This Week's Comics 7.15.15

Small week this time, but every penny was well spent!

Black Canary #2 hit this week and I almost skipped on it.  Not because I didn't like the first issue, clearly I did, but I was thinking about being a bit more frugal with my comics dollar, and Black Canary was one of those that was good, but maybe not sponge-worthy.  I'm glad I went ahead and picked it up anyway.  This comic is a lot of fun, and it's very well written.  The approach is fresh and it makes me feel like I'm reading something hip, which probably means it isn't hip at all.  I like the traveling band angle, and all of the mystery surrounding our heroine (remember, all I know about BC comes from the Arrow TV show and tidbits here and there).  I'm not sure how long they can keep this up, but I'm happy to be along for the ride.  Next month, I'll not eye it with as crucial an eye.

And while Black Canary was confirmingly good, the real treat of the week was another "out on a limb" selection: Death Head.  I saw a solicitation for this comic last week that featured a few preview pages and found it intriguing.  I've never really read any horror comics, so I had no idea if I was going to pick this up or not, but I liked enough of what I saw to pay attention for it on the shelf.

If you read one comic this month, make it Death Head.  Again, I don't know from horror comics, but if they are all like this, then the genre is sorely under-represented.  For the first time ever, a comic book has creeped me out.  I really, really don't want to spoil the fun for you, but let me just say that there are several real moments of suspenseful dread.  No character feels safe, even if it seems like they are set up to be the protagonist for the series.  Best of all, the dialogue is as realistic as it comes.  Everyone wants to heap praise upon Brian Michael Bendis for writing realistic teenager dialogue by giving us hundreds of empty panels only broken by the occasional "hmm" and "uh" and "yeah," but as I've said before that's realistic dialogue no one really wants.  The dialogue in Death Head is both realistic AND entertaining. Bendis could take a few notes from these guys.

The art is great, creepy where it needs to be, but also bright and colorful to break the monotony of doom and provide contrast.  I think that contrast is part of what creates the tension and the feeling of insecurity.  You feel like at any moment the story is going to turn dark, really dark.  It's just smartly done all across the board.  It gives you just enough monster to keep you curious, but doesn't devolve into gratuitous gore or violence.  It is well paced and despite juggling a few storylines, it keeps everything clean and clear.  Best of all, these guys clearly know their horror.  They understand why movies like Alien and the first (and ONLY the first) Paranormal Activity work.  They also understand why the original (and ONLY the original) Poltergeist and Texas Chainsaw Massacre work.  All of that is very clear, just from this first issue.  I would say the feeling I get from this comic is similar to what I get when I watch TCM. (that's Texas Chainsaw Massacre, not Turner Classic Movies, that's a different feeling)

I enjoyed everything about Death Head and I am super excited for the next installment.  I highly recommend it to anyone who loves horror movies, but has never tried a horror comic.  This one is it!

This Two Week's Comics! July 1 & 8

Yeah, so I went on a mini-vacation last week and missed updating you on the comics I bought.  Now you get two weeks worth and I get to tell you about some really great comics!  Let's not waste time, let's get right to it!

We'll start with the second issue of A-Force.  I was pretty interested in where this was going and the second issue didn't really disappoint.  I think the weakest part of this series is Battleworld itself.  The A-Force team is very interesting, but the "rules" of Battleworld both set the stage for the action and restrict the potential for what the team could be.  Super-hero teams need to work in a world that is grounded with known rules and status quo.  When the world that serves as the backdrop is still very new and a jumbled mix of other worlds, it makes it hard to fit the new team in a proper context.  I think I'll like A-Force more post-Secret Wars, but I'll stick with the team until we get there.



Next up, another second issue, Starfire #2.  If you recall, this was another "wait and see" comic that was going to be purchased solely on the value of the cover.  Well, obviously the cover was good enough to warrant a purchase and the interiors don't disappoint either.  If you are looking for a lighthearted alien super-hero comic, this will scratch that it.  I'm in.

Back to Secret Wars action with what might be the best mini-series of the lot.  1872 is the Old West, Marvel style, but very low on the steampunk or super-powers that you might be worried about.  Based on the first issue, this is a straight Western, just with characters you know.  Steve Rogers is the Sheriff, Tony Stark is the local inventor, and the Kingpin is the Mayor.  Things get dicey when Red Wolf wanders into town with a mission.  This might be the best comic I have bought in two weeks.  Highly recommended!  Can't wait for the next issue!

And before we leave the realm of Secret Wars satellite titles, let's take a look at the let-down of the week: Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows.  The first issue was a little shaky, but I was ready to give it a chance.  The second issue didn't honor that chance.  I am now more convinced than ever that Dan Slott has no idea how to write Spider-Man or Peter Parker.  And, just like with A-Force, the fractured world of Battleworld is far too strange to provide a reliable background for really good storytelling.  Even so, this comic went from rocky to disaster in two issues.  This was a chance to really see the Peter Parker everyone wants, the one with a wife and child and the burden of still being Spider-Man.  Slott kind of gives us that story, but Battleworld complicates things unnecessarily and anything Slott may have been trying to do doesn't stand a chance.  Couple that with his failure to understand the characters he is working with and you've just got a mess.  I've committed to my comic shop to buy this entire series, but I'm going to see if I can get out of it.

With that out of the way, we can now turn to a couple of winners.  First, Princess Leia #5.  A great finish to a great series.  This story reaches it's conclusion in a very satisfying way.  Unlike the other two Star Wars launch titles, this comic simply set out to tell an adventure starring Leia Organa, not shock you with its incredible "Star Warsiness." I'll say no more and suggest you go out and read the whole thing start-to-finish and enjoy!

And when you've finished Princess Leia's series, pick up Lando #1.  In the exact same vein, this series seems to be satisfied to tell a great Lando solo tale (well, Lando and Lobot...).  Basically, this is a heist story with tons of Billy D level suave and smooth.  I had confidence in Charles Soule, one of the best writers in comics today and he did not betray that confidence. Staying very true to the character and not shoving Star Wars up your nose at every turn, this comic looks poised to pay out big returns!  Go get!

Which brings us back to "Do." And by "Do" I mean Secret Wars #4.  This is a big issue in the series.  With the set-up concluded in issue #3, we finally get some action and important action at that.  Since most of what happens is a big spoiler, all I will say is that the core series is far better than most of the satellite series I have read.  Secret Wars is a big event and it has everything a big event needs.  Thus far it has been pretty satisfying.  I see what Marvel was going for with the whole company-wide mega event, but now that we are into it, maybe this would have been better as a maxi-series that relaunched the entire universe, rather than taking the universe with it.  But, that's a bigger discussion.  On the small scale, the Secret Wars series is definitely worth checking out if you are a fan of the Marvel Universe.  (I opted for this really cool Captain Marvel, or is it Ms. Marvel, who can tell these days..., alternate cover because I thought it looked way spiffier than the original cover)

And that will do it for these two weeks.  Some pretty good stuff overall.  If you are looking for solid reads, go get 1872 and Lando #1, and maybe chase it with Starfire.

This Week's Comics 6.18.15

A bit of a random sampling this week:

 Let's start with Black Canary #1.  We've been watching the 3rd season of Arrow this past month and it is Black Canary heavy (and man, is it the very best show on TV right now), so seeing this on the shelf was timely.  I don't know all that much about the character (like Starfire last week), but there was sufficient interest to get curious about what comic book Black Canary was all about.
Apparently this reboot is something of a new take on the character, but that's ok, I have no historical bias with which to take umbrage.  In this version "Black Canary" is the name of a rock band and the lead signer is the hero of the group who keeps bringing her crusade into the venues and essentially destroying the band's career.  In this issue, there is a polarizing event the solidifies the band into a team against some strange alien monsters.  It might sound like it's all a bit much, but honestly, it works.  The characters are interesting and likable and there is a good balance of action and character work.  Best of all, at no time does it feel like the rock n' roll/punk music aspect is patronizing.  Black Canary is a punk rock group and that's the backdrop for the action, but there's no heavy handed "look how hip and modern this is" stuff to put you off.  I am much reminded of Dazzler comics or the New Mutants stuff with Lila Cheney.  Best of all, this issue is a complete story. Unlike Starfire last week, this comic tells a full story AND makes you want to see what's next.  That's how you do comic books!
I'll be back for more Black Canary for sure.

Meanwhile, the third installment of Archie vs. Predator was on the rack this week.  This time the Riverdale gang is being picked off one-by-one as the Predator works his way toward Betty, whose possession of a sacrificial knife sparked the killing spree to begin with.  The full juxtaposition of the gag plays out this issue as the gang reacts to the gruesome acts of violence in the best way they know how.  There is a certain amount of disbelief as well as they fall back into some standard gags about Jugghead always eating or Archie being Billy Everyteen.  It's continuing the fun, but not quite as entertaining as the previous issue.  Even so, I'll be picking up the final issue so we'll see how well the gag finishes.


Finally, so as to not let Marvel have all the fun, IDW launched their own $1 comic series this week. Called "One Hundred Penny" comics, like their Marvel predecessors, these are reprints of first issues of IDW's most popular titles.  In addition to Star Trek #1, they offered comics like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Transformers.  I picked Star Trek because I've never read any Star Trek comics before and I was interested to see how they were handling the modern version of the crew.  I am pleased to report that this issue feels just like a classic episode of Star Trek.  Best of all, the scripting is nearly perfect.  The characters sound like they should and they say things that you would expect to hear them say if this were in fact an episode of the show.  In essence, this comic perfects translates the show experience onto the printed page.  At this point, I'm more sorry I failed to jump on years ago when this comic started.  There are collected editions, though, so I can catch up!  Looks like IDW's plan worked perfectly, even if it was Marvel's plan first...  If there is an IDW title you've been interested in, this is your chance.  It will also be interesting to see if DC and Image follow suit...

That's it for this week.  What comics are you reading?

This Week's Comics 6.11.15

Small week this week.  I picked up one comic and that one on a whim.   Honestly, I bought Starfire #1 based on the cover alone.  I mean, look at that:

It's a thing of beauty.  Not just because Starfire is an orange skinned alien princess, but the composition and coloring is scientifically designed to sell comics.  This is one of those covers that jumps off the shelf at you.

I have no idea who Starfire is really.  I laugh at her character on the Teen Titans Go! cartoon when my son is watching it, but other than that I know very little.  So, with this amazing cover and the also scientifically designed #1 tag, I figured this might be a great starting point for a new reader.

Well...the actual comic provides some of that opportunity, but it also falls victim to some of the common failures of modern comics.  There is a very nice and succinct expository moment at the very start of the the comic that explains all you need to know about who Starfire is.  That part is exceptional.  It gets you right into the action with knowledge of who the character and what her deal is.  And since it does in the course of 2 pages, you have the entire rest of the issue to tell a complete and compelling story that gets me anxious to read more.

But that's not exactly what we get.  What we get instead is yet another set-up issue.  Instead of being a self-contained story, this issue sets Starfire up and leaves us with a cliffhanger introduction to what appears to be the villain of the story.  Oh, sure there is conflict in the form of Starfire needs to fit into society and do things like find a job and a place to live, but those pedestrian concerns, while humorously written, are a bit mundane even by juxtaposition for the character we are meeting.  They also do not make for an interesting first story.  Finding a job and a place to live as PART of a full story wherein Starfire might also do something heroic, like save some innocents from peril or battle a villain would be a full, well-rounded story worthy of a single issue.  This used to be standard procedure for new comics once upon a time.  But all too often these days, the first issue is designed purely to set up the series or the next issue.  This is comic book extortion in a way, giving you half a product and charging you full price in the hopes you will pay full price again for the other part of the story.  It's ugly.  Marvel perfected this strategy in the early 2000's.  And honestly, it's part of why I left the hobby.  So at the end of this issue, Starfire appears shocked at the appearance of someone or something called "X'Hal."  I am going to assume this is a bad guy to be fought next issue.  A complete comic book would have told me...

That said, Starfire #1 does have a saving grace.  Despite being a set-up issue, it is very well scripted and its tone is upbeat and fun.  Starfire herself is smartly naive and cheery and her supporting cast provides a nice, not overdone, human contrast to her alien nature.   She is instantly likeable in her Mork-ness without it being cliche or forced.  This is good as her supporting characters need to like her and want to help her as much as we do.  Since we don't get a full story this issue, we don't get to see too much diversity in her characterization, but what we do see holds a lot of promise.   Amanda Conner clearly has a talent for scripting and I'm willing to bet plotting as well.  Set-up issues are generally an editorial decision dictated by the accounting office.  I honestly believe good writers want to write full stories.  I hope we get to see the full brunt of her talent as the series goes on.  From what I read she is getting rave reviews on the Harley Quinn comic.

I'm still waffling on whether or not I pick up issue #2.  Maybe if I get another eye-catching cover, I can be more easily persuaded.  There is certainly something here worth considering...

This Week's Comics 6.3.15

A surprisingly large week for me, just getting back into the hobby.

We'll start where we left off last week with Archie vs. Predator #2.
And I'm proud to say that my fears of last week have been alleviated.  Page 2 of issue #2 pays off the entire set-up from issue #1.  Juxtaposition is the heart of comedy and this page proves it.  The rest of the issue continues to pay it out in a very bizarre way.  The Riverdale gang is thrown up against something the likes of which they are totally unaccustomed to, but rather than just freak completely out and cower in the malt shop, like maybe they totally should, they take the offensive and try to figure out just what is hunting them down.  Can they do it?  I'll be picking up issue #3.




Next up is Secret Wars #3.  You may recall I was looking for this issue to also pay off a couple of issues of set-up.  I'm not yet sold on the entire premise of Battleworld, mainly the Doom is God stuff.  It just seems a bit much.  BUT, issue #3 FINALLY introduces the surviving heroes from the original and Ultimate Marvel universes into Battleworld.  Since they are really the only characters we have any history with, it is refreshing to have them as anchors in what has otherwise been a mad, mad world.  There are some interesting revelations and thankfully enough steam to keep me going for a few more issues unless something gets really stupid.  Marvel needed a save here, and they managed to eek it out.



While we are on Secret Wars related comics, the first issue of Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows hit this week.  This is the only Spider-Man comic I have had any interest in for years.  This is supposed to be as close as we are going to come to the real Spider-Man starring in a comic again.  (for those of you who don't know, Amazing Spider-Man #400 was the last issue to star the real Spider-Man, after that Marvel just simply lost all notion of how to handle the character and spent the next 300 issues systematically destroying the character.  It's like the Simpsons...)  I was extremely nervous about reading this as my faith in Marvel's ability to handle my favorite character has been betrayed like my faith in Star Wars to have meaningful movies beyond the original trilogy.  And despite a few bumps: the Parker child is named Annie for some reason, not May, this issue delivered a good story about Peter Parker in a post-baby era.  There are rumblings that the overall story is going to take a galactic-level bent, but for at least this issue the story was kept pretty street level with Venom showing up to attack the Parker family and Spider-Man giving him a beat down the likes of which we have never seen.  Being a parent DOES change you.  Will future issues hold up?  I'm in for #2 and I'll let you know.

Finally, we come to Princess Leia #4, the penultimate issue in the limited series.  This comic has delivered every single issue.  The story is tight, the art is great, and it manages to stay true to the original characters and universe.  Issue #4 continues that trend and ramps up the story as we build to next issue's presumably awesome climax.  If you've not been reading this, and you like the REAL Star Wars, go catch up.  You will not be sorry!

One critical note:  take a look at the panel below.  While the art has been solid every issue, this one panel bugs me.  It looks like Artoo was originally drawn thinner, more narrow (hence the hatching shade like along his backside), but somewhere along the line someone said, "he looks too thin," so someone went back in and made him thicker.  He doesn't look quite rounded.  He looks a bit lumpy on the back side and the inking isn't quite a smooth.  It's a minor detail in an otherwise wonderful comic, so I'm not busting too many chops, but it does look off.

So those are this week's comics.  All in all, a good week.

This Week's Comics 5.28.15

This week I went off the beaten path a little bit and picked up Archie vs. Predator #1.  (this is a four issue limited series that is already on issue #3, but for the sake of starting at the start, I picked up #1 this week).  Since, I'm coming back to comics, I thought it worth the time to stretch my mind a little bit and pick an occasional comic that is nothing like the super hero comics that dominate my collection.  Archie vs. Predator is perfect in that capacity.

As juxtaposition is the heart of all comedy, the premise is absolutely solid.  However, the actual comic itself falls victim to one of the chief ills of modern comics:  failure to deliver a full story.
Basically, the Riverdale gang goes on vacation in the same exact place where a Predator ship has landed.  The gang runs afoul of the obligatory Betty vs. Veronica conflict, has an encounter with the snobby prep school kids, and then decides they like staying in Riverdale better than going on vacation so they go home.  That's it.  They never encounter the Predator.  Oh, sure, the Predator stalks them and it appears kills the two prep school kids and strings them up, but even when the gang has fresh human blood dripped upon them from above, they blithely march on, completely ignoring the waiting horror above.  Maybe this is the joke?  Maybe the payoff comes next issue (as the Predator seems to have stowed away in some of Veronica's luggage to make the trip back to Riverdale), but I paid $4 for a comic called Archie vs. Predator and the titular claim is never validated.  I hate paying for the set up of a joke and then paying separately for the punchline.  That is NOT cool.  It's like if the movie Predator ended when Arnold's team caught the girl in the village.  NOT cool.

So, while I really like the concept here, the execution falls very flat.  I am on the fence about picking up issue #2.  I still kind of want a payoff to issue #1, but I'm not ready to shell out another $4 on the chance that the story actually happens in issue #3.  This is what happens sometimes when you branch out...

Comic of the Week 6.13.12

Scarlet Spider #6
Marvel

If you had told me ten years ago that a comic book titled "Scarlet Spider" that starred Spider-Man's clone would be my favorite Spider-Man comic book, I would have laughed in your face and told you to get out of my house.  And yet here we are.

Since he has virtually no history worth worrying about ruining, Scarlet Spider really is the best Spider-Man on the market today (sorry Ultimate Spidey, get your story moving and we'll talk).  The comic follows Spider-man's resurrected clone as he travels to Houston, Texas trying to escape the specter of the original Spider-Man and his legacy (if only Marvel would just give up and do the same...).  Of course, the clone, Kaine is his name, does have some history and that past seems to be intent on tracking him down and taking him out.  Never mind all of the new trouble the Scarlet Spider is getting into in his new city.

The great thing about this comic is that it captures the charm of the single issue story, but also seems interested in telling a bigger broader story.  Kaine is surrounded by potential supporting characters that are diverse and interesting.  Perhaps the most compelling is also the key to the overarching story, a young lady named Aracely who he saved from almost certain death at the hands of a firebug called Salamander.  Aracely cannot remember anything about her past, but she seems to have some empathic abilities and can, at the very least, mimic other talents like language.  She is tied to Kaine as her rescuer and her only hope of solving the riddle of her identity.  She may be a plot point, but she also has a lot of charisma and provides an interesting counterpart to Kaine's reluctant hero.

Most of all, though, the comic is simple and fun.  You want to like Kaine because he is haunted by a past isn't his and he is trying to find his own identity while coming to grips with the rest of the world around him.

This latest issue sees the Scarlet Spider hunted by Kraven's daughter, Ana, who appears to be setting him up for bigger problems in the near future from her, sadly, resurrected father.  The battle with Ana is the action part of the issue, but the character work between Kaine and Aracely is what makes this issue great.  The fight is prelude to what is coming, but what makes the book worth reading is the character development that goes on around it.  I have always maintained that character and plot are what make comics, and stories of all stripes, great.  Intense art and big battles are great, but if they lack smart writing they are useless fluff.  Scarlet Spider does a great job of balancing the strong foundation with the glitzy spectacle.  Not only that, but for six issues it has featured some of the best covers in comics today thank to the talented art of Ryan Stegman.

If you want to read a good Spider-Man comic set in the regular Marvel Universe, Scarlet Spider is pretty much your only option.



Raised Eyebrow of the Week
Spider-Men #1
Marvel

I only first saw an ad for this last week. I'm not sure why, but Marvel seems to feel the need to ALWAYS crossover popular Ultimate Universe characters with their regular universe.  I think they are hoping that the freshness of the Ultimate characters will revive their stale, inept attempts at storytelling with the older character set.  It never works.  If you don't believe me, see what happened when they crossed over the two Fantastic Fours.  (damn shame too UFF was great...)

So when I saw the ad for this crossover, I was instantly skeptical and I would have passed on it entirely, but my trusty comic shop owner decided that I needed to read it anyway and put it in my holds. ("holds" refers to the subscription service most good comic shops offer to their regular customers to ensure that they get the comics they want each week.  Some even come with a discount, do you hear me Daniel Thompson, owner of the Zone Comic Shop in Louisville, KY...ahem...)

This issue dealt almost entirely with the Marvel Universe Spider-Man and as such was pretty ho-hum. (I skimmed the first 8 pages without reading a word, I missed nothing) What was cool was that Ultimate Mysterio seems to have popped up in the regular MU and is planning something.  Spider-Man unwittingly stumbles upon him and mistakes him for his Mysterio and they tussle.  During the battle, Spidey is sucked into a vortex that leads to the Ultimate Universe.  I like that they are giving a legitimate and relevant excuse for the crossover and not just a throw away.  Sadly, that is where the coolness ends because...

Once in the Ultimate Universe Spider-Man apparently forgets that he has ever been in an alternate universe before, despite having been to hundreds of them, some as recently as a year ago during an annual crossover with Hulk and Deadpool.  But, I suppose Marvel feels the story needs Spider-Man to be an idiot for the story to work, so as soon as he arrives he acts like he is totally lost and confused.  This is why and where Marvel has lost their way.  Why not bring Ultimate Spider-man into the regular MU and have him be totally lost and confused?  That would work.  This does not.  I guess Marvel feels that all of their long time fans that have made them so great are just too stupid to notice that the character they love so much is acting like a complete moron.  Either that or they are so worried that new readers are too stupid to pick up a story, even an issue one, with a character that isn't as clean as a blank slate.  Whichever it is, Marvel insults the intelligence of anyone who reads this comic.

And you can save all of your arguments about new readers, because they spend a whole page introducing things to new readers and welcoming them.  Furthermore, Marvel knows who its audience is, there is a Father's Day ad in this comic aimed at fathers, NOT their kids.  Let's face it, Might Marvel is growing weak and old, and even though they were the comics publisher of my childhood, they are showing that they no longer understand the things that made them great in the first place.  Spider-Men #1 demonstrates this fact all too well.  Will I get issue #2?  Maybe.  Why?  I still like the Ultimate Spider-man and I am curious as to what this encounter will do to his character.  Sadly, I will have to tolerate my childhood hero to do that...

Comic of the Week: 5.6.12

Swamp Thing #10
DC Comics

You people are going to think I am a DC fanboy.  Historically, that could not be less true.  I'm always been a Marvel guy through and through, but the recent New 52 has given me a chance to explore a bit, as I have become increasing disgruntled with Mighty Marvel (see below).  One of the first comics I ever had as a kid was a Swamp Thing comic.  I bought it on a camping trip with my parents.  My dad let me get it because it was a comic book and he didn't really know that comics were more than Archie and Donald Duck, so the words "Sophisticated Suspense" on the cover didn't even register.  It was Swamp Thing #39, written by Alan Moore and there were all kinds of gruesome imagery, ladies in lingerie, and lots of bizarre violence.  As a 10 year old boy, I was captivated.  The story was dark and mysterious and I didn't really understand the nuances, but I knew I was peeking in on something special that wasn't entirely meant for me.  Like when you see your first naked lady at an early age and you have no idea what the parts are or do, but you know there's magic in it.

I saw the relaunch of Swamp Thing as my chance to get back on board that train and rediscover those thrills again.  And while you can't go home again, there are definitely things to appreciate in this new iteration of Swamp Thing.  The initial story started out really, really slowly, and I was worried that it was never going to get anywhere.  That sort of thing drives me mad, looking at you Brian Michael Bendis, but if there is enough to hold my interest I will stick around to see where it goes.  Swamp Thing took a long time to get started, but issue #10 has proven that time can pay off.


The new status quo is that Alec Holland, the scientist who was Swamp Thing previously, has been revived from the dead and has accepted his role (again) as Swamp Thing to be the champion of the Green (the force of plant life) against the Rot (the force of decay and death).  The first ten issues saw Swamp Thing battling the Rot as it tried to gain a foothold on the Earth.  During the battle, SW rescued his romantic interest, Abigail Arcane from the Rot.  She was destined to be the Queen of the Rot and apparently still is, despite the rescue.  Issue #10 starts with a battered Swamp Thing returning to the swamp to rest and heal from his ordeal.  However, Abigail's father, Anton Arcane has other plans.  I don't know too much about him, but apparently he is a beast of a dude and a part of the Rot as well.  He shows up to reclaim his little girl and take Swamp Thing out while he is incapacitated.  This may sound simple, but the way it is told and what it portends for SW is exactly the kind of thing I have been looking for out of this comic.  Here's hoping issue #11 delivers on the promise issue #10 has made...


Disappointment of the Week
Avengers vs. X-men #5
Marvel Comics

Wow.  Marvel has proven once again that they have no idea how to handle their characters anymore or how to handle their rich history.  AvX has been promoted as the greatest comic event in the Marvel Universe and the culmination of a decade's efforts in grand story telling.  It was billed as the big throwdown between the Avengers and the X-men that would shake the MU to its foundation.  Ho-hum.  In five issues the two teams have battled for roughly two issues, with no major confrontations and no major plot developments.  There have been no epic fights, no shocking defeats, and nothing of any real interest.  The main plot has nothing to do with the Avengers and the X-men, it has to do with the return (again) of the Phoenix and the two teams disagreeing on how to deal with that occurrence.  Ho-hum again.
Perhaps the most insulting thing is the way these characters interact with each other.  These are characters with nearly 70 years of history between them (some of them anyway) and they act like maybe this is the first time they have gone head-to-head, or at best the second.  The dialogue is so stilted and bland that the characters are made of wood and devoid of the flavor that made them icons.  
Without a doubt Marvel has the best body of characters in the industry, but they treat them like cash cows and they have about as much respect for them as they do anything they think they can turn a profit on.  The recent rash of movies do more justice to the rich history of characters than anything they are putting on the printed page.

This big event is the perfect example of how Mighty Marvel has lost its way.  At least DC openly acknowledges that they have no reverence for their history.  They reboot their universe every year or two.  Marvel wants to cling to its glory days and extend that glory to the crap they are churning out these days, but it just doesn't wash.  You cannot have your cake and eat it too.  You cannot claim to have great characters and then ignore everything that has made them great.
I'm going to see AvX to the end, but that might also be the end of my association with Might Marvel's main universe.  The Ultimate Universe still has a chance.... 

Comic of the Week 5.30.12

Ultimate Comics: The Ultimates #11
Marvel Comics

Slim pickings in the comics department this week.  UC: Ultimates was the only comic I got so it was a lock for CotW.  That said it was pretty good.  Things have been building in the Ultimate line of of comics.  I was a little worried by the scope of things (a few issues back Reed Richards blew up Washington DC) and that they were ramping up intensity just to keep things interesting (a device in modern comics that is often used to hide inadequate or subpar storytelling), but they do seem to be building to something here and they laid the foundation for it for at least two years, so I am more than willing to see where this is going. 
Issue #11 continues this build as things go from worse to absolutely disastrous.  If you've not been keeping up, Reed Richards was left for dead in the Negative Zone several years ago, but he didn't die, instead he stayed behind in the Zone and got angry.  He reappeared about a year ago bearing a severe grudge against the Ultimates who left him there and with a more evolved brain that enabled him to build an advanced civilization called the City, which he implanted in Europe without asking anybody.  Meanwhile, Nick Fury's Ultimates team responded to this action by sending various agents in to investigate, infiltrate, and eventually destroy the City.  Ineffective attempts by the Hulk, Falcon and Thor simply served to seriously piss Richards off.  The final nail in the coffin was when the President of the United States (ambiguous as to whether or not it was connected to the real world correlate) launched every nuke the US had at the City.  Richards responded by transporting a tiny black hole into DC and eradicating the Capitol.  The interim President initiated martial law and tried to detain all of the Ultimates claiming they were a threat to national security.  The Ultimates went rogue instead and have been working against Richards and the government.  Issue #11 brings all of that to a head and the gentleman on the cover features prominent role in those proceedings.  One thing that bothers me a little is that this issue was drawn by committee suggesting that a competent regular art team is having trouble keeping up with a monthly schedule.  That usually spells doom for a modern comic...

UC: Ultimates also features a few other storylines in addition to this plot, so there is plenty to see here.  When it launched, it looked like the book was going to be too busy to follow in a monthly format, and I admit it can be a challenge, but when you take 3 or 4 issues in a session you get a better appreciation for the impact and scale of the story they are telling.  And if you do read in batches like that, you find that you are looking forward to the next issue to see what is going to happen.  I'm not patient enough to wait for a collection to come out, so I buy the single issues, but after reading them, I usually collect a few and then reread them all at once.  Not only do I get a better perspective on the story, but I also get a little more bang for my buck.

Make no mistake, this is cinematic comic book storytelling, which I think I hate, but at least here it is being done pretty darn well.  This is in contrast to the awesome, but incredibly drawn out story Bendis is telling over in Ultimate Comics: Spider-man.  If you want to check out UC: Ultimates, go grab some of the collections first to get up to speed.  Once you do, I think you'll be looking forward to each issue the way I am.

Coming Attractions! 
UC: Ultimates featured some very interesting ads for things Marvel has coming down the pipeline.  Let's take a look...

With the exception of the line shattering epic that was Ultimatum, crossovers in the Marvel Ultimate Universe have been unilaterally disastrous.  This is why I am instantly skeptical about this "Divided We Fall" crossover.  Things are kind of happening at different rates in the three Ultimate Comics and as a result trying to tie them into each other could lead to some very awkward scenarios.  That said, the Ultimate Comics X-men cover looks pretty sweet, so I guess we'll see where it goes.  I currently get all of the Ultimate Comics so I'll keep you posted.

And then there is this:

Did you demand this?  Because I didn't.  I really, honestly, didn't.  This can't possibly be good can it?  I like Frank Tieri and Mark Texeira, but this is very ill conceived and does not bode well.  Who knows, maybe it will be the greatest thing ever?  You spend your money and let me know....

Comic of the Week! 5.23.12

Ultimate Comics: X-men #12
Marvel

Picking were slim this week as I am not into all of the Owl nonsense going on the Batman family of comics, and I was about to pick Aquaman for the Comic of the Week as it has been consistently one of the best DC books I have been getting (the other is Wonder Woman, last weeks CotW), but then I got to the final page of UC: X-men #12 and I was pretty much blown away.  You can tell the comic is building to something, something that feels like it is meant to be big, but in the industry these days, that usually is met with a lot of disappointment and gnashing of teeth.  (For example a "major" DC character is supposed to come out of the closet in the near future...snore)  But as I was saying, you really get the sense that the comic is building to an incredible reveal.  It gets even better as bits and pieces of story that have been lurking in the background of the comic's many plots start to resurface and tie into one another.  And then, on that final page, they hit you with something you couldn't possibly see coming.  They tie up many many loose ends by revealing a character and a storyline that had been pretty much forgotten and who has been pulling the strings for a very long time now.  The most savory part of the whole experience is that it actually makes sense!  It's not a shock for shock's sake.  You actually get that nice "oh wow" moment where your faith in comic book storytelling is restored.  Obviously, I am not going to ruin the moment for you, especially if you have been reading Ultimate X-men at all for the past few years.  And if you've trailed off lately, I strongly urge you to jump back in.  Things are getting really good.

Kitty Pride, not exactly Shadowcat anymore

If you are not familiar, Ultimate Comics: X-men follows the adventures of the various groups of mutants running about Marvel's Ultimate Universe (an alternate timeline that frees classic Marvel characters from their very heavy 40+ years of continuity and allows them to be fresh and new).  The world they inhabit is one where mutants are hated and feared because Magneto flooded the Earth Bible-style and killed a whole lot of people in the process.  Many of the stalwart X-men characters also met their end during this conflagration including Professor X, Wolverine, Cyclops, and Magneto himself. The comic follows three distinct groups of mutants as they navigate a dangerous world.  One group is Kitty Pride's group of "Morlocks" who live in the old Morlock tunnels of New York.  Her group seeks to save other mutants from being rounded up by the government or killed by an angry world. Kitty's group also features a displaced Johnny Storm who, while not a mutant, sure likes hanging around with them.  Jean Grey covertly leads another team of mutants who work for SHIELD and who cavort with the likes of the Hulk.  Finally, Storm is the de facto leader of the remaining mutants who have been rounded up by the government and placed in "protective custody" kind of like the Nazis did for the Jewish folks back in WWII.
The book oscillates between these three groups of mutants, sometimes focusing on a single group for two or three issues at a time.  The incredible thing is that the writers manage to hold all three stories together and make them independent and yet relevant to one another.  It really works well and interest in each group remains consistently high.  Although this latest issue promises to engage all three story lines simultaneously in something much bigger!

If you are not already checking out Ultimate Comics: X-men, it's not too late.  Grab a few trade paperbacks and catch up, things are about to get real.

Loser of the Week
Avenging Spider-man #7 
Marvel 

This comic is a couple of weeks old, but it is still worthy of derision.  I've long been disillusioned with Marvel's lack of respect for their flagship character.  I dropped Amazing Spider-man a long time ago because it was clear they were only paying lip service to the incredible creators that laid the foundation for the single greatest comic book character ever, and that they were only interesting in exploiting a marketable franchise.  But, I gave Avenging Spider-man a chance because it promised to be light-hearted and fun, and basically be a new iteration of the classic Marvel Team-Up.  And it was, for about two issues.  Now, it has reverted to type and is just a really sorry excuse for a comic book.  There is very little here of value.
I know She-Hulk is on the cover, but sadly, the cover is the best part of this comic.  There was a nice issue with Hawkeye awhile back, but that was the last issue worth reading.

Comic of the Week!

NEW FEATURE!

I'm a dork.  But you knew that.  Every Wednesday is comic book day, or for ye laypersons, the day that new comic books are released for sale (they actually arrive on Tuesday, but cannot be legally sold until the following day).  Comic books are a long misunderstood storytelling medium.  They don't have the stodgy legitimacy of actual books (love me some literature, but it the cheese need not stand alone), and they lack the immediate spectacle of a motion picture ("movie" to ye laypersons), yet comic books are an incredible way of telling strong, compelling stories over the course of time.  Some are episodic, others are serial.  Some unfold a deep and meaningful story over a span of months or years, while others are pure candy and are meant to be devoured and enjoyed in and of themselves.
If you have always regarded comics as "kid's stuff" you have missed out on a lot of great stories.  Thanks to blockbusters like The Avengers, comic books and their subject matter are getting more cultural attention than ever, but that doesn't mean that all comics are great, nor does it mean you are always going to stumble into your local comic shop and pick a winner.  That's where I come in.  I spend a portion (far less than you might expect) of my modest income on comic books each Wednesday.  With the economy in the state it is in, every comic dollar is precious and there is no reason to waste your hard earned money on bad comics.  Each week, I will pick up my comics, read them, and then clue you in on the best comic I bought that week.  I'll tell you why it was so great and I'll tell you anything you might need to know to jump on board (if your curiosity is piqued). I'll also clue you in if I make a mistake and pick up a clunker, or if a comic that had previously been great has started to lose it's panache.  If you are already a comics fan, I would love to hear what you are reading, especially if I am missing out on something great, or if you disagree with my take on a certain book.
So I hope you'll join me each week as we take stroll down comics lane.  Oh the places we will go!

Comic of the Week 5.16.12

Wonder Woman #9 
DC Comics

I know very very little about Wonder Woman.  What I do know is a synthesis of Linda Carter and Super Friends.  So when it comes to WW comics I am a clean slate, and perhaps easily impressed, however when DC relaunched all of its titles last year I saw a clear opportunity to delve into the world of the Amazon with the golden sexist lasso.
Part of the DC New 52 relaunch involved pairing top creators with DC's powerhouse characters to breathe new life into their comics.  The much heralded Brian Azzarello drew the Wonder Woman straw.  Azzarello is the creator of the explosive comic 100 Bullets which set fans on fire during the first decade of the 21st century.  When it comes to popular writers, Azzarello is white hot.
Personally, I never got into 100 Bullets, but people went nuts for Azzarello's penchant for writing violent and thought-provoking stories and the comic won many awards.  Thus, the draw of having Azzarello as the writer did not necessarily sell me on the book.
Instead, my experience with WW has had the opposite effect.  Azzarello does such an incredible job with Diana and her literal pantheon of characters, that I now understand what all of the buzz is about.  Wonder Woman has made me an Azzarello fan.

The story is as epic as the cast.  Diana is charged with protecting the latest mortal bride of Zeus against the scores of gods, demi-gods, and other legendary figures bent to her destruction.  This task has required her to wage war against Poseidon, battle the armies of Hera and Hippolyta, and enlist the aid of Hephaestus.  Her most recent adventure, chronicled in this month's CotW, follows Diana as she prepares to marry Hades in order to keep her mortal charge out of harm's way. 

Azzarello does an incredible job of crafting this story. He handles the characters extremely well and manages to tell an epic tale, but rarely loses sight of the fact that he is telling single issue stories.  This is the challenge of the modern comic writer and Azzarello manages the task fairly well.  This month's issue is a perfect example of his powerful storytelling ability.  Diana is trapped in Hell.  Her mind clouded (maybe) by a shot from Cupid's gun, she seems unable to resist or escape.  While Diana marches, literally, toward her fate her cohorts Hermes, Hephaestus, and Cupid plot her liberation in the form of a spectacular wedding crash.  The story builds as the time of the impending nuptials draws near.  For fear of Diana's betrayal, Hades' enlists the aid of Strife to ensnare the Amazon in a plot that will lead either to her death or her ultimate submission to his will. 

It's truly great stuff.  I have no idea if this is what Wonder Woman fans would be into, but it has made a Wonder Woman fan out of me.  If you are not reading Wonder Woman, you should be!


On the flip side...

Loser of the Week

(or, the comic I'm about to drop because it has started to suck)

Batwoman
DC Comics

I started reading Batwoman at the same time and for the same reasons I picked up Wonder Woman.  For six issues Batwoman was a gripping crime drama with tons of suspense, great mystery, and compelling characters.  The art was moody and set the tone for a great read.  Then, something really bad happened.  The storytelling completely changed and the art took a turn for the worst.  Instead of telling a fairly linear crime drama based on single issue increments, Batwoman veered way off the beaten path and attempted to tell a chronologically dysfunctional tale with no clear plot or direction.  The story jumps time and place across the span of past weeks and days to the present moment with no real rhyme or reason.  To complicate matters further, the story jumps from character to character as well as temporally and it becomes impossible to make heads or tails of what is going on or when it is happening.  This kind of storytelling works great in a graphic novel where we get the entire story at once and the device is used to punctuate moments in the narrative.  In an episodic comic book, where parts of the story are doled out in thirty day increments, it is very difficult to make this kind of device work at all. When it does succeed it is usually a masterpiece.  Batwoman is not a masterpiece, it is a mess.

It is sad to see a good book go bad, but I fear this is a classic case of a creator who could not keep up with the demands of a monthly schedule and thus, after the first arc, elements of the comic got delegated to lesser talents and the overall effect killed any magic the comic had to begin with.  To be honest, at this point I'm only sticking around for the occasional lesbian action.  And for that reason, Batwoman must go.


What comics are you into these days?  Am I missing something great?  Did I just trash your favorite book?  As always, we at EF would love to hear from you!