#timdrakessweatyhands

[fungi-maestro]

More question stories coming this year Ram V confirmed

Ooh!!! Yes, he mentioned this on Twitter today!!!

I'm super excited. I need to see Vic again.... Guessing 'Tec 69 refers to Detective Comics #1069, which releases February 28th. A late birthday gift for me! I'll make sure to catch it. Don't let us down, Ram.

[faceless-conspiracy-buff]

How's huntress?

This seems to be a popular question lately. I'm sure there's no specific reason for that.

...

If you must know, Helena's been doing quite well.

She's been spending most of her time in Gotham, working alongside the Birds of Prey. She says they're cracking down on some sort of drug ring.

I offered to help, but she doesn't want me getting involved. As far as she's concerned, I have enough on my plate already. I can't really argue with that. And even if I wanted to, odds are good that I'd lose.

We still make time for dinner dates, though. ... And routine medical check-ups.

But beyond that, there haven't been many noteworthy developments.

... I'll tell her that you're thinking about her.

[fungi-maestro]

So what is Ditko's Vic personality and how does it differ from other iterations?

I'm going to put this under a readmore bc I am going to use this opportunity to talk about a cool article dissecting this exact character difference! But TLDR, I think the core of Ditko's Question is a black and white objectivism that isn't present in most other iterations. You'll see a little flicker of it occasionally, especially in ones that showcase the vintage personality (like the Blue Beetle short from a few years ago), or ones where they Rorschach-ify him (like PAX), but for the most part his modern character is dependent on him seeing the world as complex, which his old persona really was never able to do while locked into the Randian mindset.

Ok, now onto the readmore.

That's why he's the Question, to find answers to the complicated shades of grey that exist in the world. This is what makes him so interesting, to me at least, and what gives his character the staying power it needs. That's why he chooses complicated people to be his allies and proteges, like our very own Renee Montoya. Ditko Question would see someone with the kind of inner battles that we see in Renee and brush her off, probably giving the viewer a weird speech about unfaltering moral fortitude or something.

I also think it's interesting how Ditko Question was built into the mold of a character that always wins his battles due to his Strong Unwavering Right and Wrong Morals. You see this parodied with the tragedy of Rorschach in Watchmen, a man who stuck to his morals until it ultimately killed him, but you see the inverse of it with modern Vic. This is a guy that holds to his morals, which are complicated and messy, and doesn't win every time. It could be argued that this is a symptom of the purpose of heroes and comics changing over time, but it's still vital to understanding the character change.

Take this quote from this article here that talks about the Watchmen reference issue.

Regardless, O’Neil and Cowan’s most effective decision is to have everything go wrong for Question every time he tries to live up to the standards of his hero Rorschach. In this issue, Question falls out of a building on a man and kills him (this is before he reads Watchmen but still), loses literally every fight he gets in, drinks too much and pukes in a toilet, and is set for execution in the snow before a DC hero staple, Denny O’Neil’s own hard-travelin’ Green Arrow, shows up deus ex machina to save him!

There is a very good chance in every Question story that he might lose. You see him come really close! I can't even count the number of times he gets the snot beat out of him trying to stick to what he feels is right, even if I only tried to do so with the O'Neil run. And what's even more amazing is that his morals are things he grapples with. He doesn't have all the answers, and he doesn't claim to. Here's another quote (last one I promise, go read the article. It's quick and really opened my mind)

This Question goes on to grow, to use violence less, to become so open-minded and curious he confuses the Riddler with his amorphous doubts. O’Neil and Cowan’s Vic Sage grows well beyond Rand’s objectivism, acknowledging the vast pools of gray in the world, and acquiring the self-awareness to understand he doesn’t have all the answers.

Like how he talks to Izzy about if he's "crossed any lines" and he doesn't give a straight answer. He's not sure where his line is, and he really isn't sure if he's gone past it.

And here when he saves Izzy, who at the time was one of the most corrupt people in Hub City (a real feat). He obviously isn't happy about it, but his gut is telling him that it isn't right to let someone die, even if he doesn't like them. He can't be the judge on if they deserve to live.

You see it again here with this criminal that killed someone in front of him. Vic doesn't have the answer to whether someone should die for their crimes.

Compare this to such classics from the Ditko era as "Vic leaves some criminals to drown in the sewers" and "Vic pushes a guy out a window, breaking their flight apparatus, where they are then presumed dead". (I had screenshots of these, but I can't find them? They're in my tags. Somewhere.)

I would say there are some oddball runs for this characteristic, though. The 2005 one comes to mind. He definitely decides those guys fates, and leaving them chopped to pieces in a puddle of wet cement is his idea of justice. There's nuance here too, with the life of Superman on the line, the serious levels of corruption that were being left unaddressed, and his own personal battle with his ego that he was working through. It still speaks to someone that doesn't subscribe to the Randian objectivism that Ditko Question is famous for.

It's kind of awesome that a character like the Question, who starts his career as a guy that seems to have a good answer to every dilemma, is perfectly set up to be a complex and painfully raw depiction of someone that really tries to be good, but doesn't know what that looks like every time. He doesn't know everything, so he has to question the world, his morals, and everything he knows. It's really beautiful to me. Let me know what you guys think, I'd love to hear it.

[fungi-maestro]

New question just dropped

If this is about the Vampires one, yep! Just read it. a post should come out of my queue tomorrow with some questionable images :) For now, here's a little taste.

He sorta just shows up to be weird and then get his ass handed to him. Idk. I'm a little disappointed. DC needs to write another Question series or I'll begin taking drastic measures.

[fungi-maestro]

I love vic when he's unmasked he has this smug, weird old man aura to him and I love it

YEAHHHH he really is such a smug bastard. Especially in 52 and on, he just has this attitude that I find really fun. I especially liked his personality in Huntress: Back for Blood for the completely over it confidence.

It's like, you die once (Question #1) and it gives you a total personality reboot. You die twice, the second time for real (52), and you'll be a little more relaxed about everything.

This is something I super like with him post-52, and something I'm pleased to see be more or less consistent. In Checkmate and stuff where he just kinda hovers around in the background and occasionally speaks up, you can kind of see the gears turning in his head. He's in his quiet old man era. He is truly chilling and thinking about how much smarter he is than everyone else. Still the same smug Vic, but much older. Not necessarily wiser. Definitely weirder.

[fungi-maestro]

The vic sage art was just for the final urban legends cover nevermind?

Siiigh. 😭 Well, hopefully we get to see him in something soon. Cross your fingers!

Here's the full image, which really does look great! I'm only a little disappointed haha. Now to play Where's Waldo for some of my other favorites...

I did notice they didn't go for his Urban Legends look, which I find interesting considering this is for that series. It's much closer to the JLU appearance, and that's kinda expected considering it's pretty well loved and recognizable. I would bet money on JLU pics being used for references, haha.

[fungi-maestro]

SHAWTY CHECK TWITTER VIC SAGE MIGHT APPEAR IN A COMIC AGAIN!!!

OH MY GOD.........

NOTHING CONFIRMED YET. CROSS YOUR FINGERS. EVERY FINGER....... PLEASE GOD I NEED THIS

[fungi-maestro]

I love how sleek 60s Vic looks unmasked

Ain't he cute?