It was a rare moment last week when I had some small amount of spending money and I decided to spend it on a new comic book. When I saw this first issue of a 6 issue limited series. Remember when a limited series was only 4 to 6 issues and not a couple of years worth of books? Anyway seeing that it was the first issue of Stan Lee Comics, a subsiderary of Archie Comics, I had to get it. Comics haven't been much fun lately and if anyone could bring back the fun it would be Mr. Lee. The cover looks fun. Kind of reminds me of Fantastic Four #1 and Stan the Man himself is a floating head on the right side. That makes him a comic book character now for Marvel and Archie. I'm surprised Marvel didn't put a stop to that. He says it will be the world's first reality comic book. I'm not sure what he really means by that even after reading the first issue. Will there be a real group of people going around with the powers of the Mighty 7 in my area? Probably not.
The story itself Stan at the keyboard but quickly shifts back in time on another world where a crime is stopped and the villain is taken into custody. The villain isn't really evil as he use to be one of the police. He is really rebelling against a government that he doesn't agree with. The four others that are in prison with him I am not clear on if they are also vigilantes or if they are real crooks. One thing is clear is that they all don't want to go to the planet where they will be kept in prison.
Meanwhile the 2 cops are talking about their future as a married couple. They don't seem to have a choice in the matter as they were matched by council. He is happy with it but she isn't so sure.
Back on Earth Stan is approacing Archie comics for work. He can't wait to get started on writing silly stories about teenagers again like he did with Millie the Model. Stan is burnt out on superheroes. But they don't want Stan Lee for the Archie line. They want him to create new superheroes for the company. He agrees to think it over. Not being able to come up with anything good he starts to write a letter to his fans to say he is retiring from comics. However at that time the missunderstood villains have escaped. The two police defend their ship but in the process they crash not far frim where Mr. Lee is standing.
So there you have the plot to the first issue. Not as much fun as I had hoped but still a fun read. I see some elements of Marvel and DC characters in the book. There is a little bit of Wolverine in one character and Bouncing Boy in another. It's kind of like the X-Men meets the Legion of Superheroes. The elements of a love triangle are in their early stages of development and that is always interesting. The bad guys aren't all that bad and the comic book writer will probably help them adapt to living on Earth and write about their adventures in his new book.
I won't say I will buy the next issue. Finances and other forces will have to work together to bring that about. But it is the most interesting thing for me that has come out of Archie comics in the last 2 years.
