I remember the first time Butch Guice, it was during his run on Micronauts, but I didn’t know it was him. It was before social media and news sites told you which creators were the hottest today. Also, I was not quite at the age of reading comics based on creators. I only knew I liked this new guy on Micronauts.
Of course, that was kind of where he broke into comics, and as fans know—over the decades, he did a lot of comics. Like many fans, I was both saddened and surprised when he passed away last week at the age of 63. Depending on how long you’ve been a comic fan, he was old, or he died way too long. For me, it was: “Gee, he was just a few years older than me.” That was enough to give me pause and reflect on things.
At times, when I’ve reviewed indie comics, the creators often worried whether I would like it or whether I’d give a bad or subpar review. With all comics, I try to be the biggest cheerleader around. When I don’t like something, I tend not to comment much on it. For me, creators put, at times, a lot of time and love into the comics they create. Who am I to rag on their comics?
Over the weekend, I was reading a series that I hadn’t read before. I like that after forty years of reading comic books, I can still find what I haven’t read. Legends of the DC Universe was a comic book series that ran from 1998 to 2001 under DC Comics. Designed as an anthology, it showcased a variety of characters and creative teams, delving into untold stories and filling narrative gaps within the DC Universe.
I came across issue 18, “Conflicting Emotions!” by Marv Wolfman and Jackson Guice, which featured Wally Wesr, who was Kid Flash in the story, and Raven. Marv Wolfman and George Perez had the hottest title in the 1980s when The New Teen Titans came out in 1980. That run of Titans is still a must-read, especially as a touchstone to what the Titans were and became in the DC mythos.
It acts as a prelude to that run of New Teen Titans where Raven recruited that team of Titans. It also had some interesting side character development for both Wally West and Raven. At the end of the story, Wally loses the memory of this first meeting.
The story reminded me that it was 1980, and no one had a clue that Eolfman and Perez’s Titans would be THE top-seller. In fact, DC was reluctant because a previous revival from a few years prior wasn’t all that great. Dick Grayson was still Robin—pixie boots and all–, Wally West was still considered the sidekick of Barry Allen’s Flash. Vyborg, Raven, and Starfire were all new. And look at the place all the Titans have in the DC mythos today. Who’d have thunk?
But in 1980, Guice was twenty, still waiting for his big break. Working on Micronauts must have felt like winning the lottery. Of course, he had a long career of so many projects for DC, Marvel, and the independents. And, then, to be cut short as a creator who still had years and years ahead of him. Who’d have thunk?
I could have talked a lot about his iconic work, but you have the internet: if you’re a new fan, find his comics and realize what an icon he was over the decades. We, seasoned fans, will go through our comics and revisit our “Best of Guice.”
I know we all have our bones to pick with creators. But, try to remember: they put a lot into their projects, and they are often passionate about what they do. Try to be a little nicer because you never know what might happen in the future. And, maybe if you try to see through what they are trying to do instead of what you want them to do—you’ll, maybe, learns to like that comic book. And leaving you a new fan thinking: Who’d have thunk?
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