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The editorial at the back of this comic is a full page of Rob Liefeld whining about how Marvel Comics wouldn't allow him to publish this comic. Every time I try to give Liefeld the benefit of the doubt, I run across something where he's just the worst.
Let's be very clear: the Awesome Entertainment stable of characters, with possibly one or two exceptions, are thinly-veiled knock-offs of DC and Marvel characters. This is especially the case in the post-Judgment Day universe within which this character makes his appearances. Supreme is Superman. Glory is Wonder Woman. Fighting American is Captain America. It's not hard to see this. Now, don't get me wrong. Marvel should not have shut this comic down the way that they did. No one is going to mistake this mediocre comic for the Waid/Garney Cap stories that were being published around this time. Liefeld seems to be angry about the "Heroes Reborn" initiative being shut down by Marvel, but here's the thing - they were really pretty crappy stories. Even after Liefeld left Captain America, the James Robinson stuff afterward is just awful.
Having said that about the Awesome characters, I honestly don't see anything wrong with it. These are simply paeans to some of the greatest mythic characters that North America has managed to produce from its hodge-podge culture. The problem comes once again to the idea of corporate copyright, or perpetual copyright. A company like Marvel truly believes that Captain America belongs to them, which shows a complete disregard for the way that stories work in our culture. Once it's out in the world, no one "owns" it anymore. It's simply a story that we transmit, and in that transmission we sometimes adapt the story in order that it suit our particular needs. Which, to me, is what Liefeld and company were doing here. If he couldn't tell the stories he wanted to with Captain America, why not simply tell them with a version of the character?
I have feelings about corporate ownership of stories. It just feels wrong.
More to follow.
Related Posts and Further Reading
Have a look here for some more of my thoughts on the Awesome Universe, the good and the bad.
And if you'd like to read more of my thoughts on Rob Liefeld, or at least stuff that mentions him, be warned: I am just not kind to him.
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