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Hello and welcome to the first installment of Comic Bookmarks. The goal here
each month is to share with you some interesting sites I have found in my endless
hours on the net (that's wife and kid's math, by the way: 3 hours/1 week = endless).
All of these sites will deal with comics in some way, whether its a professional's
homepage or a fellow fan's online comic book.
This month however, I'm going to be talking about some sites that can be a great
asset to any potential writers or artists out there trying to make it in the business.
If you're like me, it can be a real pain to have to dig through all your back-issues
just to find out if Aztek has a sibling or not when you're trying to write the next
great on-going series for DC. Back in 1985, DC must have thought the same thing
because they came out with a series entitled Who's Who: The Definitive Directory To
The DC Universe. This was a great idea that gave the reader all the information one
could possibly want about a character, along with a nice "pin-up" style illustration
by various artists, in one package. But come-on, that was 16 years ago! I'm sure some
of you reading this weren't even walking that long ago. Well never fear, for
The Unofficial Guide To The DC Universe
has everything you could possibly want to know about the characters that inhabit that
world . . . almost. Like most sites, this one is continuously being updated so there
are plenty of characters that have yet to be added. However, what is there is laid out
in the same user-friendly manner as the Who's Who. It should also be noted that they are
working on a very nice chronology project that will list every appearance by every
character in every book. That alone, will be worth checking out this site in the future.
And for all you Marvel fans, there's
The Professor's Marvel Directory.
This is one of the best sites out there for information not only on Marvel characters,
but the entire Marvel universe! Need the Avenger's By-laws and Charter? It's there.
The history of Adamantium? Ditto. Need the strength levels for each hero? Look no further.
This site has it all! If there is one flaw to be mentioned, it's that there are only pictures
on about 25% of the entries. Dr. Doom has everything you need to know about the villainous
monarch except for what he looks like! Still, you can't go wrong with this site and it's
always my first stop for anything Marvel related.
The Comic Characters Database
goes a step further and gives you characters from almost every universe created. I'm talking
Abomination to Zealot. They also give you the option of either looking the character up by
name or by series. Like the ones above, this site is also continuously being updated, but I
have to wonder how they decide which characters are added first. I found it interesting that
under the letter "F" there is a listing for Colonial Fedra from the Starslammers graphic novel,
but nothing for the DC hero Firestorm. Of course, this can be remedied by any reader out there
that wishes to use the template the site provides to add any additional characters.
The Super Hero Encyclopedia
is another great database that offers a wide selection of characters from different comic universes.
As the name implies, the information is laid-out in short "encyclopedia" type entries and
accompanied by a few pictures. Because of this, the entries are brief and to the point. You
may not find everything you need to know about a certain character, but at least you may find
them.
I hope you find these sites as useful as I do and continue to check back here each month
for the many others I have planned to share. Of course, all feedback is welcomed and if there
is a site you'd like to share, please drop me an e-mail at the address below and I'll try to
fit it in here.
Until next month - happy surfing.
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