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BLOGS FAVORITES |
Every so often, dig down into the back of the closet and haul out my old boxes of comic books. Unlike Ron, I have largely paid no attention to the comic book world since the late 1970s, when both writing and art went straight to hell, and with very few exceptions (the likes of Frank Miller) pretty much never came back. Call me a sentimental old timer who likes heroes who are heroes. I have made few return trips back into this ugliness, except to occasionally check on some of my old friends, particularly Thor. Each time I've been disgusted. I flip the bird at Marvel for its poor management of the Thor character. In fact, few comic book characters have been more ridiculously mauled and distorted. I consider the "real" Thor, the "classic" Thor, missing since Walt Simonson's short run many years ago (which was preceded and followed by long spells of bad writing and shitty art). Currently, Dan Jurgens has made Thor into a fascist villain terrorizing the earth. It reeks of a bad professional wrestling type of "heel turn". (I give Jurgens some credit for trying to sneak in an anti-imperialist political statement, but please, not at the expense of a classic character.) In response to a recent Marvel/DC crossover event, Superman and Thor have collided, igniting age-old arguments about which god/superbeing is truly the strongest in the comic universe. Naturally, the comics themselves never settle this question, and can't/won't. There are simply too many Internet nerds who get lost in debating Asgardian god power (Thor's hammer, Mjolnir) versus Super power. Donning this nerd hat momentarily, in terms of power, speed, and other factors, one could argue that with both at full power, it would be close, based on the careers of each character. But Thor is a god, Mjolnir is magic, and Superman is vulnerable to magic. A god is, and commands, magic. Therefore, Thor has the clear advantage. The deciding factor is simple. Basically, Superman, without his powers, is devoid of fighting skill. Proof? In 1977, Superman minus his powers got his ass kicked badly by...Muhammad Ali. Ali beat him like a baby. I have this Neal Adams classic right on my book shelf. On the other hand, Thor is a Norse warrior, martially trained since birth. Thor without his hammer would whip a no-power Superman handily. Another clear advantage for Thor. Full-power Superman would beat no-hammer Thor (but Thor would put up a valiant fight). Full-power Thor would beat the hell out of no-power Clark Kent. Advantage:Thor. Winner: Thor. [Passenger 58 will return later this week with his take on Hollywood today. Barring a huge news story, I'll be back next weekend. - Ron] ©2004 Ron Lim unless noted |
2004 2003 2002 OLDER ON
MY IPOD |
