Comic Books questions

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

I used to read comic books years and years ago and have just discovered digital comic books. I have also enjoyed many of the comic book movies in recent years and have a bunch of questions for those more knowledgeable than I about the heroes and villains that populate them.

I thought this thread could be a good place to discuss comic books in general, specific characters in particular, ask questions and offer answers. I'd love answers to these questions and invite others to ask their own and answer what they're able.

Things I'm curious about and would love answers to (with the understanding that there can't really be a definitive answer, only well informed opinions):

- I've read up that Captain America's shield is the hardest man-made metal, a fluke never to be repeated (the closest attempts to do so resulted *only* in Adamantium, also nigh on indestructible). Apparently the most powerful beings in existence have at most only managed to dent it. I have two questions about this: 1. Can't Gambit simply charge it up and then it will explode and be destroyed? He can make anything inanimate explode so presumably the shield would qualify? 2. If Captain America were holding the shield against a massive strike from Thor/Hulk/etc, wouldn't he simply go flying backwards, be driven into the ground, get squashed or have his legs mangled?

- If the Juggernaut fought Superman, could either defeat the other? For the sake of fairness, the fact that Superman is DC hero #1 and thus wouldn't lose for commercial/popularity reasons should be ignored. To make it easier, perhaps assume no weakness exploitation, both at full strength, no outside help, etc.

- Can Wolverine be killed by conventional means such as asphyxiation/drowning, starving, dehydration?

- If Mystique can control every cell in her body, wouldn't that make her immortal, able to assume a young (or old) form forever? Shouldn't she also be able to heal any physical wound by sorta "reforming" her body back to a healthy state?

- Has Sabretooth ever been a hero? As in, has he ever fought for the greater good, to protect others, self-sacrificed, etc?

That's all I've got for now, sure there'll be more later. Any answers, or other questions are welcome

 

[Elfgore]

You know, for the longest time I had Juggernaut down as a totally useless bad guy. "Ohhhhhh, he's big. What the hell does that do?" Then just two days ago I did some research. Turns out he is one of the most powerful motherfuckers in all of Marvel. I didn't know his helmet was magical and given to him by a space god and that he is nigh indestructible.

Since this is a comic thread, I'm going to take this time to ask some questions. I want to get into comics but I have no clue where to get started. I have a list of heroes I'm interested in and was wondering if I could get some tips as to where to start.

Deadpool
Galactus
Teen Titans
Hulk
Skaar
Thor
Hercules
Magus
Dr. Strange
Vulcan

If I need to get more specific feel free to let me know.

 

[purf]

Oh. Heh. And I thought this was about comics.

Spoiler: random image from a comic

But yeah, Let's pretend an entire artform only deals in superheroes and robots'n shit.
AFAIK, Wolverine can drown. Water and being in it scares him out of his mind.

 

[Tautology]

I can't answer all those, but I'll try for most of them.

1: Cap's shield is an alloy called "proto-admantium" made from Vibranium, steel, and a third unknown component. Vibranium alone is capable of absorbing vibratory energy such as sound waves and mechanical energy. The energy absorbed increases the durability of vibranium temporarily, but does not make it indestructible. This quality allows the shield to absorb the kinetic energy of a blow from the Hulk while transferring little or none to the wielder.

Gambit's power is described as an ability to convert the potential energy in an object to kinetic energy in a manner that the object becomes explosively charged. Should Gambit charge Cap's shield, one could assume it would simply absorb the kinetic energy. Unless the writer says otherwise.

2: My knowledge of DC comics is not that great so I might be wrong on Superman. Superman has between 2 to 4 weaknesses; Kryptonite, magic, mental attack, and his powers require solar energy. Juggernaut has a weakness to both mental and magic attack. Juggernaut's powers are gained from magic, but I don't know what effect that would have on Superman. Let's say none for this fight. Their physical abilities are largely similar; enhanced strength, stamina, durability, healing factor, don't require food or oxygen, etc. The major differences are Juggernaut does not tire, his already indestructible body is protected by a magic force field, and he is unstoppable. In a purely physical fight, I would give the edge to Juggernaut as he doesn't require sunlight.

3: Maybe? I think asphyxiation/drowning would only be temporary, not sure about starvation or dehydration.

4: Mystique can use her power to heal nearly any wound and her aging is at least slowed greatly given she is about one hundred years old.

5: I know little about Sabretooth's history so I can't answer that beyond maybe.

 

[Coruptin]

- I've read up that Captain America's shield is the hardest man-made metal, a fluke never to be repeated (the closest attempts to do so resulted *only* in Adamantium, also nigh on indestructible). Apparently the most powerful beings in existence have at most only managed to dent it. I have two questions about this: 1. Can't Gambit simply charge it up and then it will explode and be destroyed? He can make anything inanimate explode so presumably the shield would qualify? 2. If Captain America were holding the shield against a massive strike from Thor/Hulk/etc, wouldn't he simply go flying backwards, be driven into the ground, get squashed or have his legs mangled?

cap's shield is actually made of vibranium which isnt actually indestructible in the traditional sense like adamantium is. it has the ability to adsorb kinetic energy, so gambit's power would actually be completely useless against it (he imbues things with kinetic energy) and it let's cap block anything and he really shouldnt feel much of a push back. now, i remember in one animated movie gamma radiation could mess with the molecular stability of vibranium and manipulate it that way, but i have no idea if that holds true for the comics

Since this is a comic thread, I'm going to take this time to ask some questions. I want to get into comics but I have no clue where to get started. I have a list of heroes I'm interested in and was wondering if I could get some tips as to where to start.

try the taskmaster miniseries, it's self contained and doesnt really require much foreknowledge. it's got a humorous tone that a fan of deadpool would probably enjoy

i haven't read it yet but thor: god of thunder sounds like it would be accessible to new comers who just want thor being thor. it covers his history from cocky idiot thor to avenger thor to eventual all father thor

and i know it's completely irrelevant but i have to plug my current favorite ongoing series[es?] (i dont know the plural form of series because i am an actual dumb); transformers robots in disguise and transformers more than meets the eye. if you have a cursory understanding of transformers you should be able to follow what's going on. rid is somber and slow moving at times but i think it captures the quiet anxiety before the storm of a society that could fall to anarchy at a drop of a hat perfectly. mtmte sometimes seems to be moving really fast in no particular direction but it's balance of tragedy and comedy is reminiscent of shows like doctor who. also, it has the cutest most adorable robot couples.

 

[Scarim Coral]

- Has Sabretooth ever been a hero? As in, has he ever fought for the greater good, to protect others, self-sacrificed, etc?

The only info that I had known Sabertooth to be a hero is in the Age of Apocalypse alternative universe. Granted he did started out as a villain but he turned sides (he was more moral compared to the 616 counterpart).

 

[Redd the Sock]

Professor X was trying to reform Sabertooth for a while there in the mid 90s. He was kept under tight restraints at the mansion, did the odd mission, even a trading card listed him as "super hero". Needless to say, it didn't take.

The Age of Apocalypse version was a hero, and he did go on into the Exiles: a book about an alternate reality hopping team for a while.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

I find it hard to suspend my disbelief quite enough to buy Cap's energy absorbing shield. While I can accept the Thunder Gods, mutant powers and radioactive arachnids, the laws of physics dictate that a sufficiently powerful blow would send Captain America and his undamaged shield flying backwards, or squashed downwards. The energy has to go somewhere and the shield, absent of mystical, cosmic or Divine enchantments doesn't make Captain America weigh a great deal more, strengthen his body nor root him to the spot like the Blob.

If the shield were jammed into a crack in the ground or in a rock wall, I can accept the rock giving way before the shield did, but it would give way. Similarly so would Captain America, absent Juggernaut/Superman/Hulk/Thor levels of strength. Newton's Third Law and the law of conservation of energy both spring to mind.

 

[Little Woodsman]

I used to read comic books years and years ago and have just discovered digital comic books. I have also enjoyed many of the comic book movies in recent years and have a bunch of questions for those more knowledgeable than I about the heroes and villains that populate them.

I thought this thread could be a good place to discuss comic books in general, specific characters in particular, ask questions and offer answers. I'd love answers to these questions and invite others to ask their own and answer what they're able.

Things I'm curious about and would love answers to (with the understanding that there can't really be a definitive answer, only well informed opinions):


- If the Juggernaut fought Superman, could either defeat the other? For the sake of fairness, the fact that Superman is DC hero #1 and thus wouldn't lose for commercial/popularity reasons should be ignored. To make it easier, perhaps assume no weakness exploitation, both at full strength, no outside help, etc.

- Can Wolverine be killed by conventional means such as asphyxiation/drowning, starving, dehydration?

- If Mystique can control every cell in her body, wouldn't that make her immortal, able to assume a young (or old) form forever? Shouldn't she also be able to heal any physical wound by sorta "reforming" her body back to a healthy state?

- Has Sabretooth ever been a hero? As in, has he ever fought for the greater good, to protect others, self-sacrificed, etc?

That's all I've got for now, sure there'll be more later. Any answers, or other questions are welcome

I'll weigh in on a couple of these....

Juggernaut versus Superman-- Whoever the author wanted to win would win. However to just measure it objectively, what I have to ask is "How much does each know about the other, and is Supes allowed to use his brain?". If we posit that both have reasonable knowledge of the other, and Supes actually thinks to use his powers effectively he would super-speed behind Juggy, grab him under the armpits and fly to the remotest area he could (probably Antarctica) as quickly as possible. Then he'd just drop Juggy off, wave goodbye and wish Juggy a nice walk home.
Note that the Dazzler effectively prevented Juggy from committing a crime once by the simple expedient of shooting out the tires of his car, preventing him from reaching the scene of the planned criminal activity on time.

Can Wolverine be killed by conventional means-- well it depends... Wolverine with Adamantium is actually *more* easily killed than Wolverine without adamantium (the adamantium bonded to his skeleton is actually harmful to him, and keeps him from producing new blood cells as quickly as he would without it). In the Xavier protocols the recommended method for taking down no-adamantium Wolvie was to decapitate him and remove his head as far from his body as possible as immediately as possible (preferably having Nightcrawler teleport it several miles away). My guess is that, yes normal methods would work, but you'd have to go to extreme lengths with them, keeping him underwater for days, or deprived of air for hours, or deprived of water for weeks.

Mystique and aging-- It's not listed in the handbook of the Marvel universe as being an ability of hers, but it sounds plausible. Note however that Raven doesn't actually become what she changes in to, she changes her appearance-- she can't mimic powers, or states of health. So presumably the health problems that are at the root of the aging process would still apply to her.

Sabertooth as a hero--Others have already mentioned "Age of Apocalypse", but I just have to throw in that--well I *despise* Sabertooth (he's the favorite of an ex-girlfriend of mine--long story) but even I thought he was *AWESOME* in that story arc. When I think of Age of Apocalypse what I actually remember most are two scenes of him displaying mind-blowing levels of heroism. (Well that and "Wait, you mean you could have done that *any* time????")

 

[Mr. Omega]

Since this is a comic thread, I'm going to take this time to ask some questions. I want to get into comics but I have no clue where to get started. I have a list of heroes I'm interested in and was wondering if I could get some tips as to where to start.

You have the right approach, looking based on a character. My best suggestion: go to the library or get the digital apps or use Comixology. Collected editions, omnibuses and trade paperbacks collect a bunch of issues together, usually story arc by story arc. I'll list a few good ones based on characters that are easy to find.

Thor

I'll name three authors for you: Walt Simonson (did the run in the 80s, considered the definitive run of the character), J Micheal Straczynski (mid 2000s. Very good run), Jason Aaron (current writer of Thor: God of Thunder). JMS and Aaron will have a trade paperback clearly labeling them. Simonson is going to be a little harder to collect (expensive. he had a very long run)

Hercules

Incredible Hercules by Greg Pak. It starts at Incredible Hulk #106 because Hercules was filling in for the Hulk in his series during and after World War Hulk, and the series is renamed at #113. First editions are called Hulk: WWH - Incredible Hercules (collects Incredible Hulk 106-111) or if you have money, get Smash of the Titans, which has 106-115.

Dr. Strange

Dr Strange: The Oath. A nice little miniseries. Also, he's usually in Defenders series (but not the most recent one).

Vulcan

There are 3 collected editions to get: X-Men: Deadly Genesis, Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire, and Emperor Vulcan.

Hope this helps.

 

[DeimosMasque]

I'll try to answer these the best I can. But as even you said they can't really be answered as it's all conjecture.

- I've read up that Captain America's shield is the hardest man-made metal, a fluke never to be repeated (the closest attempts to do so resulted *only* in Adamantium, also nigh on indestructible). Apparently the most powerful beings in existence have at most only managed to dent it. I have two questions about this: 1. Can't Gambit simply charge it up and then it will explode and be destroyed? He can make anything inanimate explode so presumably the shield would qualify? 2. If Captain America were holding the shield against a massive strike from Thor/Hulk/etc, wouldn't he simply go flying backwards, be driven into the ground, get squashed or have his legs mangled?

The harder the material the longer it takes Gambit to charge the object and cause it to explode. Same reason that Gambit just can't touch Wolverine's claws and make them explore.

Second one is the unique properties of the metal its made of, it absorbs kinetic energy and vibration meaning that no matter how hard it's hit it doesn't transfer the energy to the holder.

- If the Juggernaut fought Superman, could either defeat the other? For the sake of fairness, the fact that Superman is DC hero #1 and thus wouldn't lose for commercial/popularity reasons should be ignored. To make it easier, perhaps assume no weakness exploitation, both at full strength, no outside help, etc.

It's be an interesting fight to be sure. Superman is probably stronger, but as noted by others his weakness is magic. Juggernaut's strength comes from magic and his armor is magic. As a result your got a guy nearly as strong as Supes who could actually hurt him. In the end Superman will probably win but like Juggy's fights with the Hulk, they're going to make quite a mess in the process.

[quote- Can Wolverine be killed by conventional means such as asphyxiation/drowning, starving, dehydration?[/quote]

Yes to drowning no to the others. In fact Wolverine's son Daken was killed in exactly that manner and Deadpool almost succeeded in killing him by tying him in chains and weights and dunking him in a pool.

- If Mystique can control every cell in her body, wouldn't that make her immortal, able to assume a young (or old) form forever? Shouldn't she also be able to heal any physical wound by sorta "reforming" her body back to a healthy state?

Yes and yes. In the comics Mystique is over a century old and has been "killed" multiple times yet always recovered.

- Has Sabretooth ever been a hero? As in, has he ever fought for the greater good, to protect others, self-sacrificed, etc?

Yes and no. He was for a while brought to heel and worked for the US government as a member of the X-Factor team. Also in the Age of Apocalypse alternate universe he was a hero who bonded to a young Blink and became rather heroic and self sacrificing.

 

[Tiamattt]

I'm no super-expert but I've been a long time reader so I'll try my best

1. (a) Cap's shield seems to be immune to a whole mess of things, Vibranium is already tough as hell but toss in steel and a "unknown compentent"*cough* PLOT ARMOR cough* into it's origin and you have something that's close to unbreakable, unless of course the story demands it. Just to add to it's already insane toughness it now has Asgardian metal in it thanks to the last time it broke/got rebuilt. So while I seriously doubt Gambit had a shot before, he certainly doesn't have one now. (b) The shield absorbs a ton of kenetic force(which again shoots down Gambit), which keeps that force from crushing Cap against people like Hulk/Thor. Doesn't make that much sense to me either since we're talking about guys like Thor/Hulk but it's comics so some leeway has to be given

2. Supes is a easy winner for me, although I'm sure just to make things interesting they'll give Jugs some pages where he knock supes away like a rag doll first. But generally too much of a power advantage for supes since Jugs can't fly, moves at normal speed and can only fight H2H compared to supes who has heat vision/cold breath along with flying/super speed.

3. Eh.....really depends whose writing him. Sometimes his healing factor is off the charts crazy so it wouldn't surprise me if he did at one point or another survived all the things you listed.

4. For the most part yes, it's actually kinda neat how far they took what used to be just a "common" shape shifter. Although now that I think about it I don't remember seeing her in any alternate future stories like Days of Future's past, so I'm going to assume that even she has her limits.

5. Yes actually, he did help out the X-men at least once(granted he wasn't all too happy about it) and I'm pretty sure he had at least one mini-series where he was the hero.

 

[thebludragonwarrior]

Since this is a comic thread, I'm going to take this time to ask some questions. I want to get into comics but I have no clue where to get started. I have a list of heroes I'm interested in and was wondering if I could get some tips as to where to start.

Okay, first time posting on a forum ever so hopefully I'm doing this right lol. Anyway, I can't get to all the characters you mentioned I'll try to help with some of them.

Btw, I notice almost all of your selections are marvel, so I would recommend (if you don't mind digital comics) the subscription service, marvel unlimited. It's basically Netflix but for nearly the entire marvel universe. There's still plenty of books that aren't on there that you would still have to buy other copies of but I think most of what you're interested in is there.

Also, I'm not caught up on most of the modern happenings on in comics so a lot of my recommendations will be older stuff.

Anyway...

Deadpool

I'd suggest the deadpool classics trades to start, which basically cover deadpools most notable first appearances (New mutants 98 and a couple of mini series) followed by the Joe Kelly run which most fans consider the best deadpool stories ever. If you're going to try this series out I'd recommend getting volumes 1 and 2 at the same time because volume 1 isn't that great and is mostly needed for set up of the events of later stories.

And while I haven't read it yet, I've heard Brian Posehn's recent run on Deadpool has been amazing and has also got a couple of trades already out.

Teen Titans

I'm personally not the biggest teen titans fan so I'm not as familiar with their history as many others but I'd recommend the Wolfman and Perez run on New Teen Titans that they did in the early 80's. Unfortunately everybody and their dog loves that series so it's very hard to find any trades at a reasonable price, but I just looked on amazon and it looks like they're releasing new trades in September of this year starting at the beginning of their run so if you don't mind waiting...

If you're absolutely dying for some teen titans stuff and/or you just want their history sorted out you should check out Linkara's March of the Titans on Thatguywiththeglasses. There's plenty of spoilers for their history though so be warned.

Also, avoid the New 52 series like the plague, I personally haven't read it but I've heard enough horror stories about it to know 99% of the population would not like it.

Hulk
Skaar

Haven't read Planet Hulk but that's where I've wanted to start my hulk reading, but if you do a little research I'm sure you'll be able to figure out if it's a good starting point. And I've heard nothing but great things about Mark Waid's recent Indestructible Hulk.

Thor

Walt Simonson. I don't care how expensive the books are, his stuff is the best (and if you want to be more knowledgable than all your friends about the movies you should read Walt's stuff since the movies take the most inspiration from this run).

Also, the original Lee and Kirby run would be one of the best silver age marvel books to read (though I don't think they're a good starting point as I think the silver age is kind of an acquired taste, so this is more of a general recommendation).

Oh yeah, I've read the first 6 or so issues of Jason Aarons run on Thor God of Thunder and that could also be a good starting point.

Ok, I'll be back in a bit for the Magus recommendation since that's gonna be pretty long winded (and I've already gone on for long enough). Hopefully that's not too intimidating