I was, I admit it.
Not just teenage either because I loved a lot of Wildstorm's output up to a few years ago.
I loved the book that started it all - the original WildC.A.T.s was great.
You know why?
They were wild. Not only that, but they were covert. They did action stuff. And, er, they were a team.
There was pretty much nothing not to like about the book. They had a big guy (Maul), a claw guy with temper issues (Warblade), a robot looking for a bit of humanity (Spartan), a short wise-guy genius type (Emp), a stripper with a heart of gold - wait, let's look at that again...a stripper with a heart of gold.
Ah bless you, Voodoo you deliciously-tattooed stripper you (that piece is by Jim Lee from Gelatometti). Has there ever been a better concept for a stripper? Because I forgot to mention that she was a half-alien tattooed stripper?
Genius.
Oh, then there was Zealot, kick-ass ninja-type lady with a penchant for swords and, of course, the character find of 1993, Grifter.
Ah, Cole Cash. Tough guy, handy with the wisecracks and the guns, good looking but unable to reach the one true love of his life - and he had a mask that doubled as a handkerchief. What more could you ask for? I swear, I though that guy was going to be bigger than Wolverine.
Jim Lee's art was a big part of the initial appeal, of course, but I credit the concepts behind the book - an age old war between alien races waging through the centuries - and the characters with being a big draw too.
Lee and co-writer Brandon Choi were followed by Alan Moore and Travis Charest; no slouches themselves, expanding the team and exploring the history of the Kherubim.
It went a little bit wrong later on, though, with Scott Lobdell taking them on trips through time and eventually the book was cancelled. Volume 2 took it in another direction, volume 3 was yet another well-reviewed take. Volume 4 was nothing short of a disaster.
Genius.
Oh, then there was Zealot, kick-ass ninja-type lady with a penchant for swords and, of course, the character find of 1993, Grifter.
Ah, Cole Cash. Tough guy, handy with the wisecracks and the guns, good looking but unable to reach the one true love of his life - and he had a mask that doubled as a handkerchief. What more could you ask for? I swear, I though that guy was going to be bigger than Wolverine.
Jim Lee's art was a big part of the initial appeal, of course, but I credit the concepts behind the book - an age old war between alien races waging through the centuries - and the characters with being a big draw too.
Lee and co-writer Brandon Choi were followed by Alan Moore and Travis Charest; no slouches themselves, expanding the team and exploring the history of the Kherubim.
It went a little bit wrong later on, though, with Scott Lobdell taking them on trips through time and eventually the book was cancelled. Volume 2 took it in another direction, volume 3 was yet another well-reviewed take. Volume 4 was nothing short of a disaster.
And now the Wildstorm universe is being rewritten again and the Wildcats (somewhere along the way they dropped the abbreviation) are facing another change.
I can't help but feel that Wildstorm has been mismanaged and mishandled over the past few years and what once had potential has now been pretty much squandered. It's a shame because I really think that they could have been great.
Ah, WildC.A.T.s...you were something.
4 comments:
Amen! I loved the Wildstorm Universe back in the 90s. Its such a shame of what its become now.
I've always had mixed feeling about the Wildstorm Universe. I think that there have been some excellent runs wiht most titles that prove that the characters and ideas have merit (Wildcats 3.0, early Authority, etc). But the line just seems horribly mismanaged with its constant rebooting to the point where it can't keep my interest unless the creative team is spot on.
the wildvats number 1 is the cover i've probably seen the most in my life time and the one that seems most iconic to me of the age
I'm waiting for the "I was a teenage New Warriors fan" post
Post a Comment