Marshal Law: Fear & Loathing And Superheroes
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- Опубликовано: 18 апр 2020
- A look at the satirical Marshal Law miniseries, Fear And Loathing. Written by Pat Mills and illustrated by Kevin O’Neill. Published by Epic Comics in 1987.
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#Comics #MarshalLaw #BronzeAge #PatMills #KevinOneill 
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This art is worth getting for the art alone
I own several pages of original artwork from this series. It’s as good as you would hope it would be. Incredible to look at in the flesh.
I actually got to meet Kevin O'Neill at The Big Apple Con in NYC some years ago back in 2008 when he and Alan Moore had started on
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: 1910,
I was actually expecting someone who would have a punkish Simon Bizley look to him dressed in leather with piercings maybe,
and I was surprised to see an older charming looking conservatively dressed proper looking English gentleman who looked like he might could have been a school teacher.
He was also nice enough to sign both of my TLOEG Volume 1 & 2 editions,
And he was even kind enough to draw a sketch for me of Mina Murray for free in my TLOEG Volume 2 edition,
(I offered to pay him for it but he declined.)
I've always been of the opinion that Fear & Loathing deserves to be ranked as highly as Watchmen and Dark Knight Returns when it comes to the best superhero comics ever made. It's a masterpiece.
One of my favourite comics. I've tried to introduce it to friends of mine who also read comics and I seem to be the only one who really enjoys the series.
Your friend's loss.
Not the only one!! I loved it
It's my favourite series by far
That first issue of Marshall Law is a beautiful object in terms of paper and printing quality.
The look and content reminds me so much of the Underground rpg from back in the 90s. It's a dystopian, kind of cyberpunk setting, but the characters are generally veterans of some horrible war, augmented to be supersoldiers, and trained via superhero-themed simulations. The combined effect of training and trauma leaves them basically feeling like they're supposed to be four-color heroes in a world too messed up and complicated for them. They are described as feeling like if they beat up the president they'd find the real president tied up in a closet and save the country. The game had a system built in for actually enacting social change in more realistic and nuanced ways, but it was temptingly simple to just lash out violently and uselessly.
I needed a second to realise that Underground is the title xD
That said thanks for bringing it up, never heard of it.
Quite late in my response, but apparently Marshall Law was one of the inspirations for this RPG, along with other products of this time. A few things from the late 80's and 90's informed the worldbuilding, including this.
Absolutely love this comic creation, I think the way Fear and Loathing is written is criminally underrated. Kevin O’Neill for me is pound for pound the best comic book artist to ever do it.
I think that if Marshall Law was in the DC or Marvel universe, he still be an enemie of all Superheroes and Superman would want him dead because he killed the people who can stop super villains.
I wonder if Gath Ennis and Pat Mills ever worked on a book together
It could be the most cynical shitty book about superheroes in history.
Thanks for revisiting this. I’d love to see you do an historical overview of Epic, like the one you’ve done for Vertigo.
You know, that's a good idea. It hadn't occurred to me to do an overview of the Epic Line.
@@StrangeBrainParts i would love to see one on Epic!!!
Of the stories done, the first 'Marshall Law' was the best. But then I can only compare it to the stories I've read. Which from the looks of things I've missed a bunch. Thank you for another comprehensive review of a character most people either missed or had never heard of during their years as Marvel Zombies.
You must have a remarkable comics collection.
I remember hearing about this back in the day. I need to check it out now
Metalzoic is another classic by Mills and O Neill.
We need a new Marshal law series.
Nah, it would loose it's essence
I have it put away over here. I remember Alan Moore and Frank Miller praising it, back then. My favorite was Kingdom Of The Blind, the one shot story where they go after Batman. Also the one issue Marshal Law takes Manhattan , where they lampoon the Marvel heroes.
Strange Brain Parts: Gives a positive review of Marshal Law
Linkara: *wElL aChTuAlLy*
Linkaras Marshal Law video is genuinely bad, and this is coming from a fan of him
I remember reading this back in the day and really liking it. I seem to remember the follow up books to Fear And Loathing a bit better. I like Superheroes and liked the Batman Satire Kingdom Of The Blind. But I never bothered to read a the cross over books
I find it crazy that people rarely talk about this comic
RIP Kevin O’Neill
One of my all time fave comics
Ahhh Marshal Law! The Boys before there was such thing as the Boys. If I'm not mistaken, it started off as a idea for a Judge Dredd story arch about Judge Dredd taking down superheroes but evolved into it's own thing. I used to wanna see an adaptation but then I realized the book would loose some of it's punk-rock edge so I'm glad that never happened. My favorite part of the book though is in all it's hyper violence and mayhem, it does have these weirdly sincere and sympathtic moments. Like when Law quotes a sad, broken, and pitiful Public Spirit, or when he chooses not to be a jerk to Growing Boy appreciating the young heroe's sincerity and ernestness.
One thing I think you missed in your review was Law's development in the crossovers. Savage Dragon helps him get over some of his insecurities about being a superheroes, in the Mask crossover, he choose to walk away from being a uber violent enforcer and instead helps Super Vets recover at a hospital (despite his deep seeded hatred of Superheroes never fully going away).
Very true. Some of those later developments I missed.
I have a similar opinion as you: This is perfect for an adaptation. But, I have to ask, how much of it will translate well? Or, for that matter, be softened. I think I'm okay with it being un-adapted. Although, if any studio wants to throw a gajillion dollars at me to write and direct, with final cut over the edit, then I'd love to spend the next three or four years of my life to making it come to life. :)
Marshal Law first series was a work of genius
I just picked up the 6 issue run! Waiting for it to arrive. Great video!
Awesome! I hope you enjoy it.
been digging up old copies of the series in back bins recently, really enjoy them. Hope you and your family are doing well in this craziness going on.
Thank you, sir. I am doing well. Like everyone else I'm keeping my distance and proceeding forward.
I'll have to head down too a comic book shop someday find this series .
A bit short but good summarization of Pat Mllls and Kevin O'Neills very underrated work!
I really love Marshal Law and would recommend these great comics (if you find them) to anybody who is looking for a bit more thoughtful and reflexive (but still silly) version of Sam Keiths Lobo or Trencher books.
Thank you for the video! At last a bit of spotlight for the Marshal!!!
One of the BEST youtube channels right now. Thanks for your videos, I love your content!
As always, with every episode I learn so much. Thanks again!
Another great episode. Thanks.
I love the subjects that you choose and your analysis
Great Video! This series is one I've wanted to get for a while now!
I absolutely love all of Marshall Law, but it is definitely true that Fear and Loathing is the better one of them all, it's absolutely brilliant and every page of it produced an emotional response only Films had achieved on me. (Me being primarily a Movie consumer as entertainment and art)
I gotta say, while i love DC Comics, im grateful for 2000 AD Alumnists that motivate to read comics outside of the big two
Another beautiful and interesting video.
Marshal Law was first published in a weekly British comic called Toxic! way back in 1991. It lasted 31 issues. I owned every issue. The comic got cancelled due to numerous problems. The publisher going bankrupt soon after didn't help. It was a shame as it was a great comic featuring work by 2000AD veterans Pat Mills, Kevin O'Neill, Mike McMahon, John Wagner and Alan Grant. It was supposed to be a rival to 2000AD but you can't compete against an established institution like that.
The original Marshal Law series was published by Marvel's Epic imprint and came out at least two years before Toxic! started. There were also two one-shots (Marshal Law Takes Manhattan and Marshal Law: Kingdom Of The Blind) that were released before he appeared in Toxic!
Sounds like a great comic
Good story. I like how he knows almost everyone's susceptibilities. And how he goes about exploiting them. Like the green lantern having a weakness for wood. Lol.
I had Kingdom of the Blind. It was epic.
Have you done a video on The Crow by J. O’Barr? I would also be immensely interested in your commentary on Michael Zulli’s strange but captivating run on TMNT, “Souls Winter.”
No, I've not done a Crow video. I did pull it out about six months ago to give it a read and then never got around to it. But it's definitely something I do want to do. I'll look into "Souls Winter," too. TMNT is something I avoided at the time and still do, to be honest. It's a concept that never appealed to me. But a good story is a good story and that's all that matters. Thanks!
Just finished the original miniseries a Couple weeks back and it was incredible you should cover more Pat Mills content like Nemesis the Warlock.
Very enjoyable.
Had to rewatch this now that we've lost Mr. O'Neill.
Judging by your description, this sounds a lot like One Punch Man only for superhero comics rather than shonen manga/anime. I definitely want to pick it now and give it a read. Excellent overview as always, keep it up!
I think that's a reasonably accurate analogy. Good job!
I strongly believe that the series THE BOYS is heavily inspired by Marshall Law's premise.
I have all of these, and it was my first exposure to "anti-heroes", so to speak. So twisted...it's great.
I always thought marshal was a joke parody so over the top its gone over the edge
Love the crap outta this title!
Thanks!
Enjoy.
It's like The Boys.
Yeah it's pretty clear but no idea why he didn't mention
Not to add more to the lift of things people ask you to cover, but have you ever read or watched The Maxx? I remember picking up the trade of it at a local comic shop with only a vague knowledge of the character, but I loved it.
Yes, sir...I have read The Maxx. It's a series that's on the long list of bizarre, underrated material that I need to do a video about.
You missed out that there is a Marshal Law novel called 'Origins' by Titan Books.
Thanks! I just ordered it 😀
Interesting 🤔
I always find it funny how Superhero deconstructions are seemingly born out of writers and artists getting fucked over by the industry, like Kevin O'Neill here and Rick Veitch with Brat Pack because of his unreleased Swamp Thing comic.
Is this book roughly 200 pages? looking to buy it and just want to be sure i'm getting the right one
The "Deconstructionist" period of comics - of which Batman TDKR and Marshall Law were the definitive, was a necessary reaction to a long "Silver Age" of pure monopoly by a few companies and a crippling "Comics Code". In a way it was like the "New Wave" for science fiction literature.
Unfortunately it's like the comic publishers thought it was just the new norm vs an experimental phase - like the publishing industry.
I really enjoyed the Fear and Loathing series, but I was missing one or two issues and so never did read the complete story, so I don't know what the 'poignant ending' is that you mention.
Thank you for this. Any other comics that are simillar to this?
You're welcome! The series that comes to mind would be Brat Pack and Maximortal by Rick Veitch. Both are quite critical of the genre and the business of comic books.
@@StrangeBrainParts I've already read Brat Pack and love it. Will check Maximortal. TX
I read that this comic does a crossover with Savage Dragon. Why did series written by someone who hates superheroes do a crossover with a superhero comic?
Couldn't agree more. The first storyline was brilliant, but the others got progressively worse. I actually hate 90s antiheroes, so I really loved the parody if Marshal Law.
I see similarities between Marshall Law and The Boys, with Billy Butler playing the role of the cynical and self loathing antihero, albeit not as dark as Marshal Law's humour and excesses.
yoooo so basically The Boys but you roll your eyes less?
My friends , my brother and I all loved this series. The one thing I didn't like was by the later series (3rd or 4th?) they made an origin story that ML's father was some sort of deranged, sicko -scientist making body horror victims. I felt that was too much "stuff" to load up the main character with. I also felt bad that the writer was so in opposition to super heroes since I love them (when done right ;-) ) But it was great (at least when I was younger).
No Pat Mills, no Garth Ennis.
Discuss!😉
Straight-line from Mills to Ennis.
Here's a question, why wasn't this published in 2000AD
That's a very good question! They probably went with Epic for two reasons: They got to keep all rights to the character and it was exposure to a North American audience.
@@StrangeBrainParts very likely
I wish there was more stuff with Marvel’s Florida girl Jennifer Kale. She was a neat character in the Man-Thing stories, a member in the comic series “Witches”. It’s a shame.
Nuke Me...Slowly. Hilarious IP.
Pat Mills is quite good.
I've never heard of this series but am familiar with Mills from Sha and Requiem.
Wonder if Spawn might get an episode...kinda curious about your thoughts on the character.
I have to say, it's kind of unlikely I will do anything Spawn related. Neither the character nor the series holds much appeal to me. Other than, say, the effect it had on the industry at the time.
Strange Brain Parts you do you Bub, stay safe and healthy
So at this point you had too have done Nemesis The Warlock?
You gonna cover something like the dark knight returns
You know, now that I've broken my rule about covering Watchmen, I'm practically obligated to do one on The Dark Knight Returns.
Like #666! Seems oddly appropriate. Love your vids, by the way.
Super heros bacteria
Best comic book character in my opinion. Love the whole up yours to the hero genre vibe. Kevin is probably my favourite artist and I’m incredibly proud to own several pieces of original artwork by him. The Marshal Law stuff is incredible to see in the flesh.
I actually own the pages whose panels are @1:45 and @8:20 😃
The OG series is one of my favourite comic stories, but i feel the stories lose steam as they go on with the lack of greater overarching stories, the nihilism just started to feel pointless by the end in my opinion
It's an interesting book, no doubt, but I still don't find it that easy to read.
The comic book equivalent of Joy Division? Sign me up!
I see this, Nemesis Warlock, and various works by Garth Ennis as disillusionment created by the Troubles. That it taught these creators that anyone who claims to be a hero or agent for good, is in truth a sociopath, fake, shill, bully and/or rapist. Anyone who believes in such people are idiots incapable of seeing the truth. I also see these works as having contempt for the industries that make heroes, and the fan base who blindly buys and enjoys the material churned out by the industries ignoring the flaws of said material.
Edgy satire books like this always leave a bad taste in my mouth. I feel like its too mean spirited. I mean, what's wrong with a guy with powers using it to help people.
That's what I'm saying ridiculous male power fantasy why come on I understand that it's a bit ridiculous due to the fact that new powers just so happen to pop up at the most convenient moments out of nowhere. With no explanation that's understandable but sometimes a story has to progressed some type of way. Whenever I hear like a deconstruction hate letter to the superhero genre it honestly makes me thinkbut these are Petty people who used to either love superheroes at one point that weren't allowed to play as their favorite superhero or something like that
@@mattmetawolf8634 plus the flaws they put in their pastiche characters are overly exaggerated. As far as I know, Superman hasn't raped, maimed, or murdered anyone in the official DC canon.
@@adrianvelante8014 exactly there seems to always be a go for the throat towards just wholesome characters like Superman I understand the whole point of the deconstructionists to deconstruct. A boy scout like Superman but it's like it's so on-the-nose where it's like what do you have against Supermando you think he's secretly hiding something that we don't know about other than him being Clark Kent? I don't know I like the fact that these stories do have their own stories but when it's just blatantly mean-spirited jibber jabber like they did in Rick and Morty it's kind of just rubs me the wrong way I get the intent but in most cases when doing stories to mock superheroes it just feels like it's extremely overboard to the max
@@mattmetawolf8634 what kills me is that some stories these psycho Superman pastiches come from are actually good. It's just the fact that the way they drag Superman's name through the mud rubs me the wrong way.
@@adrianvelante8014 exactly like psycho Superman is been interesting character within itself cuz it's the subversion of the whole entire boy scout persona.but the problem is is that that persona cannot survive without in some way disrespecting or spitting in the face of its not only that I think if if these people who had these pent-up aggressions towards comic book superheroesI guess we're givin like their own little things they wanted to doI suppose it probably would have stopped more idiots from trying to replicate this formula don't get me wrong the formula itself is done extremely well when done right and respectfully without complete raw doggin in the most vile way imaginable by creators like this. Like I said the idea I just hate the malicious intent behind it where there's more venom towards the characters like Superman who it get the worse which is what I think we can all agree on is unnecessary
it was kinda nasty. the art was very good
i think the trope of the superhero jumping out of a vehicle and immediately fallimg to their death starts here. decades before Deadpool 2 the movie.
Honestly, I rather have a parody of Superman who is a womanizer who drinks beer all day long. Or a Wonder Woman who's a little chubby and promiscuous.
By the way I would hardly consider Judge Dread a superhero. He’s more like a sci fi Conan the barbarian.
This honestly just seems unappealing to me.
I find it’s written like one of those edge lord fanfics written by whiny 14 year olds.
Pretty much. Nihilistic, grotesque and morbid...... therefore, mature.
It was a different time lol
@@silhouettefilms. still better then the average Garth Ennis book lol
Meh, I'll pass. It sounds a bit too cynical for even my tastes.
Another edge lord writer who hates superheroes I'll pass on this one.