The Four Color Media Monitor

In this interview the Kingsport Times News ran with a former state comptroller named Jason Mumpower, he talks about his love of the medium, and has some interesting things to say, although he also cited a very dreadful book as an item he read:

“I would say I’m more Marvel than anything, but I collect and read Marvel, DC, Image and even other independent books today. I always read the Batman books, the Department of Truth from Image, Immortal Hulk has been a great book lately. Spider-man and the Avengers offer regular mainstream entertainment that I like.

I just can't believe this guy really believes such an agenda-laced book as Al Ewing's denigration of the Hulk could possibly make for a great pastime. Oddly enough, Mr. Mumpower goes on to disagree with relaunches at numero uno on a book's cover:

“I disagree with the many restarts and I would rather a series keep its sequential numbering. But if the renumbering and restarting is what it takes to keep the sales going, then OK. I’m more interested in having the book produced. If it takes getting an occasional sales bump by having a new No. 1, then OK. I see it as a necessary evil.”

Yet here, he seems to have a rather lenient view of the whole ridiculous trend of relaunches, so who knows how much value you can place on that viewpoint. And if the book's been flooded with bad politics, what's the use of it being produced at all? Speaking of which, he talks about political infiltration into the field:

“I do think comics have had a political aspect. Look back at WWII and Captain America fighting Hitler. That’s political to keep up with the times. Today, companies pick these political issues and use them as sales gimmicks, which is very disingenuous. I’d rather it not be there.”

Wow, now he tells us. But then, why does he say Ewing's Immortal Hulk is something big on his reading list? As noted before, it's been rife with politics in its own way, yet he seems oblivious to that. Does he really think he's making his points consistently if he can't acknowledge the political bents in Ewing's writings? Even his citation of Spidey and Avengers, if he's alluding to the modern takes on the heroes, gives reason to wonder how much of a realist he's being.

I wish I could appreciate Mr. Mumpower's fandom and how he's collected over 36,000 comics in past decades more than I do. But the peculiar hints at an inconsistent standard, along with his otherwise accepting view of relaunching volumes as though it literally ensures sales, when past examples have proven this is a very short-range strategy, make it difficult.

Labels: Avengers, Batman, Captain America, dc comics, history, Hulk, indie publishers, marvel comics, msm propaganda, politics, Spider-Man