As probably assumed, I am an avid comic book reader, and even though my tastes may wax and wane as creative teams get shuffled about there are still a of couple characters and teams that I always love reading about.
One such character is the grossly underappreciated Martian Manhunter.
For the uninitiated, Martian Manhunter possesses similar strength and speed to that of Superman, but he is also laced with strong psychic powers and has the ability to shift into any form. Pretty snazzy, right? Personally, I have found it frustrating that the Manhunter from Mars has not hit the mainstream populous, but due to the lack of an early fan base and some unusual character development choices throughout the years he has largely remained along the sidelines when compared to the Trinity and Green Lantern.
He led the Justice League of America for many years in the 1980s and Grant Morrison’s JLA in the late 90’s/early 00’s, in perhaps his most influential runs, before being cast as the martyr in DC’s Final Crisis. Finally reemerging during DC’s famously complex Final Crisis the Manhunter from Mars was slain, but like all superheroes and villains with potential, he was revived in Geoff John’s Brightest Day maxi-series.
With DC relaunching its universe in September of 2011 the Martian Manhunter became an integral part in Wildstorm turned DC franchise, Stormwatch. Paul Cornell, who is an amazingly talented science fiction writer, grabbed reigns of the new ongoing series, but was sadly yanked from the run after only one story arc, and replaced by Peter Milligan.
Unfortunately, I have a huge stack of recent back issues that I have been meaning to read, but just not gotten around to. However, this morning I was able to start cracking into my monstrous pile with a nice cup of Seattle’s Best. One such unread title that I got to peruse and finally read was Stormwatch #12, which primarily focuses on Martian Manhunter wiping the minds of his fellow teammates, so that he could leave the team without any repercussions. The Shadow Lords (the otherworldly benefactors of Stormwatch) allow him to break their coveted rule of ‘no one leavesStormwatch alive,' but in return they ask a favor of him. This little plot detail leaves a nice open-ended plotline for the Martian Manhunter to follow as time progresses.For me this plot twists came as a complete and utter shock. First off, I only started reading Stormwatch for Paul Cornell’s writing and Martian Manhunter. Now, with the proactive missing in action I see almost no other reason to continuing reading the series. Besides the unfortunate turn of events in an otherwise solid series a more important question comes to mind: What will DC do with Martian Manhunter?
It stands to reason that the creative team behind Stormwatch could be leading up to a story arc that would better fit a solo working Martian Manhunter. This would create a unique split narrative that might better flesh out the character development of those in Stormwatch, which would imply that Martian Manhunter would return to the team (in an official capacity) at the conclusion of the plotline. Also, Geoff Johns’ and Jim Lee’s Justice League has made slight references to Martian Manhunter, so his exodus from Stormwatch could merely insinuated that his introduction to the Justice League is imminent. Or, with DC’s cancellations coming up in September Martian Manhunter could be thrown a bone and receive his own title, or even a group to lead that would be comparable to the stellar (but, unfortunately canceled!) Justice League International.
Honestly, who knows what DC has in store for the good Martian, but one thing is for certain they better include him in something. He is a stellar character who is slowly garnishing the attention that he deserves. He is gracefully reaching the upper echelons of awesomeness.
I love the character so much I even named my personal comic book blog after him. So, to not see him in anything reoccurring would be practically maddening for a fan boy like me.
Check out character bios over at the DC Comics' website, and do not forget to check back here—I have a surprise hitting the Internets tomorrow.
(SOURCE: Martian Manhunter leaving Stormwatch?)
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