"John Varley - Anthology - Super Heroes - Various Authors" - читать интересную книгу автора (Varley John)

quite a simple idea, and went something like this: What if Kal-El of
Krypton, escaping his home planet's destruction, had landed in the late
Soviet Union instead of Smallville, U.S.A.? Maybe he brought Truth and
Justice along with him, in his little Kryptonian brain, but how about "The
American Way"? I thought there might be a funny story in there, so I wrote
it.
That story is collected here, which is only logical when you understand
that my co-editor, Ricia Mainhardt, upon reading the story, thought it would
be a good idea to put together an anthology with a whole bunch of these
alternate superhero stories. It sounded like fun to me, too, so we sent out
queries and the stories started pouring in. The best of them are in this book.
Well, sure. (A third answer to the question occurs to me
Introduction
now: It's my book. I've got a right to do the introduction. However, I
won't use that one.) Sure, but you've admitted you're no authority on the
subject, I hear you complaining. Why not let an expert take over? This
sounds like a job forтАж somebody else.
Nothing could be further from the truth. There are no experts on the
superheroes to be found in this book. These are the guys who didn't make
the cut into the big leagues. None of them has ever had a comic of his own,
much less a television show or a feature movie. These are the superheroes
that take Marvel Comics one step further. They're not just more human.
Most of them are too human. Take Captain Swastika, for instance. There's a
tragic story. These are guys whose superpowers can be more a nuisance than
an asset, guys like Sound Effect Man, a second-banana superhero if ever
there was one. You'll meet these people, and more like them, in the pages of
this book.
You know what? Maybe there is something to this Marvel business.
Because I like these superheroes more than I ever liked that muscle-bound
jerk, Superman, or that gloomy, brooding, boring Batman.
So here it is, on approval. Constructed of the finest, sturdy paperboard,
seats one, good for hours and hours of adventure, some assembly required.
Use it for ten full days and if you don't think it's the greatest anti-superhero
book everтАж well, maybe you'll ask your mom before you buy another one
like it.
A Clean Sweep
LAURELL K. HAMILTON
It's been said that familiarity breeds contempt. How long can even the
extraordinary retain its novelty in an everyday world?
Captain Housework materialized on the doorstep of #11 Pear Tree Lane.
His emergency beeper had awakened him, code red. Was it his nemesis Dr.
Grime, or the infamous Dust Bunny Gang, or perhaps Pond Scum, the
destroyer of bathrooms?
He had to levitate to reach the doorbell. As crimefighters go, Captain
Housework was on the short side. His white coveralls, silver cape, and
maskтАФformed of a billed cap with eye holesтАФwere gleamingly clean. He
stood on the top step shining as if carved from ivory and silver.
He looked perfect, crisp, and clean. And he liked it that way.
The door opened, and a woman dressed in a bathrobe stared down at him.
"Oh, it's you. Please come in." She held the door for him, waving him in