I was one of those people who attended the Cup of Joe panel at NYCC and got to hear the momentous announcement that Miracleman would be returning to print. The actual announcement met with a light smattering of applause, which was surprising, at least to me.
I mean I guess it makes sense; Miracleman has been out of print for well over a decade, so unless you were reading it back then chances are that you don’t really know too much about it. Also, it’s so disconnected from anything current in comics that the fans of today probably have little interest in anything “old.” And really, both Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman, the architects of the fabled Miracleman run, have both left comics for greener pastures.
I want to say that I remember seeing issues of Miracleman on comic racks back when it was reprinted by Eclipse. I know I can recall seeing Airboy on the stands. But I never picked up Miracleman, because I had a pretty narrow scope of what I’d try to read. I’m pretty sure that I passed it buy, like so many other books from that era.
Which is not to say that I haven’t read the run. I’ve read all of Moore and Gaiman’s runs. Believe me when I say that they totally live up to the hype. Even if you’ve read spoilers from the series’ biggest moments, when you actually see them unfold on the page, it’s magical.
(By the way, I don’t know if every comic lives up to the hype. Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen do, but I’m not sure if The Killing Joke does.)
I genuinely can’t wait to hold the issues in my hand and read the stories. I’m looking forward to the supplemental material as well. I’m guessing that the issues will have backstuff and whatnot to really enhance the reprints and make them worth the price of admission, which appears to be a $4.99 cover charge. I’m sure that there will be no shortage of comic creators willing to participate in essays about how the title influenced them and pinups from artists who want to leave their mark on the character.
I’m not even ashamed to say that if Marvel had offered up black and white versions of the issues, I’d pick up the book in both black and white and color. James Robinson suggested the black and white version on twitter and I was moderately relieved that Marvel didn’t take his advice, at least for the sake of my wallet.
That said, I’ll probably pick up the collected editions too.
One thing I am curious about is whether the book will be edited or not. It was controversial at the time for various reasons, language, nudity and of course violence. So will Marvel (or perhaps more appropriately Marvel’s bosses at Disney) truly reprint the run of the book or will there be minor “corrections” to the content?
I’m guessing it won’t be edited, but I equally wouldn’t be shocked it if was. I could see the argument being made that it’s not really appropriate. I’ve still got my fingers crossed that we’ll be getting pure product.
So, am I the only one excited for the return of Miracleman? Did you read the original series? If not, do you think it’ll live up to the hype? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.
Anyway, it’s Wednesday, which means there are fresh new comics at your local comic shop. Hurry up and get them before they cool off.
