LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE_008

Fantastic Four #51: This Man... This Monster! Told completely from start to finish in a single issue and following the groundbreaking introduction of Galactus and the Silver Surfer in the pages of The Fantastic Four, this story commands attention. Kirby, Sinnott, Lee, Marvel Comics.

Doug on the left and Rick on the right wearing bootleg comic Tshirts, back when we both had a hairline. A little photoshop magic finds Ben Grimm in the pouring rain and Godzilla blasting Batragon. Test shirts by Rick.

"Stan and Jack had stumbled onto something"

Comics are always changing and the swarms of creative ants that scurry non-stop constructing characters and universes out of dirt piles each do it for their own reasons. There is no 100-year plan of development. Creators are responding to situations on the ground, in real-time. Both Stan Lee and Jack Kirby had long careers in comics before they struck gold with early Marvel stories that featured people with superhuman powers and abilities who also had problems like their readers did. Stan and Jack had latched onto something that hit the tuning fork just right with the public. It didn't matter what their relationship to each other was like.

Ultimately, they both poured their time, effort, and energy into pursuing the idea that comics could be more than they were. They both loved telling stories. Both felt that comics could speak to real issues, feelings, and connect with readers on a deeper level than had been the norm in the business. Both of them basically played in different garage bands until one day, when they teamed up, they began producing hit after hit after hit.

Kirby in particular was always known as an innovator in comics. He co-created Captain America with Joe Simon when the medium was brand new, produced war, romance, supernatural, western, and monster comics with fantastic success. Readers responded to his larger-than-life depictions of creatures and his dynamic action sequences. Kirby was endlessly creating new characters and concepts and, with help from the extraordinary talented Steve Ditko (Spider-Man, Doctor Strange) and a legion talented creators, put an ailing Marvel permanently on the cultural map. Over time, the contribution that Stan made has been given a much needed look. Jack had always been a pioneer in the field, blazing trails and testing out new storytelling methods. 

Do I miss those rough, early songs from that band? Yes. I feel like today there have been crops of writers and artists in comics who don't believe that "comics can be more" but that comics should be movies or book contracts or "launching pads" for something else instead of a stand-alone medium. Jack, Joe Sinnott, and Stan remind us with their signature body of work on the Fantastic Four, that capturing lightning in a bottle is really about sharing that lightning with others. Sharing the love of making comics and telling stories.

Reprint cover for This Man, This Monster. Marvel's Greatest Comics. My first introduction to the Fantastic Four. Unlike Reed in the Negative Zone, I was hooked.

I picked up this Fantastic Four story as a beat-up copy of Marvel's Greatest Comics #38. I had saved up paper route money and bought a grocery bag stuffed to overflowing with comics from a pal named Jimmy Joe. It was the mid-70s and I was in the single digits of age, just discovering the secret joy of reading and buying my own comics. As a kid, there was a weird alchemy to reading those stories, holding them in my hands, and buying them with my own money. This was probably the first thing I had ever purchased, and it was reading materials! I paid ten bucks for about a hundred comics. Iron Man. Avengers. Hulk. Spider-Man. Thor. And Fantastic Four. All were well read before I got to them, and all would get poured over continuously. I am pretty sure that my mom did not want them in the house and that my dad argued for me to keep them. He had been a collector during the early years of comics and came home one day to find his stacks in a burn barrel. My dad vowed to never do that to his kids.

I remember that cover vividly - Reed is in The Negative Zone and his cable has snapped. With the story, This Man, This Monster! Stan and Jack let the reader in on the secret right in the beginning. As the story unfolds, we get insight into the Fantastic Four, Sue, Ben, Johnny, and Reed by eavesdropping on the conversations and interactions of the Thing's doppelganger. The subtext is powerful. Things are not what they seem. The story starts as a revenge tale and twists neatly into a study in trust and redemption - all while cementing the Thing as the true outcast of the group. It is decidedly tragic. Even as a kid, I dreamed of being The Thing. 

Kirby's breathtaking storytelling combined with Joe Sinnott inks, masterfully conveying the humanity of the characters and the predicament of their situation. When gaining powers from cosmic rays during a failed exploration of space, each of the Fantastic Four could hide behind normal-looking faces and bodies except for Ben Grimm. The Thing is stuck forever looking like a monster. We get an examination of what a tortured existence an outsider has in life. Lee provides dialogue and editorial asides that cement the reader to the page. Coming hot on the heels of the introduction of the Silver Surfer and Galactus, this tale is complete in one issue (FF#51) and unmasks the real heart and soul of the Marvel superhero family/team with emotional gravity.

This Man... This Monster! is an undeniable classic and definitely a comicbook story that made me love comics. I would reread it many times over the years and I find myself rooting for the bad guy at the end, who has a change of heart and makes the ultimate sacrifice for Reed. Recommended reading.

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CHICKEN, EGGS, and the SUPREME COURT_007

 

What does white privilege look and feel like? How does it sound? Why is it important to understand this concept in terms of everyday life? Brett really, really likes beer. Brett may or may not have assaulted a young woman at a party when he was a youngster. What we do know is that his nomination process to The Supreme Court was a huge mess by any stretch of the imagination. He is now poised, with his block of "originalist" judges to overturn Roe vs. Wade. Why is this important? Photo copyright respective rights holder.

Sunnyside up or down. Or scrambled, poached, boiled, etc. No two are every the same, just like snowflakes. They contain unique genetic makeup and individualization as God and the math of the universe intended. Eggs are not chickens, yet. Eggs taste good and are a great source of protein. Eggs. No matter how you like them, they are not for everyone. No one is forcing eggs down your throat. Eat fewer eggs and demand grows smaller. Your choice. If enough people choose not to eat eggs over a long enough time, no one will ask hens to produce eggs for consumption. Brett should not be in a position of deciding anything to do with eggs. Photo copyright respective rights holder.

"...just navigate the election system and sweep everyone out of power..."

So, the 40-year+ GOP plan to scuttle abortion rights for everyone is bearing hideous fruit in the Supreme Court... I believe strongly in abortion rights. I also believe strongly that life is precious beyond measure. Believe it or not, these are not mutually exclusive ideas. What I also feel very strongly about is that the big "G" government, should not be dictating personal health for women or anyone. The end result of overturning RvW is a return to making abortion something that the wealthy will always continue to have access to, and the poor will be criminalized at every turn. It is about control, particularly the rich controlling the poor; the old controlling the young; men controlling women; and one slice of religion trying to force their views on everyone.

Take a good look around you. Ask yourself if you care about human life? Do you care about your families? Your friends? Your community? Your world? We just lost one million people in two years to a pandemic here in the United States. It is a number that is overwhelming in every possible way and much of it can be attributed to a disregard for the risk that "other people" face. I am experienced enough in life to understand that I cannot know everyone's circumstances. I have a great enough burden understanding my own. How am I supposed to make decisions for half the population in their best interest when everyone is different, and I am not a woman? Answer: I can't or shouldn't. I will never fully understand why someone would want to end a pregnancy in the same way that I will never fully understand what it means to carry a child and give birth. It is an experience that I can observe but never know. It is not that I should have no say at all in the matter either but my opinion, as a man, should not be given statistical or legal weight over a those who are directly able to grasp the issue at a personal level. Women, not men, should be deciding their own health for best outcomes.

Women should be able to consult with their doctors in private without interference on every health topic that concerns them - including abortion, birth control, mental health, and more. Men too. A better-informed individual simply makes better decisions for themselves at every turn in life. What I would personally prefer is more health education, more funding for research into women' health, more calm discussion about what quality of life and personal choice really means, AND fewer, safer abortions.

What can men do? Get out of the damn way.

Lastly, I need to emphasize that elections matter. Someone keeps electing Mitch McConnell for example, and we will discover what we already know, that he has singlehandedly created more division than any one person has a right to. He blocked Obama's court pick from even being discussed and held open not only that Supreme Court seat but countless judgeships by delaying hearings until a "favorable" administration came along. And yet, when a million women marched on Washington recently wearing clever hats, none of them stormed the capital or violently tried to stop a legal certification process.

My religious beliefs tell me that abortion is wrong. The idea of it makes me uneasy, especially as a fourth child from a large family. What if I or my younger brothers and sisters simply never existed? My religious beliefs also tell me to love my neighbor, forgive my neighbor, and to judge not. We need to remember that we belong to a pluralistic society where everyone is not the same, does not think the same, feel the same, worship the same, or value the same things in their pursuit of happiness. I am not FOR abortion and would never specifically choose this route, but I should NOT be taking that choice away from others or judge those few that do. No. That is not how choice works. Not everyone will agree, which is not the purpose of this post. Abortion is a "third rail" issue considered too hot to openly discuss but like it or not - here we are and on the eve of mid-term elections...

I would not be surprised if the backlash for this court contortion causes millions of newly minted 18–25-year-old voters to just navigate the election system and sweep everyone out of power.  

Please make health education and services a top priority in this country and around the world by staying informed and listening carefully to those with whom you disagree. Speak out thoughtfully and not just with mean-spirited memes and tweets. We can do a lot better. There is work to do.

The BILLION Hero Studios Blog is devoted to promoting stories, ideas, creativity, and authenticity. Life should be beautiful, interesting, and inspiring.

RICK

Billion Hero Studios

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