As Good As They Say? I Finally Read MISTER MIRACLE and PLASTIC MAN!

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As Good As They Say? I Finally Read MISTER MIRACLE and PLASTIC MAN!

Рет қаралды 7,633

Күн бұрын

Tom King and Mitch Gerard's Mister Miracle and Kyler Baker's Plastic Man are two of the most lauded superhero comics of the last couple of decades, and I've been waiting a long time to read them. But I've also secretly wondered if I would enjoy them or if they would count among praised works that just didn't resonate with me.
In this video I chat about what I'd heard about these, what my hopes and fears were, and what I ended up thinking of them, having gotten to finally delve into two deluxe hardcovers from DC Comics.
Join me for a meandering discussion on critical reputation and 'hype' and what I thought of these stories, complete with a look at these handsome editions.
Buy these books here (Amazon affiliate links):
Mister Miracle - The Deluxe Edition, by Tom King and Mitch Gerards: amzn.to/3ofou7z
Plastic Man: Rubber Banded - The Deluxe Edition, by Kyle Baker (with Scott Morse): amzn.to/367w4uB
Mister Miracle TPB: amzn.to/3iK4b14
The Vision Complete Collection by Tom King and Gabriel Hernandez Walta: amzn.to/36aVjMS
The Sherriff of Babylon - Deluxe Hardcover, by Tom King and Mitch Gerards:
amzn.to/3pex3AV
Nat Turner, by Kyle Baker: amzn.to/2LYvYPe
King David, by Kyle Baker: amzn.to/39WW4Kl
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Music: Jimmy Fontanez, Media Right Productions from KZfaq Audio Library.
#dccomics #mistermiracle #plasticman #kylebaker #tomking #mitchgerards

Пікірлер: 90

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

FtLoC drinking game: take a drink every time I say 'on the other hand...'

@virus2003 3 жыл бұрын

*hic

@piyushathawale 3 жыл бұрын

Great review! I happen to meet Tom King at NYCC and got my Mister Miracle HC signed by him and Mitch. He drew a stick Batman tossing a baby Batman in the air and saying (you'll get this) - "I Kill Babies". I think Tom is such a wonderful and talented person and his knack of doing something with the b-list characters like Vision, MM, etc. is just extraordinary!

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Haha that's a great anecdote! Yes, you're absolutely right with how well King has used these lesser known characters, maybe something he wouldn't have had the license to do with bigger names? I haven't read his Batman so can't compare to that, but I've always liked when folks like Moore, Morrison and Gaiman have explored big ideas with B-listers (or worse!) and King's work on The Vision and Mister Miracle definitely feels like a cousin to those stories!

@cinemasteve87 3 жыл бұрын

Love your videos, dude! You're gonna hit 10k subs soon for sure.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

I appreciate it!

@Franky007ization 3 жыл бұрын

Great in depth review as always. I was on the fence of getting The Mister Miracle Deluxe Edition but now I'm gonna get it for sure. Also please try to incorporate the Indian links or the links from which you bought the books you feature in your videos, it'll be so helpful.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks - glad you liked the video! Re: the links, I used to do that at the start but then I could see that nobody was actually clicking on them, and given the (little) extra effort needed to get each link (especially in videos where I featured many books), and how rushed and disorganized I generally am, I stopped. I'll try including them again and see if they actually get used; thanks for the suggestion.

@DebjyotisGaming 6 ай бұрын

After a long time I was able to finish Kirby's magnum opus 'The Fourth World' & loved the story arc of Mister Miracle, it was fascinating

@ftloc 6 ай бұрын

Have you already read this King/Gerards series?

@deadlypants9464 3 жыл бұрын

You give me a good vibe, gonna binge the rest of your videos now lol

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Nicest thing I've heard today! Thank you, hope you find plenty to enjoy 😁

@abhradas6433 3 жыл бұрын

I have a suggestion. Read Animal Man series by Grant Morrison. It completely blew my mind.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

I'm quite fond of that series and even have a video on 'The Coyote Gospel' here: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/gsuGhqyG09abhYk.html

@vishal7arora 3 жыл бұрын

The last issue! His invisible men and Doom Patrol too blew me away. He is the master of taking unused or rejected characters and deconstructing them in a way very few can in the most cerebral way possible.

@ahchiu9 3 жыл бұрын

Another very well done review on these two books. Even when you are not talking about the comic book itself, you manage to keep all of the background information interesting and engaging, and (much like in the stories that you have lauded here) they are all important towards finding out your overall verdict on the books. I will definitely be picking both of these up based on your review. Thank you so much!

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you - I'm thrilled to hear you enjoyed it!

@smackroscoe 2 жыл бұрын

Before your review I would NEVER have considered reading nor much less wanting these books. You have opened my eyes to greatness & I thank you for all that you do for us. Bravo, Sir!

@ftloc 2 жыл бұрын

What a lovely compliment and i do hope you get to check out one or both of these books. If you do, let me know what you thought!

@cinder88 3 жыл бұрын

What a lovely spotlight of some comics that have completely passed by me, my interest was kindled immediately! Did you find these two to be equally good, or did you enjoy one better than the other?

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

They're so completely different that I cannot really rank (but then again, I usually have problems ranking!) I suppose Plastic Man is the more 'universal' of the two, and more accessible in some ways. But then again, someone with no interest at all in a slapstick humour comic may find it as an easy choice in favour of the serious Mister Miracle. I'd like to know what you decide, if you get to read the both! 😁

@abhijitsmiles 3 жыл бұрын

On a lighter note, after watching this video I got more interested in the reference you used and ended up procuring a copy of "the sheriff of Babylon". Amazing book. Got absolutely floored by the artwork and devastated by the realism of the book. So, thanks for your sidenotes - you never know what your viewers are picking up from your videos 🙂

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

I'm thrilled to hear that; that's just the best result one can hope for! 😁

@luisricardoguerrerorodrigu1968 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks! Great video! I have a sugestion for a future video: Can you please make a review of Gene Luen Yang Dragon Hoops and Superman Smashes the Klan?

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Great suggestion ! I wanted to make a brief Gene Luen Yang survey, starting from the _Animal Crackers_ stories and including his Avatar books and a few others, but I have not yet been able to get my hands on _Dragon Hoops_ , which I would like to include. As soon as I have obtained and read that, I'll get working on it! Cheers!

@VengaboysRbackINtown 3 жыл бұрын

I’ve ordered the Deluxe edition of Mr Miracle based on your review. I was going to order Plastic Man too but it was a little too expensive, maybe I’ll check it out in digital form sometime. 😉

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Nice! I'd love to know what you thought of either or both when you've had a chance to read them!

@scottfranta6490 2 жыл бұрын

Angshuman, it's been far too long since I watched (or commented) on one of your videos, and I'm glad to be back. I missed the way you wax rhapsodic about comics, and I'm excited to tell you I'll be reading more stories this year. My friend and I read Mister Miracle a little over a year ago, and we both enjoyed it, but a problem we shared in common while reading it was that it felt convoluted at times. With the flashbacks, rapid changes in scenery, and extensive dialogue, it seemed to make some moments feel a little less impactful. However, since watching and hearing you review the work, I may owe this story a second visit. I agree that the humor Tom King employs is incredible when paired with such heavy adult themes. Have you read or had any interest in Heroes in Crisis? I think you might enjoy that story as well. I read it with zero prior knowledge of the DC characters within, and I think the art, alone, is worth the read. If you enjoyed The Visions, and Mister Miracle, it may be worth visiting King's work again. I look forward to getting back into your videos (since there's now a backlog for me to view), and I wish you the best. Cheers!

@ftloc 2 жыл бұрын

A very warm welcome back, so good to hear from you again! Any formal list for this year or are you just going to eing it? I hope you enjoy cath ing up the videos here, Nd i look forward to many more chats! Cheers!

@scottfranta6490 2 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc I'm going to be getting into Starman this year, and with the return of Saga, I'll be buying monthly books for the first time in years! I also have a few books which have been reviewed by you that I want to read. Three Shadows is very high on the "to read" list. I'm also going to be reading Spiderman: Life Story. I started Locke and Key last year, but got burnt out by volume 4, so I think I'll revisit and finish that series as well.

@pareekatti 3 жыл бұрын

I somehow never got caught up with Superhero comics. Maybe because i was used to Tintin and Archie in my childhood (like many Indians). And since movies aren’t really my thing, i never got past spiderman. I agree with you that its very difficult to catch on with a long running comic series. But i don’t know what would be a good start. I also like to read books which are written mostly for all ages and i don’t like comics with drugs, sex and violence. It’d be great if you could suggest some comics (not necessarily superheroes) and also share how your process of getting comics because its so difficult here in India.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Even though I seem to have made a couple of superhero-comics videos in recent months, most of my comics reading is not superhero-centric at all. Like you, I enjoy standalone single-volume reads, although there are many (many!) favourites that are at least longer series. I hope that most of what I cover on this channel is of interest to you and my shelf videos will feature a number of books I haven't gotten to make spotlight videos on yet. In particular, since you mentioned both European and all-ages works, I can recommend Shelf Seven and Shelf Three to start with (although really, now I think why not fifteen, why not twelve 😁) for books that may catch your interest!

@pareekatti 3 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc Thanks, even though i’ve watched your shelf videos multiple times, i do not remember which video is which. Time for me to rewatch!

@anuragmozumdar2989 Жыл бұрын

I had the exact same apprehension before reading Mister Miracle for a long time since I stopped reading after a couple issues. I also had the same admiration for Jack Kirby as a creator. A couple months later picked it up and man o man finished it in one go. King and Gerard's work is so playful with dialogues and the art panels. Dealing with heavy topics yet delivering a superhero comics filled with wholesomeness, humour, hope and everything in between. Your review sums up what I felt before and after reading this volume. My physical copy arrived today after searching for it with the crazy prices and availability in Indian stores 🥲. Might pick up Plastic man next.

@ftloc Жыл бұрын

So great to hear you got your hands on a copy! I think you'll also enjoy Plastic Man, although for almost polar-apposite reasons! 😁

@WalkingManComics 3 жыл бұрын

Once again, another excellent video (although for me, the bass seemed too loud, never overpowering, but still perhaps worth an adjustment if others also noticed). I have a real on/off feeling abut Tom King's work: I liked several of his Batman stories (The Joker/Ridder war series) and disliked almost all the others. I found Sheriff of Babylon most interesting, and very much unlike any of his other work. I, too, have a wary attitude toward very popular, often hyped stories, most recently Seeds (which I find drab to look at, and dull to read) and Welcome to the Future, perhaps not as high-hyped, but also not terrifically engaging or original. I got the Vision book from the library, and glad I did, so that I could return and dispense with it: and much the same for Mr. Miracle-- I just didn't care for it, didn't care for the characters, or the situations they were placed in, and found the 9-grid unrelieved and tiring. Plastic Man I got as single issues, and much enjoyed for all the reasons you do, and as an addition to my few Jack Cole issues, and as a happy addition to my other Kyle Baker comics (especially his King David book). Thanks for another insightful look into our mutually favored entertainment!

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Haha, "I got it from the library and was glad I did so that I could return it" must be one of the most elegant and erudite put downs I've heard! 😁 I've definitely heard very similar critiques of The Vision (and now Mister Miracle) and I can see where they are coming from. To me The Vision was more grand opera, or Greek tragedy as I say here, where the 'players being swept along by forces they put into motion themselves' approach mitigated the perhaps shallower representations of individual psyches. With Mister Miracle, it was different. It was definitely a more challenging read, and hard at times, but the humour, the dissection of family life, and -crucially - the notions of escape (most suburban dissections have the player's wishing for escape from everyday life, so the place of everyday life as an escape itself, or the damage such bifurcation may result in, was not only an interesting subject, but interestingly examined. Of course I may feel differently on my second read. But all of that is secondary to the idea of owning original Jack Cole issues! My envy will never cease sir! 😁

@rafatopolski7628 3 жыл бұрын

I've read the Mister Miracle and really enjoyed it - although I went for the standard size hardcover. I feel like they put much more effort into designing this version, deluxe OHC seems to me kinda generic, especially for such story. As for Plastic man, I really love the interesting book design (big two really need to step up their editorial design and do more stuff like this, interesting use of UV lacquer in Mister Miracle and sculpted UV on Superman Earth One) but couldn't make myself pick it up. There's so much stuff to get to!

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

"There's so much stuff to get to!" is the mantra of all of us 😁! I didn't know there was a standard hardcover of Mister Miracle, I only ever saw a TPB and it was quite expensive here (for a TPB) and I figured that I'd rather pay a few bucks extra to have it in hardcover, especially since I had an inkling it would be worth it. And I completely agree with you about production values - Although I firmly believe that the story is what is most important, I also think that if ebook and digital reading is going to increase, print needs to double down on the pleasures of the hardcopy for its niche audience! 😁

@abeedo 3 жыл бұрын

I wasn't really a big fan of Tom King's Vision. While I did like the idea of the tragic tale, I didn't feel like we spent time fleshing out the characters so that the tragic ending felt earned. Do you know if this is something that Mister Miracle fixes?

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Yes, I see what you mean about the proportion of attention to the various family members, but I also did take that a bit in stride due to the 'nature' of those characters, if that makes sense. But while Mister Miracle definitely places a tremendous amount of focus on Scott and his tribulations, I was very happy with the kind of attention Big Barda got, coming across as the strong, controlled, direct and more focused one in the couple, and the anchor of the relationship. Other characters fared well enough, but it isn't so much an ensemble piece so I felt satisfied with the roles they played in the larger drama. If you do decide to give it a look, I'd love to know if it worked for you or not!

@abeedo 3 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc You've convinced me to get it haha. I think I might get plastic man first though, most due to the novelty of the rubber band.

@Tyler-Clark 3 жыл бұрын

Even though I'm a big DC fan I wasn't really interested in Plastic Man and wasn't aware as to how well the run was received but now I've got my eye on it. I haven't read MM yet (though I have it) but since it gives some backstory on the New Gods and I'm also guessing the Anti-Life Equation, I can only recommend the Orion omnibus by Walter Simonson. It contains his entire run of 25 issues and while it may not be in some ways the most new reader friendly, because you've read MM it shouldn't be a problem. I bought it on a whim (and am glad I did) only because I've heard about how great Simonson's Thor run is and that he understands the Fourth World characters in the best way since Kirby made them.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for that recommendation! I just checked and the _Orion Omnibus_ seem either out of print or simply unavailable here. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for it because I did enjoy the parts of Simonson's Thor run I read many years ago. I'd love to know what you thought of Kyle Baker's _Plastic Man_ if you get to take a look at it!

@Tyler-Clark 3 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc yeah Orion is oop at the moment. There's a group called Omnibus Collector's Comic Swap and Community on Facebook that's beneficial if one is in the States, lots of trading and selling. Perhaps have a look there.

@6AM_YT 2 жыл бұрын

Mister Miracle didn't really land with me, but I love Plastic Man.

@ftloc 2 жыл бұрын

Plastic Man is terrific, unlike almost anything else I've seen in the big superhero comics. I do love it when a writer or artist is given full rein to do whatever they want, and Kyle Baker makes the best case for why! 😳

@6AM_YT 2 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc You should check out "Why I Hate Saturn" and "You Are Here" from Kyle, too. He's a fantastic and underrated comic book creator.

@ftloc 2 жыл бұрын

@@6AM_YT They're on the wishlist! I think there's a reasonably common edition of Saturn to be found, but not the other one? I've read his Nat Turner and a few others, but I know there's a lot more out there!

@6AM_YT 2 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc Sadly, I think they're both out of print now.

@latinotoonscomix Жыл бұрын

Rubber Banded reminds a bit of Kricfalusi

@ftloc Жыл бұрын

There's definitely a lot of that zany jaggedness and bulginess that got really popular in early to mid nineties animation, isn't there? Baker's work is really varied and I wouldn't at all be surprised to learn he was at least partially influential there!

@arindam_sen 3 жыл бұрын

Can't wait to get my hands on Plastic Man. The Mike Norton introduction is there in Mister Miracle Director's Cut #1

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Nice! Is the Director's Cut markedly different? Also, do you know if those issues were collected as well or only exist as singles?

@arindam_sen 3 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc The Director's Cut singles were first made available for Vision which included the script for #1 and some more extras. The same was collected in the HCs. When DC announced Mister Miracle Director's Cut singles, I was pretty damn sure a Deluxe edition would be on its way, so I never bothered with buying the trades.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

@@arindam_sen Ah I see, so all those extras are the things in the deluxe? The script etc? I thought the directors cuts were special editions of each issue, so there would be 12 issues worth of extras for Mister Miracle!

@arindam_sen 3 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc I'm not sure if it was the sales but DC stopped MM's Director's Cut with only one issue. However Vision got its full run in Director's Cut. Each issue of the Vision Director's Cut collected 2 single issues.

@James-sf7yp 3 жыл бұрын

Love the new mister miracle comics was so different. On a similar theme how about looking at Miracleman? You could get 2 episodes out of the history, majesty and controversy. Hope you well.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

I'm doing well - thanks for asking! And hope all goes well with you. Re: Miracleman, someone else asked about it earlier this week and my problem is I have only read the first volume. The rest must have gone OOP because they're just not available here, leaving me high and dry! I'll keep an eye out for used copies but I'm not optimistic! 😪

@James-sf7yp 3 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc that's true they are very hard to find these days. There was an apocrypha collection I think. I don't think the silver age had been collected due to the terrible background issues. Which is very sad as it is some of Neil Gaimans best work. Truly amazing stories,and work with Mark Buckingham was Perfect. One of the best runs ever. If you were near by I'd lend them to you!

@vishal7arora 3 жыл бұрын

Darkseid Is. PS: I am reading digitally his Rorschach and Strange adventures which are similar look on Rorschach & Adam strange resp. The former is hooking me well enough to indeed buy the inevitable hardcover edition but not so much for the later. However, will wait for them to finish. King, though to a lesser extent, like Jonathan Hickman makes his story worthwhile at the very end.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

I heard about both of them but wasn't that interested. Now that I enjoyed _Mister Miracle_ , I may give them a shot. Maybe. Let's see 😁

@vellu5000 3 жыл бұрын

On topic, I just spent a pleasant day reading Berlin by Jason Lutes. It is terrific and I see where all the praise came from.

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

It's a truly wonderful book, one that intimidates me to make a video on or even talk about in detail for fear of doing it a disservice.

@samratsur8074 2 жыл бұрын

I have order Mister miracle today. Hope it would be a good read!

@ftloc 2 жыл бұрын

It's certainly very different! I'd love to know what you thought of it when you're done!

@pratyayghosh1717 3 жыл бұрын

What a piece of luck. I log in as soon as the new Ftloc video goes up. PS - first comment yeah!

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Greetings and salutations!😁

@pysarlis 3 жыл бұрын

I was recommended Mr Miracle by my schoolfriend and comic shop colleague Ian Brown and for that very reason I have avoided it. Ian's track record of recommending comics he thinks I would like is not great (he bought me a lovely looking edition of Blacksad for my birthday. Gave up two thirds of the way through as life's too short). Maybe I should give Mr Miracle a go after your video. I'll see how much it costs tomorrow but the copy in the shop is a paperback trade. Plastic Man looks fun although I've only read I Hate Saturn by Kyle Baker years ago and I don't remember a thing about it. There's a second hand copy of that in the shop maybe I'll give it a read in the shop whilst pretending to work.

@pysarlis 3 жыл бұрын

I should add I really enjoyed the Kirby Mr Miracle and even have the IDW artist edition. It's completely mental!

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Oh, I'm very interested in what you may think of _Mister Miracle_ . My fear was definitely the same as yours - people keep telling me "such and such superhero comic will blow you away" or "this title will change your mind" and I almost always feel a creeping sense of doom. As I say in this video, I was glad to be wrong on these counts (although with Plastic Man I think I had a better sense that I would, in fact, enjoy it. Kyle Baker is very, very good) _Blacksad_ is an interesting series to discuss. I like it, mainly for the art, but perhaps not as much as some who practically worship it. I have the feeling that Bryan Talbot's _Grandville_ , which I love, would be more your cup of anthropomorphic animal crime thriller tea!

@pysarlis 3 жыл бұрын

@@ftloc Blacksad was pleasant enough to look at but the characters and "stories" were none existant. It was like a very pretty chocolate egg with nothing inside (in my cranky and less-than-humble opinion). Had my eye on Grandville for a long time but have never got round to despite liking everything I've read by Bryan Talbot. His art for me is iffy in places. I was looking forward to Alice in Sunderland when it was coming out but when I picked it up I'm afraid the style of artwork put me off so much I decided against buying it. I do love his black and white stuff though, it's great.

@faridashaikh2865 3 жыл бұрын

What comes artist you like the most

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

All of the ones I talk about on this channel! 😁

@patrickdupuis9091 3 жыл бұрын

Great video!

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you - so glad you enjoyed it! Cheers!

@anandancv 3 жыл бұрын

Hey what do you think about the walking dead comics?

@ftloc 3 жыл бұрын

I read the first couple of trade paperbacks a long time ago and enjoyed them all right, but never felt the urge to immediately keep reading. Maybe one day I'll pick them up again?