Torrent! Torrent! Torrent!

While I like Bit Torrent, I only recently decided that I should start using it to read American comics that I haven't read before or don't own. Maybe I'm reading it wrong, however, because I don't enjoy reading it off my computer the way I enjoy reading manga on my computer. I do think that might have something to do with the fact that there's a lot more detail and spaces being used than in manga. Plus there's colour. Or maybe I just haven't gotten used to it, because the only thing I've read so far is an issue of Supreme. Still, I want to take advantage of the bit torrent in order to try to find certain books, which are unavailable in Trade Paperback (my format of choice) and my never be before I die. In some cases books are considered classics but because they're so hard to find, they are unread b a large number of contemorary fans. In other cases, the company just hasn't had enough demand to reprint them or to continue reprinting them.

Miracleman (known as Marvelman) in Britain is Alan Moore's first major comics work and, along with V for Vendetta, helped him get noticed by DC comics. The basic premise is that a good-hearted and innocent hero (who was a pre-existig British character clearly modelled after Captain Marvel) finds himself in a much less innocent present. It seems he spent the past few years not knowing that he was a rather silly super-hero and that the past few years of his life were a lie. Now he's returned to find a much less innocent world and much grimmer threats. Later, Neil Gaiman took the book over and wrote a tale in which Miracleman now rules the Earth as a more benovelent leader, but Miracleman starts questioning if he's done the right thing. Though the final issue of the story was written and drawn, it was never released and it doesn't look like it will happen any time soon. A lot of the themes of this book (rebirth, power, changing the world) reappear in many of his later works, which are pretty much all reprinted. So why won't this one be reprinted any time soon.

It is currently caught in a legal entanglement where both Neil Gaiman and Todd McFarlane are battling in court over ownership of the character. And it really doesn't look like the issue will be cleared up any time soon, since both seemed very convinced that the character is rightfully theirs. Basically Todd bought the rights to Eclipse comics, who last had the rights to the character, not realizing that Gaiman received 30% of the character rights, who shared them with artist Mark Buckingham. Gaiman (who was one of the guest writers who did an issue of Spawn for Todd) had created a couple of characters for Spawn under the impression he had part ownership and was interested in trading full ownership for the rest of those Miracleman rights. But Todd pointed out something in the book that claimed he had full ownership rights of the aforementioned characters and, well, things went downhill from there. But if Gaiman ever wins, he promises that the character will be called Marvelman again and all of the books will be reprinted by Marvel.

Zenith also looks interesting in that it is an early work from certified genius/madman (may not actually be certified in either case) Grant Morrison. The series follows a Gen-X hero who is the son of a hippie super-hero couple. Uninterested in saving the world, Zenith is more interested in using his power to build on his pop star fame. Unfortunately, Zenith still finds himself facing threats including Lovecraftian horrors, and a Richard Branson-esque madman obsessed with super-eugenics. While it doesn't sound as inventive as his later works, it still sounds quite interesting. Plus it has art from Steve Yeowell, who is an underrated artist in my opinion and has worked with Morrison on quite a few projects, including a personal favourite of mine Sebastian O, which is like a cross between a dumb action movie and the works of Oscar Wilde. This too is caught up in some legal shenanigans, but the details on that one are a little less clear. Still, it never hurts to get a little more Grant Morrison.

Another Grant Morrison work that has gone unreprinted is considered by many to be a forgotten masterpiece. It also is noteworthy for featuring some early art by Frank Quitely, who is a rather big star at the moment. Flex Mentallo focuses on the titular character who is clearly a super-hero version of Charles Atlas. His origin is almost exactly that of "Mac" from the Charles Atlas comic ads in which a guy gets sand kicked in his face and gets revenge later when he returns with big muscles from the Charles Atlas program. Flex discovers that he is more powerful than Mac, however, as he can alter the universe by flexing his muscles, thus becoming the Man of Muscle Mystery! The mini-series focuses on Flex in different eras and is a metaphor for how comics have changed over the years and how they reflect changing eras and represent different stages of growing up. The series is considered by a modern classic, right up there with The Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen. It should be noted that DC still might reprint this, as they have reprinted all of Flex Mentallo's appearences in Doom Patrol and they seem to have won the lawsuit that Charles Atlas' current owner that brought against them. Still DC seems very tight lipped about the whole thing, so they could just be waiting until all of Grant Morrison's Doom Patrol run (from which Flex originated) has finished being reprinted.

These are books I'd absolutely love to fid online and wish that they somehow find themselves being published again. I suppose it's not impossible and have high hopes for Flex Mentallo. And Heck, I would have put EC comics on my list but their finally being collected into gorgeous looking Hard Covers by Gemstone comics (who are currently publishing classic Disney comics, including the Uncle Scrooge books that inspired Duck Tales). I know I saw a torrent for Miracle Man once but now it all seems lost. Still, I hope that some day I can cradle Flex Mentallo in my arms like a newborn babe and tell it I love it. Then I'll probably open the book up to the super-hero orgy in chapter 3.