Thursday, May 18, 2023

Starman Vs. Kang

 

I finally checked out Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and while it was cool to see Kang as the villain, I was hoping for some more time-related shenanigans.  I guess Marvel is saving that for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.  Who knows what effects an ongoing criminal investigation and writers strike will have on that upcoming event, however.  He did look really cool, which is more than I can say for M.O.D.O.K.

18 comments:

Carycomic said...

Wonderful! You've just made Jay Johnson's day.*


*Not the ventriloquist/actor/comedian who used to be on that sitcom, SOAP! I mean, the reader/reviewer who requested all the different Starmen and their respective uniforms. :-)

Anonymous said...

It is a sweet cover but sadly missing some the cooler Starmen, like Mikaal Tomas and Prince Gavyn.

Detective Tobor said...

I love seeing the LofSH Starman again. The other two are pretty good too.And this premise is not one to be taken lightly. Well done, sir, well done!!

Bob Greenwade said...

Yep. There weren't a lot of disappointments in that film, but M.O.D.O.K.'s visuals was the second biggest, behind Abby Ryder Forston not returning as Cassie (not that Kathryn Newton didn't do a wonderful job; and I don't know if Abby could've handled the physical demands now included in the role).

I did say right after seeing the movie that Hank had a pretty cool "badass moment." Sure, Michael Douglas didn't do much but stand there with an "I brought some friends" look on his face, but it was pretty awesome, right?

As for this cover, I agree with the preceding comments, including the absence of other Starmen as well as how awesome it is even without them.

Side note: Has anyone else noticed that Kang has a tendency to favor really huge one-handed blasters? The balance on those things has got to be fierce -- I mean, look at how far back the handle is, compared to the center of gravity!

Jay Johnson said...

@Cary: Made my morning, for sure. I understand, composition-wise, why Ross could only fit 3 Starmen into the cover, but I wish one of them had been Will Payton in either of his costumes. But Ted and Jack Knight are the best-known Starmen, while Thom may be the least-known as Starman. At first I was thinking Ross had used his worst costume, but then I realized that all those other costumes were for Star BOY.

Carycomic said...

True. Even during the Silver Age, there weren't too many stories of the Adult LSH.

Death By Terror said...

Rather than to "Stop You" shouldn't it be "A Starman Waiting In The Sky"?

Ben W said...

As a big fan of the classic Legion, it's still hard for me to think of Thom Kallor as Starman, rather than Star Boy, but I'm getting there! As always, great work, Ross!

Ken R. said...

Naturally, DBT's Starman song reference leads to a request for an appearance of David Bowie. I think Mike Allred had something.

Anonymous said...

Next thing you know, Ross will be doing a lobby card sim for a feature film teaming up Starman (using photo-captures of Jeff Bridges or Robert Hays) with the MCU Capt. Marvel!

Anonymous said...

I’ll take Jack Knight appearances all day long!

Carycomic said...

@Anon758: I take it you mean Brie Larson. Correct?

Bob Greenwade said...

@Death By Terror: Good one! That would make a great climactic line in a cinematic adaptation of this story.

@Ben: It took me a good minute to realize that that was Thom, from one of the stories where the Legion were using adult names.

@Jay: I know nothing of Jack Knight; I would've opted for Sylvester Pemberton. But then, as you say, fitting more Starmen would've just made for a crowd scene; it's possibly the most crowded legacy name in DC. And, unlike a certain Captain, Marvel doesn't have a counterpart to justify making a big group shot. I suppose Ross could team them up with Peter Quill, but "Star-Lord and the Starmen" sounds more like a 60s rock band (though that could be a good thing).

Anonymous said...

@Carycomic: Correct!

Jay Johnson said...

@Bob: Sylvester was never Starman in the comics. Once they stopped calling him a Kid he was Skyman (although I don't remember seeing that name used anywhere outside of Infinity, Inc.)

And I think this version of Thom is the one that hung out with the JSA (using the Starman name) after he was stuck in the 20th century and his anti-schizoprenia meds had run out, which eventually led to The Lightning Saga and the Crisis on 3 Earths.

Carycomic said...

@Jay Johnson: actually, it was originally the name of a Golden Age superhero created by Gardner Fox for Columbia Comics! But, who is now a public domain character. Allen Turner aka Skyman.*

*Imagine Doc Savage dressed almost like Capt. Midnight.

Bob Greenwade said...

@Jay: I could swear that I saw him called Starman shortly after he got the Cosmic Rod. I wish I still had those comics....

Bob Greenwade said...

PS: I just watched Quantumania last night, on Disney+. M.O.D.O.K. looks much better on my TV screen than he did in the movie theater, though his subplot is still a bit disappointing.

And I stand by my love of Hank's "badass moment": "Sorry I'm late."

Support STF: The Lost Issues!