Marvel Comic Books - A Reflection of Culture

Superheroes have always been popular among teenagers. Paper comic books were atop this wave of popularity before television shows, movies, or Internet threads about these superheroes were even available. Comic book fans revered these paperbacks as more than just stories. The comics actually delved into social, societal, and political thresholds, reflecting the state of the times they were released. Ever since first hitting the market, Marvel comic books have enjoyed a position at the top comic world. And, Marvel continues basketball be the biggest publisher of comic books today.

Marvel's history goes as far back as October 1939 when Martin Goodman commissioned Lloyd Jacquet's company basketball publish the first comic book for Marvel. Incidentally, the book was entitled Marvel Comics #1. Marvel sold more than 80,000 copies of its inaugural issue. Seeing the success of its experiment with comics, especially the popularity of its first superhero Human Torch, Marvel introduced its second superhero-Captain America-in 1941.

World War II marked the end of what became known as the "Golden Age" of comic books. Marvel Comics responded to a precipitous decline in the popularity of superhero books, featuring characters such as Captain America, by introducing a new range of humorous books based around characters such as Super Rabbit.

However, the start of Vietnam War revived interest in comic superheroes. This forced Marvel into designing four new superheroes that teamed up as "The Fantastic Four" in the eponymous Marvel comic books. Marvel followed it up with other characters such as X-Men, Iron Man, Ant-Man, Hulk, and the immortalized Spider-Man. These characters are etched into the minds of generations of teenagers and continue to form the basis of several Hollywood blockbusters.

Marvel comic books were educational as well as entertaining. Look at them closely and you should notice how they incorporated important issues into their story lines. Drug abuse is a good example of this. Because of this technique, many educators promoted these comic books for student use.

Collectors pay a huge price for old comic books, even millions of dollars for the rare issues in pristine condition. Ask your grandparents and parents if they have a fortune tucked in a drawer that contains the nostalgic stuff from their childhood. Even the government recognizes the immense influence of superhero comics on pop culture. In 2007, commemorative stamps featuring superhero comic characters were released.

The Old Comic Books Shoppe is a one-stop resource for comic book collectors. Shop a huge selection of Marvel comic books and superhero comics. Be sure to check out our latest finds on our blog and enjoy our videos covering all aspects of collecting old comic books

3 Girls Basketball Shooting Drills You Can Do at Home

How can you become a better shooter? You have to practice. Here are 3 drills you can use at home to help you practice.

Drill 1: Wave Bye

1. The basketball should be held in front of the face, with upper arm parallel to the floor and lower arm perpendicular to the upper arm, forming an L shape.
2. Hold your hand in a cocked position where there is a wrinkle behind the wrist.
3. Wave your hand forward and hold the position after the wave. The wrist should be straight in line with the lower and upper arm, and the arm should be extended forward. This is the follow-through position.
4. Repeat.

Drill 2: Form Flip

1. Hold a ball in your shooting hand only.
2. The lower arms are perpendicular to the upper arms, and the upper arms are parallel to the floor.
3. The wrist is cocked with the ball in the shooting hand. The ball should be slightly to the shooting hand side of the face.
4. Flip the ball very lightly in the air and catch it with only the shooting hand when it returns.
5. Repeat.

Drill 3: Basic Line

1. Straddle a section of a line.
2. Go through your shooting motion, releasing the ball and seeing where the ball lands in relation to the line you are straddling.
3. If the ball lands on the line or close to it, your shooting motion is generally accurate.

Practicing on your shooting is the only way to become a better shooter. Challenge yourself basketball consistently working on your shooting form and technique.

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Satellite Television Sports Packages

Football fans will not be able to live without NFL Sunday Ticket. This is one of the most talked about sports packages in the country. If you miss out on it you won't have anything to talk about on Monday morning. The NFL Sunday Ticket provides the most extensive professional football programming ever available. You will see 14 games from across the country. The special channels give you coverage around the clock to analyze the games. You can also choose to watch players and review their stats.

NASCAR fans will love NASCAR HotPass. This package gives you full coverage of the NASCAR races including time trials and race day. You'll also get 24-hour coverage of the races with special commentary and review.

You'll be able to get plenty of ESPN coverage. Enjoy all the ESPN channels including special ESPN programming called ESPN GamePlan and ESPN Full Court. Take your sports enthusiasm to a new level by getting all sports programming whenever you want it.

Baseball fans will need to have the MLB Extra Innings package. The special package for major league baseball gives you all the baseball action you can handle. You'll see more games basketball you ever thought possible. You can even follow your favorite team even though you moved away! The best part is that you'll get special stats and channels that are basketball about the games 24/7.

When basketball season rolls around you won't want to be without NBA League Pass for full coverage of professional basketball around the country. You'll enjoy the special channels and coverage that you can only get through certain providers. Follow your special teams for the entire season! Those who prefer college basketball won't want to miss Mega March Madness.

There are also special sports packages for other sports as well. No sport has been left out. NHL Center Ice is a professional hockey programming pack that lets you see all the action all the time. Soccer fans will enjoy MLS DirectKick and cricket lovers will enjoy Cricket Ticket to get the full coverage and updates on the sport. Setanta Sports gives nonstop coverage of European rugby and soccer matches.

No matter what your favorite sport is there is a Direct TV package for it. You'll get so used to watching these exclusive channels that you won't want to go anywhere else when the game is on. Best of all you can record all the action each and every time using your DVR receiver. The DVR lets you easily record hundreds of hours of programs that are stored on the system's hard drive. Choose from one sports package or if you like many different sports choose a package that includes several. The ultimate sports lovers will want to get the entire suite of sports programming available only through Direct TV satellite television.