Men in Black (comics)
| The Men in Black | |
 The Men in Black - first issue. Cover art by Max S Fellwalker |
|
| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Aircel Comics Malibu Comics Marvel Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Mini-series One-shots |
| Publication date | January-March 1990 May-July 1991 1997 |
| Number of issues | 3 3 4 |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Lowell Cunningham |
| Artist(s) | Sandy Carruthers |
| Creator(s) | Lowell Cunningham |
| Collected editions | |
| The Men in Black | ISBN 0944735606 |
The Men in Black was a comic book created and written by Lowell Cunningham, illustrated by Sandy Carruthers, and published by Aircel Comics. Aircel would later be bought out by Malibu Comics, which itself was bought out by Marvel Comics. Three issues were published in 1990, with another three the following year.
It was adapted into a film which resulted in a sequel and various spin-offs, as well as a number of tie-in one-shot comics from Marvel.
Contents |
Publication history
The first series consisted of three issues and was published in 1990 by Aircel Comics. After being acquired by Malibu Comics a second series appeared in 1991.
Malibu was bought by Marvel in 1994 and Men in Black was one of the properties they developed. So when the first film appeared Marvel published a number of one-shots in 1997, including two prequels,[1] [2] a sequel[3] and a movie adaptation[4]
Fictional history
The Men in Black are a secret organization that monitors and suppresses paranormal activity on Earth (which includes aliens, demons, mutants, and other such beings), while keeping the populace ignorant of its happenings. Notable members include, in the movie and the animated serie, Zed, Jay, and Kay. An agent named Ecks went rogue after learning the truth behind the MiB: they seek to manipulate and reshape the world in their own image by keeping the supernatural hidden.
An agent will use any means necessary, including murder and destruction, to accomplish a mission. All agents sever every tie with their former lives, and as far as the world is concerned, they do not exist. Agents who go rogue, such as Ecks did, are hunted down and eliminated.
Adaptations
They inspired the 1997 film Men in Black and its sequel and spin-offs, including a soundtrack with an award-winning song, the TV show Men in Black: The Series, a novelization of each film, video games, and an amusement park ride.
A major difference in the film version is that the secret organization was created only to police and monitor extraterrestrial activity on Earth : there is no mention of any other paranormal element, and the organisation isn't as violent as in the comic, using memories erasers rather than murder to supress witness. They don't have any insane secret purpose, being only devoted to their mission.
Collected editions
The first series has been collected into a trade paperback (June 1990, ISBN 0944735606).
Notes
- ^ "Men in Black: Initiation" at the Comic Book DB
- ^ "Men in Black: Far Cry" at the Comic Book DB
- ^ "Men in Black: Retribuition" at the Comic Book DB
- ^ "Men in Black: Movie Adaptation" at the Comic Book DB
References
- Men in Black at the Grand Comic-Book Database
- Men in Black at the Comic Book DB
- Men in Black II at the Grand Comic-Book Database
- Men in Black II at the Comic Book DB
- Men in Black at Don Markstein's Toonopedia
|
|||||||||||
Why are we here?
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
This page is cache of Wikipedia. History