As always, thanks for watching, and I hope you enjoyed the video :) Seeing all the comments on the previous video asking about Archie Mega Man made me very happy, considering that this one was already in the works and almost complete haha Also, if you're interested, remember to check out boot.dev and use my code LOWART to get 25% off your first payment: sponsr.is/bootdev_Lowart Thanks again! See ya next time!
I remember he said he always wanted to do a StarFox comic. Sadly, Nintendo rejected Archie's Super Mario/Nintendo Comic proposal. If he writes Andrew Oikonny similar to Snivley Kintobor, I'd be very happy.
It's still wild that Ian Flynn straight up was like "hey, you know the chorus for The Message from Dr. Light from that band The Megas? Yeah I'm just gonna make that dialogue in this comic" and it works so perfectly.
as someone who was already a fan of The Megas, i really liked the message, but it honestly really took me out of the moment when Dr. Light started quoting slightly altered song lyrics
One thing I like about this comic that also applies to Archie Sonic is how Ian Flynn wrote robot characters. They see each other as "brothers" and take it really seriously. We get stories about the way they see themselves since they're robots and weapons. It's super compelling.
I’d just like to point out that during the Ace-Attorney-esque court case, Rock actually wears an outfit near identical to one of Astro Boy’s in the 1980 show. As a diehard fan of both franchises, I seriously appreciated such a deep cut, assuming it wasn’t just coincidence. Archie Mega Man goated 🔥🔥
It might be a deep cut, as the creators of Mega Man have admitted to being influenced by Astro Boy for the creation of the Classic series. There also was a rumor that Megaman started off as an Astro Boy game before they lost the rights.
Yeah, there was just that bit of doubt, considering how comparatively obscure Astro Boy is in a a weird way, and how I seem to be the only person online to ever point it out.
Funnily enough, Tezuka Productions and Capcom actually did an series official crossover merchandise which features characters from numerous Capcom franchises interacting with Osamu Tezuka's characters a year ago. Astro Boy and Mega Man officially meet each other! :)
Right, I remember seeing some promotional art. It’s a shame lots of those kinds of things aren’t really available in the west, I’d totally buy those Black Jack shoes if I could!
That was a flash of pro VA material, Lowart could straight up just become Proto's official voice after some practice and I wouldn't argue against it in the slightest
@@benlohmer5703 I've seen Young Justice. It's kind of what I'd have expected of a Teen Titans show. Which is weird, because the Teen Titans show is what I would have expected from Young Justice.
Fun fact: the whole ‘THEN WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO BE!!!?’ part between Rock and Blues is a reference to a song from a band called ‘The Megas’, specifically from ‘I’m Not The Breakman’. They make MegaMan related music (and also Castlevania too sometimes). This is also true of the ‘robotic hair’, it’s from ‘A Message From Doctor Light’.
It is _criminal_ I haven't heard of this until now. I've read the Street Fighter comic, so I have no worries. Just felt blueballed by them teasing SF III, want that so bad
The first crossover is glorious. Eggman and Wily's dynamic is perfect where they go from praising each other and bouncing off each other to stabbing the other in the back.
But then they see each other again in the second crossover, Wily don't remember who is Eggman. Eggman use this opportunity to work together again, they don't betrayed each other and they are still Evil Friends Forever
@pawarl.o.s.881 A lot of that had to do with how Flynn characterized Eggman. He wrote him as not so much a representation of mankind but more of an embodiment of darkness who was pretty much a robo dictator with shades of the Joker. His Eggman is actively genocidal and would erase himself in the process of fighting Sonic. While Wily as Flynn wrote him at the least didn't really seek Light's death.
there's also such a wonderful distinction drawn between them. They might both be mad scientists who like killer robots, but there is a line Wily will not cross (murdering Dr. Light) when Eggman simply has no lines (he's been doing this a lot longer after all) and it clearly shows
@@Deraphim and it seems in-character considering Wiley has respect for his nemesis Light, and used to be his friend so it makes sense. Archie Eggman meanwhile, despite his high IQ is like a child with no conscience. Arguably, game Eggman is nicer, but he has some surprisingly dark moments in the games, like threatening Amy and holding her hostage in SA2, and even almost offing Sonic, and laughing about it. Fans critical of the comic version forget about stuff like that, and I like Ian's version of Eggman being both comical at times and dark at times.
@@beauwalker9820 It was a good idea when that milestone issue came out and Eggman was like, "it's been fun, but no more games. I destroyed your home, captured your friends, and now here's the giant robot I've been saving especially for you sonic" and it was legitimately a threat that he just couldn't beat on his own because it was BETTER than him Like yeah, Eggman might be cartoony sometimes, but he's literally handling the heroes with kid gloves OUT OF BOREDOM. But these days it's harder to take him seriously when in the games he takes over the world and he just leaves Sonic locked up and unharmed for a year, or he's catching paternal feelings over his AI daughter (which... didn't he have one of those in Archie? what happened to her?)
It's really a shame they never got to even get to Megaman X. The team at Archie had plans to adapt all the games and even bridge the gap between Classic and X. Truly terrible what happened to Archie Megaman in the end. Glad to see ya cover the comic! Its truly great.
@@galten7361 I don't think so? If I remember from the Bumblekast, one of his plans was that Rock and Roll were still alive on space adventures and would be the ones to get Volnutt off the moon?
This is a very insightful retrospective of a truly wonderful interpretation of Mega Man. As much as I respect the games for their existence, I think it was Archie that truly made me love Mega Man as a world and franchise. Excellent job on this video
8:15 The speech here is a direct reference to the lyrics for the song "The Message From Dr. Light" by The Megas, a band that is heavily based on the Mega Man games. They're really good!
@@AusVtuber i cannot find a source for this, the only thing i found was a facebook post by the megas where they seem very happy if anything about the nod. i don't wanna believe you're just lying so can you please provide a source for this?
I loved the Archie Mega Man comics from the get-go. It finally gave the characters and their world the spotlight they deserved, and it's a damn shame we won't be getting any more of it.
Wish Flynn could at least do Mega Man comics for the other versions of the Blue Bomber. He had some cool takes on the X series, would love for him to have a full run for X. Or maybe do a comic take on Legends, or heck, his own take on Battle Network.
There is a similar shot with Blue's eyes in his fight with Mega Man in Issue 46. Before the fight he asks Mega Man who is he? Dr. Lights weapon? His assistant? His son? When Rock says he's all of those things Blues screams "Then what am I suppose to be?!". Its a really well done fight, another iconic Break Man moment.
If I had a nickel for every time Ian Flynn has written for an Archie comic series about a blue video game icon known for combatting an evil scientist, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's still weird that it happened twice. Edit: Also wow, I keep forgetting how terrible Ian's luck was on the Archie series he wrote for getting cut short.
Absolutely love that this comic took inspiration from "The Megas" adaptations of megamans music and made pretty direct references to it, and don't think I missed that Message from DR. Light reference in the MegaMan 1 section of the video Lowart.
the introduction of blues adds so much to the story and its all rooted not jsut in the comic but in a bunch of stuff from the games that were otherwise rather weird or unexplored: -Blues's whistle is a refrence to his theme from the game, which is implied to be him whsitling in universe. making it a song he made up himself, to allude to being more of a creative than Light though, adds some dimension to him and is a good starting point for the story's core premise -Dr light initially not being that willing to fight for Blues' autonomy and personhood and instinct to treat him as an object, and how that lead to Blues leaving, informs a lot about his current demeanor. He cares about Robots as people because he was on the other side of that conflict once, and his current attitude is an atempt to atone for the creulties he inflcited on blues and to be a better man than before and to not make that same msitake again. It's also why he's so hesitant to be involved in weapons devleopment again, seeing as that is what caused the rift between him and blues in the first place. -Blues, or rather Proto Man, in the games is a loner, he's never around the lab and only pops in occassionally to help in the conflict, so the comic does a lot fo work expanding on thatl, exploring WHY he's a loner and why he rarely shows up and never seems to just live with his family, by showing he is deeply hurt by a betrayal and also resents megaman a little for 'replacing' him, and generally being unsure how he should act towards his family even after he turns good. -Further more, in the games Blues is presented as an antagonist at first, a rival for mega man to battle, only to suddenly and without warning be a good guy in his second or thrid appearance, so again the comic explores this and rather than cheap out goes "yeah, he WAS a villain, and here's WHY", so again taking something from the games and expanding on it
@sarafontanini7051 Classic robots are not supposed to genuinely be able to refuse their programmed duties or otherwise think like you or I. Flynn tried to make the storytelling and settings in later games apply to Classic when it doesn't really fit.
@@galten7361Blues just had a slithly more vague task than any other robot, one that, while yes he follows, gives him room to do different actions for the inbetween
The thing with Blues running away so quickly. He is a "kid". Dr. Wily: I will make combat robot. Dr. White: I will give robots with the personality of children, weapons.
Heck yeah! The Mega Man comic was also my first introduction to the Blue Bomber, and what an introduction. I love how Flynn took the bare bones story of the Classic games and ran with it, expanding it to deliver a really nice take on Rock, Roll, Blues, everyone in this futuristic world. Blues' arc in particular was such a standout. So glad you voiced his talk with Tempo, that is my favorite Blues scene and you nailed the emotion perfectly. Thank you so much for highlighting this awesome comic.
1:01:25 I hate and love the usage of the Mega Man Zero 4 theme playing. If the mega man franchise ever got a true ending, Zero 4 is the closest to ever deliver on that. I am a big mega man fan, the brainrot people have for sonic is what I have for mega man, this franchise is so dear to me that I can't find a good way to put it into words. And it makes me so sad that the games now have been mostly abandoned. But I never got to experience the comics, I remember hearing they cancelled the comics after a few issues, and even though I knew it had good writing, I just didn't want to feel kinda heart broken again. And watching this video and especially getting to see the concepts for the Zero, ZX, Legends and even unseen content from the X series, just made me realized that maybe I do have enough mega man to appreciate what is there, even if it doesn't tell the full story it could have.
@@lpfan4491 ZX Advent: *entire f cliffhanger that is never resolved* Meanwhile, Legends 2: Uh, you do know that regardless of what happens it leads to me and TRIGGER BEING STUCK ON THE F MOON!
Onboard with you on this one, the worldbuilding in Zero and going into ZX was fantastic and between CAPCOM basically abandoning the franchise and the director moving on we're probably never going to get to see a real followup. I have a fanfic tucked away but finding time to write is, ironically, difficult when you're doing a Masters of Writing.
I feel like when people complain about Ian Flynn's writing in sonic games, it comes because his writing in the games is only scratching the surface of what he can bring to franchise. Something he got to do more freely during his Archie day was push the character's personalities in interesting directions, something that he and Evan still do at IDW but under more mandates from Sega for the main game cast. So, when people say Ian's biggest contribution is all the references to past games, I feel like their missing out on the whole breath of his work in the comics.
Archie Mega Man is one of the most underrated comics of all time imo and deserves more credit for great story telling and character work, that helped me get into the franchise and for that I'm grateful. Honestly can't wait for the Archie online team to one day release a new issue of the comic and Udon seriously needs to consider giving Ian Flynn a chance, I know he's not much of a fan favorite to some people, but I really respect his passion for the comics he writes.
"There will always be a Mega Man" I wonder if you know just how right you are. There's a line in Mega Man Legends, near the end of the game you can find a man in blue who hints at Legends place at the very end of the timeline. "Sometimes, you see references in history books to something called a 'MegaMan'...I wonder what that's supposed to mean? Hey, come to think of it, your name is MegaMan, isn't it? Well, there's probably no connection--pretty funny coincidence, though!" And of course, the final boss of the game is Juno. Mega Man Juno. One a multitude of Mega Men built by the ancients. It's rather fascinating the history that Legends hints towards.
MASSIVE Kudos for the Voice Acting on Dr. Light in Issue 45! Despite your Voice (in my opinion) not being a Personal Fit for the Character, you still did an AMAZING job capturing his Emotional Breakdown over Wily's Obvious yet still Crushing Betrayal!
Can I just say that this deep-dive is wonderful? The pacing, the editing, THE ACTING!! Good God, the acting is great, you convey the pain, the aloofness, the emotion so PERFECTLY
I remember back in the day hanging out at Ian's personal online forum, interacting with him, several of the artists, and a ton of other fans, talking about both the Sonic and Mega Man comics. Those were good times.
Speaking as a longtime Mega Man fan, Archie Mega Man is not just one of the best video game adaptations I've seen, but it's one my favorite superhero comics of all-time. This comic that dared to take the Classic Mega Man series, a series that, story wise, had mostly just been "you're a good robot, now go jump and shoot at bad robots", and broke them down into fun, thought-provoking, character-driven adventures. It stayed faithful to the games, while also doing its own thing, and being (mostly) accessible to newcomers. It dived deep into the relationships between creator and creation, and expanded upon game characters, while also giving us interesting and memorable new characters. It wasn't always perfect, but it's something I'm so glad to have experienced. And even if we never see it again, I think of it as one of those "don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" kinds of things. I've always been a sucker for stories about robots learning to become more than what they are and such, and Archie Mega Man is one of my biggest creative inspirations in that department. I cannot thank you enough for making such a wonderful video on such a wonderful series.
I noticed that a couple of people in the Mega Man fandom argue over whether the Archie comics or the Mega/Gigamix manga series are superior, and I'm just confused because they're both great. They just take different approaches to how they tell the story of the Blue Bomber.
@jacketofdiamonds super hell they bearly retell the games plots at all it's much more about reimagining the characters as a Shonen battle anime. it's super cool tho achie actually took inspiration from it's characterization of the characters since it was one of the first time to really characterize alot of the characters.
Can't believe ya went through this series, loved the comics I saw, and my favorite parts were seeing the robot masters personalities! From Cut Man having boatloads of puns, Quick Man's competitive edge on Mega Man, Bubble Man's aggression, heck, even Flash Man's longing for hair, it makes the masters come to life, in which only Mega Man Powered Up ever saw.
53:20 No no no wait wait wait wait. WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT!!! (Fr tho I’ll never forget that panel of the line of robots going “offline”. Truly haunting. You never know what you have until it’s gone)
One thing that I absolutely adore in Megaman, as a franchise, is the same thing that I adore in the Zelda franchise, the multiple Megas and the multiple Links, in The Legend of Zelda, it is quite rare that we ever see the same Link, so far this has only happened 9 times with 4 Links, the Ocarina of Time Link is the same as the Majora's and the same in Twilight Princess, the Wind Waker Link is the same in Phantom Hourglass, which would later repopulate the Royal family with Tetra, the Zelda 1 Link is the same in Zelda 2, and lastly, the BotW is the same in TotK, in any other game its a different Link, but its still the same heroic character, I was talking once with a friend about this, how most Links are not the same, but the world is almost always the same, and how despite each different Link being its own person, meaning they have nothing to do with the previous Link, they are all still the same character in personality, characterization, feats and such, they are the Hero Chosen by the Goddess, meaning Hylia handpicks each Link, and what he asked me was how I would make a movie (we where talking about the upcoming Zelda Movie) with references to other games, if each Link is different and holds no memories of their previous selves, and that's the amazing thing about Zelda, they don't remember, but the world does; I just went into this super long tangent to say that, each different Megaman Series has its own Mega, its own Blue Bomber, shining with their good and unmatched sense of justice, and it just reminds me of how Light was right, how each era or setting has its own Mega, it may be a kamen rider Megaman, it may be a kid fusing with an alien cat Megaman, or even a vtuber Megaman, each is as good as the original Megaman, and this final chapter, it just makes me emotional, how it acknowledges that, that Light was Right, his trust was proven right. But I would've loved it Ian ever managed to catch up with Legends, that series goes CRAZY lol
I was so wondering how they'd keep this kind of story going through all of the situations of the later games since they establish consequences and continuity with things. The more robot master attacks happen, the more the Emerald Spears seem like they have a point. It would've been so interesting.
I'm a huge Mega Man fan today and that's solely due to these comics. I only read them in 2013 because the series was crossing over with Archie Sonic and I fell in love with the world and characters.
Toooo be fair about the robot battle pacing, that’s actually kind of true to Megaman games? I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but the games function off of a “rock/paper/scissors” approach: once you have the Robot Master’s weakness, they become significantly more easy to beat. The fact that Flynn carried this over to the comic is actually kind of clever, even if it _may_ wind up affecting the pacing.
These Archie videos continue to be such a treat. Where for some it would simply be enough to give a basic issue-by-issue recap, you manage to give truly outstanding insight into the themes and characters. I think this goes for your other viewers as well, but I've really had my eyes opened to the artistic value of these comics. You should be proud of creating the definitive retrospective on all of this material, and I look forward to wherever this series is heading next.
In my opinion this comic was shaping up to be a masterpiece. The way in which the extremely similar and repetitive stories of 10 (now 11) plus games were interwoven and built up with bridging arcs and issues to make them more unique and individually interesting was just so good to read. The original eight robot masters coming together as an extended family after the first arc is my preferred canon for the series. And Blues' whole journey was so well-told and engaging throughout. It's my favorite version of the Mega Man universe because it got me into Mega Man only for me to discover that Capcom wasn't really interested in taking the series in any new or worthwhile directions. Hell, my favorite arc of the comic, Blackout, was based on a game that I discovered the creator of the series hated so much for its actual attempt at a larger story that you now can't find actual copies of the game anywhere. It's heartbreaking it ended before the full vision could be revealed.
@@mattkugelman4369 Which will not be using any of the plot threads from Archie, instead being a complete reboot. So no Tempo/Quake Woman, no Shadow Man being actually one of Ra-Moon's creations and connected to the Stardroids from Mega Man V (the GB one), no Emerald Spears (which is a deep cut because they're shouting out the old Ruby Spears cartoon in name if not theme), nothing.
I'd love it if Flynn got a chance to tackle the other Mega Man games. He did some good work with the X series, would love to see him continue to adapt the stories from there. Or maybe see him tackle the Legends story or Battle Network.
This comic series has always meant a lot to me. It was my introduction to Mega Man as a whole, and I remember visiting my local library frequently as a kid just so I could read the next trade paperback. It always does make me a little sad to know that it may never get a continuation, but I will always remember it fondly for all the good things it did. I try my best to recommend this to as many people as I can, and I hope that your video gets so many more people to read it. Thank you for such a wonderful summary and analysis of the book!
The Worlds Collide crossover was my first introduction & incentive to check out the Mega Man series just like you so, I’m glad to see I wasn’t the only one 🥹 Such an incredible introduction to this world and adaptation… honestly this comic was SO GOOD that the classic games let me down initially because the lack of initial similar storytelling lol. I don’t think any Mega Man adaptation will ever be good as this one because of it. I remember reading Proto Man’s introduction multiple times just because of how much I felt for him a when I was younger. Taking this material to expand upon it so genuinely & passionately. It’s not perfect, like the second Worlds Unite crossover isn’t as good as the first (at least from what I remember). But it’ll always be a shame it didn’t get the same time as Archie Sonic. I honestly feel like it would’ve bridged the gap between Classic & X more than ever before from how much they were covering 😢 Solidified me as an Ian Flynn fan
25:47 I wouldn't call it Slice of Life; there's still plenty of fantastical elements like Tempo's entire situation and the fact they're doing science stuff in the arctic. Yeah that last bit takes a back seat, but it does enough to balance things out, which is more than what a lot of other Slice of Life stories I've experienced can say.
this was fun to watch! it was great seeing a complete outsider's perspective on this comic and how it adapted the series, because i absolutely had my fandom goggles on for much of its run lol. i had similar sentiments about the pacing and the somewhat underbaked development of mega man himself running through its first half, but was pretty content to believe the series would run as long as it could to fully deliver and develop the characters we all wanted and knew could exist. hearing a more critical take on it was great, and it helps to understand where its real weaknesses lie. that being said, i sure am glad i wasn't just deluding myself with the latter half of the series as well haha. welcome to our world, where we REALLY wish this comic got the run it deserved! i'm glad you liked it, and i hope the mega man games themselves (with their honestly really sparse stories) treat you well!
I’m honestly sad they weren’t able to get to an adaptation of megaMan 7, cause I know they would absolutely cook with the scene where rock contemplates killing Wily.
proto man is my favorite. his story always makes me so emotional and I love how the Archie comics handled it and your analysis, as well as how you delivered the "he replaced me" line :')
I like to tell people that if they're a fan of Mega Man series (even more so if you like the Archie comics) to check out the original Astro Boy manga. Of course, it's well known Mega Man was directly inspired by Astro Boy, but much like the Archie comics, it's not afraid to openly explore deeper themes like morality, justice, war and even civil rights (all while respecting the reader's intelligence and maturity), in a series that's officially aimed at children or young boys. Also, that final chapter with Dr. Light seeing the future? One of the most beautiful endings I've read in comics.
man, the second crossover was literally my introduction to the franchise, I read the comics at least once a year and every time I see some new detail that makes me wonder what they were trying to foreshadow. It made proto man into one of my favourite characters and from his appearance in the crossover and his largish role in the time travel issue, I can just tell they were so eager to do some cool stuff with bass. Thanks for covering this, your archie sonic videos made me appreciate the comic without actually having to read like 200 issues.
If you want some more fun interpretations of Mega Man. I recommend "The Megas." It's a band that made a bunch of rock covers of the various soundtracks of Mega Man 1-3 as vocal tracks. But the tracks tell their own story "their own interpretation of the games," And the stuff with Proto Man in particular is great. there were even a few lines from it that were used in the comics.
7:53 fun fact: those are lyrics to The Message from Dr Light by The Megas, a band that puts lyrics to rock covers of Mega Man songs. I know people meme on Ian Flynn from adding lyrics to dialogue in Sonic now but the fact that he sourced fan Mega Man covers just shows that he did his homework
Funny thing, Megaman wasn't that kind of character in the games. X was the one who cared most about robotic and human lives. Honestly, I think this adaptation makes sense, trying to create a more serious plot, Rock is someone difficult to adapt.... But not impossible. I invite you to read Megaman Megamix, it's pretty good
@harryenchiladas8826 Archie Mega Man repeatedly tries to apply both storytelling or plot points from post-Classic games and wider stuff Flynn was interested in like time traveling new villains.
Fun fact. There was gonna be an Archie Comics of Nintendo’s own Mario, Metroid, and Kirby. The reason why that never happened and was only left in concept art and talks about what was the story gonna be about, was that despite Nintendo of America agreeing with wanting this to happen, Nintendo of Japan didn’t agree with it. Making it scrapped work of what could have been. But then again, there was a choice of ether going with The Red Plumber and The Blue Bomber on who was gonna get their time to be on page. So it’s probably a good thing Mario didn’t got it and Megaman was chosen instead given the neglect Capcom has with him back then before 11 and the collections and even in some cases today on any new installments
I love the archie comics but I love the Hitoshi Ariga manga even more. Udon translated that manga, it's not likely he'll be involved but I hope they get some of his essence on the new comics and I'll love it even more than other iterations. Also they're very good with the Street Fighter comics. Them working with Capcom makes this as official as it comes.
maaaan, MAAAAAAAN, no one is more disappointed me that this comic didn't continue. i would've given my left nut to see them adapt the more grand-scale issues of the X series, and the downright apocalyptic setting of the zero series. THERE'S SO MUCH COOL LORE THEY DIDN"T GET TO! great video regardless. im glad the archie comic flushed out the bare-bones plots of the early megaman games.
You should read the Mega Man Gigamix/Megamix manga. It's a really good adaptation of the Blue Bomber's story that's very beloved among the Mega Man fandom, and the art style was drawn by Hitoshi Ariga, who is a very well-known illustrator in the Mega Man series. He has also dabbled into Pokemon, making some trading cards and even some of the Pokemon designs for X and Y.
the Emerald Spears btw is in reference to the animation studio that created the RubySpears megaman cartoon from the 90s, back when there were only the first 3 games + Megaman X. some of hte Characterization of Iceman actually comes from that cartoon (the part that loves roll, the military split personality is from Powered Up)
I'm a huge mega man fan and I was a religious reader of these comics. Far more invested in these than the sonic comics, although they were good too. I was so disappointed when the series was abruptly ended but I loved these and the sonic crossovers were great too. loved them so much
There aren't many videos that discuss the Archie Mega Man comics, so it brings me joy to see that there are still people who remember them. The story and characters have impacted me since I was a kid, and your video does well explaining why. Proto Man is my favorite character in the series and it's a shame that the story ended before we got more of his arc development.
Better words can’t be spoken. This was a jewel of a series and one of the few I actually had a subscription for. Really wish we could have gotten a few more years worth of stories. 😊
The way you express emotions in certain parts especially the part where you said with feeling..."HE REPLACED ME!!!"...it brought me to tears because...i know how it feels...to be replaced.
Yesh, I knew I enjoyed it, but I never sat down to think about WHY I did it. Bravo on your analytical skills. I've actually spent some time writing a transcript for what a continuation could look like as a method of keeping my brain greased. I'm up to around 170 pages, now. Since TH-cam hates links and I haven't figured out how to share documents without Drive invading my privacy, I'll just point out some of my favorite highlights: - Tempo replaces Break Man as the rival for a while. - All four GB games are (technically) fully adapted. - A short story arc dedicated to why Guts Man is in the museum by Mega Man 7. - A proper prequel to the Zero series, highlighting pre- and post Copy X politics. - Dark Man 4 somehow became the most unlikable character, par none.
Ahhhh… this takes me back. These were my f**king jam back when I was in elementary school. This was my first real exposure to more heartfelt and mature themes in fiction, and I was all for it. I probably still have some of my old copies laying around.
finally someone talks about the mega Man Archie comics I love these as a kid every time I hear them brought up it just been passing I was so sad when these ended
This keeps happening with Mega Man & I cannot understand why… why is everyone so afraid for SOMEONE who has the passion and creativity for this IP to only allow them a small smidget of time with they IP before some plug gets pulled. This was a great video & Ian Flynn is a great writer. This should have continued. This brought so much context to & new material to the original game’s source material that I doubt even Keiji Inafune himself would think of half of these plot lines. Can we start a petition for this to return? Good god man this ended WAY too soon.
It was kind of a perfect storm- fans left waiting for more after all the unresolved cliffhangers, a writer who was dedicated in his research and Nuovas Aventuras de Megaman as an expectation lowerer.
@@lingricen8077 That applies to any franchise. Sonic games have always sold passably by platformer standards and despite recent historical revisionism Generations with Colors scored alright in all reliable sources of criticial reception. Mega Man is not that. The games have been underperforming for a long while.
What a nice tribute for one of my favorite licensed comic books. It's a shame that, while you can still find the collected volumes for purchase digitally, the individual issues that were never collected are seemingly lost to time. Well, luckily you can find anything on the internet if you look in the right place...
To be fair, I believe there was no better spot to end the story, it felt... surprisingly conclusive, y'know? Had it been any earlier, and it would've been too sudden, any later, and it wouldn't be as impactful... Granted, I wish it was never discontinued, but since it had to be, this is probably the best way it could've been handled. The main cast, at the very least, got fleshed out enough that you don't need to wonder much about them anymore, and while some things may have been left up in the air, like Proto Man having to prove his worth or Rock having to go up against Cossack, we can just *trust* they'd keep moving forward because they *have* proven the strength of their convictions already... I won't ask for much else because some others don't even get the chance, I'd rather take short and sweet over spun-out and stale.
Megaman as an entire series from the original all the way to ZX has always been fascinating to me, because evil consistently wins. You have heroic characters doing good, like Megaman and Light in the comic, but ultimately Wily wins in the far future.
I love this comic dude! Such a shame it got axed. Flynn and crew definitely had big plans for this comic but now they might not come to pass, that is unless Udon ends up hiring him for their new comic after all lol. By the way, there happens to be a fan continuation of MM Archie that's still in the works so that has me pretty excited. I know there's also a few for Sonic Archie that have already released some issues. Anyway, great video man! You exceed lots of passion through your tone and I'm here for it. Keep up the good work!
Love Archie Sonic because of the people that made it, but if I may be so bold. This was the most necessary video, read it myself. But Blues watching Rock and Roll hug Light hit my feelings hard, again When I got to the Wily and Light section, I was quick to remember that despite everything. Wily respects Light and his work Besides things like obscure pulls, the love for the series shows in things like that bit quoting Megas lyrics. Perfect use of a reference The fact it got cut short is worth slamming a table, Ian could've probably made a dystopian future inspired by The Protomen with Quint at the helm
the video came together pretty easily but there was a lot of back and forth of what we would and wouldn't include. the second half got basically entirely skimmed over in an earlier draft for example, and there was a lot of ideas cut or that i didn't even bring up as something i wanted to include because they made the video unfocused. i think we hit the best sweet spot we could i could honestly make an entire companion video if i wanted, and if i ever find another angle to talk about the series i will. making this video was basically me coming to terms with the fact that the comic isn't coming back haha
I think that the mega man comic could comeback through the IDW Comics like Sonic did in recent years, but I do not know about the story being the same as Archie Comics however. Time will tell.
The Archie Mega Man comics were a majority of my first exposure to the franchise. Like, I'd seen bits and pieces of various installments and continuities before, but by and large this was my true intro to it. I'd say it was a mighty fine intro.
As always, thanks for watching, and I hope you enjoyed the video :) Seeing all the comments on the previous video asking about Archie Mega Man made me very happy, considering that this one was already in the works and almost complete haha
Also, if you're interested, remember to check out boot.dev and use my code LOWART to get 25% off your first payment: sponsr.is/bootdev_Lowart
Thanks again! See ya next time!
I owe you my life
Your welcome man
@@mylam658 you're the one who said he should do this in a previous episode i remember
@@MTC-hy6ig i was asking since like 3 videos ago i didn't know they were actually cooking it up already 😭 I'm so happy
7:52 BTW, these are the lyrics to "The Message from Dr Light" by the Megas
Ian Flynn's tweet at the end is so heart-warming. That's a man who loves games, loves writing, and loves writing stories about games.
I remember he said he always wanted to do a StarFox comic. Sadly, Nintendo rejected Archie's Super Mario/Nintendo Comic proposal.
If he writes Andrew Oikonny similar to Snivley Kintobor, I'd be very happy.
@beauwalker9820 I would buy a Star Fox comic for a thousand dollars. That would be awesome!
It's still wild that Ian Flynn straight up was like "hey, you know the chorus for The Message from Dr. Light from that band The Megas? Yeah I'm just gonna make that dialogue in this comic" and it works so perfectly.
I dont normally say this but dude stop yapping
@@thefungang4191Well why did you then?
as someone who was already a fan of The Megas, i really liked the message, but it honestly really took me out of the moment when Dr. Light started quoting slightly altered song lyrics
@thefungang4191It’s a comment section. Just scroll past it.
@thefungang4191
Can't handle seeing more than two lines of text, TikTok brain?
One thing I like about this comic that also applies to Archie Sonic is how Ian Flynn wrote robot characters. They see each other as "brothers" and take it really seriously. We get stories about the way they see themselves since they're robots and weapons. It's super compelling.
I’d just like to point out that during the Ace-Attorney-esque court case, Rock actually wears an outfit near identical to one of Astro Boy’s in the 1980 show. As a diehard fan of both franchises, I seriously appreciated such a deep cut, assuming it wasn’t just coincidence. Archie Mega Man goated 🔥🔥
It might be a deep cut, as the creators of Mega Man have admitted to being influenced by Astro Boy for the creation of the Classic series. There also was a rumor that Megaman started off as an Astro Boy game before they lost the rights.
Yeah, there was just that bit of doubt, considering how comparatively obscure Astro Boy is in a a weird way, and how I seem to be the only person online to ever point it out.
Funnily enough, Tezuka Productions and Capcom actually did an series official crossover merchandise which features characters from numerous Capcom franchises interacting with Osamu Tezuka's characters a year ago. Astro Boy and Mega Man officially meet each other! :)
Right, I remember seeing some promotional art. It’s a shame lots of those kinds of things aren’t really available in the west, I’d totally buy those Black Jack shoes if I could!
Great job on the "He replaced me" read for Proto Man. I felt that.
That was a flash of pro VA material, Lowart could straight up just become Proto's official voice after some practice and I wouldn't argue against it in the slightest
It gave me Arsenal from Young Justice vibes, I mean that as the Highest Compliment. (Seriously watch Young Justice if you haven't)
@@benlohmer5703 I've seen Young Justice. It's kind of what I'd have expected of a Teen Titans show. Which is weird, because the Teen Titans show is what I would have expected from Young Justice.
@@Slukig I've noticed him do some really good line reads in a few other videos. The guy has an alternate career option in there somewhere.
After watching this vid, I NEED to get the Proto Man volume of the comic.
Fun fact: the whole ‘THEN WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO BE!!!?’ part between Rock and Blues is a reference to a song from a band called ‘The Megas’, specifically from ‘I’m Not The Breakman’. They make MegaMan related music (and also Castlevania too sometimes). This is also true of the ‘robotic hair’, it’s from ‘A Message From Doctor Light’.
The Megas MENTIONED!
It's not just a reference to message from doctor light, it's the entire chorus just recited as a message from doctor light
FINALLY. There were like zero video essays about Archie Mega Man so I’m ecstatic to see you covering this!
It’s a damn shame that the Archie Mega Man comics ended . Seriously, UDON (Who got the license) have large shoes to fill.
Indeed!
Udon has had the license for much longer as far as manga and general art books. The megamix and gigamix manga are incredibly good
I hope they let them use Tempo again. She was such a good character and a good friend to Proto Man.
Could they pick up from where they left off?
It is _criminal_ I haven't heard of this until now. I've read the Street Fighter comic, so I have no worries. Just felt blueballed by them teasing SF III, want that so bad
The first crossover is glorious. Eggman and Wily's dynamic is perfect where they go from praising each other and bouncing off each other to stabbing the other in the back.
But then they see each other again in the second crossover, Wily don't remember who is Eggman. Eggman use this opportunity to work together again, they don't betrayed each other and they are still Evil Friends Forever
@pawarl.o.s.881 A lot of that had to do with how Flynn characterized Eggman. He wrote him as not so much a representation of mankind but more of an embodiment of darkness who was pretty much a robo dictator with shades of the Joker. His Eggman is actively genocidal and would erase himself in the process of fighting Sonic. While Wily as Flynn wrote him at the least didn't really seek Light's death.
there's also such a wonderful distinction drawn between them. They might both be mad scientists who like killer robots, but there is a line Wily will not cross (murdering Dr. Light) when Eggman simply has no lines (he's been doing this a lot longer after all) and it clearly shows
@@Deraphim and it seems in-character considering Wiley has respect for his nemesis Light, and used to be his friend so it makes sense. Archie Eggman meanwhile, despite his high IQ is like a child with no conscience.
Arguably, game Eggman is nicer, but he has some surprisingly dark moments in the games, like threatening Amy and holding her hostage in SA2, and even almost offing Sonic, and laughing about it. Fans critical of the comic version forget about stuff like that, and I like Ian's version of Eggman being both comical at times and dark at times.
@@beauwalker9820 It was a good idea when that milestone issue came out and Eggman was like, "it's been fun, but no more games. I destroyed your home, captured your friends, and now here's the giant robot I've been saving especially for you sonic" and it was legitimately a threat that he just couldn't beat on his own because it was BETTER than him
Like yeah, Eggman might be cartoony sometimes, but he's literally handling the heroes with kid gloves OUT OF BOREDOM.
But these days it's harder to take him seriously when in the games he takes over the world and he just leaves Sonic locked up and unharmed for a year, or he's catching paternal feelings over his AI daughter (which... didn't he have one of those in Archie? what happened to her?)
It's really a shame they never got to even get to Megaman X. The team at Archie had plans to adapt all the games and even bridge the gap between Classic and X. Truly terrible what happened to Archie Megaman in the end. Glad to see ya cover the comic! Its truly great.
Heck they could of done the zero series
@tntsonic7482 Knowing Flynn he would have just tried to make it the Cataclysm with Zero being forced into the plot.
@@galten7361
I don't think so? If I remember from the Bumblekast, one of his plans was that Rock and Roll were still alive on space adventures and would be the ones to get Volnutt off the moon?
@@johnnygyro2295 His plan was to remember that 3 and IV and V all happened? What a legend.
This is a very insightful retrospective of a truly wonderful interpretation of Mega Man. As much as I respect the games for their existence, I think it was Archie that truly made me love Mega Man as a world and franchise. Excellent job on this video
Loved your voice acting as Dr.Wily on your videos! You are the voice of Wily to me. EDIT: English is hard.
Lowart on a generational run with these archie videos
Agreed
8:15 The speech here is a direct reference to the lyrics for the song "The Message From Dr. Light" by The Megas, a band that is heavily based on the Mega Man games. They're really good!
Further proof that Ian Flynn is based, he knows about fan works.
Reference? It's a direct quote!
Some of the members of the Megas were also very upset about the reference.
@@AusVtuber i cannot find a source for this, the only thing i found was a facebook post by the megas where they seem very happy if anything about the nod. i don't wanna believe you're just lying so can you please provide a source for this?
Not surprised to hear Ian quoting songs as dialogue
I loved the Archie Mega Man comics from the get-go. It finally gave the characters and their world the spotlight they deserved, and it's a damn shame we won't be getting any more of it.
We are getting a new comic so I wouldn’t say that last part is true, but it definitely won’t be the same.
@@no1ryomafan585 i think he meant archie's run specifically
@@no1ryomafan585 I meant Archie specifically but yeah new comic is nice
Wish Flynn could at least do Mega Man comics for the other versions of the Blue Bomber. He had some cool takes on the X series, would love for him to have a full run for X. Or maybe do a comic take on Legends, or heck, his own take on Battle Network.
33:25 Holy shit, I felt the anger in his voice. That panel has so much anger and grief even when all you can see is Proto Man's eyes.
There is a similar shot with Blue's eyes in his fight with Mega Man in Issue 46. Before the fight he asks Mega Man who is he? Dr. Lights weapon? His assistant? His son? When Rock says he's all of those things Blues screams "Then what am I suppose to be?!". Its a really well done fight, another iconic Break Man moment.
My all-time favorite comic series. Can't wait for the hiatus to end 🥲
Seeing that Udon has the rights to making megaman comics now
This series went from hiatus to cancelled
@@jet-surge2891 are you excited about the upcoming Udon comic?
@@Sonicman4155 Why i am saddened by Archie megaman abrupt end. I do look forward to the Udon. It could be just as good so want to give them a chance.
Here hiatus means cancellation
If I had a nickel for every time Ian Flynn has written for an Archie comic series about a blue video game icon known for combatting an evil scientist, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's still weird that it happened twice.
Edit: Also wow, I keep forgetting how terrible Ian's luck was on the Archie series he wrote for getting cut short.
You might get three if UDON decides to hire him for their upcoming series.
Yeah I agree he wrote for both Sonic and Sabrina the teenage witch, strange coincidence for sure.
Do you think Sonic took some inspiration from Mega Man, or was it just coincidence
Ian pitched a Mario Archie series to Nintendo but they declined. The concept art is very good.
@@ZARRJJI there's way too many similarities between them for that to not be the case it hurts my brain 😭😭
Absolutely love that this comic took inspiration from "The Megas" adaptations of megamans music and made pretty direct references to it, and don't think I missed that Message from DR. Light reference in the MegaMan 1 section of the video Lowart.
the introduction of blues adds so much to the story and its all rooted not jsut in the comic but in a bunch of stuff from the games that were otherwise rather weird or unexplored:
-Blues's whistle is a refrence to his theme from the game, which is implied to be him whsitling in universe. making it a song he made up himself, to allude to being more of a creative than Light though, adds some dimension to him and is a good starting point for the story's core premise
-Dr light initially not being that willing to fight for Blues' autonomy and personhood and instinct to treat him as an object, and how that lead to Blues leaving, informs a lot about his current demeanor. He cares about Robots as people because he was on the other side of that conflict once, and his current attitude is an atempt to atone for the creulties he inflcited on blues and to be a better man than before and to not make that same msitake again. It's also why he's so hesitant to be involved in weapons devleopment again, seeing as that is what caused the rift between him and blues in the first place.
-Blues, or rather Proto Man, in the games is a loner, he's never around the lab and only pops in occassionally to help in the conflict, so the comic does a lot fo work expanding on thatl, exploring WHY he's a loner and why he rarely shows up and never seems to just live with his family, by showing he is deeply hurt by a betrayal and also resents megaman a little for 'replacing' him, and generally being unsure how he should act towards his family even after he turns good.
-Further more, in the games Blues is presented as an antagonist at first, a rival for mega man to battle, only to suddenly and without warning be a good guy in his second or thrid appearance, so again the comic explores this and rather than cheap out goes "yeah, he WAS a villain, and here's WHY", so again taking something from the games and expanding on it
Agreed
@sarafontanini7051 Classic robots are not supposed to genuinely be able to refuse their programmed duties or otherwise think like you or I. Flynn tried to make the storytelling and settings in later games apply to Classic when it doesn't really fit.
@@galten7361Blues just had a slithly more vague task than any other robot, one that, while yes he follows, gives him room to do different actions for the inbetween
The thing with Blues running away so quickly. He is a "kid".
Dr. Wily: I will make combat robot.
Dr. White: I will give robots with the personality of children, weapons.
Fun fact, the Emerald Spears are a reference to Ruby-Spears, the company that animated the cheesy 90s Megaman cartoon
Now I'LL take your power!
@CantusTropus They're just an excuse to have a racism against robots subplot and also time travel with a villain who's not Wily.
I KNEW IT, that named sounded so perfect for that to not be intentional
@@Game_Hero * *BONK* *
@@Znae629 Glad we have Pharaohman fans here!
Heck yeah! The Mega Man comic was also my first introduction to the Blue Bomber, and what an introduction. I love how Flynn took the bare bones story of the Classic games and ran with it, expanding it to deliver a really nice take on Rock, Roll, Blues, everyone in this futuristic world. Blues' arc in particular was such a standout. So glad you voiced his talk with Tempo, that is my favorite Blues scene and you nailed the emotion perfectly. Thank you so much for highlighting this awesome comic.
1:01:25 I hate and love the usage of the Mega Man Zero 4 theme playing. If the mega man franchise ever got a true ending, Zero 4 is the closest to ever deliver on that.
I am a big mega man fan, the brainrot people have for sonic is what I have for mega man, this franchise is so dear to me that I can't find a good way to put it into words. And it makes me so sad that the games now have been mostly abandoned. But I never got to experience the comics, I remember hearing they cancelled the comics after a few issues, and even though I knew it had good writing, I just didn't want to feel kinda heart broken again. And watching this video and especially getting to see the concepts for the Zero, ZX, Legends and even unseen content from the X series, just made me realized that maybe I do have enough mega man to appreciate what is there, even if it doesn't tell the full story it could have.
that was a very intentional music choice haha
ZX:"Wait, Zero 4 was supposed to be an ending?"
@@lpfan4491 ZX Advent: *entire f cliffhanger that is never resolved*
Meanwhile, Legends 2: Uh, you do know that regardless of what happens it leads to me and TRIGGER BEING STUCK ON THE F MOON!
@@HenshinFanatic He isn't stuck on the moon.
Onboard with you on this one, the worldbuilding in Zero and going into ZX was fantastic and between CAPCOM basically abandoning the franchise and the director moving on we're probably never going to get to see a real followup. I have a fanfic tucked away but finding time to write is, ironically, difficult when you're doing a Masters of Writing.
I feel like when people complain about Ian Flynn's writing in sonic games, it comes because his writing in the games is only scratching the surface of what he can bring to franchise. Something he got to do more freely during his Archie day was push the character's personalities in interesting directions, something that he and Evan still do at IDW but under more mandates from Sega for the main game cast. So, when people say Ian's biggest contribution is all the references to past games, I feel like their missing out on the whole breath of his work in the comics.
absolutely this
@Yensid951927 IDW writes Sonic and Eggman at the least as OOC.
@@Gyrokun IDW Sonic isn't in character and neither is Eggman.
People should be on their knees kissing his toes that the sonic games have good writing in them finally after the 2010s
Archie Mega Man is one of the most underrated comics of all time imo and deserves more credit for great story telling and character work, that helped me get into the franchise and for that I'm grateful. Honestly can't wait for the Archie online team to one day release a new issue of the comic and Udon seriously needs to consider giving Ian Flynn a chance, I know he's not much of a fan favorite to some people, but I really respect his passion for the comics he writes.
"There will always be a Mega Man"
I wonder if you know just how right you are.
There's a line in Mega Man Legends, near the end of the game you can find a man in blue who hints at Legends place at the very end of the timeline.
"Sometimes, you see references in history books to something called a 'MegaMan'...I wonder what that's supposed to mean? Hey, come to think of it, your name is MegaMan, isn't it? Well, there's probably no connection--pretty funny coincidence, though!"
And of course, the final boss of the game is Juno. Mega Man Juno.
One a multitude of Mega Men built by the ancients. It's rather fascinating the history that Legends hints towards.
MASSIVE Kudos for the Voice Acting on Dr. Light in Issue 45! Despite your Voice (in my opinion) not being a Personal Fit for the Character, you still did an AMAZING job capturing his Emotional Breakdown over Wily's Obvious yet still Crushing Betrayal!
Can I just say that this deep-dive is wonderful? The pacing, the editing, THE ACTING!!
Good God, the acting is great, you convey the pain, the aloofness, the emotion so PERFECTLY
“The Super Fighting Robot!”
I remember back in the day hanging out at Ian's personal online forum, interacting with him, several of the artists, and a ton of other fans, talking about both the Sonic and Mega Man comics. Those were good times.
Speaking as a longtime Mega Man fan, Archie Mega Man is not just one of the best video game adaptations I've seen, but it's one my favorite superhero comics of all-time. This comic that dared to take the Classic Mega Man series, a series that, story wise, had mostly just been "you're a good robot, now go jump and shoot at bad robots", and broke them down into fun, thought-provoking, character-driven adventures. It stayed faithful to the games, while also doing its own thing, and being (mostly) accessible to newcomers. It dived deep into the relationships between creator and creation, and expanded upon game characters, while also giving us interesting and memorable new characters. It wasn't always perfect, but it's something I'm so glad to have experienced. And even if we never see it again, I think of it as one of those "don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" kinds of things. I've always been a sucker for stories about robots learning to become more than what they are and such, and Archie Mega Man is one of my biggest creative inspirations in that department. I cannot thank you enough for making such a wonderful video on such a wonderful series.
what a wonderful comment, really happy you enjoyed the video! :3
I noticed that a couple of people in the Mega Man fandom argue over whether the Archie comics or the Mega/Gigamix manga series are superior, and I'm just confused because they're both great. They just take different approaches to how they tell the story of the Blue Bomber.
i've read both and love em equally. they are COMPLETELY different takes on classic mega man and i don't know why people don't just read both
@@kingbash6466 Mega Man are too pedantic over these 2 great series while tolerating sloppy games >_>
I've never read the manga, how is it different?
@jacketofdiamonds super hell they bearly retell the games plots at all it's much more about reimagining the characters as a Shonen battle anime. it's super cool tho achie actually took inspiration from it's characterization of the characters since it was one of the first time to really characterize alot of the characters.
I think I prefer the Flynn series but both are fantastic adaptation's
Can't believe ya went through this series, loved the comics I saw, and my favorite parts were seeing the robot masters personalities!
From Cut Man having boatloads of puns, Quick Man's competitive edge on Mega Man, Bubble Man's aggression, heck, even Flash Man's longing for hair, it makes the masters come to life, in which only Mega Man Powered Up ever saw.
53:20 No no no wait wait wait wait. WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT!!!
(Fr tho I’ll never forget that panel of the line of robots going “offline”. Truly haunting. You never know what you have until it’s gone)
One thing that I absolutely adore in Megaman, as a franchise, is the same thing that I adore in the Zelda franchise, the multiple Megas and the multiple Links, in The Legend of Zelda, it is quite rare that we ever see the same Link, so far this has only happened 9 times with 4 Links, the Ocarina of Time Link is the same as the Majora's and the same in Twilight Princess, the Wind Waker Link is the same in Phantom Hourglass, which would later repopulate the Royal family with Tetra, the Zelda 1 Link is the same in Zelda 2, and lastly, the BotW is the same in TotK, in any other game its a different Link, but its still the same heroic character, I was talking once with a friend about this, how most Links are not the same, but the world is almost always the same, and how despite each different Link being its own person, meaning they have nothing to do with the previous Link, they are all still the same character in personality, characterization, feats and such, they are the Hero Chosen by the Goddess, meaning Hylia handpicks each Link, and what he asked me was how I would make a movie (we where talking about the upcoming Zelda Movie) with references to other games, if each Link is different and holds no memories of their previous selves, and that's the amazing thing about Zelda, they don't remember, but the world does; I just went into this super long tangent to say that, each different Megaman Series has its own Mega, its own Blue Bomber, shining with their good and unmatched sense of justice, and it just reminds me of how Light was right, how each era or setting has its own Mega, it may be a kamen rider Megaman, it may be a kid fusing with an alien cat Megaman, or even a vtuber Megaman, each is as good as the original Megaman, and this final chapter, it just makes me emotional, how it acknowledges that, that Light was Right, his trust was proven right.
But I would've loved it Ian ever managed to catch up with Legends, that series goes CRAZY lol
I was so wondering how they'd keep this kind of story going through all of the situations of the later games since they establish consequences and continuity with things. The more robot master attacks happen, the more the Emerald Spears seem like they have a point. It would've been so interesting.
Agreed
@smugsneasel "Ackshually the fantasy racism was okay" is not the amazing writing you think it is.
@@galten7361 Ew, a reductionist. Get lost!
@@galten7361That’s not what they were implying at all…?
Proto-Man is my favorite Classic MegaMan character, he's just so amazing
I'm a huge Mega Man fan today and that's solely due to these comics. I only read them in 2013 because the series was crossing over with Archie Sonic and I fell in love with the world and characters.
Toooo be fair about the robot battle pacing, that’s actually kind of true to Megaman games? I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but the games function off of a “rock/paper/scissors” approach: once you have the Robot Master’s weakness, they become significantly more easy to beat. The fact that Flynn carried this over to the comic is actually kind of clever, even if it _may_ wind up affecting the pacing.
Also, I love the fact that they have an organization called the “Emerald Spears.” If you know, you know.
These Archie videos continue to be such a treat. Where for some it would simply be enough to give a basic issue-by-issue recap, you manage to give truly outstanding insight into the themes and characters. I think this goes for your other viewers as well, but I've really had my eyes opened to the artistic value of these comics. You should be proud of creating the definitive retrospective on all of this material, and I look forward to wherever this series is heading next.
In my opinion this comic was shaping up to be a masterpiece. The way in which the extremely similar and repetitive stories of 10 (now 11) plus games were interwoven and built up with bridging arcs and issues to make them more unique and individually interesting was just so good to read. The original eight robot masters coming together as an extended family after the first arc is my preferred canon for the series. And Blues' whole journey was so well-told and engaging throughout. It's my favorite version of the Mega Man universe because it got me into Mega Man only for me to discover that Capcom wasn't really interested in taking the series in any new or worthwhile directions. Hell, my favorite arc of the comic, Blackout, was based on a game that I discovered the creator of the series hated so much for its actual attempt at a larger story that you now can't find actual copies of the game anywhere.
It's heartbreaking it ended before the full vision could be revealed.
Agreed
Omg yes please more on Archie Megaman cause it goes so hard
Really wish it got the idw treatment
Well there is the upcoming udon comic series
@@mattkugelman4369 Which will not be using any of the plot threads from Archie, instead being a complete reboot. So no Tempo/Quake Woman, no Shadow Man being actually one of Ra-Moon's creations and connected to the Stardroids from Mega Man V (the GB one), no Emerald Spears (which is a deep cut because they're shouting out the old Ruby Spears cartoon in name if not theme), nothing.
@@HenshinFanatic Hopy shit good catch. I was wondering where they got the name for the Emerald Spears.
I'd love it if Flynn got a chance to tackle the other Mega Man games. He did some good work with the X series, would love to see him continue to adapt the stories from there. Or maybe see him tackle the Legends story or Battle Network.
This comic series has always meant a lot to me. It was my introduction to Mega Man as a whole, and I remember visiting my local library frequently as a kid just so I could read the next trade paperback. It always does make me a little sad to know that it may never get a continuation, but I will always remember it fondly for all the good things it did. I try my best to recommend this to as many people as I can, and I hope that your video gets so many more people to read it. Thank you for such a wonderful summary and analysis of the book!
The Worlds Collide crossover was my first introduction & incentive to check out the Mega Man series just like you so, I’m glad to see I wasn’t the only one 🥹 Such an incredible introduction to this world and adaptation… honestly this comic was SO GOOD that the classic games let me down initially because the lack of initial similar storytelling lol.
I don’t think any Mega Man adaptation will ever be good as this one because of it. I remember reading Proto Man’s introduction multiple times just because of how much I felt for him a when I was younger. Taking this material to expand upon it so genuinely & passionately. It’s not perfect, like the second Worlds Unite crossover isn’t as good as the first (at least from what I remember). But it’ll always be a shame it didn’t get the same time as Archie Sonic. I honestly feel like it would’ve bridged the gap between Classic & X more than ever before from how much they were covering 😢 Solidified me as an Ian Flynn fan
25:47 I wouldn't call it Slice of Life; there's still plenty of fantastical elements like Tempo's entire situation and the fact they're doing science stuff in the arctic. Yeah that last bit takes a back seat, but it does enough to balance things out, which is more than what a lot of other Slice of Life stories I've experienced can say.
this was fun to watch! it was great seeing a complete outsider's perspective on this comic and how it adapted the series, because i absolutely had my fandom goggles on for much of its run lol. i had similar sentiments about the pacing and the somewhat underbaked development of mega man himself running through its first half, but was pretty content to believe the series would run as long as it could to fully deliver and develop the characters we all wanted and knew could exist. hearing a more critical take on it was great, and it helps to understand where its real weaknesses lie. that being said, i sure am glad i wasn't just deluding myself with the latter half of the series as well haha. welcome to our world, where we REALLY wish this comic got the run it deserved! i'm glad you liked it, and i hope the mega man games themselves (with their honestly really sparse stories) treat you well!
I’m honestly sad they weren’t able to get to an adaptation of megaMan 7, cause I know they would absolutely cook with the scene where rock contemplates killing Wily.
proto man is my favorite. his story always makes me so emotional and I love how the Archie comics handled it and your analysis, as well as how you delivered the "he replaced me" line :')
I like to tell people that if they're a fan of Mega Man series (even more so if you like the Archie comics) to check out the original Astro Boy manga.
Of course, it's well known Mega Man was directly inspired by Astro Boy, but much like the Archie comics, it's not afraid to openly explore deeper themes like morality, justice, war and even civil rights (all while respecting the reader's intelligence and maturity), in a series that's officially aimed at children or young boys.
Also, that final chapter with Dr. Light seeing the future? One of the most beautiful endings I've read in comics.
man, the second crossover was literally my introduction to the franchise, I read the comics at least once a year and every time I see some new detail that makes me wonder what they were trying to foreshadow. It made proto man into one of my favourite characters and from his appearance in the crossover and his largish role in the time travel issue, I can just tell they were so eager to do some cool stuff with bass. Thanks for covering this, your archie sonic videos made me appreciate the comic without actually having to read like 200 issues.
If you want some more fun interpretations of Mega Man. I recommend "The Megas." It's a band that made a bunch of rock covers of the various soundtracks of Mega Man 1-3 as vocal tracks. But the tracks tell their own story "their own interpretation of the games," And the stuff with Proto Man in particular is great. there were even a few lines from it that were used in the comics.
7:53 fun fact: those are lyrics to The Message from Dr Light by The Megas, a band that puts lyrics to rock covers of Mega Man songs. I know people meme on Ian Flynn from adding lyrics to dialogue in Sonic now but the fact that he sourced fan Mega Man covers just shows that he did his homework
1:04:47 "I can't beat Airman" that's a good one! And you placed it so subtly that I asked "reference to what??"
I was not ready for the Can't Defeat Airman reference...
Funny thing, Megaman wasn't that kind of character in the games. X was the one who cared most about robotic and human lives. Honestly, I think this adaptation makes sense, trying to create a more serious plot, Rock is someone difficult to adapt.... But not impossible.
I invite you to read Megaman Megamix, it's pretty good
@harryenchiladas8826 Archie Mega Man repeatedly tries to apply both storytelling or plot points from post-Classic games and wider stuff Flynn was interested in like time traveling new villains.
Rock's feelings on his mission are in line with his portrayal in this comic, it's just the games only kind of hint at it
Fun fact. There was gonna be an Archie Comics of Nintendo’s own Mario, Metroid, and Kirby. The reason why that never happened and was only left in concept art and talks about what was the story gonna be about, was that despite Nintendo of America agreeing with wanting this to happen, Nintendo of Japan didn’t agree with it. Making it scrapped work of what could have been. But then again, there was a choice of ether going with The Red Plumber and The Blue Bomber on who was gonna get their time to be on page. So it’s probably a good thing Mario didn’t got it and Megaman was chosen instead given the neglect Capcom has with him back then before 11 and the collections and even in some cases today on any new installments
I love the archie comics but I love the Hitoshi Ariga manga even more. Udon translated that manga, it's not likely he'll be involved but I hope they get some of his essence on the new comics and I'll love it even more than other iterations. Also they're very good with the Street Fighter comics. Them working with Capcom makes this as official as it comes.
maaaan, MAAAAAAAN, no one is more disappointed me that this comic didn't continue. i would've given my left nut to see them adapt the more grand-scale issues of the X series, and the downright apocalyptic setting of the zero series. THERE'S SO MUCH COOL LORE THEY DIDN"T GET TO!
great video regardless. im glad the archie comic flushed out the bare-bones plots of the early megaman games.
You should read the Mega Man Gigamix/Megamix manga. It's a really good adaptation of the Blue Bomber's story that's very beloved among the Mega Man fandom, and the art style was drawn by Hitoshi Ariga, who is a very well-known illustrator in the Mega Man series. He has also dabbled into Pokemon, making some trading cards and even some of the Pokemon designs for X and Y.
7:53 Always loved this directt reference to the band “The Megas” in their lyrics in the song “Message from Dr. Light”
I was NOT expecting a mega man comic video THANK YOU
Thank you for covering this. I love the archie sonic comics but the megaman comics are literally what got me into megaman
I fucking love archie megaman!!! Can't wait for the fan continuation to finally release its first comic
Wait what fan continuation?
Theres a fan doing a comic?
This is news to me, elaborate. This is not a request.
@@dravenmartinez6311 yeah it's called Megaman archie online or something like that
Im so happy that Archie mega man is getting some positive attention, as a long time mega stan this is the best thing I could've seen
the Emerald Spears btw is in reference to the animation studio that created the RubySpears megaman cartoon from the 90s, back when there were only the first 3 games + Megaman X. some of hte Characterization of Iceman actually comes from that cartoon (the part that loves roll, the military split personality is from Powered Up)
I am so unreasonably happy that someone is giving this comic the time it deserves
Ian Flynn's run on Megaman has to be one of the best comic runs I've ever read
archie mega man was so sick. i was so excited when i found them and SO bummed when i found out they didn't really get to end
I'm a huge mega man fan and I was a religious reader of these comics. Far more invested in these than the sonic comics, although they were good too. I was so disappointed when the series was abruptly ended but I loved these and the sonic crossovers were great too. loved them so much
And people wonder why I keep asking for a TV show, Anime, or movie adaptation of this franchise.
THIS IS WHY!!
You have the TV show too (twice actually), people think it's underrated, especially after showing potential in the end of its one and only season.
@@Game_Heronot to mention anime adaptations of the Battle Network and Star Force games (plus Upon a Star if you want to count that)
@Z-fighter126 I think mega man would fit very well in a TV series. Just look at the teaser for the Secret Level episode.
There aren't many videos that discuss the Archie Mega Man comics, so it brings me joy to see that there are still people who remember them. The story and characters have impacted me since I was a kid, and your video does well explaining why. Proto Man is my favorite character in the series and it's a shame that the story ended before we got more of his arc development.
Better words can’t be spoken. This was a jewel of a series and one of the few I actually had a subscription for.
Really wish we could have gotten a few more years worth of stories. 😊
Huh...sonic looking kinda weird in this one.
yeah I can't believe they made Eggman skinny, interesting design choice.
The Sonic and Megaman Crossover was legendary. Idc what any of you say
We were so close to having an X comic. Being an X fan really sucks lol.
The way you express emotions in certain parts especially the part where you said with feeling..."HE REPLACED ME!!!"...it brought me to tears because...i know how it feels...to be replaced.
Archie Mega Man is what made me love MegaMan.
Lockheed Martin: So, uh….. can anyone get us in contact with Dr. Albert Wiley? We are interested in employing him……..
Yesh, I knew I enjoyed it, but I never sat down to think about WHY I did it. Bravo on your analytical skills.
I've actually spent some time writing a transcript for what a continuation could look like as a method of keeping my brain greased. I'm up to around 170 pages, now.
Since TH-cam hates links and I haven't figured out how to share documents without Drive invading my privacy, I'll just point out some of my favorite highlights:
- Tempo replaces Break Man as the rival for a while.
- All four GB games are (technically) fully adapted.
- A short story arc dedicated to why Guts Man is in the museum by Mega Man 7.
- A proper prequel to the Zero series, highlighting pre- and post Copy X politics.
- Dark Man 4 somehow became the most unlikable character, par none.
So that’s two universes we will never see again. Why does this keep happening?
Ahhhh… this takes me back. These were my f**king jam back when I was in elementary school. This was my first real exposure to more heartfelt and mature themes in fiction, and I was all for it. I probably still have some of my old copies laying around.
finally someone talks about the mega Man Archie comics I love these as a kid every time I hear them brought up it just been passing I was so sad when these ended
This keeps happening with Mega Man & I cannot understand why… why is everyone so afraid for SOMEONE who has the passion and creativity for this IP to only allow them a small smidget of time with they IP before some plug gets pulled. This was a great video & Ian Flynn is a great writer. This should have continued. This brought so much context to & new material to the original game’s source material that I doubt even Keiji Inafune himself would think of half of these plot lines. Can we start a petition for this to return? Good god man this ended WAY too soon.
@spenserbeckerszs Archie legit shoved in a time travel subplot as a way to force in Mr. X from MM6 as a new villain rather than Wily's disguise.
It was kind of a perfect storm- fans left waiting for more after all the unresolved cliffhangers, a writer who was dedicated in his research and Nuovas Aventuras de Megaman as an expectation lowerer.
Any fans of the comic who haven't seen it ought to try out the 2003 Astro Boy. Lots of overlap in the two I find.
Mega Man and Sonic are two franchises that owe SO MUCH to the fans and fan-content for keeping them alive.
1:54 PHOENIX?!
@lingricen8077 No Sonic never stopped being a big name in both gaming and overall pop-culture.
@ Thats what I just said. It is owed to the fans keeping it alive
@@lingricen8077 That applies to any franchise. Sonic games have always sold passably by platformer standards and despite recent historical revisionism Generations with Colors scored alright in all reliable sources of criticial reception.
Mega Man is not that. The games have been underperforming for a long while.
What a nice tribute for one of my favorite licensed comic books. It's a shame that, while you can still find the collected volumes for purchase digitally, the individual issues that were never collected are seemingly lost to time.
Well, luckily you can find anything on the internet if you look in the right place...
If you haven't already, I recommend History Repeating (both albums) by The Megas, beautiful and similar story telling through song
As you were describing Dr. Light's backstory I'm thinking... Oh no! He's just like Dr. Gerald!
"Dad why kill my must I brothers."
To be fair, I believe there was no better spot to end the story, it felt... surprisingly conclusive, y'know? Had it been any earlier, and it would've been too sudden, any later, and it wouldn't be as impactful... Granted, I wish it was never discontinued, but since it had to be, this is probably the best way it could've been handled.
The main cast, at the very least, got fleshed out enough that you don't need to wonder much about them anymore, and while some things may have been left up in the air, like Proto Man having to prove his worth or Rock having to go up against Cossack, we can just *trust* they'd keep moving forward because they *have* proven the strength of their convictions already... I won't ask for much else because some others don't even get the chance, I'd rather take short and sweet over spun-out and stale.
Goes without saying I love MegaMan as a series, this was a very happy surprise to see
Megaman as an entire series from the original all the way to ZX has always been fascinating to me, because evil consistently wins. You have heroic characters doing good, like Megaman and Light in the comic, but ultimately Wily wins in the far future.
@droppedcombofiend2707 Matpat doesn't have any position at Capcom. His fanon is not ever going to be canon.
I love this comic dude! Such a shame it got axed. Flynn and crew definitely had big plans for this comic but now they might not come to pass, that is unless Udon ends up hiring him for their new comic after all lol. By the way, there happens to be a fan continuation of MM Archie that's still in the works so that has me pretty excited. I know there's also a few for Sonic Archie that have already released some issues. Anyway, great video man! You exceed lots of passion through your tone and I'm here for it. Keep up the good work!
Love Archie Sonic because of the people that made it, but if I may be so bold. This was the most necessary video,
read it myself. But Blues watching Rock and Roll hug Light hit my feelings hard, again
When I got to the Wily and Light section, I was quick to remember that despite everything. Wily respects Light and his work
Besides things like obscure pulls, the love for the series shows in things like that bit quoting Megas lyrics. Perfect use of a reference
The fact it got cut short is worth slamming a table, Ian could've probably made a dystopian future inspired by The Protomen with Quint at the helm
An absolute Gem of a series; hope Ian gets to continue the series (love to see his take on 4-11/ Bass)
Also, totally ship Proto and Quake
Goated comic
Goated video
Though I wouldn't have minded an overly detailed few hour long overview 😊
the video came together pretty easily but there was a lot of back and forth of what we would and wouldn't include. the second half got basically entirely skimmed over in an earlier draft for example, and there was a lot of ideas cut or that i didn't even bring up as something i wanted to include because they made the video unfocused. i think we hit the best sweet spot we could
i could honestly make an entire companion video if i wanted, and if i ever find another angle to talk about the series i will. making this video was basically me coming to terms with the fact that the comic isn't coming back haha
I think that the mega man comic could comeback through the IDW Comics like Sonic did in recent years, but I do not know about the story being the same as Archie Comics however. Time will tell.
The Archie Mega Man comics were a majority of my first exposure to the franchise. Like, I'd seen bits and pieces of various installments and continuities before, but by and large this was my true intro to it. I'd say it was a mighty fine intro.