The Twelve, Volume 1

The Twelve #1

by J. Michael Straczynski, Chris Weston (Illustrator)

Yesterday's Men of Tomorrow - today! Thought lost to the pages of time, a dozen Mystery Men from the "greatest generation" of World War II find themselves thrust into the morally-gray world of the 21st century! Now, Captain Wonder, Dynamic Man, Mastermind Excello, Mister E, the Laughing Mask, the Witness, the Black Widow, the Phantom Reporter, the Fiery Mask, Rockman, the Blue Blade, and Electro the Marvel of the Age must seek a place for themselves in the modern Marvel Universe - while a silent killer seeks to eliminate them, one by one! Collecting The Twelve #1-6.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Superheroes, Marvel, Fiction, Comic Book, Graphic Novels Comics

144 pages, Hardcover

First published September 17, 2008

About the author

Joseph Michael Straczynski is an American filmmaker and comic book writer. He is the founder of Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Studio JMS and is best known as the creator of the science fiction television series Babylon 5 (1993–1998) and its spinoff Crusade (1999), as well as the series Jeremiah (2002–2004) and Sense8 (2015–2018). He is the executor of the estate of Harlan Ellison.
Straczynski wrote the psychological drama film Changeling (2008) and was co-writer on the martial arts thriller Ninja Assassin (2009), was one of the key writers for (and had a cameo in) Marvel's Thor (2011), as well as the horror film Underworld: Awakening (2012), and the apocalyptic horror film World War Z (2013). From 2001 to 2007, Straczynski wrote Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, followed by runs on Thor and Fantastic Four. He is the author of the Superman: Earth One trilogy of graphic novels, and he has written Superman, Wonder Woman, and Before Watchmen for DC Comics. Straczynski is the creator and writer of several original comic book series such as Rising Stars, Midnight Nation, Dream Police, and Ten Grand through Joe's Comics.
A prolific writer across a variety of media and former journalist, Straczynski is the author of the autobiography Becoming Superman (2019) for HarperVoyager, the novel Together We Will Go (2021) for Simon & Schuster, and Becoming a Writer, Staying a Writer (2021) for Benbella Books. In 2020 he was named Head of the Creative Council for the comics publishing company Artists, Writers and Artisans.
Straczynski is a long-time participant in Usenet and other early computer networks, interacting with fans through various online forums (including GEnie, CompuServe, and America Online) since 1984. He is credited as being the first TV producer to directly engage with fans on the Internet and to allow viewer viewpoints to influence the look and feel of his show. Two prominent areas where he had a presence were GEnie and the newsgroup rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was kind of cool. Nothing that blew my mind, but I was interested enough to grab the next volume right away in order to find out how the cliffhanger plays out.



I was surprised by the fact that these were actual Golden Age Marvel (or Timely, to be precise) comic characters. Some only appeared a few times in random comics, and others had more of a steady gig.
Even so, I'd never heard of any of them...



I was also a bit shocked that this story takes place in the real Marvel world, and is set during the height of the Superhero Registration Act.
I was all like, OMG! How cool is that?!, but then I'm easily impressed.



So, the gist is that these guys (and gal) were all superheroes during WWII, and towards the end of it, were trapped (and put in stasis) by some evil Nazis. <--of course!
Fast forward a bunch of years, and the chamber containing their bodies is found. The government pounces on the idea of a whole roomful of patriotic Captain Americas, and thaws them out.
Or whatever they do to wake them up. Open the lid? I don't know.



Naturally, these guys aren't all that...stable after waking up in an entirely new sort of world. And as the story goes on, you find out that not all of them were all that heroic to start with.
Like I said, it's not the bestest thing I've ever read, but it kept my interest, and I want to find out how it all ends.

[Phillip Fuller · Rating 5 out of 5]

The producers of this miniseries revived obscure Timely now Marvel heroes from the 1940s and put them in the early 21st century. These heroes of the past face a new world where attitudes have changed and the future is a scary place for someone from the past. The most interesting character Victor Jay nee Goldstein aka Mr. E who is not welcomed with opened arms by his son because he neglected his family to be a hero and hid his Jewish heritage to succeed in business. I was shocked by this rejection of a hero that fought crime with no superpowers and was with the other heroes as they laid siege to Nazi Berlin. His son is disgusted at how he denied his Jewish identity that his mother fully embraced but the son does not see that it was another time all together. I guess that many Jews see assimilationist Jews as being real bad people regardless of their reasons to keep their heritage on the downlow.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was...interesting though also couldn't fully invest in it.

This honestly felt a bit too Watchmen-Lite for me. A bunch of heroes from the 60's get put away and brought back to our reality, in 2008 or so, and have to adjust. The idea sounds cool, and each character here takes turns getting used to the reality. The book focuses on a wide range of things from racism to sexism, and it tries to treat each character with a interesting backstory.

I think JMS does a admirable job here giving us a BIG cast to really find interesting. For the most part characters were pretty good and the dialogue strong enough. I also think the idea of it all is enjoyable, almost like a M-rated Captain America for all. Some moments really shined in the suspense and sadness of life.

On flip side the pacing is dreadfully slow at points and the dialogue can get a bit...bad. The in your face racism moments and sexism are hard to swallow, not because well done, but just because of the cringe you feel. I also thought the build up to the end was better than the actual cliffhanger.

Overall, interesting, but nothing amazing. I might grab volume 2 down the line but for what it was it is decent. A 3 out of 5.

[Travis · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a waste! What a text book example of a good idea done badly.
Twelve heroes are placed in suspended animation at the end of World War 2 and wake up 60 years later to... do absolutely nothing but sit around and mope!

JMS manages to suck all the magic out of these guys and leave us with a bunch of dysfunctional, emotionally stunted whiners. They sit around, complain, have the occasional flashback, so JMS can show us that they've always been messed up, and argue with each other.

What is it with Marvel lately that they can't allow their super heroes to actually fight any super villains?
Aside from the first two issues, you get no feeling that this takes places in the Marvel Universe and after the second issue, JMS doesn't even bother to deal with the idea of culture shock and that these guys have to learn about and deal with 60 of history and new technology.
and to add to the mess, after issue Eight, JMS buggered off and can't say when or if he'll ever actually finish this sad Watchmen wannabe of a story.

Not to be completely negative: the art is very nice and a lot of these guys look cool and have potential, unfortunately, they'll be in limbo until JMS returns to screw with them some more.

Do yourself a favor, just buy the one shots marvel did reprinting some of the heroes original appearences from the 40's.
They are goofy, but at least they are fun to read and you'll be able to root for the heroes, rather than pity them.

[William Yates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy shit! It's like Marvel's The Boys & Invincible. Would adore this as a single season adaptation on D+, it's a wonderfully sad deep dive into superheroes and humanity's fleeting time on the planet.

[Maurice Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new twist on the "hero thrust into the future story. This time, instead of just one man (Captain America), Marvel took twelve lesser known superheroes and pushed them through time.

Phantom Reporter, Black Widow, Master Mind Excello, Dynamic Man, Captain Wonder, Laughing Mask, Blue Blade, The Fiery Mask, The Witness, Rockman, Elektro and Mr. E. were incapacitated while searching a Nazi bunker in the waning days of World War II. They had come with virtually every masked hero in the United States to help bring the war to a close in Berlin, and those twelve were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Nazi scientists captured them and put them in suspended animation tubes, but were captured themselves and executed before they could reveal their hidden treasures.

The Twelve woke up in 2005, 63 years removed from everything and everyone they knew and loved. The government gave them housing for a year while they readjusted, in hopes that all of them would resume their crime-fighting under government auspices. Needless to say, most of them found the adjustment rough. The Phantom Reporter found it the most difficult- he knew nothing of the modern world and his sources were all long dead. But, once a reporter, always a reporter. He soon found a story to pursue- someone killed the Blue Blade, and evidence pointed to one of the Twelve. The Reporter found himself hoping it wasn't the Black Widow- he had hopes of a relationship with her, despite the rumor that she could kill a man with her touch.

I enjoyed learning about these lesser known Marvel WW II heroes. Any comic book fan knows about Captain America, Namor the Submariner and the original Human Torch (the Invaders), but these are other brave men and women who masked up and fought for justice in their own way. I never knew there was a wartime Black Widow until I read this, or that any of these other heroes even existed except Elektro (I saw him referenced in some comic or the other). In any event, I can't wait for Volume 2 so I can find out who the killer is.

[***Dave Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joe Straczynski takes the basic idea of Captain America -- a WWII hero reawakened in the modern world -- and applies it to a group of twelve second-string heroes, trapped in suspended animation by the Nazis to be reawakened in modern times -- and the culture / future shock that they encounter.

While it's tough to rehash this with Cap (yet again -- though Mark Waid's "Man Out of Time" does a nice job of it), JMS is able to take advantage of some men (and a woman) who aren't already known as Avengers to play around with their successes -- and failures -- in coping with the future. The various issues the Twelve deal with -- changes in the media, changes in societal attitudes toward race and gender and sexual orientation, different attitudes toward crime and the law, past secrets catching up with them, families aged or dead or resentful -- get mixed together with a still darker set of secrets among their number that lead to murder and madness, to make for a rich and, to me, compelling story of adventure and mystery and what it means to have been, and still be, a hero.

The twelve issues of the book were collected separately into two books; this is volume 1.

3/2020 UPDATE

As I continue my own slow journey into the future, I come to respect this book all the more. The sense of disorientation, of "Future Shock," rings true, as does the play upon the narrow play of power sets, and the ultimate oddball nature of this group (they didn't grow up together, or join forces, but were force together pell-mell for a completely different reason) and how the fractures in their unity form so quickly and in varying directions.

Well done stuff, and Chris Weston's art gives a superb realistic detail to this tale of strangers in a strange land and how they grew to live in it (or not).

[Jamil · Rating 1 out of 5]

“I tend to take this latest development as a kind of eager confirmation that they are still apparently dependent on ideas that I had 25 years ago...” - Alan Moore

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great updating of some vintage characters from the golden age of comics. Very good story and art make this a joy to read. If you like seeing some of the forgotten golden age comic characters then this is a read for you
Very recommended

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

see my review for both volumes in volume two

[Tony Laplume · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even this volume’s rating on Goodreads betrays how little people think of The Twelve. In another era, it would’ve been a classic. Alas, even when it was originally published it was easy to take for granted…

Easy to dismiss, then, as a mash-up of Captain America and Watchmen. Today? That’s as much thought as anyone puts into anything. Get off my lawn! It wasn’t always like that. Sometimes, before, the material itself spoke for itself. If it was good, it was embraced as good. Well, not always. Citizen Kane, for one.

And to think, just a few years after The Twelve, the MCU made Cap relevant again.

Now, the movies are desperate to find something that connects again. A new Captain America movie just came and went, and nobody saw much value in it, just another desperate throwback with nothing relevant to say, too removed from how it started. Funny, because that’s Captain America’s story, isn’t it? And when it becomes too easy to take for granted, well then, you try to make it relevant again.

I’m not a Marvel guy. Most of Marvel’s storytelling doesn’t really connect with me. Sometimes it does. There was a whole stretch where a lot of it did, and The Twelve played out during that time. I’m also not much of a J. Michael Straczynski guy. Was never much of a fan of his work. But the stars aligned.

The Twelve really is Cap redux, twelve classic Golden Age Marvel superheroes plucked out of WWII and surrendered to the mercies of the present. Except the present, now, isn’t a few decades later, but more than half a century. There’s a big difference. And it’s not just one guy, but a dozen. This will tend to change the story. Even when Bucky returned, more or less at this same time, that was a whole story that played out very differently because the context was, again, very different.

Over at DC, there was always the Justice Society, a living reminder, a link to the past, old heroes who as the years advanced were allowed to age slowly, whose origins were allowed to stay preserved, if never overly emphasized except who they were and what they’d experienced. What separates the Twelve even from them, and even Captain America, is that Straczynski keeps their old lives preserved. They aren’t allowed to forget their old lives. It’s really the whole point.

And that was something new, in the comics. In the films, nobody let Steve Rogers forget, but in the comics? He went from WWII to the Avengers. The costume defined everything about him. No writer ever bothered with anything else.

Back when this was originally published, I wanted to see them in context as much as anyone. I wanted that link to Cap made explicit. I wanted to see them reintegrated, among others, their new contemporaries. That was the point, right? But they remained self-contained. Watchmen. Caught up in their own story.

This first volume is all setup, so the story itself will be the focus of my thoughts in the second one. Here? I can say the storytelling is as solid as I remember. As worthy of a better reception as ever. These heroes didn’t deserve to fade back into obscurity…

[Artur Coelho · Rating 3 out of 5]

De vez em quando, as editoras encomendam a equipes criativas pontuais ressurreições de personagens esquecidos, essencialmente propriedade intelectual que está a languescer nos seus arquivos. Em parte para os recuperar, e em parte para tentar despertar o interesse e incorporá-los nos alinhamentos contemporâneos. Raramente passam da edição especial, talvez porque sejam personagens que já tiveram o seu tempo, e mesmo nesse eram de segunda linha.

Em pleno evento civil war da Marvel, a escavação de um parque de estacionamento em Berlim descobre um segredo inusitado. Um grupo de heróis e homens de mistério, capturados pelos nazis durante a queda de Berlim, e colocados em animação suspensa para serem cobaias de cientistas que acabaram por não sobreviver às tropas soviéticas. Estes antigos heróis são recuperados pelo exército americano, que vê neles um recurso precioso. Nada como heróis patrióticos para ajudar nas querelas políticas.

O problema está na adaptação à nova realidade, décadas depois do seu desaparecimento. Há os que sucumbem à amargura de se saberem sós, com todos os seus familiares falecidos, ou rejeitados pelos filhos agora envelhecidos, que passaram uma vida a sentir-se abandonados. Um, homem que se afirmava do futuro, tem alguns problemas ao notar que o verdadeiro futuro não se adequa ao seu racismo e homofobia. Outro procura reviver o seu velho sonho de entrar no mundo do espetáculo, apenas para descobrir que tudo o que pensava ser divertido é apenas considerado mau gosto ofensivo.

A única personagem feminina é uma gótica avant la lettre, que se vê obrigada a continuar a desempenhar as tarefas sangrentas, o seu lado do pacto com forças das trevas que lhe conferiu os poderes para lutar pela justiça. Outros continuam as suas vinganças, ou são processados por mortes justiceiras com décadas de esquecimento. Um, antigo reporter e homem de mistério, lida com a sua inadequação ao novo mundo. Talvez o personagem mais interessante seja o que menos se mexe: um robot teleoperado, imóvel porque o elo com o seu criador não se renovou com a sua redescoberta, uma vez que este estava falecido há décadas.

Há toques de Watchmen nesta série, na forma como tenta recuperar personagens esquecidos com alguma visão crítica. Isso é sublinhado pela estética, com o traço detalhado e realista de Chris Weston. Mas Michael Straczinsky não é nenhum Alan Moore, e isso nota-se na forma direta e previsível com que segue a história. Tem alguns pontos de interesse, algumas colisões entre ideias obsoletas do passado e a sensibilidade contemporânea, mas pouco mais que isso.

[Andrew Garvey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating idea done brilliantly, Straczynski (and artist Chris Weston, whose work fits the story perfectly) took twelve long-forgotten, obscure characters from Marvel's pre-history, threw them together with a Captain America-like storyline where, in smashing up some Nazis in 1945 Berlin, they end up trapped and frozen, only to be found and revived over six decades later.

It takes real skill to handle twelve characters and give them all something to do in this, the first six issues of the series. True it helps when they already seem so familiar. Captain Wonder, for example is basically Captain America (with added family tragedy), the Laughing Mask is more than a little reminiscent of Watchmen's Rorschach and Dyanmic Man is effectively Superman (if he were an intolerant arsehole).

A mature, thoughtful, even moving story, this first of two volumes is based around their - generally unsuccessful - efforts to find their place in such an alien modern world. It's an introspective story, bigger on the characters' emotions and backstories than action. As a set-up for the second volume's revealing of secrets and (such as just where the Black Widow's powers came from and why no one murdered the insufferable Blue Blade earlier) this is a great starting point.

[One Flew · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

During World War II, a group of superheroes were captured, put on in stasis and forgotten about until the modern day.

While there are a lot of elements of a great story here, I just didn't feel much for this one. Weston's art is beautiful as usual and at times JMS shines as a storyteller, it's hard to pinpoint why this one falls flat. Part of it comes from the way JMS uses backstory as a replacement for character development. We learn different things about the twelve awakened heroes over time, but they're all revelation over substance. There is also a little too much clumsy exposition, in a medium like comics you really need 'show don't tell', unless you can deliver on the writing.

Not a bad book, but not a must read.

[Bill Coffin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Terrific premise about a dozen Golden Age heroes suspended in time and suddenly thrust into the modern day, and none of them are able to make the transition well. The problems with this story arise almost immediately - this is set in the Marvel Universe but we are given almost no cues that really connect this story to a wider world. The tone feels like a lightweight Watchmen, and the story meanders through an overly large cast that never quite gets enough time to fully develop anyone. Too overstuffed with characters for a proper character study, too concerned with deconstructing superheroes for an proper adventure, The Twelve feels like a story in search of a direction.

[Sean O · Rating 3 out of 5]

Take 12 also-rans from the Marvel Timely Golden Age, drop them into a Nazi vault for 60+ years, and then set them up in a mansion where they’re supposed to reintegrate into society/become government sponsored superheroes.

It isn’t all that great. I have no idea why they picked 12, there’s about three or four decent character arcs. It would have been a lot better to just pick one or two and do them right, like Sandman Mystery Theater.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was okay. I’m not sure I got sold on everyone’s motivations. With so many characters and not a lot of space, they get painted in broad brush strokes. The big reveal is handled well, and the plot twist is foreshadowed just enough that it doesn’t feel like it came out of nowhere.

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun. A solid story with compelling characters from JMS. It's nice that Marvel let him play in their sandbox.

[Keith Knudsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable read. I feel like it read like a "Watchmen light". Would like to see the next chapter in these heroes lives.

[Kris Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

…and here we have Marvel’s answer to Dynamite's Project Superpowers, and Marvel wins hands down. This is superior in every way, shape and form, thanks to J. Michael Straczynski's excellent writing and the team of Chris Weston and Gary Leach turning in finely detailed artwork that is absolutely beautiful. I really enjoyed seeing characters that were cheesy back-up features from various Golden Age Masterworks dusted off and brought back to life. I think that perhaps that is one of the reasons that this trumped PS; the characters weren't just some ad-hoc conglomerate, but they all retroactively existed in the Marvel Universe. I don't mind ret-cons in this respect. Unfortunately, this series has been put on hiatus for science knows how long, as JMS is busy doing some movie or whatever. This is one of the Marvel Premiere Edition Hardcovers, and I gotta say that I love the format. Sure it has glued and not sewn binding, but these are usually on the skinny side so it is not an issue to me.

THE RE-READ:

I really enjoyed this and was blown away by the quality of the writing and especially Chris Weston's artwork this time out. The computer coloring here is a perfect example of how, when done right, it is infinitely superior to the old flat four color printing process. It's incredibly rich and tasteful, making each and every panel pop.

The Twelve are a hodgepodge group of Timely's Golden Age superheroes. I was familiar with most of them because I buy all of the Golden Age Marvel Masterworks. Straczynski employs a deconstruction approach similar to Watchmen, and re-reading this series makes it abundantly clear that he was a perfect choice for the Before Watchmen prequels.

I remembered how disappointed I was when this series became mothballed because JMS had better things to do than honor his obligations to Marvel and the fans. This series was set to a boil, everything was ready to explode, and then...nothing. Issues 7 and 8 were out, and then nothing for years.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this one years ago in the monthly magazine format, but then issues became sparse and I never really found out how it ended. The premise is interesting in and of itself. Twelve largely forgotten superheroes from the 1940s that Marvel hadn't done a dang thing with since then are revived after being found in suspended animation underneath Berlin. These characters may be so forgotten that two of them had their names given to other, better-known Marvel characters years after the fact (Black Widow and Electro).

Writer J Michael Straczynski does an OK job for the set-up. Much of the story deals with the characters adjusting with various levels of success to modern times. The main point of view is held by one of the non-powered types, a guy known as The Phantom Reporter. I can't help but think he sounds about as threatening as a wet paper bag, but someone thought that was a good idea once upon a time. The rest are given stuff to do with various levels of interest, while a mystery from the first issue (the murder of the obnoxious showbiz hack wannabe Blue Blade) is pushed largely to the background. This trade only covered the first six issues, so the murder doesn't even really happen right away.

So, a story was set-up, not finished, and things happened. I'll say more in my review for Volume 2.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This graphic novel is yet another "Watchman" variant, with the twist here being that the old school super heroes have been frozen since the 1940s and thawed out to cope with modern times. This collection contains the first half of the series' twelve issue run, and the biggest criticism I have is that the story doesn't seem to have much forward momentum, even at the half-way point. Perhaps this is just meant to be a character study and nothing more. If so, its still pretty good stuff, with a wide variety of interesting characters who react to their new reality in different ways. However, I hope something happens in the second half to move the story forward. That said, the art is stunning and I really like the odd characters, the occasional humorous asides, and the social and psychological aspects to the story. A little more plot would make this a five star story.

[Serge Pierro · Rating 3 out of 5]

With this book, J. Michael Straczynski takes the interesting idea of bringing back twelve Golden Age characters from the past, and placing them in the "present" time. What we get is a combination of Avengers #4 (the Silver Age return of Captain America) and the Watchmen. Sadly, the first volume doesn't equal either of the aforementioned storylines. While the Watchmen-like similarities run rampant, the differences between the time periods are not as developed as I would have liked. I'm also a bit surprised that none of the contemporary characters have made an appearance. We'll have to see how volume 2 turns out...

[Steven · Rating 1 out of 5]

NOT Recommended both due to length and to an utter lack of likeable/embraceable characters you actually want to spend that much time reading.

Take the "frozen in WWII and revived in the modern era" trope from Captain America and apply it to twelve different "heroes."

Then watch JMS stretch less-than-meaty plots across so many pages as to make them seem pointless meanderings like he too is waiting to see what his point is.

I will NOT be bothering to finish this story in Volume 2 because it's unlikely JMS could pull together enough story for 4 issues, let alone 12.

[Garrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

As good as when I read it the first time around; collected like this, though, it's much easier to follow the individual plotlines and track how they are weaved (and woven) together over the course of the whole series. It's easy to get carried away with some characters and care less about others over a several month (and year, in the case of this delay-ridden series) delay, but when it all falls together like this, it's brilliant. Weston's faces are always worth looking at J. Mike's writing is empathically sad, over and over again. Good stuff.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting, different.
Let us see where they go...

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superheroes from the '40s waking up in the the current Marvel continuity. It's been done before with Captain America, except this time it's a lot more "real". From the eyes of the Phantom Reporter, we get to see what it might be like to wake up in a new world that nobody expected. The way JMS plays all the personalities off each other and the world are so nuanced and beautiful that this book really could become a modern graphic classic.

[Vahid · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good. Some forgotten "Golden Age" comic book characters are captured by Nazis at the fall of Berlin and put into cold storage, then discovered and thawed out in the modern day. It was kind of slow, but this volume (a collection of the first six comics in the series) was dedicated to setting up the back stories for the characters and the potential for their big conflict. Interesting, but if the library doesn't happen to have volume 2 available, I probably won't seek it out on my own.

[Gonzalo Oyanedel · Rating 4 out of 5]

La idea del "héroe de antaño que despierta en el presente" es revisada con astucia por Straczynski, enfatizando los efectos del desarraigo temporal por sobre los clichés enmascarados. Muy enrielada en la propuesta Watchmen, la miniserie logra buenos momentos gracias al enfoque realista de sus personajes; justicieros de una época superada que simplemente hoy no tienen lugar.

[Angel Green]

Comic with an intersting premise: 12 superheroes are cryogenically frozen by nazis in the 40's, forgotten about, and rediscovered in 2008. Not surprisingly, they have a difficult time adjusting to the future.