(Jones) :
100-448: " Last Son " is a five-issue comic book story arc featuring Superman in the monthly Action Comics . It was written by Geoff Johns and Richard Donner , the director of the well-known 1978 film Superman: The Movie and a portion of Superman II , with pencils by Adam Kubert . This story introduces the original character, Christopher Kent and adapts the classic Superman film villains, General Zod (his appearance modeled after
200-660: A tabloid form. Underground comics and "small press" titles have also appeared in the UK, notably Oz and Escape Magazine . The content of Action , another title aimed at children and launched in the mid-1970s, became the subject of discussion in the House of Commons . Although on a smaller scale than similar investigations in the US, such concerns led to a moderation of content published within British comics. Such moderation never became formalized to
300-631: A black artist or writer allowed in a major comics company." Asian characters within comic books encountered similar prejudiced treatment as black characters did. They were subjected to dehumanizing depictions, with narratives often portraying them as "incompetent and subhuman." In a 1944 edition of the publication United States Marines , there was a story titled The Smell of the Monkeymen . This narrative portrayed Japanese soldiers as brutish simians, and it depicted their concealed positions being betrayed by their repugnant body odor. Chinese characters received
400-473: A company named Comics Guaranty (CGC) initiated the practice of "slabbing" comics, which involves encasing them within thick plastic cases and assigning them a numerical grade. This approach inspired the emergence of Comic Book Certification Service . Given the significance of condition in determining the value of rare comics, the concept of grading by an impartial company, one that does not engage in buying or selling comics, seemed promising. Nevertheless, there
500-452: A famous example of the British comic annual. DC Thomson also repackages The Broons and Oor Wullie strips in softcover A4-size books for the holiday season. On 19 March 2012, the British postal service, the Royal Mail , released a set of stamps depicting British comic book characters and series. The collection featured The Beano , The Dandy , Eagle , The Topper , Roy of
600-577: A five chapter spy genre tale written by Otto Binder and drawn by Al Carreno. It is readable online in the Digital Comic Museum . The magazine never reached a second issue. In 1950, St. John Publications produced the digest-sized , adult-oriented "picture novel" It Rhymes with Lust , a 128-page digest by pseudonymous writer "Drake Waller" ( Arnold Drake and Leslie Waller ), penciler Matt Baker and inker Ray Osrin , touted as "an original full-length novel" on its cover. "It Rhymes with Lust"
700-623: A government ran program, the Writers' War Board, became heavily involved in what would be published in comics. "The Writers' War Board used comic books to shape popular perceptions of race and ethnicity..." Not only were they using comic books as a means of recruiting all Americans, they were also using it as propaganda to "[construct] a justification for race-based hatred of America's foreign enemies." The Writers' War Board created comics books that were meant to "[promote] domestic racial harmony". However, "these pro-tolerance narratives struggled to overcome
800-461: A humorous tone; however, this practice was replaced by featuring stories of all genres, usually not humorous in tone. The largest comic book market is Japan. By 1995, the manga market in Japan was valued at ¥ 586.4 billion ( $ 6–7 billion ), with annual sales of 1.9 billion manga books ( tankōbon volumes and manga magazines ) in Japan, equivalent to 15 issues per person. In 2020
900-427: A less superior race and cannot believe they bested his men."The Tuskegee Airmen, and images of black aviators appear in just three of the fifty three panels... the pilots of the 99th Squadron have no dialogue and interact with neither Hop Harrigan nor his Nazi captive." During this time, they also used black characters in comic books as a means to invalidate the militant black groups that were fighting for equality within
1000-412: A lifelong passion for the stories within comics, often focusing on specific superheroes and striving to gather a complete collection of a particular series. Comics are assigned sequential numbers, and the initial issue of a long-lasting comic book series tends to be both the scarcest and the most coveted among collectors. The introduction of a new character might occur within an existing title. For instance,
1100-467: A little boy . Sarge Steel of the Department of Metahuman Affairs meets with Superman about the boy, whom he learns is Kryptonian. Superman takes a personal interest in the child, and is concerned over what the government might do to him. His concerns are proved justified when the boy is transferred without Superman's knowledge. Enraged, Superman disguises himself to grab the boy from a moving van and goes to
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#17328515420361200-657: A notably longer time in the case of immensely powerful beings, which gives the victim more time to react and free themselves from the Parasite's grip. Following an encounter with the Strange Visitor , however, the Parasite's powers were enhanced and enable him to retain the energy he takes for longer as well as granting Jones the ability to shapeshift; he can now physically morph into his victims right down to their DNA, being able to access their memories, gain their natural abilities, and mimic their voices. The Parasite's biggest weakness
1300-504: A period of time due to the pressure in his cells. Despite these abilities, the Parasite became depressed because he could no longer embrace his wife and children. The Parasite made a number of reappearances before the Crisis, yet he never successfully found a means to permanently defeat Superman. Despite this, he knew Superman's alter ego and often used this to attack Clark Kent. Gaining sizable intellect from his multiple encounters with Superman,
1400-521: A pet. In Absolute Power , Parasite is forced to work for Amanda Waller before the Amazo robot Last Son kills him. In Superman (volume 6), he resurfaces, but is killed by Doomsday . Alex and Alexandra Allston are teenagers who are experimented on by the villain Ruin and transformed into Parasites. Alex is later killed by an OMAC while attempting to escape prison. Alexandra successfully escapes and joins
1500-468: A purple-skinned, parasitic entity, and thus he became the Parasite. Any time he touched someone, he could absorb their physical and mental properties. Touching Superman would instantly absorb a sizable fraction of his superhuman powers (it was established early on that he is not capable of acquiring the whole of Superman's powers). On one occasion, while attempting to absorb a greater portion of his adversary's powers than previously, his body disintegrated for
1600-497: A surge of creativity emerged in what became known as underground comix . Published and distributed independently of the established comics industry, most of such comics reflected the youth counterculture and drug culture of the time. Underground comix "reflected and commented on the social divisions and tensions of American society". Many had an uninhibited, often irreverent style; their frank depictions of nudity, sex, profanity, and politics had no parallel outside their precursors,
1700-537: Is Rudy Jones , who has become one of Superman 's most enduring enemies and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery . In 2009, Parasite was ranked as IGN 's 61st Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time. The Rudy Jones incarnation of the Parasite has been substantially adapted from the comics into multiple forms of media, most notably in the DC Animated Universe 's Superman: The Animated Series and Justice League as well as
1800-493: Is also available to read online in the Digital Comic Museum. In 1971, writer-artist Gil Kane and collaborators applied a paperback format to their "comics novel" Blackmark . Will Eisner popularized the term "graphic novel" when he used it on the cover of the paperback edition of his work A Contract with God, and Other Tenement Stories in 1978 and, subsequently, the usage of the term began to increase. In 2017,
1900-458: Is an ongoing debate regarding whether the relatively high cost of this grading service is justified and whether it serves the interests of collectors or mainly caters to speculators seeking rapid profits, akin to trading in stocks or fine art. Comic grading has played a role in establishing standards for valuation, which online price guides such as GoCollect and GPAnalysis utilize to provide real-time market value information. Collectors also seek out
2000-487: Is angered by the information it holds on him: he is called everything, including "madman". As Lois and Clark bring Chris to the Daily Planet , it is attacked, and Clark quickly changes as Non grabs him and throws him out the window where he meets Zod. Meanwhile, Lois tries to escape with Chris until Ursa stops her to grab the child, revealing him to be her and Zod's son, Lor-Zod. As Superman fights Zod, dozens of pods rain from
2100-653: Is generally considered the beginning of the modern comic book as it is known today. The Silver Age of Comic Books is generally considered to date from the first successful revival of the then-dormant superhero form, with the debut of the Flash in Showcase #4 (Oct. 1956). The Silver Age lasted through the late 1960s or early 1970s, during which time Marvel Comics revolutionized the medium with such naturalistic superheroes as Stan Lee and Jack Kirby 's Fantastic Four and Lee and Steve Ditko 's Spider-Man . The demarcation between
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#17328515420362200-617: Is largely set in Britain and starring the magician John Constantine , paved the way for British writers such as Jamie Delano . The English musician Peter Gabriel issued in 2000 The Story of OVO which was released in a CD-booklet-shaped comic book as part of the CD edition with the title " OVO The Millennium Show ". The 2000 Millennium Dome Show based on it. At Christmas, publishers repackage and commission material for comic annuals , printed and bound as hardcover A4 -size books; "Rupert" supplies
2300-511: Is shown one of the last remaining pods he can use to return home, but prisoner Dev-Em attacks Superman, nearly killing him, until he is slammed into the wall by Mon-El. Using the pod, Superman returns from the Zone to Metropolis , where the city is now enslaved and the buildings transforming into Sunstone structures. He turns to Luthor for help against the criminals when he is attacked by Bizarro, Parasite and Metallo . There, Luthor tells Superman that
2400-424: Is that he also absorbs the weaknesses of his victims and cannot counter such susceptibilities even when he has other abilities that should do so; when he absorbed both Superman and Livewire 's powers, he retained the latter's vulnerability to water despite possessing the former's near-invulnerability. The Parasite also maintains Superman's weaknesses, like kryptonite, even when the Parasite in addition already absorbed
2500-519: Is unable to stop him from re-entering the Phantom Zone. Back in the Fortress, Superman asks Mon-El if he has found Chris; he has not. He says: "I will not stop looking", and flies back into the zone to continue his search. As Mon-El is floating away, Superman looks into the Phantom Zone at his friend and simply says: "Thank you". During the run of the arc, other issues were released that were connected to
2600-591: Is used in South Korea to refer to both comics and cartooning in general. Outside South Korea, the term usually refers to comics originally published in the country. Manhwa is greatly influenced by Japanese Manga comics though it differs from manga and manhua with its own distinct features. Webtoons have become popular in South Korea as a new way to read comics. Thanks in part to different censorship rules, color and unique visual effects, and optimization for easier reading on smartphones and computers. More manhwa have made
2700-604: The Daily Planet who is selected to join LexCorp. There, he eats a donut imbued with Kryptonite radiation that transforms him into the Parasite. In the DC Rebirth relaunch, Parasite is a member of the Suicide Squad . In Dawn of DC , Parasite reforms, gets a job at Supercorp, and is given a special wristband that supplies him with energy. He also develops the ability to create small duplicates of himself and adopts one of them as
2800-629: The New 52 Parasite first appeared in Superman (vol. 3) #23.4 and was created by Aaron Kuder . In the Pre-Crisis, Raymond Maxwell Jensen was a lowlife who got a job as a plant worker for a research center. Wrongly believing that the company payrolls were hidden in storage containers, Jensen opened one and was bombarded with energies from biohazard materials (which was actually waste collected by Superman when he traveled into outer space), which transformed him into
2900-492: The Phantom Zone at the conclusion of the story. Due to the pronounced scheduling problems with the arc, a line of dialogue was incorporated into Action Comics Annual #11 ("I even got to meet Robin") that insinuates that the invasion of Zod's army took place after Chris received his power-dampening wristwatch, which would place the events of Superman #664, 668, and 673 chronologically before those of Action Comics #846 despite
3000-552: The Secret Society of Super Villains and the Suicide Squad. All incarnations of the Parasite have the ability to temporarily absorb the life energy , superpowers , and knowledge of their victims through physical contact, and are also able to drain virtually any other form of energy and use it as a power source. In particular, Rudy Jones is granted enhanced strength, intelligence, agility, durability, and reflexes by absorbing
3100-457: The Secret Society of Super Villains under Alexander Luthor Jr. Joshua Allen is the fourth incarnation of Parasite, introduced in The New 52 continuity reboot. He is a misanthropic delivery boy who is wounded while attacking a creature that Superman was fighting. Allen is taken to S.T.A.R. Labs to recover, where the treatment transforms him into Parasite. In later appearances, Allen joins
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3200-574: The archetype of the superhero . According to historian Michael A. Amundson , appealing comic-book characters helped ease young readers' fear of nuclear war and neutralize anxiety about the questions posed by atomic power. Historians generally divide the timeline of the American comic book into eras. The Golden Age of Comic Books began in 1938, with the debut of Superman in Action Comics #1, published by Detective Comics (predecessor of DC Comics), which
3300-543: The 1930s – and through really to the 1950s and 60s – these comics were almost the only entertainment available to children." Dennis the Menace was created in the 1950s, which saw sales for The Beano soar. He features in the cover of The Beano , with the BBC referring to him as the "definitive naughty boy of the comic world." In 1954, Tiger comics introduced Roy of the Rovers ,
3400-422: The 1940s there was a change in portrayal of black characters. "A cursory glance...might give the impression that situations had improved for African Americans in comics." In many comics being produced in this time there was a major push for tolerance between races. "These equality minded heroes began to spring to action just as African Americans were being asked to participate in the war effort." During this time,
3500-560: The 1990s, changed the format and distribution of their comics to more closely resemble non-comics publishing. The " minicomics " form, an extremely informal version of self-publishing , arose in the 1980s and became increasingly popular among artists in the 1990s, despite reaching an even more limited audience than the small press. Small publishers regularly releasing titles include Avatar Press , Hyperwerks , Raytoons, and Terminal Press , buoyed by such advances in printing technology as digital print-on-demand . In 1964, Richard Kyle coined
3600-399: The 20th century, with the first comic standard-sized comic being Funnies on Parade . Funnies on Parades was the first book that established the size, duration, and format of the modern comic book. Following this was, Dell Publishing 's 36-page Famous Funnies: A Carnival of Comics as the first true newsstand American comic book; Goulart, for example, calls it "the cornerstone for one of
3700-459: The 21st century and which Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini adapted into a 2003 film . Some independent comics continued in the tradition of underground comics. While their content generally remained less explicit, others resembled the output of mainstream publishers in format and genre but were published by smaller artist-owned companies or by single artists. A few (notably RAW ) represented experimental attempts to bring comics closer to
3800-659: The Comics Magazine Association of America. The CMAA instilled the Comics Code Authority in 1954 and drafted the self-censorship Comics Code that year, which required all comic books to go through a process of approval. It was not until the 1970s that comic books could be published without passing through the inspection of the CMAA. The Code was made formally defunct in November 2011. In the late 1960s and early 1970s,
3900-647: The Incredible Hulk and the X-Men . The best-selling comic book categories in the US as of 2019 are juvenile children's fiction at 41%, manga at 28% and superhero comics at 10% of the market. Another major comic book market is France , where Franco-Belgian comics and Japanese manga each represent 40% of the market, followed by American comics at 10% market share. Comic books heavily rely on their organization and visual presentation. Authors dedicate significant attention to aspects like page layout, size, orientation, and
4000-548: The Innocent (1954). This critique led to the involvement of the American Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency , which launched an investigation into comic books. Wertham argued that comic books were accountable for a surge in juvenile delinquency and posed a potential impact on a child's sexuality and moral values. In response to attention from the government and from the media, the US comic book industry set up
4100-536: The Kent Farm in Smallville , Kansas . With no answers on the boy from the Fortress, Clark talks to Lois about adopting him, but she feels uncomfortable given who and what they are. The boy then speaks English as news breaks out on the young Kryptonian's disappearance. Lex Luthor hears the news and wants Bizarro to grab him. At a press conference, where Superman announces that Clark Kent and Lois Lane will take care of
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4200-462: The Kryptonian child, Bizarro arrives and attacks him. The fight threatens the city around the conference location, and Superman finally uses super-breath to throw him away. Lois and Clark walk with their adopted child, named Chris Kent, as three more pods land near the Fortress carrying Phantom Zone criminals: General Zod , Ursa and Non . As the three enter the Fortress, Zod activates the A.I. and
4300-450: The Kryptonian outlaws. When using gold, a pair of the criminals fall out of the sky with a "splat". When using red, one criminal's DNA shifts irregularly, allowing Metallo to step on his head and crush it. Parasite takes pleasure in siphoning Kryptonian powers from many of the escapees. Bizarro goes toe-to-toe with Non, another mindless brute, as they exchange grunts and tests of strength. Luthor goes after Zod's main fortress, seeking to have
4400-651: The Magician , and the Phantom . Several reprint companies became involved in repackaging American material for the British market, notably the importer and distributor Thorpe & Porter . Marvel Comics established a UK office in 1972. DC Comics and Dark Horse Comics also opened offices in the 1990s. The repackaging of European material has occurred less frequently, although The Adventures of Tintin and Asterix serials have been successfully translated and repackaged in softcover books. The number of European comics available in
4500-548: The Man of Steel will join his team: the Superman Revenge Squad , consisting of Luthor, Parasite, Bizarro, and Metallo. Showing off his sufficiently advanced weaponry that is easily capable of killing other Kryptonians, Superman asks Luthor why he is still alive. Luthor scoffs at him, saying he would much rather defeat Superman than have him become a martyr. As the squad moves out, Metallo uses various forms of Kryptonite to kill
4600-453: The Man of Tomorrow? , Parasite and Terra-Man are revealed to have killed each other sometime prior. The second Parasite, Rudolph "Rudy" Jones , is a janitor at a Pittsburgh S.T.A.R. Labs facility who is transformed after being exposed to radioactive waste. Forced to absorb energy to survive, Parasite attacks Firestorm and kills Multiplex before the former stops him. Throughout his appearances, Parasite's abilities evolve, giving him
4700-507: The Parasite devised the means to reanimate dormant plant remains left behind from the Earth-Two supervillain Solomon Grundy , creating a newer and stronger version of the creature to plague his adversary. On another occasion, the Parasite devised the means to transfer the powers of the hero Air Wave to the young hero's adversary Casey Jones temporarily. In Superman: Whatever Happened to
4800-433: The Phantom Zone forcefully "recall" all who had been inside of it. Speaking with Lois, she discovers that as a side-effect, Luthor intends to trap Superman within the Zone along with all of the escaped criminals. Superman goes straight for Zod and Ursa, taking Chris out of harm's way. During their fight, Zod tries to tell Kal-El that his father had failed him, with Superman saying that his father gave him life. Hearing much of
4900-475: The Rovers , Bunty , Buster , Valiant , Twinkle and 2000 AD . Parasite (comics) Parasite is the name of several supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics . Each iteration of the character has the ability to temporarily absorb the life force, attributes, memories, and superpowers of anyone through physical touch. The most well-known and recurring incarnation
5000-579: The Silver Age and the following era, the Bronze Age of Comic Books , is less well-defined, with the Bronze Age running from the very early 1970s through the mid-1980s. The Modern Age of Comic Books runs from the mid-1980s to the present day. A significant event in the timeline of American comic books occurred when psychiatrist Fredric Wertham voiced his criticisms of the medium through his book Seduction of
5100-426: The U.S. "Spider-Man 'made it clear that militant black power was not the remedy for racial injustice'." "The Falcon openly criticized black behavior stating' maybe it's important fo [ sic ] us to cool things down-so we can protect the rights we been fightin' for'." This portrayal and character development of black characters can be partially blamed on the fact that, during this time, "there had rarely been
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#17328515420365200-507: The UK has increased in the last two decades. The British company Cinebook , founded in 2005, has released English translated versions of many European series. In the 1980s, a resurgence of British writers and artists gained prominence in mainstream comic books, which was dubbed the " British Invasion " in comic book history. These writers and artists brought with them their own mature themes and philosophy such as anarchy, controversy and politics common in British media. These elements would pave
5300-499: The United States. They were the ones painted as intolerant and disrespectful of the dominant concerns of white America". Manga (漫画) are comic books or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, though the art form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art . The term manga is used in Japan to refer to both comics and cartooning in general. Outside Japan,
5400-408: The ability to absorb fire, electricity, and consciousnesses, and mimic the genetic makeup and appearance of others, before he is killed after accidentally absorbing Kryptonite radiation. Parasite is later resurrected and joins Libra 's Secret Society of Super Villains . The 2009-10 miniseries Superman: Secret Origin redefines the Parasite's origin. In this version, Rudy Jones is a janitor at
5500-537: The actor, Terence Stamp ), Ursa and Non into the regular DC Universe continuity. The arc's first three parts were published in Action Comics #844 through #846. The next parts were delayed to give Kubert sufficient recovery time from health problems he did not wish to disclose. Because of this, the fourth part was delayed and released with issue #851. The eleventh annual of Action Comics , released in May 2008, completed
5600-452: The argument, Chris flies toward the battle as a distraction as Luthor initiates the recall. Before the Zone can trap Superman, Lois knocks Luthor out with a giant crystal. In the midst of the sweeping storm, Chris realizes that he is keeping the Zone open and must return in order to close it. Superman appeals to him to find another way, but Chris persists, and thanks both him and Lois for all that they had showed him. Superman flies after him, but
5700-687: The comic book market size for North America was just over $ 1 billion with digital sales being flat, book stores having a 1 percent decline, and comic book stores having a 10 percent decline over 2016. The global comic book market saw a substantial 12% growth in 2020, reaching a total worth of US$ 8.49 billion. This positive trajectory continued in 2021, with the market's annual valuation surging to US$ 9.21 billion. The rising popularity of comic books can be attributed to heightened global interest, driven significantly by collaborative efforts among diverse brands. These collaborations are geared towards producing more engaging and appealing comic content, contributing to
5800-463: The comic book market. The rarest modern comic books include the original press run of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen #5, which DC executive Paul Levitz recalled and pulped due to the appearance of a vintage Victorian era advertisement for "Marvel Douche ", which the publisher considered offensive; only 100 copies exist, most of which have been CGC graded. (See Recalled comics for more pulped, recalled, and erroneous comics.) In 2000,
5900-534: The comics all together. There was a comic created about the 99th Squadron, also known as the Tuskegee Airmen , an all-black air force unit. Instead of making the comic about their story, the comic was about Hop Harrigan. A white pilot who captures a Nazi, shows him videos of the 99th Squadron defeating his men and then reveals to the Nazi that his men were defeated by African Americans which infuriated him as he sees them as
6000-415: The comics art form. Comic Cuts was a British comic published from 1890 to 1953. It was preceded by Ally Sloper's Half Holiday (1884), which is notable for its use of sequential cartoons to unfold narrative. These British comics existed alongside the popular lurid " penny dreadfuls " (such as Spring-heeled Jack ), boys' " story papers " and the humorous Punch magazine, which was the first to use
6100-433: The coon stereotype but had some subtle differences. They are both a derogatory way of portraying black characters. "The name itself, an abbreviation of raccoon, is dehumanizing. As with Sambo, the coon was portrayed as a lazy, easily frightened, chronically idle, inarticulate, buffoon." This portrayal "was of course another attempt to solidify the intellectual inferiority of the black race through popular culture." However, in
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#17328515420366200-618: The debut appearances of iconic characters such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman , the Flash , Captain Marvel , Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk , Iron Man , Captain America and the Mighty Thor are regarded as priceless treasures within the comic book world. Many early iterations of black characters in comics "became variations on the 'single stereotypical image of Sambo'." Sambo was closely related to
6300-411: The energy of other beings. When Jones drains other superpowered individuals, he gains their abilities for a limited period of time until he "runs out of life-energy" and must seek a new victim to "feed on". He is shown to have a heightened sense of perception that allows him to detect the life force and power within other beings. While drawing the energy of ordinary humans is almost instantaneous, it takes
6400-420: The eradication of Asian invaders." There was "a constant relay race in which one Asian culture merely handed off the baton of hatred to another with no perceptible changes in the manner in which the characters would be portrayed." "The only specific depiction of a Hispanic superhero did not end well. In 1975, Marvel gave us Hector Ayala (a.k.a. The White Tiger)." "Although he fought for several years alongside
6500-413: The extent of promulgating a code, nor did it last long. The UK has also established a healthy market in the reprinting and repackaging of material, notably material originating in the US. The lack of reliable supplies of American comic books led to a variety of black-and-white reprints, including Marvel's monster comics of the 1950s, Fawcett's Captain Marvel , and other characters such as Sheena , Mandrake
6600-533: The fact that the latter was released earlier. Chris Kent's fate was unknown until Action Comics #875, where it was revealed that he is the new Nightwing after the events of " New Krypton ". Comic book A comic book , comic-magazine or simply ' comic' , is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and written narrative, usually dialogue contained in word balloons emblematic of
6700-578: The films Superman and Superman II . Since Crisis on Infinite Earths , there have been several characters bearing the name of Zod in the Superman comics. However, in current continuity, Superman meets the true Zod for the first time in "Last Son". In Action Comics Annual #10, Clark Kent 's life as a child in Smallville is shown in detail for current continuity. Also, in this issue, continuity returns to having multiple versions of kryptonite , after it had previously been decided to do away with all but
6800-494: The first appearance of Spider-Man took place in Amazing Fantasy #15. New characters were frequently introduced in this manner, waiting for an established audience before launching their own titles. Consequently, comics featuring the debut appearance of a significant character can sometimes be even more challenging to locate than the inaugural issue of that character's standalone series. Some rare comic books include copies of
6900-508: The first appearance of Superman , both sold privately through online dealer ComicConnect.com in 2010, and Detective Comics #27, the first appearance of Batman , via public auction. Updating the above price obtained for Action Comics #1, the first appearance of Superman , the highest sale on record for this book is $ 3.2 million, for a 9.0 copy. Misprints, promotional comic-dealer incentive printings, and issues with exceptionally low distribution tend to possess scarcity value in
7000-452: The green variety during the Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline. Chris' fate at the end of the story creates a continuity paradox . Due to the delays in the completion of the story, Chris Kent's appearances in the Superman title during the interim time between "Last Son"'s fourth and fifth parts appeared to take place after "Last Son". This would be impossible, however, since Chris returned to
7100-590: The hugely popular football based strip recounting the life of Roy Race and the team he played for, Melchester Rovers . The stock media phrase "real 'Roy of the Rovers' stuff" is often used by football writers, commentators and fans when describing displays of great skill, or surprising results that go against the odds, in reference to the dramatic storylines that were the strip's trademark. Other comic books such as Eagle , Valiant , Warrior , Viz and 2000 AD also flourished. Some comics, such as Judge Dredd and other 2000 AD titles, have been published in
7200-426: The industry's continued growth. The 1970s saw the advent of specialty comic book stores . Initially, comic books were marketed by publishers to children because comic books were perceived as children's entertainment. However, with increasing recognition of comics as an art form and the growing pop culture presence of comic book conventions , they are now embraced by many adults. Comic book collectors often exhibit
7300-465: The influence of the Francophone "Franco-Belgian" comics but have their own distinct style. Although Ally Sloper's Half Holiday (1884) was aimed at an adult market, publishers quickly targeted a younger demographic, which has led to most publications being for children and has created an association in the public's mind of comics as somewhat juvenile. The Guardian refers to Ally Sloper as "one of
7400-437: The likes of much more popular heroes such as Spider-Man and Daredevil, he only lasted six years before sales of comics featuring him got so bad that Marvel had him retire. The most famous Hispanic character is Bane, a villain from Batman." The Native American representation in comic books "can be summed up in the noble savage stereotype" " a recurring theme...urged American indians to abandon their traditional hostility towards
7500-528: The live-action TV series Smallville and Supergirl , portrayed by Brendan Fletcher and William Mapother respectively. Additionally, Raymond Jensen and Alexandra Allston, Ally Allston , appear in Supergirl and Superman & Lois , portrayed by Anthony Konechny and Rya Kihlstedt respectively. The Raymond Maxwell Jenson version of the Parasite first appeared in Action Comics #340 (August 1966) and
7600-553: The manga market in Japan reached a new record value of ¥612.5 billion due to a fast growth of digital manga sales as well as an increase in print sales. The comic book market in the United States and Canada was valued at $ 1.09 billion in 2016. As of 2017 , the largest comic book publisher in the United States is manga distributor Viz Media , followed by DC Comics and Marvel Comics featuring superhero comics franchises such as Superman , Batman , Wonder Woman , Spider-Man ,
7700-495: The most lucrative branches of magazine publishing". In 1905 G.W. Dillingham Company published 24 select strips by the cartoonist Gustave Verbeek in an anthology book called 'The Incredible Upside-Downs of Little Lady Lovekins and Old Man Muffaroo'. The introduction of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster 's Superman in 1938 turned comic books into a major industry and ushered in the Golden Age of Comic Books . The Golden Age originated
7800-556: The name Foolbert Sturgeon, has been credited as the first underground comix; while R. Crumb and the crew of cartoonists who worked on Zap Comix popularized the form. The rise of comic book specialty stores in the late 1970s created and paralleled a dedicated market for "independent" or " alternative comics " in the US. The first such comics included the anthology series Star Reach , published by comic book writer Mike Friedrich from 1974 to 1979, and Harvey Pekar 's American Splendor , which continued sporadic publication into
7900-408: The original artwork pages from comic books, which are perhaps the most rarefied items in the realm of comic book collecting. These pages hold unparalleled scarcity due to the fact that there exists only one unique page of artwork for every page that was printed and published. The creation of these original artwork pages involves a collaborative effort: a writer crafts the story, a pencil artist designs
8000-491: The popular and widely understood negative tropes used for decades in American mass culture...". However, they were not accomplishing this agenda within all of their comics. In the comic series Captain Marvel Adventures , there was a character named Steamboat who embodied a collection of highly negative stereotypes prevalent during that period. The Writers' War Board did not request any alterations to this character despite
8100-428: The pornographic and even more obscure " Tijuana bibles ". Underground comics were almost never sold at newsstands, but rather in such youth-oriented outlets as head shops and record stores, as well as by mail order . The underground comics encouraged creators to publish their work independently so that they would have full ownership rights to their characters. Frank Stack 's The Adventures of Jesus , published under
8200-736: The positioning of panels. These characteristics are crucial for effectively conveying the content and messages within the comic book. Key components of comic books encompass panels, speech bubbles (also known as balloons), text lines, and characters. Speech balloons generally take the form of convex containers that hold character dialogue and are connected to the character via a tail element. The tail comprises an origin, path, tip, and directional point. The creation of comic books involves several essential steps: writing, drawing, and coloring. Various technological tools and methods are employed to craft comic books, incorporating concepts such as directions, axes, data, and metrics. Following these formatting guidelines,
8300-606: The problematic portrayal. The removal of Steamboat from the series only came about due to the persistent advocacy of a black youth group based in New York City." Originally their request was refused by individuals working on the comic stating, " Captain Marvel Adventures included many kinds of caricatures 'for the sake of humor'." The black youth group responded with "this is not the Negro race, but your one-and-a-half millions readers will think it so." Afterwards, Steamboat disappeared from
8400-488: The process unfolds with writing, drawing, and coloring. In the United States, the term "comic book", is generally used for comics periodicals and trade paperbacks while " graphic novel " is the term used for standalone books. Comics as a print medium have existed in the United States since the printing of The Adventures of Mr. Obadiah Oldbuck in 1842 in hardcover, making it the first known American prototype comic book. Proto-comics periodicals began appearing early in
8500-452: The same for Asian people. However, "Japanese and Filipino characters were visually indistinguishable. Both groups have grotesque buckteeth, tattered clothing, and bright yellow skin." "Publishers depicted America's Asian allies through derogatory images and language honed over the preceding decades." Asian characters were previously portrayed as, "ghastly yellow demons". During WWII, "[every] major superhero worth his spandex devoted himself to
8600-450: The same treatment. "By the time the United States entered WWII, negative perceptions of Chinese were an established part of mass culture...." However, concerned that the Japanese could use America's anti-Chinese material as propaganda they began "to present a more positive image of America's Chinese allies..." Just as they tried to show better representation for Black people in comics they did
8700-551: The sequential panels on the page, an ink artist goes over the pencil with pen and ink, a letterer provides the dialogue and narration through hand-lettering, and finally, a colorist adds color as the final touch before the pages are sent to the printer. When the printer returns the original artwork pages, they are typically returned to the artists themselves. These artists sometimes opt to sell these pages at comic book conventions, in galleries, and at art shows centered around comic book art. The original pages from DC and Marvel, featuring
8800-409: The sky, opened to reveal Phantom Zone villains. Scientist Jax-Ur emerges with a Phantom Zone Projector and sends Superman to the Zone. Trapped, Superman witnesses the Kryptonian invasion, and he can't do anything to stop it. Mon-El , whom Clark sent to the Zone when he was younger to preserve his life from fatal lead poisoning , appears before him. Bringing Superman to Fort Rozz, a former prison, he
8900-452: The status of fine art . During the 1970s the " small press " culture grew and diversified. By the 1980s, several independent publishers – such as Pacific , Eclipse , First , Comico , and Fantagraphics – had started releasing a wide range of styles and formats—from color-superhero, detective , and science-fiction comic books to black-and-white magazine-format stories of Latin American magical realism . A number of small publishers in
9000-416: The story in some way, with only one written by Richard Donner and Geoff Johns . These were done to explain the backstory to "Last Son", as well as show the changes in continuity to Superman after the effects of Infinite Crisis : "Last Son" is the first appearance of General Zod , Ursa , and Non in their post- Infinite Crisis incarnations. All three are influenced by the characters' appearance in
9100-507: The storyline. The hardcover edition of the complete series was released on July 2 the same year. Reminded by the Fortress of Solitude 's AI (in the guise of his Kryptonian father Jor-El ) that, despite his appearance, he is not human , Superman heads back to the Daily Planet when people panic as a strange meteor is about to crash. He stops it, and sees that it's a pod ship carrying
9200-738: The switch from traditional print manhwa to online webtoons thanks to better pay and more freedom than traditional print manhwa. The webtoon format has also expanded to other countries outside of Korea like China, Japan, Southeast Asia, and Western countries. Major webtoon distributors include Lezhin , Naver , and Kakao . France and Belgium have a long tradition in comics and comic books, often called BDs (an abbreviation of bandes dessinées , meaning literally "drawn strips") in French, and strips in Dutch or Flemish . Belgian comic books originally written in Dutch show
9300-406: The term " graphic novel ". Precursors of the form existed by the 1920s, which saw a revival of the medieval woodcut tradition by Belgian Frans Masereel , American Lynd Ward and others, including Stan Lee. In 1947, Fawcett Publications published "Comics Novel No. 1", as the first in an intended series of these "comics novels". The story in the first issue was "Anarcho, Dictator of Death",
9400-423: The term "cartoon" in its modern sense of a humorous drawing. The first modern American-style comic book , Famous Funnies: A Carnival of Comics , was released in the U.S. in 1933 and was a reprinting of earlier newspaper humor comic strips , which had established many of the story-telling devices used in comics. The term comic book derives from American comic books once being a compilation of comic strips of
9500-496: The unreleased Motion Picture Funnies Weekly #1 from 1939. Eight copies, plus one without a cover, emerged in the estate of the deceased publisher in 1974. The "Pay Copy" of this book sold for $ 43,125 in a 2005 Heritage auction. The most valuable American comics have combined rarity and quality with the first appearances of popular and enduring characters. Four comic books have sold for over US$ 1 million as of December 2010 , including two examples of Action Comics #1,
9600-578: The way for mature and "darker and edgier" comic books and jump start the Modern Age of Comics . Writers included Alan Moore , famous for his V for Vendetta , From Hell , Watchmen , Marvelman , and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen ; Neil Gaiman with The Sandman mythos and Books of Magic ; Warren Ellis , creator of Transmetropolitan and Planetary ; and others such as Mark Millar , creator of Wanted and Kick-Ass . The comic book series John Constantine, Hellblazer , which
9700-417: The word is typically used to refer to comics originally published in the country. Dōjinshi ( 同人誌 , fan magazine ) , fan-made Japanese comics, operate in a far larger market in Japan than the American "underground comix" market; the largest dōjinshi fair, Comiket , attracts 500,000 visitors twice a year. Manhwa (만화) are comic books or graphic novels originating from South Korea . The term manhwa
9800-591: The world's first iconic cartoon characters", and "as famous in Victorian Britain as Dennis the Menace would be a century later." British comics in the early 20th century typically evolved from illustrated penny dreadfuls of the Victorian era (featuring Sweeney Todd , Dick Turpin and Varney the Vampire ). First published in the 1830s, penny dreadfuls were "Britain's first taste of mass-produced popular culture for
9900-453: The young." The two most popular British comic books, The Beano and The Dandy , were first published by DC Thomson in the 1930s. By 1950 the weekly circulation of both reached two million. Explaining the enormous popularity of comics in the UK during this period, Anita O'Brien, director curator at London's Cartoon Museum, states: "When comics like the Beano and Dandy were invented back in
10000-639: Was created by Jim Shooter . Shooter, who began working for DC at age 13, says that his inspiration for the villain was learning about parasites in his ninth-grade biology class. The Rudy Jones version of the Parasite first appeared in Firestorm (vol. 2) #58 and was created by John Ostrander and Joe Brozowski. The Alex and Andrea Allston versions of the Parasite first appeared in The Adventures of Superman #633 and were created by Greg Rucka , Matthew Clark, and Andrew Lanning. The Joshua Allen version of
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