Sunday, August 24, 2014

In Which I Try to Geek

Anomaly: “irregularity—something that deviates from the norm or from expectations, 
peculiarity—something strange and difficult to identify or classify”. (Encarta Dictionary)


I am…a little different. I wear my hair long…er than most. I wear skirts…more often than most. Others might classify me as “holiness,” “conservative,” “Pentecostal”.

And yet, I am a bit of a geek. I like comic books. I like superheroes. *whispers* I feel like an anomaly.

So, because I know only a few other people in my circles who share my slightly nerdy interests, herein is a post in which I will share my newfound love for things Marvel and DC.



It all started with that creative masterpiece known as The Avengers

ALL HAIL JOSS WHEDON. 

I think that movie convinced the whole world of the awesomeness of superheroes, but, eh, I could be wrong. I first watched The Avengers in November 2012. My best friend said, “Hey, you should watch this movie. It’s cool.” 

And the Academy Award for Understatement of the Year goes to Kelly F.

I loved the movie. It had action, character development, a little bit of romance, and plot twists. I loved how the story explored each character’s strengths and weaknesses, and their interesting little quirks. What really drew my attention, though, were the superheroes’ back stories. I am a literature buff who gets lost in a book quicker than Tony Stark’s attention span. My brothers had read a few comics, so I exhausted their knowledge. When they got bored of my questions, I went to Wikipedia, and got a broad idea of each character’s background. I made sure I knew all the important points of their stories, and then I headed to my local library, and was promptly sorely disappointed. 

THEY ONLY HAD LIKE 6 COMIC BOOKS. 

But, hey, any comics were better than none, so I read them. This is when I learned that OHMYGOODNESS Spiderman is cocky and witty and HILARIOUS; hey, Thor uses a MUCH more complicated vocabulary than in the movies and this is a very good thing; and WOW the Grey Gargoyle is kinda creepy and maybe he needs a movie.

Somewhere about this time, we started watching the solo movies: Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Captain America: First Avenger, and Thor. (I know The Amazing Spiderman was somewhere in there, too.) Thor—well, I watched it twice in one weekend and quickly found my favorite Avenger. Here is where I will step onto my soapbox:

FANGIRLS  LADIES. THERE IS MORE TO THE FICTIONAL GOD OF THUNDER THAN BICEPS.

I will admit: Chris Hemsworth’s good looks drew me in at first, but the more I watched and read about Thor, the more I realized how much more I liked his back-story. For personal reasons in my own life that are too complicated for this post, I like Thor’s back-story. And it’s SO frustrating seeing these bimbos on Pinterest reduce a great character to nothing but a piece of meat, frankly. *stepping down from soapbox*

ANYWAYS. This was basically my introduction to the world of classic superhero comics. I’ve only had a basic introduction to DC comics, aside from the stupendous Dark Knight trilogy, the visually-spectacular Man of Steel, and a few random free Kindle comics. I’ve heard Arrow is pretty good, but I haven’t had an opportunity to see for myself. For now, I stick with Marvel. 

These days, I do my “geeking out” on the Pinterest geek boards and the news collections on IMDb. Iron Man 3 was awesome (as usual), Thor: The Dark World was funny but had less action than I hoped for, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier—HOLYCOW—totally blew my mind. And, now, I patiently await Avengers: Age of Ultron.
 
Care for a little show and tell?


My camera isn't the best, obviously, but LOOK. Look at my comics. *squee* I am so proud of these little things, even though they're obscure titles from the 80s and 90s.


I have an X-Men poster, and no wall to hang it on. #FirstWorldProblems


My declaration of fandom, which I paid too much for, and don't really care.

Saving the best for last...

What I dubbed my "Thor" shoes and a ring that you can barely see:
Lame, I know.


Why, yes, yes, I do wear this in public.

And, finally, my pride and joy. My friend had a superhero birthday party last year, and I needed a Thor shirt. Wal-mart apparently only caters to Iron Man, Flash, Batman, and Superman fans, and left me hanging high and dry. I almost gave up, and then got a bright idea the night before the party. I took an old white shirt, a printout of Mjolnir, Sharpies, a red Crayola marker, and silver spray paint...3 hours later, I get this:




I love this shirt. Unfortunately, the shirt is crud, and the red marker bled through the back. Also, the color of Sharpie I used for the leather strap has turned a baffling shade of greenish blue. Therefore, I can no long wear it, but cannot bear to throw it out.

Oh, and then there's my Polyvore. I discovered the absolute joy of designing superhero inspired outfits. Check 'em out:


 (Okay, so Loki isn't a hero, but my best friend loves the character, and I had to make her an outfit.)



Am I obsessed? Well, maybe. But, you know, when I was a kid, I thought comic books were a stupid waste of time for boys to emulate and drool over. Fast-forward about 10 years, and I have learned that, contrary to some beliefs, comic books involve stories with complicated plots, characters with multifaceted development, and real life moral applications. No one can disdain that.

Somebody please just point me to the nearest Comic Con.

*static* We now return you to your regularly scheduled hobbies and interests of a proper, feminine young woman.

14 comments:

  1. So much to love in this post! First off, yes, people need to quit sticking Thor in the "stupid hunk" box. Including the filmmakers -- I want to punch someone with Mjolnir for that pandering shot in Thor: The Dark World of him washing his face shirtless. WHAT is that supposed to be? It is totally pointless, just there to say, "Hey, girls, here's the ogling you're here for. This is what you paid your ten bucks to see, right?" Wrong. Yes, I appreciate that Chris Hemsworth has worked long and hard to fit this character's skin. There's a similar shot of Hugh Jackman in X-Men: Days of Future Past that also makes me angry. I'm not here to ogle. I'm here to get lost in a fictional world with my heroes.

    Okay, stepping off my podium now. I love that you made your own Thor shirt! So shiny.

    Now we just need to introduce you to that paragon of tragic magnificence, Wolverine.

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    1. So much yes. TTDW? I KNEW that shot was coming, and I waited to see how he would appear shirtless, and then when it showed up, I thought, "COME. ON. That contributed nothing to the plot or story." At least in Thor, the shirtless scene sort of fit into the story.

      Yes, I love my Thor shirt. I'd love it better if I could wear it more often. :-)

      Actually, I have been introduced to said paragon of magnificence. Lemme see...The Wolverine, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, X-Men, and X-Men: Days of Future Past. I loved DOFP even though I felt like having a conversation with my church's resident schizophrenic after it finished. I am immensely disappointed that we don't know what powers JFK had. Also, I think we have an answer for the curse of the Kennedys... ;-) Then I watched X-Men, and could NOT stop exclaiming to my brothers that HUGH JACKMAN IS A BABY. Totally threw my focus. Personally, I think his face got better-looking with age. :-D

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    2. :-D

      But you haven't seen X2? Oh, man, until The Avengers, I considered that the height of superhero filmmaking. Still only surpassed by Avengers. Brilliant movie. You have it to look forward to!

      And seeing DOFP first makes First Class better, I'm betting. I know I liked it much better after seeing DOFP.

      Hugh Jackman WAS a baby in the first X-Men movie! I'm two years older now than he was then. Merciful Zeus, now I feel old. All of him has improved with age: face, voice, acting chops, the works. And he's a very cool person in real life too, all philanthropic and stuff.

      I haven't seen GOTG yet either. And I'm starting to feel like I'm running out of time (common theme in my life right now, ugh).

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    3. Does it count that I really want to watch X2? :-) I'm really, really behind in comic book stuff. I feel like I'm running out of time, too. I get really excited about some stuff, and then I read other geeky blogs, and suddenly feel intimidated because if I was a "real" nerd, I would've known that already. Yeah, that doesn't even make sense, but, anyways...

      I read your post on First Class and DOFP, so I'm trying to be objective. I really liked McAvoy in DOFP. He did a good job of playing a guy who tried to act like he had it all together but was heartbroken inside.

      My baby bro wants to see GOTG just to see Rocket. I just want to see Starlord, because at first glance, he reminds of Baby Kirk. ;-) I thought he was hilarious.

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    4. Oh yes, definitely counts. Like I said, you have something to look forward to yet :-)

      I haven't read as many comic books as I'd like. I do have five volumes of "The Essential Wolverine," each of which has like 20 comic books in it all together. I've read a bunch of the early X-men issues, and some of the more modern ones, including the series Joss Whedon wrote, which had the storyline they follow a bit in X3. When I was a teen, my brother got "The Spider-man Magazine," and I always read those. They had a lot of crossovers, so that's where I first met up with the Hulk, Captain America, Wolvie, and a bunch of the X-men. But I've never read anything about Thor, isn't that awful? So I'm not as much of a geek as many, but I pick stuff up fast, lol. Reading Wikipedia is very helpful.

      I should write about First Class again, because I watched it with Cowboy after I'd seen DOFP the first time, and whoa! Liked it much more! Specifically McAvoy -- knowing what happened later to him made him more interesting to me, I guess.

      Starlord makes me think of Han Solo when we first meet him at the Mos Eisley cantina, full of braggadocio. That's my impression from the trailers, anyway.

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    5. Oh, goody goody. :D

      I think that's what my library had: The Spiderman Magazine. All I know is I beelined for the one that had Thor in it, and then got disappointed that all they had was Spiderman stuff. He's funny, but it didn't help me learn much about comics. Thank heavens for Wikipedia. It caught me up on the last 40 years. Speaking of, did you have a reaction to the new female incarnation of Thor? :)

      Ohohohoh, yeah, Starlord definitely does make you think of Han Solo. Long live Harrison Ford. (At least till the end of Episode VII.)

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    6. I didn't know the Spider-man Magazine still existed! So cool. Does he still write a little blurb at the beginning of every issue and sign them with "Yours until (insert funny thing that won't ever happen happens)" like he used to? Man, the whole time I was in college, my brother and I signed every email to each other with things like "Yours until Han shoots second" or "Yours until James Bond marries Moneypenny."

      As for the female Thor... my understanding of it is not that Thor himself is undergoing a sex change, but that a new character is becoming "Thor," who is a girl. I kind of assume this will involve a woman who "is worthy" discovering she can wield Mjolnir, and therefore has "the power of Thor." That's how I'd write it, anyway.

      Long live Harrison Ford indeed! For years, he was my second-favorite actor. Only a couple of months ago, though, I finally admitted I like Hugh Jackman better, and Harrison has slipped to tying with Val Kilmer for third. But I still love so many of his movies.

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    7. Um...now I don't know if it is actually Spider-man Magazine. Teehee. All I know is they're hardbound Spiderman comics; some are solo, some are him teaming with some other Avengers. I'll check that tomorrow, though, when I pick up X2 and X3.

      And that is an awesome way to end an email. I think I'm suggest that to my best friends. :)

      Wow...you're actually really close. Marvel's official article/news release said that Thor will become "unworthy" somehow and some random woman will become "worthy" and become "Thor". Not She-Thor, THOR. (frankly, it sounds like the same thing, and I'm scratching my head...)

      And we watched First Class night...*sigh* I may have to write a "Geek Pt. 2" to explain why I like XMen now, too. It was...less than stellar. DOFP is basically more awesome. :)

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  2. You are amazing. Seriously. I TOTALLY loved your "anti-meat-market" soapbox. I 100% agree. Too many people seem to be bent on reducing men to their looks. It's not true, ladies. Marvel is just enough genius to make each and every super hero (and villian, haha, Loki, I mean you!) deep. (Seriously. For a comic book kinda movie, Marvel goes VERY deep. The heroes are people we can admire, laugh with, and relate to, not just obsess over because they look good. The place ain't there.) So amen.

    Also, the Captain America outfit... I would totally wear that. AMEN.

    Did you see Guardians of the Galaxy? :)

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    1. What a nice way to make a person blush. :-) Considering I love reading your blog. Yes, Marvel so knows what they're doing in the cinema division. All their leading characters are so well-rounded. The fact that I want to hate Loki completely, but I can't because I'm in awe of how twisted his brain is speaks volume to the scriptwriters.

      I love my Cap outfit. There are 4 other versions on my Polyvore if you want to check 'em out. Even though I love my Thor outfit, I think my favorite is a close tie between Batman and Superman.

      I have not seen GOTG. I like to watch those movies with my brothers, and we don't go to the theater that often. It's on our list; I think somewhere after X2 and X-Men: First Class. (Watching that second one strictly out of fairness.)

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    2. Oh, definitely. I want to hate him, but I can't, and then there's the predicament of if I were to be on the Avengers (which would be kinda sorta cool), I'd be torn between wanting to actually "avenge", haha, or just be merciful and say, "Loki, boy, now don't do it again, okay?"

      Awesome! (Just scrolling through your Polyvore, and I caught sight of the female Holmes and the female Doctor. Amazing. Love it so much.)

      GOTG was actually amazing. I didn't expect it to be, and I didn't expect to like it, but apart from some language, it was the best thing ever. (Besides Captain America 2. Nothing can beat that, in my humble opinion.) All of the characters were pretty amazing, every single one of them, and it was funny yet poignant. I like that. :)

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    3. I'm giggling at the Loki-boy... Now, being on the Avengers, there is a thought. I want to sit down and have a cup of tea with Natasha. I wanna hear all HER stories. :)

      Polyvore is wonderful, no? And, yes, I love my Holmes and Tennant. My best friend wanted me to make those for her, so I'm glad somebody else likes them. :)

      Oh my beans. I'm still singing the praises of Winter Soldier. And probably will be until Age of Ultron comes out. It was so fast-paced, and yet it had such a heartfelt (heartrending, more like it) story. I love it, but also kind of hate it because Thor 2 didn't get such amazing treatment. :D

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  3. How great to find a fellow Marvel geek!!!
    I have liked their movies for some years but I also fell face first into the fandom after watching Avengers...after that it just gets kind of addictive.
    Love the fact that their heroes and villains are well rounded characters.

    And love the outfits you have assembled..I'll definitely check out that Polyvore of yours

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    1. Marvel geeks FTW, yes? :-) See, I knew the Avengers did most of the world in. I knew some characters, but I didn't know how great they were until that movie. Thank you, Joss Whedon.

      Yes, do look at Polyvore. It rivals Pinterest for the most entertaining time-waster. :-)

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