And that’s a wrap on 2023. Normally I would do this kind of celebration on the actual anniversary of the site (March 15th), but it’s so close to the April 1st joke review that I’ve decided to move it to the end of the year.
It sure has been a busy year. We’ve seen the end of the Dazzler and Villain Origins retrospectives, we’ve endured Secret Wars II and the Super-Sons, we’ve started the Hero Origins and the Dial H retrospectives, Doctor Doom has moved into the 21st century and the Legion is beyond Crisis.
Next year will see the end of the World’s Finest and Dial H retrospectives, the beginning of a Doom Patrol retrospective, and I’m planning some very unusual tangents for the Legion.
With all these changes, I’ve decided to rank the retrospectives I’ve done so far.
These are exclusively in the order I’ve enjoyed them, from the one I’m least fond of to the one I have the most fun doing. I don’t regret doing any of them, but I’d be lying if I said some aren’t more satisfying to write than others.
So, without further ado…
#14: STRANGE TALES
To be honest, I sometimes forget I did this one. Compared to other retrospectives, I feel I didn’t have as much to say… plus the last stretch of issues was really, REALLY boring. I came THIS close to just bailing and skipping them!
#13: KARATE KID
The same series that gave us THE GREATEST MARTIAL ARTS MOVE EVER turned into a real chore. The last issues are THE most boring stories I ever had to review; I rank Karate Kid above the Human Torch because there were less boring issues overall, but I seriously had to force myself to continue.
#12: WORLD’S FINEST
Even with all the brain cells I destroyed, the Super-Sons WERE fun to review. And so were the handful of good stories. But there were some real boring ones, and I had to skip soooooo many issues because I simply couldn’t find anything worth talking about.
#11: SECRET WARS II
Good thing I sped through the tie-ins, because if I did a full review of each and every one I would STILL be doing that. But the quick summary of those, while exhausting, was quite fulfilling.
And despite its reputation, I did manage to find great moments both in them AND in the main miniseries! Which is still a trainwreck, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not AS bad as its reputation.
#10: DIAL H FOR HERO
A fun series, but definitely THE most repetitive I’ve covered so far: its adherence to formula is quite annoying at times. And while the transformations are fun to talk about, often there isn’t much more than that.
#9: LOIS LANE
As much as I make fun of Jimmy Olsen and Dazzler for being stupid… and they are… this woman is clinically insane. And there’s a mean-spirited background noise towards both women and readers that kind of makes me uncomfortable at times. That, added to the lack of any sort of count (like Jimmy’s superpowers or Dazzler’s fanservice), makes her retrospective the lesser version of Jimmy’s.
That being said… if I didn’t like reviewing completely bonkers stories I wouldn’t have launched this side, and this series is NUTS.
#8: SUPERGIRL
The undiscovered jewel of the Silver Age, her Action Comics serial SHOULD get more attention for just how groundbreaking it was. Even her later stories never lack to bring up ideas that, had they been picked up, they would’ve made Supergirl a more historically significant character.
If her stories kept the same quality of the original serial, the retrospective would’ve been on my podium; it’s THAT good. But once you get to the college years, and especially to both her regular series… yeesh.
#7: DAZZLER
Is this series a directionless mess that doesn’t know WTF it wants to be? Of course! But it was also one of the easiest to review.
Honestly, I could put out a Dazzler review in half the time it takes to review anything else. And there was sooo much to make fun of, especially in the first half!
I still can’t believe the series lasted as long as it did, and I’m even more baffled by how much fun I had with it.
#6: JIMMY OLSEN
Alright, I’ll admit it: I kind of miss this moron’s series. There’s nothing quite like it even in the Silver Age! That’s mostly a good thing, but the sheer idiocy of this series is rarely matched by anything else. Plus I had the chance to rant against the Jack Kirby run, which was very cathartic.
I can’t possibly rank it any higher because I prefer when there’s more substance to discuss, and while hilarious the Jimmy Olsen series is not exactly deep.
#5: VILLAIN ORIGINS
The most research-heavy of the retrospectives (until its sequel came along), at the moment it’s the most expansive one touching several decades across DC and Marvel.
More importantly, it allowed me to discover several things I didn’t suspect about so many villains and so many eras. Seriously, I don’t think there’s a single review where I didn’t stumble upon at least one “I had no idea that happened!” moment.
#4: HERO ORIGINS
The retrospective has barely started but it’s already one of my favorites. Looking at the early Golden Age is downright fascinating; it’s an era I don’t know all that much about, so while reviews take more time to research than most other retrospectives I’m learning lots of incredible stuff as I go along. Plus, while it skews heavily towards DC, it does allow me to talk about other publishers as well.
#3: METAL MEN
I don’t recall if I’ve ever said it, but back when I started the site I had three goals in mind: a Doctor Doom retrospective, a Legion retrospective, and reviewing Birthday cake for a cannibal robot.
While some of the issues were hard to get through (looking at you Mike Sekowsky!), this series was an absolute blast to review.
#2: DOCTOR DOOM
Not surprising, considering Doctor Doom is my favorite fictional character. Even having to go through some truly awful issues still allows me to talk about most corners of the Marvel Universe across multiple eras.
It’s also the ONLY retrospective that doesn’t have a ticking clock: everything else WILL have a clear conclusion, but I plan to keep talking about Doctor Doom even after reaching the 2020s (although probably in a slightly different format).
So obviously there can only be one retrospective that I have to rank higher than him… but don’t tell Doom, he’s a bit touchy on the subject.
#1: LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES
You saw this coming a millennium away, didn’t you? It’s by far the longest retrospective (above 300 reviews), it’s arguably the most detailed, and it has an additional perk that all other retrospectives lack: no lack of resources!
Whether it’s the amazing Legion Wiki or the wonderful folks at Legion World, it’s quite easy to get info on basically anything I need. Which means that even when I get something wrong, it doesn’t take much for a reader to correct me! Which might sound bad, but I really value that.
Despite some disappointments (looking at you Mordru and pre-Levitz Cosmic Boy!), I’ve grown to appreciate the Legion and its universe even more than I did back when I started.
Long Live the Legion!
