A Life Forged in Comic Books

Recently, we have seen a spate of comic book movies released by major studios with some pretty heavy star and box office power. Batman Begins, Sin City, and Fantastic Four are all just the latest of these films. And over the horizon looms X-Men 3, Ghost Rider, and, the big one, Superman Returns.

In the publishing side, DC Comics is undergoing a creative renaissance. I won't go into details now, but if there was ever a time for me to renounce my retirement from buying single-issue comics, it would be now.

With articles about comics appearing in magazines ranging anywhere from Time to Entertainment Weekly, the comic book as a form of entertainment seems to slowly becoming validated once again. More and more newsstands are proudly displaying the latest titles of JLA and Superman; Bookstores like Barnes and Noble and Powerbooks have layers upon layers of Graphic Novels; and Neil Gaiman is a rock star.

Ah yes, it's a great time to be a comic book reader.

But of course, I always have been.

When I was a kid, I used to travel up EDSA with my family every saturday to spend the day with my Angkong in Mandaluyong and my Wawa (lola) in Cubao. I love my Angkong and I enjoyed spending time with my cousins in Manda, but I especially looked forward to my time in Cubao with Wawa and my cousins who lived there. One thing I looked forward to was hanging with my Kuya Myke, and his seemingly inexhaustible stack of comic books.

My parents never understood my penchant for comics (which I will blog about later), and so never really bought a lot of comics for me when I was younger. So, when Kuya Myke would bring out his stash, I was in Heaven. He kept his comics in a way that would probably scandalize most collectors today... he book-bound them.

If I recall correctly, his collection at the time consisted of 3 giant black books, 2 smaller blue ones, and a small red one, as well as numerous un-bound single issues. The contents of these books were a veritable smorgasbord of fantastic superheroics, neatly balanced by a smattering of science fiction and fantasy. Daredevil, Spiderman, Batman, Superman, JLA, Teen Titans… these were the titles I remember the most from the superhero side. Micronauts, Star Wars, Warlord, and even ROM the Space Knight made up the rest. I’m sure there were more… but these were the ones that made an impact. My sister mostly read the red book… I think that one was mostly Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse.

My Saturday afternoons were filled with these stories of derring-do and acrobatics. No matter how many times I read them, I enjoyed them anew. I thrilled to the capture of Stilt-Man by the Daredevil; I chuckled at Spider-Man’s juvenile humor; I awed at Superman’s majesty; and I felt for the characters that made up the Teen Titans. I thirsted… no… hungered for more.

As I grew up, I never let go of that love for comics. I discovered in my mid-teens that I loved X-Men and Superman in particular, but I still made it a point to keep up with other comic titles as well. As I got older, in my late teens, I matured in my tastes and went for Batman and Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner.) As I got even older, it was pretty much Vertigo that did it for me.

I was, and still am, a huge comic fan, and as such I have read a heck of a lot of comics in my life. I owe that to Kuya Myke. He started me on the wonderful and bizarre life, and I am forever thankful for that.

And in addition to that, I have to thank him for introducing me to my two favorite, and undoubtedly the greatest, comic book series ever: Sandman and Starman (more on them in a future post.)

Today, I don’t collect individual comics anymore… it got too expensive. Instead, I wait for the collected versions of my favorites and gratefully read the issues that Tonton has. But I have always been, and forever will be a comic book fan. There is something about that medium that strikes a chord in me, and I feel a rush of happiness every time I read one.

Thanks Kuya.

Favorite comic reads (no order after #’s 1 and 2):

1. SANDMAN and everything Neil Gaiman
2. STARMAN

Hellblazer (Ennis and Azzarello’s runs)
Lucifer
Swamp Thing
100 Bullets
Superman (John Byrne and Dan Jurgens’ run)
Batman (Azzarello, Year 1, DKR, Jeph Loeb’s stuff, Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker)
Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner)
JLA (Everything I’ve read)
Wonder Woman (George Perez, Greg Rucka)
Supergirl (Peter David)
Teen Titans (Wolfman and Perez)
Alan Moore Stuff
X-Men (Jim Lee, Joss Whedon, Claremont)
Power
Midnight Nation
Meridian
....

No. I can’t do this right now. Too many favorites. :)