Essential Dazzler, Vol. 1

Dazzler (1981-1986) #1-21

by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Marv Wolfman

Disco may be dead, but Marvel's dynamic diva never says "die " Beginning as a co-star with the X-Men and Spider-Man, Alison Blaire moved into a world of villains new and old, facing gangsters, gods and Galactus without skipping a beat Plus: the Inhumans, the Hellfire Club and Project: PEGASUS World saving, space travel, intrigue and romance in the ultimate disco mix Guest-starring most of Marvel's heroes, including Spider-Woman and She-Hulk Collects Dazzler #1-21, Uncanny X-Men #130-131 and Amazing Spider-Man #203

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, X Men, Superheroes, Comic Book, Science Fiction

552 pages, Paperback

First published November 10, 1982

About the author

Chris Claremont is a writer of American comic books, best known for his 16-year (1975-1991) stint on Uncanny X-Men, during which the series became one of the comic book industry's most successful properties.

Claremont has written many stories for other publishers including the Star Trek Debt of Honor graphic novel, his creator-owned Sovereign Seven for DC Comics and Aliens vs Predator for Dark Horse Comics. He also wrote a few issues of the series WildC.A.T.s (volume 1, issues #10-13) at Image Comics, which introduced his creator-owned character, Huntsman.

Outside of comics, Claremont co-wrote the Chronicles of the Shadow War trilogy, Shadow Moon (1995), Shadow Dawn (1996), and Shadow Star (1999), with George Lucas. This trilogy continues the story of Elora Danan from the movie Willow. In the 1980s, he also wrote a science fiction trilogy about female starship pilot Nicole Shea, consisting of First Flight (1987), Grounded! (1991), and Sundowner (1994). Claremont was also a contributor to the Wild Cards anthology series.

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decidedly different type of heroine, one who doesn't want to be a hero at all, she wants to be a singer and use her mastery of light waves for such! Although she battles the likes of Dr Doom, The Enchantress, Galactus and the Absorbing Man, and has friends like Angel, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men and the Avengers, the real story is that of a struggling singer trying to uncover the secret of her dad's dislike of show business, and the search for her missing mother.

A very good 'normalised' tale of a young woman struggling to find out who she is, and what the world she lives in is like; plus a great cast of human co-stars, from her boss Osgood to the faux-muscle man Lance. This is Dazzler's pre-X-Men existence. It includes her classic debut in the pages of The Uncanny X-Men in their first ever tangle with the Hellfire Club just before the unleashing of Dark Phoenix! 6 out of 12, Three Star read. Collects The Uncanny X-Men #130-131, The Amazing Spider-Man #203 & Dazzler #1-21

2010 read

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

Not a bad collection. It reads very similar to other Marvel Heroines of the late 70s/early 80s such as Ms. Marvel and She Hulk, but I guess most comics of the time period were similar whether it was male or female heroes. The collection starts with Dazzler's first appearance in the classic X-Men run of Claremont and Byrne, one of the greatest comic runs of all time. Then we have a Spiderman crossover before heading into Dazzler's own series. She's a rock star super hero who can convert sound to light, including lasers, and an interesting character.

There's a ton of guest stars that show up including the X-Men, Avengers, Spiderman, Fantastic Four and more. She also faces some heavy hitters such as Dr. Doom, the Absorbing Man and Galactus!!? It's almost like Marvel wanted to establish her as a force to be reckoned with right off the bat so they put her against top villains.

Overall not a bad series with decent art.

Overall the

[Holden Attradies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dazzler was a great character, and they way she was written in these pages maybe a little before her time. The thing that stands out most about her (and makes her stand out most) is that she isn't a super hero first, nor is she interested in being one. She is only interested in using her mutant powers as part of her show-business career and always get's kinda pissed when she's forced into situations that make her use those powers in a "super hero" way.

Especially in the later half of this volume the struggle over "with great power comes great great responsibility" really seems to be sinking in. And although each issue stars a villain along side her the super hero stuff always feels like the back drop to the soap opera that is her life: her music career, her relationship with her father, her romantic life. It's the very epitome of the Marvel method of comic writing, and it comes of VERY well here.

Now for the critical part of this review. I have to say the most annoying part of the read was how during the first half of the volume they paired her up with some of Marvel's toughest villains (Dr. Doom and GALACTUS for god's sake). These early villains are ones that some of the toughest of the tough in the Marvel universe had a hard time defeating and it kind of made me groan to read this new character set up against them. Even though these battles were at times the height of cheese and I'd perhaps she had never fought such heavy hitters, the writing was good and they were still good reads. Even if a lot of eye rolling was required, but it's comics so that's to be expected to a certain extent.

My second critique centers around her being female. Not that she was female, but how that was dealt with at time. As much as I adore super-hero comics I have to admit they are pretty male-driven. The blatant sexism in some of the early volumes of the essential series, the stuff from the very beginning in the 60's, that stuff was sooooo out there it was actually hard to take serious and easy to just laugh at how ridiculous it was. The slight sexist undertones in this, not so easy to dismiss; not so easy BECAUSE they were more subtle. I think Dazzler is a great female protagonist, but just because she's female doesn't mean that every time she gets changed there was a need to show her in her bra and panties. And although I enjoyed having her romantic life included, as romance is part of the whole human experience, she at times came off as not being complete without a man which really didn't seem to line up with the rest of her character. There were also times she felt more the damsel in distress than the reluctant super-hero, which was always disappointing when the writing lead to her coming across as the former instead of the later. There was also excessive T&A, not surprising while in her stage outfit, kind surprising that it was present in all of her civilian clothing. I'd like to say that if this had been written today it wouldn't be different, but female super-hero costumes still mostly end up looking more like over glorified underwear in most cases. I guess I was just very aware of the constant need to sexualize of her, which I felt was unnecessary because her character was kick ass enough without constant T&A and shots of her in her underwear.

All in all, even with the super-hero comic's innate genre flaws, I'd say it's one of the best Marvel Essential collections I've read to date and can't wait to start on the second one.

[Gordon Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I may be one of the few who actually enjoyed this book and for various reasons. First, I want to say that I have always read reviews that mention Dazzler as a lame character and so the series is often looked down upon. I understand that the power she weilds is seemingly useless for a superhero type but isn't that the point? She is continuously getting caught up in superhero type situations despite the fact that she only wishes to be a performer and not a hero. In my opinion, the so-called lame characters make for some great stories. Also the series has Marvel guest appearances galore of which I dare not try and name them all. My other reason for liking this series was that it represents one of my favorite eras which was the rock/disco era of the late 70s/early 80s. Dazzler's costume design is equal parts cheesy and amazing with the glitter, bell bottoms, roller skates, a disco ball hung around the neck, and the silver butterfly KISS makeup. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but I say this one is definitely worth checking out before jumping to any conclusions.

[Aaron Meyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Contains Xmen 130-131, Spiderman 203 and Dazzler 1-21. If I remember rightly this was probably the first series I totally completed back in the day, so it is good to be able to reread all these issues even in black-n-white. The art is standard and doesn't really stand out a great deal, but with dazzler it was never about the art but her story which drew me in. Naturally there is some degree of repeating which can get old in this format but it is interesting to watch her take those baby steps and grow more into her powers. What made Dazzler so different is that she didn't want to be a hero but was constantly being forced to play out that role. She amusingly goes up against some really heavy hitters and comes out on top which sometimes you scratch your head and go yeah sure but it is all good. I also enjoyed watching her develop relationships with normal individuals, romantic and otherwise, which kind of had that romance comic feel at moments. Well worth reading.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice different take on a mutant in the Marvel Universe. Instead of hiding and fearing the humans reaction, here is a mutant that glorifies in the limelight of attention as a rock superstar. I thought Dazzler's transition from media darling to mutant superhero in hiding was done well. I read these as they originally came out and enjoyed them. Recommended

[Devero · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una serie strana, quella di Dazzler, cantante di disco-music fuori tempo massimo (almeno da noi, ma credo anche negli USA). Per lo più disegnata da Frank Springer, a me noto per le sue chine su Frank Robbins, chinata da Vince Colletta, noto (famigerato per alcuni) per il lavoro sulle matite di Kirby, scritta da Fingeroth, che è un onesto scrittore, la serie ha alcuni punti di forza e diversi punti deboli.
Tra i punti di forza una certa interazione di Dazzler con il pantheon superumano di New York, e un bel numero di flirt (Johnny Storm, Warren Warthington III, un medico, un avvocato) che ne fanno certamente un personaggio moderno. Il suo rapporto con la famiglia pure all'epoca era qualcosa di nuovo, col padre avvocato un poco tiranno e la madre assente; la nonna risalta come personaggio migliore. Sembra una famiglia dell'Italia di oggi. Il fatto di essere una mutante, nella serie, è una cosa secondaria e solo più avanti verrà incorporata decisamente nel mondo tormentato e dei sotto accusa per la loro diversità di Chris Claremont.
I disegni sono onesti, e velati in molti casi di una discreta sensualità. Purtroppo sono spesso meno efficaci nelle scene di azione e in qualche caso addirittura errati per proporzioni e prospettive.
Le storie, buone dal punto di vista della vita normale, difettano di efficacia se pensiamo che in fondo si tratta di una storia di super eroi. Il suo confronto con gli avversari è spesso imbarazzante, e infatti tra le cose meno riuscite ci sono gli incontri con Galactus e Dr. Destino, e in parte anche il doppio confronto con l'Incantatrice.
Ad ogni modo una serie che merita una lettura.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay... first I want to say something. Dazzler was never meant to be a thing. She was pitched to Marvel Casablanca Records. Marvel wanted to break into a new market. Casablanca wanted to remain relevant as disco was starting to become increasing irrelevant. For whatever reason Marvel kept going even when the partnership officially collapsed.

Here is the thing. In 70s and 80s licensed books or gimmick cash grab titles. Some of them were great. Godzilla, Rom, and Micronauts for instance. But for everyone that worked... there was a Human Fly, US 1, Shogun Warriors, 2001: A Space Odyssey, or Devil Dinosaur. Dazzler is NOWHERE near as good as Godzilla, Rom or Micronauts. However it is not as awful US 1.

The guest appearances in the first parts of the trades- written by Chris Claremont and Marv Wolfman were all over the place. Claremont's were really good.... but that's more because of its ties to The Dark Phoenix saga than anything.

But the issues by Tom DeFalco and Danny Fingeroth... well... they TRY. It isn't awful. I'd probably give it 2.5 stars.

[Wreade1872 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dazzler is a very likable character but her solo stories arn't great. The only really good comics here are a 3 issue run introducing the scariest government agency imaginable... the Department of Energy.. dun dun DUNNNNN! :lol . And the other 2 issues involving Galactus.

[Shaun Phelps · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than I expected, Dazzler's just your down to earth aspiring musician who happens to constantly find herself in the path of danger. Initially I couldn't get past the cheese-ball absurdity, though comic by comic they won me over. It's still cheesy, no doubt. Comfort food, maybe.

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an ok book, but she came across as kind of a crybaby in the first few issues. But after that she got really good at being the dazzler that would eventually join the x-men.

[Fuuma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wild ride. It sure says a lot about the 80s! But I enjoyed it overall. It really is Essential Dazzler✨️

[Matthew Ledrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know what? I was actually looking forward to this. I really was. I was hoping to read this and that it would be good, because I have fond memories of Dazzler. Her two-part introduction in Uncanny X-Men, a solo story between she and Wolverine later in the series, and her role in the X-Men/Fantastic Four miniseries were fond memories of mine, and some of the first X-Men comics I ever read. Sadly, I seem to have lucked into the best of Dazzler and it gave me a biased view of her. And that is to this book's detriment. That it had everything going for it -- a reader who was willing and eager to read, and still failed, is atrocious.

Marvel just clearly didn't know what to do with this character. Almost every issue of this trade has a guest-star or guest-villain. They make no attempt at building her own roster, and it reads like a collection of horribly Marvel Team-Ups starring Dazzler instead of Spidey. The first issue is the worst of this, and painted the picture of the series from that point on, as Dazzler is given the least amount of screen time comparatively to any of the guest stars, of which there are many. She is a back-up guest-star in her own book, in her own first issue.

You can scan wikipedia and get the full scoop on Dazzler and behind her creation, but I'll summarize: it wasn't made from a creative place, it was a marketing stunt. Then when the marketing stunt went south they were stuck with this character that they'd overhyped and felt the need to do something with, but apparently didn't feel the need to do something GOOD with it.

The worst of the guest-villains is Galactus, who gets a three issues arc. Galactus. Dazzler has no business fighting Galactus, even after she became a hero. Which she is not here by the way, it's a book about a singer. Fighting a cosmic threat doesn't make her look better here, it makes us wonder why the heck we were so scared of Galactus to begin with if she can stand up to him.

And the book fails from a feminist perspective too, as every book features egregious shots of Dazzler changing / in her underwear at every opportunity. And she obsesses over boys and her father's approval. The worst is the prison scene, which looks like it came right out of a bad woman's prison porno.

To it;s ONLY credit: the Uncanny X-Men issues and the issue of Amazing Spider-Man included are wonderful, and show what might have been done with the character had a competent staff been put on the book. But all they do is set the bar too high for what follows, and as much as I'd like to give these issues credit and up it to 2 stars because of it, there are 21 issues of the main series weighing it down. I just can't.

[Tiamatty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like Dazzler was a book that came too early, and may have been in the wrong genre. Superhero comics in the '80s were not the right place for a story about an aspiring singer. The need to have a fight in every issue, coupled with the inability to get music across through text, dragged the series down. The series was always at its best when at its most absurd, and the early issues were definitely the craziest, as Dazzler fights Doom and is made a herald of Galactus. At the same time, the stuff dealing with her career was also interesting. Still, the series was never particularly great, and I think a major problem really was just the limitations of superhero comics of the time. Today, if you put Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie on a Dazzler series, it'd be brilliant. But Danny Fingeroth and Frank Springer were never able to get it above OK.

[Fizzgig76 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reprints Uncanny X-Men #130-131, Amazing Spider-Man #203, and Dazzler #1-21. Alison Blaire tries to build her career as a singer and balance her life as a mutant. Dazzler should have been a throw-away comic but it did have some originality. The creators quickly discovered they created a disco character in a time when disco was already dying. Alison was a pretty balanced character, and the writers always had her go against characters way out of her league. She was kind of a damsel in distress sometimes but still managed to hold the series.

[Derrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the heck out of this book. What I appreciated was how it's only incidentally a superhero title. Yes, she's very powerful and comes in contact with some outrageous villains (including Galactus!!!). But that stuff often seems incidental, as she's a reluctant heroine who's just trying to make a life for herself and find a place with her music.

[Alex · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read 11 issues of this, more than enough to confirm its complete turgidness as a comic book. Written with a great dearth of wit, panache or any interest whatsoever, Dazzler is not just a stupid character, she's a terribly written stupid character. For some reason I wanted to get to the end but sometimes you have to face the sting of defeat.

[Philip · Rating 2 out of 5]

Better when it focuses on relationship drama instead of superheroics. The last few issues are mostly relationship drama and aren't bad. But it's a bit of a slog through uninspired superhero fights to reach that point. The art is none too impressive, although the fault for that may be the inker, Vince Colletta, rather than the penciller, Frank Springer.

[Gary Lee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Great Marvel Readthrough, pt 78

I give up...the writing is low-level Chris Claremont wannabe dreck. I have no patience for it right now.

[Meegan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't finish it. I got kind of bored by the 5th book, why would they give a whole book to the dazzler?

[Tom DeWitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Old School comic awesomeness at an affordable price, how can you beat that!!!

[Kerri · Rating 3 out of 5]

#1-7 3 stars, read May 2015.
#8-11 3 stars, read September 2015.
#12-13 3 stars, read December 2019
#14-16 3 stars, read March 2020
#17-19 3 stars, read 2020
#20-21 3 stars, read March 2021