A new mainstream
A new mainstream |
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Page 14 of 23  Cover, Hellblazer (DC Comics, 1989). Art: Kent Williams. The horror in Hellblazer was similarly occult-driven, but less playful, and more British: this issue included a parallel story about Arthurian legend. Other notable Marvel titles included Marshal Law (1987), a black satire of the whole adult superhero fad, by Pat Mills and Kevin O'Neill (another British team, also headhunted from 2000AD), and Elektra: Assassin (1986), a limited series starring the popular supporting character from Daredevil, which allowed scripter Frank Miller plenty of space to indulge his passion for martial arts bloodshed. This first flurry of post-Dark Knight/Watchmen activity was followed in the 1990s by further sparring between DC Comics and Marvel. While one concentrated on the adult market, the other orientated its efforts more towards teenagers. Both were prepared to use gimmicks to sell their products. Most interestingly from a creative point of view, DC Comics capitalized on its innovations in the adult comics field by launching the 'Vertigo' line, a new imprint designed to encompass titles devoted to horror and fantasy. In the now-established fashion, comics would first appear as single-issues, with a 'Suggested For Mature Readers' label, and would later be collected as graphic novels. Two titles in particular became central to the line's success, Sandman and Hellblazer. Both were essentially horror stories, though both had links with DC Comics' superhero mythology. Sandman, for example, had first appeared in 1941 as a member of The Justice Society of America', an early superhero team-up series. This rather bizarre character used sleeping gas to outwit criminals, and wore a gasmask to protect himself. However, he was not a hit, and drifted into obscurity. That was until 1988, when he was revived in spectacular fashion by British writer Neil Gaiman. His 1980s incarnation was dramatically different: now the Sandman was cast as 'The Master of Dreams', a pale-faced immortal who inhabits the realm of the unconscious, a mythical figure who is at once attractive and sinister.  Sandman |