R.I.P. Stan Lee

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Sabin
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Re: R.I.P. Stan Lee

Post by Sabin »

He tweeted a salute to his fellow servicepersons in WWII earlier that day...

Like many of my friends, I'd already made my peace with Stan Lee's eventual passing so this doesn't take me by surprise. It's not fitting to call him the elder statesman of the comics industry (more on that in a moment...). Stan Lee was a joke, but he was always in on it. I've heard him described as Comic's Biggest Fan. That's a good way of putting it. He was a funny, little, huckstery mascot of a bygone era, whose movie cameos usually revolved around a doddering quality. He seemed remarkably active and lucid at all times for a man who's probably met over a million people in his life.

He also stayed progressive and open-minded. Let's be real: there is a shitty quality to the men who devote their lives to male fantasies. There are quotes about civil rights that Stan Lee wrote in 1968 circulating on Twitter right now, but it's more than that. When asked about whether or not Spider-Man should be black (referring both to the creation of a black Spider-Man AND Donald Glover playing Spider-Man in a movie) in 2010 or 2011, his response was the equivalent of "Yeah, why not?" This was probably his most famous creation and rather than be overly precious, like when the half-a-century-younger Rob Liefeld couldn't stomach the idea of one of his characters being "turned" gay, he could see the reasoning as clear as day. Chalk it up to progressiveness or just understanding marketing, but he basically admitted to being limited by the 1960s for what he could create and he liked the idea of comic books being for as diverse a group of fans as possible. For a man in his 80's and 90's, that's great.

On the other hand... he's not really being mourned as a writer, is he? He's being mourned as a creator. And even that's a bit of a stretch. Stan Lee's role as "The Creator" of these characters is incredibly complex and controversial. He was an employee of Marvel comics but Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, and more were freelancers. The way he would create these characters was a series of back and forth conversations, they'd draw something, he'd give notes. Because they didn't own the rights to any of their creations, he would remain the de facto creator, and he was notoriously stingy with sharing public credit as well. Beyond that, he pioneered the "Marvel Method" of writing, wherein he would discuss with the artists what he basically wanted to see happen, they would draw it, and he would write in the dialogue. Now, I think we can all agree that dialogue is probably the least essential facet of what draws people to reading comic books. Beyond that, he was a notoriously shitty writer and he was famous for a spotty memory of what he was writing at the time. Characters would change powers, personalities, and at times NAMES within characters for two reasons: he was writing twenty comics simultaneously and also he didn't really care.

That being said, they all had his clear stamp of approval. They were all every-persons with double identities that came with great loss and struggles with morality. Steve Ditko was a notorious conservative curmudgeon would wanted Peter Parker to be a straight arrow during the 1960's who hated hippies, but Stan Lee (lifelong liberal that he was) didn't let that fly and always pitted Parker against hypocritical authority figures. And 90% of everything he created in the Silver Age of comics is still in play today at the forefront of Marvel. I mean, think about that. Almost all of his creations can still carry a book. In fact, it's harder to find a franchise that Marvel puts out that wasn't created by Stan Lee that is in circulation.

I think the work he'll be remembered for is the Fantastic Four. That's probably the book he felt closest to and had the most active role. It's also been the hardest to keep in circulation. Despite a range of talented writers and strong runs, it's a fossil and the Marvel Universe doesn't really need it. Every attempt to update it falls flat because it loses what makes it special. It's that 1960's spirit of exploration and optimism mixed with conservative family values. And yet it just keeps showing up, warm as ever, just like Stan Lee's goofy face. He already filmed his Avengers cameo and I won't lie. I'm excited to see it again.

Rest in peace, Mr. Lieber.
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Franz Ferdinand
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R.I.P. Stan Lee

Post by Franz Ferdinand »

The titan behind the past decade-plus worth of mainstream blockbuster movie-making is dead at 95.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/12/entertai ... index.html
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