In the Avengers #1, “The Coming of the Avengers,” we’re introduced to the superheroes who become the Avengers. They are all called by Loki who was trying to trap Thor and as a result convinced the public that the Incredible Hulk was a danger. They were brought together to find the Incredible Hulk and help him. The Avengers consist of Thor, the Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Ant Man and the Wasp. Again, I was irritated by the portrayal of the Wasp. Ant Man says, “I thought you weren’t coming, Jan! I can’t see why you have to stop and powder your nose every time we have a mission!” Again we are given a demeaning representation of women. The Wasp is too concerned with her appearance to actually be an empowering female super heroine. In another instance, she says, “Henry! Did you see that gorgeous Thor?! How can I ever make him notice me?” To me, the way women are depicted in comics is awful and demonstrates how men want women to be perceived as powerless. The Wasp cares more about her beauty than fighting alongside the rest of the Avengers which infuriates me. In the Avengers #4, “Captain America Joins…The Avengers!” the Wasp continues to be portrayed as a woman only concerned with beauty by saying, ““I thought you’d never notice, blue-eyes! I was doing what any girl would do in a moment of crisis—powdering my nose, of course!” It seems as though women are not to be taken seriously just as we saw in the Fantastic Four when Reed dismisses Sue as well as her huge concern with her appearance and getting the attention of Reed. Women in comics are only illustrated for show.
Something I found interesting about the readings this week was the incorporation of side notes within the comic. In Avengers #1, there’s a side note about the teen-brigade being formed in Hulk #6. In Avengers #4, there’s a side note that says, “For a more detailed account, refer to Fantastic Four Annual #1…”Sub-Mariner versus the Human Race!”—Editor.” By adding side notes, it provides readers who just started reading a reference to certain situations happening within the comic that are continuations of past comics. However, even the side notes changed throughout the years, for instance in Avengers #16, “The Old Order Changeth!” there’s a side note that says, “As shown in Thor #116—on sale now (Hint!)—Stan.” Not only did the side notes change from using editor to Stan, but instead of just providing a reference, the side note emphasized the use of advertising within the comic. As the comic continued, another side note was added saying, “As shown in practically every issue of X-Men—Stan.” This side note provides humor and illustrates what many readers agree with in regards to Magneto in X-Men.
Connecting “Hand of Fire: The Comics Art of Jack Kirby,” Professor Hatfield discussed the importance of Jack Kirby reshaping the superhero genre through the use of continued storylines which I discovered through reading the comics for this week. For instance, in the Avengers #4 it states, “Remember the awesome battle between the Hulk, Sub-Mariner and the Avengers last issue?” and even to change it up in Avengers #16, “Just this once, let’s start without any introduction! If you remember out last ish, you’ll know what’s going on! If not, don’t be bashful—turn the page.” By doing this, we can understand the unique demonstration of continued storylines and how Kirby and Lee incorporated them into their comics. Also, Professor Hatfield illustrated how Kirby was inspired by mythology when creating comics which we see in Avengers #4 when Captain America realizes, “Your hair—in the dark, you must have looked like a woman to them—and turning men to stone—that must be the origin of the legend of Medusa!” Not only was mythology used in the creation of Thor and Loki but also in an alien helping the Sub-Mariner take down the Avengers. Another aspect I found to be connected to many of our past classes was the use of secret identities. In Avengers #16, Iron Man reveals, “Even we Avengers don’t reveal our secret identities to each other! It’s safer this way!” Although the Avengers are allies, they don’t reveal their secret identities to each other. This specific idea really confused me because I didn’t understand how they could keep their secret identities from each other. However, this also emphasizes the importance of dual identities to superheroes, even the Avengers and how although they are part of a team, they are entitled to their secrets.
Tales of Suspense #39, “Iron Man is Born,” was just about Iron Man’s origin story. I found it to be kind of boring compared to the other origin stories we’ve read in the past. He avenges Professor Yinsen’s death because Professor Yinsen basically saved his life by helping him assemble his Iron Man suit. As for Captain America #107, “If the Past Be Not Dead--,” I found it to be very sad when I first read it. I know villains aim for superheroes weaknesses but I found Dr. Faustus’s plan to make Captain America seem crazy by feeding off of his deepest regret in life to be horrible. I believe you are your own worst enemy, which made reading this comic really sad. I was happy that Captain America was able to take him down in the end but I was left confused about SHIELD. It was briefly introduced in this comic as obviously being capable of running tests on medicine but I actually was curious about what they do and want to know more. Thanks for reading!
Something I found interesting about the readings this week was the incorporation of side notes within the comic. In Avengers #1, there’s a side note about the teen-brigade being formed in Hulk #6. In Avengers #4, there’s a side note that says, “For a more detailed account, refer to Fantastic Four Annual #1…”Sub-Mariner versus the Human Race!”—Editor.” By adding side notes, it provides readers who just started reading a reference to certain situations happening within the comic that are continuations of past comics. However, even the side notes changed throughout the years, for instance in Avengers #16, “The Old Order Changeth!” there’s a side note that says, “As shown in Thor #116—on sale now (Hint!)—Stan.” Not only did the side notes change from using editor to Stan, but instead of just providing a reference, the side note emphasized the use of advertising within the comic. As the comic continued, another side note was added saying, “As shown in practically every issue of X-Men—Stan.” This side note provides humor and illustrates what many readers agree with in regards to Magneto in X-Men.
Connecting “Hand of Fire: The Comics Art of Jack Kirby,” Professor Hatfield discussed the importance of Jack Kirby reshaping the superhero genre through the use of continued storylines which I discovered through reading the comics for this week. For instance, in the Avengers #4 it states, “Remember the awesome battle between the Hulk, Sub-Mariner and the Avengers last issue?” and even to change it up in Avengers #16, “Just this once, let’s start without any introduction! If you remember out last ish, you’ll know what’s going on! If not, don’t be bashful—turn the page.” By doing this, we can understand the unique demonstration of continued storylines and how Kirby and Lee incorporated them into their comics. Also, Professor Hatfield illustrated how Kirby was inspired by mythology when creating comics which we see in Avengers #4 when Captain America realizes, “Your hair—in the dark, you must have looked like a woman to them—and turning men to stone—that must be the origin of the legend of Medusa!” Not only was mythology used in the creation of Thor and Loki but also in an alien helping the Sub-Mariner take down the Avengers. Another aspect I found to be connected to many of our past classes was the use of secret identities. In Avengers #16, Iron Man reveals, “Even we Avengers don’t reveal our secret identities to each other! It’s safer this way!” Although the Avengers are allies, they don’t reveal their secret identities to each other. This specific idea really confused me because I didn’t understand how they could keep their secret identities from each other. However, this also emphasizes the importance of dual identities to superheroes, even the Avengers and how although they are part of a team, they are entitled to their secrets.
Tales of Suspense #39, “Iron Man is Born,” was just about Iron Man’s origin story. I found it to be kind of boring compared to the other origin stories we’ve read in the past. He avenges Professor Yinsen’s death because Professor Yinsen basically saved his life by helping him assemble his Iron Man suit. As for Captain America #107, “If the Past Be Not Dead--,” I found it to be very sad when I first read it. I know villains aim for superheroes weaknesses but I found Dr. Faustus’s plan to make Captain America seem crazy by feeding off of his deepest regret in life to be horrible. I believe you are your own worst enemy, which made reading this comic really sad. I was happy that Captain America was able to take him down in the end but I was left confused about SHIELD. It was briefly introduced in this comic as obviously being capable of running tests on medicine but I actually was curious about what they do and want to know more. Thanks for reading!