Re-Reading: Solar #44

[xoken]

I thought we could do a book a day (that way people can read one every day or catch up on weekends), talk about it on its own, in the context of whats next, in regards to what expectations it creates and vote on how good it is. I don't have to be the one that posts everyday. If I miss a day or if someone wants to take over please do

For voting think of your single favourite comic book (not just VALIANT) as the benchmark - thats a 10 - and grade according to that.

Make sure to mention what you like'd about the book, what you didn't, what you wish they would have done, your favourite panels, lines of dialogue, little bits of trivia etc.

Solar #44

[Daniel Jackson]

I felt a little lost with this story, as it seems to come out of nowhere. I feel like I missed an earlier issue or two setting this up. I may have enjoyed it more if they had done a better job of explaining things. I felt like this book takes place in an alternate dimension or something.

[magnusr]

An obvious back-up story. It explores the mangod questions from a new perspective and deliberately changes lots of the continuity. It was supposed to be a three-part story and was for some reason cut down to two issues, making it loose the last of the sense it might have made within continuity. Considering the writer I suspect it could have been good, but as it stands now it's not. As Daniel wrote, it's like an alternate dimension.

/Magnus

I felt a little lost with this story, as it seems to come out of nowhere. I feel like I missed an earlier issue or two setting this up. I may have enjoyed it more if they had done a better job of explaining things. I felt like this book takes place in an alternate dimension or something.

[jedimarley]

An obvious back-up story. It explores the mangod questions from a new perspective and deliberately changes lots of the continuity. It was supposed to be a three-part story and was for some reason cut down to two issues, making it loose the last of the sense it might have made within continuity. Considering the writer I suspect it could have been good, but as it stands now it's not. As Daniel wrote, it's like an alternate dimension.

/Magnus

I felt a little lost with this story, as it seems to come out of nowhere. I feel like I missed an earlier issue or two setting this up. I may have enjoyed it more if they had done a better job of explaining things. I felt like this book takes place in an alternate dimension or something.

Why the rush to get this story over with?

If it's a three issue story WHY the need to chop it up?

[magnusr]

If it's a three issue story WHY the need to chop it up?

I found it - look a bit down on this page:
http://phonogram.us/admin/archivescr.htm

/Magnus

[jedimarley]

If it's a three issue story WHY the need to chop it up?

I found it - look a bit down on this page:
http://phonogram.us/admin/archivescr.htm

/Magnus

And he still came back to do Q&W after all that.

[Daniel Jackson]

The editor re-wrote the story herself without consulting me and apparently, without understanding much of what the story was about. At the time of the call, the issues were already being drawn, and it was too late for me to make my own pass at condensing the script.

It was just like I thought, a story that was missing key components and the result was a confusing mess.

This just another example of the poor leadership Valiant had at this time. Stunts like this will cost the company a lot of their fanbase. It's almost hard to believe how far they have strayed in such a short time from the vision Jim originally set up for them.

Thanks for posting that article, Magnus.

[jedimarley]

How could Bob Layton let this happen?

[Daniel Jackson]

How could Bob Layton let this happen?

You know, it's kinda funny how Bob came on these boards and began diminishing Jim's importance at Valiant and proceeded to tell us that a lot of the decisions Jim made when he was in charge were the wrong ones. But at this point the shoe was on the other foot and Bob was in charge. Here are the results of his reign as the big cheese.

[400yrs]

Another odd bump. I just read this. I actually really liked it. I haven't read the second issue yet though.

I was definitely thrown for a loop. It definitely came out of left field and I can see how this *SQUEE* off Solar fans completely. It was completely unlike the whiny sniveling Phil Seleski that had been written the previous 40+ issues. The first cue to the change is the way that Bob Hall drew Solar buff on the cover.

When considering this along with the VU as a whole, IMO, it can logically fit in continuity because it's a story about what happens since Phil never sleeps. You have to take some leaps, but it could've happened the previous few months even though it was never written.

Reading it today, I really liked the story itself when considered separately from what came before it. A double life is the kind of thing a person would do if they were married and never slept. Would Phil do it? No, but the story itself is interesting. The dialogue was meaty, but not in a bad way.

Nice work on digging into digital Priest. This stuff is interesting.

I voted 8 because the story itself was really good. When you consider this as being a part of the VU, I wouldn't rate it nearly as high. I wonder who voted 9.

[Newton]

So far in my re-read, almost every Valiant title has a place where it feels like the record skips and the characters are thrust into some alternate earth version of themselves. I felt that way too with this issue of Solar.