Blue, Yellow, Gray

The tandem of Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale did a couple of books a few years back. These were the "colored" ones.

Namely, the books were Spider-Man: Blue, Daredevil: Yellow, and Hulk: Gray (Spidey is the only one who didn't have previous costume/look) All were mini-series.

Featured were Peter Parker, Matt Murdock, and Bruce Banner. In these stories, it dealt with them coping/reflecting on their first loves who passed away... Gwen Stacy, Karen Page, and Betty Ross.

Now I found these books good reads since these heroes were trying to forget about their first loves. They were trying to move on but just couldn't. The books showed a process of returning to the past to heal. All of them had different methods. Peter was talking to a tape recorder during Valentine's Day, Matt was writing a letter, and Bruce was talking to his shrink/friend Doctor Leonard Samson.

I got to see more and more of the human side of these characters. Here they were, grieving for losing their first loves. The sadness in the words they were saying, the special moments they were reflecting on. Simple but moving.



I think the whole concept of "first love" was tackled excellently by Jeph Loeb. Though they moved on, the firsts would always remain. I think these were the best ones written by Jeph Loeb for Marvel, since he came back, he hasn't really written anything that's at par with these. Sorry Mr. Loeb but I didn't like Ultimates 3 at all...

Going back to the 3 books, they are all equally brilliant! However, being not so much of a fan of the Hulk, the Gray storyline caught me by surprise. I actually loved Hulk: Gray. It was pretty good! Spider-Man: Blue and Daredevil: Yellow are classics but you have to read all 3 to appreciate the work done by Loeb and Sale. They're all awesome!


I was reading a recent issue of Fantastic Four and Ben Grimm was supposed to get married. But he backed away because he saw Peter, Matt, and Bruce. In the background, the artist put the ladies. Gwen, Karen, and Betty. Ben Grimm thought that he didn't wanna go through what the 3 men went through. It was just plain difficult if the girl dies. Now note that Gwen and Karen were killed by deadly enemies of the heroes (Norman Osborn and Bullsye). I can't say arch nemesis because Bullseye isn't the primo against Daredevil. (It's Wilson Fisk, fyi :) )


So if you're a dude who wants to reflect/move-on. Try picking up these books. You actually may learn a thing or two. Start with Spidey and end with The Hulk.

It's good to see how human these super-powered people are. I think that's what separates them from the DC heroes.

Peter, Matt, and Bruce will forever be haunted by the sad memories of their first loves but they moved on. Although, they still have to put up with the baddies...

Check these books out guys! Top notch!