As for the Nova Prime helmet Sam gives to Charles Rider, I assume its from the Black Vortex but I also remember seeing the Abadox character having possession of a Centurion Nova Prime helmet as well.
I'll have to flip through this issue at another store another day.
I liked Loeb in the DC books i.e. like the return of Kara Zor-el in Superman/Batman even though I mainly bought the books because Michael Turner was doing the art.
I just never bought into Sam or the Black Novas/Supernovas. Always in mind was "Who is this? What is this? Why is this?" and "I just want Richard Rider back. Why can't you just bring him back already?"
I kept reading about promises and guarantees about greatness and a fantastic payoff. Steve Wacker even said that if we long-time loyal fan base Rider fans don't join the Sam bandwagon that we'd miss out on the journey and miss all the fun and discovery and even some hints of the old Nova Corps. What was it about the saying, "Don't Believe The Hype"?
If Sam's story was supposed to be about the screw up finally getting his due, that just means to me that its really trying to compete and one up Rich's story of 30 years sped up in 30 issues. Rich's 30 year story versus 30 issues of hurrying up to stay on schedule, meet the deadline, typical cut and paste quality type of rush job. Rich was less of a screw up and just more of an average dude with some bad luck, not so hard on himself. Someone I and most people can identify with and root for. Rich was exactly like Steve Rogers & Peter Parker because like them he was already inherently good person inside before the powers.
When it was just Rich in his book, it was just DnA doing their own thing. Nothing else. They weren't trying to out-do other books, be all gimmicky, flashy and fancy. Rich no longer needed to be the "Guardian of the Terran Sector" because he was now on full-time space cop duty for other planets and Earth has enough heroes to protect it.
With Sam's book, because Marvel NOW! is all about a Shared Universe, it seems like its all about crossing over lanes in a busy, highly congested highway, zig-zagging, and barely making the exits and avoiding close-calls crashing into other vehicles and the walls. Like Los Angeles traffic. Trying to do so many things in one hour at the last minute when what normally takes 15 minutes to get to becomes one hour in bumper to bumper traffic.
So Sam is finally reunited with Jesse but there are still many questions left unanswered.
Yeah, it was disappointing to see Beta Ray watered down in the story arc but it was his Marvel NOW! debut soo I had to support it. That and a certain flashback of his and Rich's first meeting.
If Jesse was supposed to check out The Fault all this time and it involves Rich returning...then I will be there. I hope its not Duggan, or Bendis, or Humphries writing Rich's return. Marvel should be on top of their game and they are supposed to be better than what they are churning out. That is a job for either Abbnett, Lanning, or DnA.
--Previous Message--
: No generally we agree I'd say. The growth
: aspect was a huge part of the problem. Maybe
: like you said, the biggest part.
:
: Even Wolfman's Rider was a coming of age
: story and metaphor for a young (man) heading
: off to Vietnam, too bad that far better
: story never had a chance to properly finish.
:
: Not sure if you picked up but I held on to
: this book for a long while. I was very open
: to this for starters...even rooting for Loeb
: as a "comeback" book.
:
: What really got me mad was the 3 writers in
: 10 issues. This was the first sign of
: "whoa!" in my attitude. I mean
: that kinda exposed everything marvel had to
: say about some "grand plan" and
: put it in the dumpster. We should have known
: then. Loeb claimed he had two years scripted
: and SW promised the book would knock our
: socks off. It was all made worse when you
: figure this put a good character (My
: favorite) in the dumpster. SO its more or
: less a combination.
:
: But even then, I was still open , I actually
: liked most of the Beta Ray Bill arc at the
: end of the teens and wrote highly of it. If
: Duggan would have legitimate turned this
: book around...i would have tipped my hat and
: sung a different tune. (BTW I liked how Sam
: was used in Yost's New Warriors, he gave him
: a few moments of heroism where he looked
: like a character who could develop.)
:
:
: "No Rider No buy" was something
: I've only picked up in the past year. ..and
: it stems from my belief it is the only way
: to mend the bridge with rider fans this far
: in.
:
: SO I have one question still
: lingers...where did Sam get Nova Prime's
: helm he returned to Rich's dad? Did the
: Vortex give it to him ? or was this the
: (forgotten) helm Abadox claimed to have
: around issue 18?
:
: --Previous Message--
:
: Well, you are pretty predisposed to dislike
: anything you would have read so far as I
: could tell.
:
: I will agree that the book is a failure.
: But not for the reasons you state. It was a
: failure because they were trying to start
: Sam as a screw-up and do the classic heroes
: journey plot trope --and failed to ever make
: him a real hero.
:
: I can forgive anything else. I can forgive
: no explaination of Black Nova. I can
: forgive the lack of appearances by any other
: character. But when I can't really forgive
: is broken storytelling. And that is what we
: had here.
:
: It would not have been hard to have Sam grow
: up during these issues and become the sort
: of hero one could root for. And when his
: dad was returned (which I maintain is the
: best way to end it) the natural end would
: have been for his father to ACKNOWLEDGE that
: growth and let him know that he has earned
: the power.
:
: In any event he is done. He will exist as
: part of an Avenger team. We have other
: Nova's coming up to hopefully root for and
: we all hold out hope that the one we really
: want to see will finally get his due.
: Hopefully in his own new series and,
: frankly, on the big screen.
:
:
:
: --Previous Message--
: 31 issues to craft any sort of tight plot
: or
: story surrounding all of this and they
: clearly blow it. A genre change focused on
: a completely different group, and of course
: one dead hero who many fans never got proper
: treatment. This book has been colossal
: disaster.
:
: The Jesse story line clearly smacks of
: something botched or plans changed. I'd bet
: he was set to be Rider but Marvel nixed
: those plans for some reason. (probably
: internet spite) Just my take.
:
: No Jesse explanation. No explanation for
: much of anything. An "off panel"
: explanation for what the black novas are. No
: meaningful real involvement from Star Lord
: or the GOTG.
:
: Didn't even deal with what happened to the
: DnA corps in 31 damg issues(Even though the
: book featured an abandoned arc where sam
: dedicated himself to tracking down corpsmen)
:
: "Doing your own thing", is one
: matter but this book plugged crossover after
: meaningless crossover. If your gonna do your
: own thing , have a plan. A generic origin
: that did not set up much lasting impact.
: Plot wholes that showed a disdain for marvel
: canon. No real rogues gallery established.
: Zero growth as a character. A rushed
: friendship with Utah the watcher that hardly
: came off genuine, 3 writers in the first 10
: issues.
:
: At launch, I remember when Stephen Wacker
: snidely promised "Trust me guys its
: gonna be good!" boy, what a crock....
:
: SO far Nova Vol. 5 was one big lie.
:
:
: --Previous Message--
:
: From all appearances Jesse seems to be
: perfectly human. Though he does stare out
: in space. So is that because he misses Nova
: times or is it become it is home?
:
: --Previous Message--
: Awww, Goddang it.
: So there was no revelation that Jesse
: Alexander was a humanoid alien, especially
: Xandarian, who either plan to use Eva to
: "enrich his race's genepool" or
: Eva has fetish for crashlanded aliens.
: Then again, I am bit too obsessed on
: Xenophilia, even if both of the races are
: humans and can have babies.
: Heck, Imagine if Jesse turned out to be
: both a Spartoi and a relative of J'Son. Now
: Sam would have coolest cousin (+aunt Kitty)
: in the universe.
: --Previous Message--
:
: Well, Sam's initial journey is wrapped up.
: I thought that it was very fitting that the
: end of the story was the return of the
: father. There was no better way to end it.
: The story starts with his dad missing and
: ends with his dad's return. With Sam
: becoming a hero along the way.
:
: Not much of a mystery as to who gets the
: helmet; we all saw Sam in the All New All
: Different Avengers.
:
: (Of course all of this confuses me; they are
: in Arizona right? Does Arizona even exist
: anymore now that the whole universe is
: Battleworld? Did dad get back right in time
: to be snuffed out of existance? I am not
: feeling this Battleworld thing at all.
: Seems dumb.)
:
: Unrealistic hope that the "won't
: believe the ending" surprise would be
: Rich. No such luck, sadly. Just another
: sentence talking about how he is dead.
: *waves tiny fist*
:
: In case anyone missed it; there is an
: "after credits scene" last page
: that seems to set Sam up for a future
: conflict.
:
: I got every issue out of respect for Nova,
: which I know others here in the boycott camp
: think is foolish. But I did out of what I
: felt was respect.
:
: Sam was a good character but never really
: became a full hero. He remained a dumbass
: to the very end. His last panels are him
: lamenting that he was a dumbass. And, you
: know, it is hard to root for a dumbass.
: That was the fatal flaw here. I know they
: wanted to set him low to make the classic
: heroes journey but they never really let him
: take that final step. And I felt that this
: held him back. I could not identify with
: him. We shall see how he plays out in ANAD
: Avengers.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
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