUH-GUYH T-shirt while you're at it. Raph plans to
start his own comic book universe soon. Raph also SHAMELESSLY PROMOTES
the podcast whenever he can. He also started the Comic Book Mooch
Helpline, for the purpose of teaching patience to those who have Comic
Book Mooch friends. Be a pal, lend a comic. Then drag them to the store
and make them spend the money on new comics for you, because they
wrinkled your original copies. AHAHAH-er I mean that's all for this
blurb.
OFFICIAL DISCLAIMER: Raph's rants and insanity do not reflect the opinion, beliefs or goals of Raging Bullets as a podcast or publication. Any opinions, words or strange sounds coming out of Raph are completely his own, and shall be treated as such by anybody with sue-happy lawyers. Oh, and if you're actually going to sue me, get a life, I'm not really here to trash anyone, just spreading the comics love.