Noir: Eh, it could be darker

One link: I liked this one-page comic by Kevin Huizenga.  He's good.

Noir

By David Lapham, Jeff Lemire, Dean Motter, Chris Offutt, Kano & Stephano Gaudiano, Alex De Campi, Hugo Petrus, M.K. Perker, Paul Grist, Rick Geary, Ken Lizzi, Joelle Jones, Gary Phillips, Eduardo Barreto, Matthew & Shawn Fillbach, Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, Brian Azzarello, and Fabio Moon & Gabriel Ba.

There's a difference between noir as a genre and "just" plain old crime fiction.  Noir, mostly stemming from film noir and hardboiled detective fiction, deals in morally dubious situations, femmes fatale, tough guys, twisty plots, and usually bleak outcomes for all.  One could discuss and debate what exactly constitutes noir, but if you went by this collection of short comics, you might just think it involved crime stories presented monochromatically.  Sure, some of these tales do conceivably fall within the boundaries of noir, but most of them really don't, just being straightforward tales of law-breaking, rather than complex examinations of morality, motivation, or character.

David Lapham's "Open the Goddamn Box", which fits within his long-running Stray Bullets series, is an example, and being the first story in the book, it doesn't really set a good example for others to follow.  It's an ugly story about two boys who kidnap a girl with the intent to rape her, and how she tries to manipulate them into allowing her to escape.  It's thoroughly unpleasant (although the way she desperately tries to talk her way out of the situation is interesting, and might have worked better given more space to develop) and just not very noirish.  Neither is M.K. Perker's "The Albanian", in which a man stumbles into a murder scene without understanding what is going on.  It's a striking presentation of violence, but it's not noir.  Alex De Campi and Hugo Petrus' "Fracture" is another interesting story, seeing a flurry of emotions and imaginary situations fly through a woman's mind as she considers what it would be like to push someone in front of a subway train.  These are presented as several pages of disconnected panels, zoomed-in pictures, and surreal imagery, and it's kind of fascinating, but it's not really even a crime story, much less noir.

Some of the tales teeter on the edge, like "The Last Hit", written by Chris Offutt and illustrated by Kano and Stefano Gaudiano, which sees an aging assassin take a strange assignment and realize that he might have outlived his usefulness to his bosses.  Or there's the Fillbach brothers' "Lady's Choice", in which the bored girlfriend of a crime boss becomes enthralled by a rival who confronts him and decides to change loyalties.  Jeff Lemire's "The Old Silo" is another, seeing a financially-struggling farmer seizing an opportunity when a wounded bank robber takes refuge in his barn.  These all make use of noirish elements (the hitman, the femme fatale, the bank robber), but don't necessarily tell a noir story (even if they do see some interesting moments, especially in Lemire's use of facial expression to convey desperation and resignation).

Odder still, a few stories mix in elements from other genres, like Dean Motter's Mister X tale "Yacht on the Styx", in which the titular character reveals to a reporter the answer to a decades-old mystery in which a dead man apparently killed a bunch of people.  It does come close to noir, but the sci-fi settings and plot points kind of come to the fore, obscuring the crime elements.  The same could be said for "The New Me", by Gary Phillips and Eduardo Barreto, in which a woman targets a handsome gigolo of a fitness instructor for a plan involving her invalid husband, ending with a pretty unbelievable twist.  And "The Bad Night", written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba, works pretty well as the noir story of a thief tasked to commit a robbery that will probably not end well, but it relies on a punchline that references the history of a character from another comics company, which is a kind of strange choice.

Luckily, there are a few true noir stories here, such as Paul Grist's "The Card Player", which sees his detective character Kane investigate and pursue a prolific burglar, only for both him and his target to be outsmarted by more powerful underworld figures.  It's a good example of a nicely-constructed plot and an emphasis on being controlled by shadowy forces, one that invites the reader to search out more Kane stories.  Rick Geary's "Blood on My Hands" is another good one, seeing a not-necessarily-sane man deciding to have his wife killed for cheating on him.  It's presented in Geary's perfectly-constructed style of deadpan narration and somewhat creepy imagery, and it might be the best story in the book.  "21st Century Noir", a Criminal story by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips does certainly compete with it though, with a man falling in love with a woman and determining to free her from an abusive husband, switching perspectives between characters every couple pages and peeling layers away like an onion before reaching a dark joke of an ending.  If anybody knows noir, it's Brubaker, and this is a great example of the kind of stories he and Phillips regularly tell in their series.  And finally, Ken Lizzi's text piece "Trustworthy", which is accompanied by some nice illustrations by Joelle Jones, is a pretty classic bit about a femme fatale recruiting a guy to help her get away with stealing from a drug lord, and it works well enough, even if its presence in a comics anthology is questionable.

Of course, much quibbling could be done about these definitions and genre restrictions, but does it really matter if the stories are good?  About half of the ones here are pretty good, and most all of them have something to recommend, whether it's nicely moody art or an interesting idea, so depending on one's tolerance for the blurring of genre lines, it could be a rather enjoyable read or a frustrating one.  It's certainly not the perfect little batch of noir storytelling hoped for, but it works for what it is.  Half a good anthology is better than none, I suppose.

Pamphleteering: October and probably earlier

Elsewhere: I reviewed Fantastic Four #572 for Comics Bulletin, and the latest episodes of Dollhouse and The Venture Brothers for The Factual Opinion. I'm prolific!

Links, lots of links: This gallery of Robert Crumb pictures of women throughout history is nice, although it seems like a collection of separate pieces thrown together, rather than a stuff done as part of a cohesive project. The portraits of girls he went to school with (with notes about what he found attractive about them) seem especially incongruous. Still: it's Crumb, so it's cool.

Everybody else has already linked to this, but I gotta point it out: a new four-page Chris Ware strip for The New Yorker! It's damn good, featuring the one-legged woman from Building Stories, at some point later in her life. Man, I love how he can put together such an affecting and realistic portrait of a human character in such a short space. Good stuff.

On a sillier note, here are some comic strip mashups by Ryan Dunlavey, that plug superheroes or other characters into classic strips like Peanuts or The Family Circus. Funny stuff.

Fundraising notice: Spike, of Templar, Arizona fame, is launching a new book project to be written by her and illustrated by Diana Nock. It's called Poorcraft, and it's all about sharing secrets on living with a low income. Sounds cool, and the neat thing about it is that, as with some other comics projects of late, you can donate to the cause through Kickstarter to help fund the project, and receive neat stuff like autographed copies of the book in exchange. I love that the internet has brought about ideas like this; it's a brave new world.

Finally, Brian Wood has a post on Vertigo's blog listing his favorite historical Viking battles, with notes on how they relate to Northlanders. Cool.

Okay, reviews of single issues, go:

Beasts of Burden #2

Written by Evan Dorkin

Art by Jill Thompson

Wow, this series is surprisingly dark. Although it shouldn't be that much of a surprise; the stories that began the series often dealt with serious issues like death and revenge, but that nature is masked by the cuteness of the protagonists and Jill Thompson's always-gorgeous artwork. But this issue is where we really see what the series is all about; it's not a frivolous fantasy about magic-using doggies and kitties, but an effective device for horror. The story here (involving the ghosts of missing animals and the discovery of what happened to them) really drives it home, with several moments that shock in their violence and don't provide an easy, safe resolution. And the final page is one of the most wrenchingly, hauntingly sad images I've seen in ages; it's going to linger in the memory for a while. Exemplary work from Dorkin and Thompson; this comic is shaping up to be one of the best of the year.

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The Order of Dagonet #1

Written by Jeremy Whitley

Art by Jason Strutz

Hey, how crazy would it be if all those entertainers and celebrities that get knighted by the queen of England actually had to defend the crown? That's the premise of this series, and it seems like a fun idea, especially when you throw in the fact that England is being attacked by creatures from the land of faerie and Merlin is the one who gathers them together, apparently giving them magical abilities or some such. It's a fun idea, and while this first issue is mostly devoted to explaining the premise and rounding up the cast, who include stand-ins for Ozzy Osbourne and Neil Gaiman (with a dash of J.K. Rowling), along with a washed up old Shakespearean actor similar to a less-respectable Ian McKellen or Ben Kinglsey, it's interesting enough to warrant attention.

As for the actual execution, it's not perfect, but that's at least partly due to overambition; the issue is full of interesting layouts, like the first couple pages, which see panels appearing as radio waves emanating from a broadcasting antenna:

Unfortunately, the flow can be confusing at times, but it's usually understandable, at least. And the art style itself is idiosyncratic and unique, looking like it was done with crayons or colored pencils and full of little scribbles of color. Again, it's not perfect and can be a bit confusing, but it's interesting just for being different rather than emulating whatever's popular.

If this first issue is any judge, it should be a series to watch, especially once the plot really gets underway. The creators seem to have a real labor of love here, and hopefully they'll continue to improve and make it something really worth reading.

If you're interested, the issue can be purchased from the book's website.

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The Anchor #1

Written by Phil Hester

Art by Brian Churilla

Phil Hester might be thought of more as an artist than a writer, but that would be neglecting what is arguably the best work of his career, especially his collaborations with Mike Huddleston, The Coffin and Deep Sleeper. And judging by this issue, The Anchor is another series that should be added to Hester's authorial pedigree. It's one of those action-packed supernatural series, with the hook being that the title character is God's guardian at the gates of Hell, keeping demons from escaping to Earth, while at the same time, he has a physical body on Earth who ends up fighting a giant monster in Iceland in this first issue. It's pretty cool stuff, with some interesting ideas linking the two versions of the character and helping him defeat the monster, and the art by Brian Churilla is really nice, full of ugly demons, expressive characters, and hard-hitting action, and especially making the Anchor looks like a hulking beast of a man, barely intelligent yet massively powerful. It's a nice concept for a comic, and hopefully Hester will continue to build on it and come up with interesting conflicts as the series goes on. In any case, I'm sure Churilla will rise to the occasion and deliver some incredible visuals. Let's make the magic happen, guys!

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Robot 13: Colossus #1-2

Written by Thomas Hall

Art by Daniel Bradford

When I first saw preview art for this series, I dismissed it as a Mike Mignola ripoff. Having actually read these first two issues, I'll say that said dismissal might have been hasty, but isn't necessarily unwarranted. The story here, about a mysterious, ancient robot (or whatever it is, consisting of a skull in a fishbowl atop a mechanical body) who, having been found in the depths of the ocean, is constantly fighting gigantic monsters, doesn't really have the depth of Mignola's work, but it's entertaining in its own way, and has its own unique variations on the craggy monsters and deep shadows of Hellboy and the like. Actually, it's fairly light stuff, with nothing much happening outside of those monster fights, aside from a flashback/memory at the beginning of the second issue that suggests the robot originated in ancient Greece. But the fights themselves are quite entertaining, offering some comic value from the spindly-limbed automaton going up against a giant octopus in the first issue and a phoenix in the second. And that phoenix allows for some searingly bright colors and high-altitude combat that does make the series pretty unique. So far, it's not an especially deep comic, but it's a fun one, and one that deserves some attention. Give it a look, if you can find it.

You can purchase the issues here, although the first issue appears to be sold out.

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Criminal: The Sinners #1

Written by Ed Brubaker

Art by Sean Phillips

There's not a lot to say about the story of this first issue of the latest Criminal storyline/miniseries, other than it's as good as ever, full of Ed Brubaker's signature character work, propulsive plotting, and utilization of the seedy settings he has created. He's refined this technique to a science by this point, and while he'll probably set up some excellent twists and surprises at some point, right now he's just doing the establishing work that kicks off each new arc, and it's exactly as nicely done as one would expect.

But on the other hand, Sean Phillips can never have too much praise, since his visuals are what really bring this series to life, and while he can be given the same plaudits as Brubaker, in that he's establishing the moody atmosphere and flawed characters in the same manner as normal, there's always something hidden under the surface, some details that really show the care and craft that are put into his work. The years of sin that are etched into this character's face, for example:

Or the variety of easily-read yet understated emotions that are written across this character's visage:

Gorgeous stuff, as always, and something that could certainly warrant a deeper examination. But for now, it's enough for me to note that it's amazing work and a reminder why I love this series so much. Next issue, please.

Bonus: did anybody else note the appearance by 30 Rock's Scott Adsit?

He even got mentioned by name!

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Per FTC regulations: some of these reviews were based on complimentary copies provided by the publishers, either electronic or hard copy. But I won't reveal which, lest it damage my precious critical credibility.

Far Arden: Not too far, thankfully

Elsewhere: I reviewed The Marvels Project #1 at Comics Bulletin. Ed Brubaker! Nostalgia? Decent comics?

Links: I might have to go to this horror-themed gallery show the next time I'm in Portland. Tom Neely (recreating classic horror comics covers) and Hellen Jo (drawing freaky Asian ghosts and monsters) have some images of their included works.

David Brothers posted the anime version of Osamu Tezuka's "The Greatest Robot in the World", the story that Naoki Urasawa's Pluto is based on. I still haven't read the original manga story, but this looks like a good, free alternative.

I was going to talk about stuff I got at Wizard Chicago, but this has to go back to the library, so I gotta write about it:

Far Arden

By Kevin Cannon

Wow, now this was a treat. With this thick little brick of a book, Kevin Cannon has seemingly come out of nowhere and leapt into the ranks of young creators to keep an eye on. Sure, he was around already, collaborating with his not-brother Zander and Jim Ottaviani on various educational comics, but here he steps out on his own, and does it assuredly, demonstrating a great grasp of character and a talent for fast-moving, exciting, funny storytelling. Who knew he had it in him?

In Far Arden (which originally started as a dare, with Cannon attempting to complete one 24-hour comic chapter each month for a year, but that only lasted for four chapters), Cannon builds a wonderfully-detailed world in the North Canadian Arctic, populating it with explorers and fishermen, not to mention a traveling circus and a university. Our hero, the grizzled old sailor Army Shanks, gets drawn into a crazy adventure when he attempts to steal back his ship, the Areopagitica, from some enemies, and use it to finally set out to reach the fabled lost island of the title, which is supposed to be a tropical paradise heated by volcanic vents. Along the way, he ends up taking on an orphan sidekick, reuniting with an old flame, recalling friendships that had fallen by the wayside, getting involved in politics, and both alienating allies and finally attaining long-held goals. That might seem like a lot to fit into one book, but it's all in there and more, and it's a delight to be along for the ride.

As with so many enjoyable works of fiction, the real power here is not in the wild action or goofy jokes, but the characterization. A deep cast of characters (just look at that packed cover!) springs up around Army pretty quickly, including an orphan who seems to randomly stumble into the story early on but turns out to be connected to several others, a couple of college students who might or might not have devious motives for tagging along, and a fractured group of Army's old pals, all of whom have some motive for finding Far Arden. They all get their moments to shine in the story, and we learn about their various backstories and connections, really bringing the fantastical world to life.

And that helps, because it's a pretty silly, unbelievable setting, with everything taking place far north of any realistically habitable land, plenty of silly feats of action, and a cartoony art style that exaggerates movements, giving characters elongated limbs and wacky, funny movements:

And hilariously descriptive sound effects:

Not to mention things like the way Army's pipe seems to float next to his head while he's smoking, or the manga-style streams of tears that often flow down characters' faces. It all makes for a rollicking good time, and Cannon's funny dialogue and great sense of timing turns it all into a great ride. And the art style, which has a good, textured use of dense cross-hatched shading, works wonderfully to bring the barren land- and seascape to life, often leading to some nicely wistful images:

But the fascinating thing is the way the goofy adventure gradually morphs into something more serious, a meditation on friendships that grow apart and turn against each other as time goes on, on the way that people can drift apart and end up at odds with those they once cared about, on how romantic relationships can cause other relationships to suffer. Distant, probably hopeless dreams can provide sustenance for a time, but when one becomes obsessive, it can lead to tragedy and alienation, turning the pursuit of happiness into something that obliterates the happiness that already exists. Heavy stuff? Probably more so than is in the actual book, but it's fascinating the way that Cannon takes what starts out as a goofy romp and weaves serious threads in until he gets to a devastatingly emotional conclusion.

And that's what makes this book so special. Cannon gives us an enjoyable good time, but sneaks in some weighty content in a way that readers don't see it coming. It's effective stuff, and an announcement of an exciting talent to the comics scene. It's enough to make one giddy at the prospects of what might come next, although as we've learned from Shanks, it's best to temper expectations and be happy what we have. And when what we have is this good, we shouldn't complain.

This week, I get a slight break, maybe

Elsewhere: I've got a review of Incarnate #1 up at Comics Bulletin. If you're wondering what that is, see below.

Missed it: This got lost in the SDCC shuffle for me, since I wasn't paying very close attention, but apparently Gerard Way and Becky Cloonan are doing a comic called Killjoys. Way talks about it here. I hope this is good, but since Umbrella Academy is pretty awesome, and I always love Cloonan's art, I expect it will be.

Mini-review: Ed Brubaker's Angel of Death is a pretty enjoyable little action movie, starring Zoe Bell as an assassin who sort of gets a conscience after receiving a grievous head injury (that's a pretty simplistic description). There's some nice fight scenes, and Bell is quite good, but the highlight is probably Brubaker's complex script that sees Bell's character getting tangled up with an extensive mafia hierarchy. Pretty cool, although it ends with a cliffhanger that sets up a sequel, which is good in an open-ended way but annoying in that it doesn't really seem like an ending. It was originally serialized online, but I don't think it's available anymore (here's the site, in case somebody wants to prove me wrong); now it's out on DVD. Check it out.

The last few weeks have been crazy, so this might be a Wednesday to slow down a tiny bit, or something. Of course, next weekend sees the Wizard Chicago Comicon, so that's going to keep me busy again (and have me spending money). Oy.

New comics this week (Wednesday, 8/5/09):

Absolution #1

Ah, Avatar. They used to be the transgressive comics company, telling stories with sex and gore that was so, so shocking (not really). Now, DC and Marvel are both equaling them in levels of nastiness, so what is Avatar supposed to do to compete? Tell a violent superhero story, of course? Since you can't find that anywhere else or anything. Christos N. Gage writes this one, which seems to be about a superhero who decides to get violent and murder criminals rather than arrest them. Wow, innovative. Hey, how many comics with a similar premise can we name? I'll kick it off with Black Summer and the obvious choice of the Punisher.

Agents of Atlas #9

Another issue of Jeff Parker's awesomeness, as the team confronts Jimmy Woo's ex, who is now also a rival to the throne of his empire. Art this time around is by Dan Panosian, who, from what I've seen, draws some kind of odd faces, but comes up with plenty of cool imagery. Man, I hope this book doesn't get cancelled.

All Winners Comics #1

Marvel's latest 70th anniversary thing, with a story by Karl Kesel and Steve Uy about all the golden age heroes teaming up, presumably to fight Hitler. Maybe fun? I dunno, these specials might be running out of steam.

Big Questions #12

Anders Nilsen's latest issue of his series that's apparently about birds exploring a plane wreck? I'm not sure, I haven't read any of it. Not that I don't want to, but at this point, I think I can wait for a collected version. I hope it doesn't take too long though, because I really want to read this.

Boys #33

Damn, I still gotta read that last trade. I think people are dying and shit in this current arc? I'm behind.

Chew #3

This book seems like the one that people are talking about, and from what I've seen, it looks really nice and is pretty fun. Seems like it's another one to catch up on at some point.

Dark Reign Zodiac #2

Oh man, here's probably the best thing to come out of Marvel's big event of the moment, with a totally balls-out nasty violent bit of nihilism from Joe Casey and Nathan Fox. Kick ass (and yes, it's much better than Kick-Ass).

Dead Run #3

Has anybody been following this zombie post-apocolypse thing from Boom!? I should give it a read and see what it's all about.

Destroyer #5

The gross Robert Kirkman Marvel MAX thing comes to a close, and it's enjoyable enough, but the series hit a high point around #3 and has kind of dropped off since then. It's still all right though; I should have a review up tomorrow at Comics Bulletin.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? #2

More Philip K. Dick text with pictures. I'm still not convinced it's better than just reading the book, but whatever.

Doom Patrol #1

DC is trying once again to relaunch this series, and who knows if it will work this time around (my money is on "probably not"). There's a decent creative team on board though, with Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire. Wait, those guys are only doing the Metal Men backup feature! Well, that should be a good read, at least. On the main book, we've got Giffen and Matthew Clark, whoever he is. Maybe it will still be all right?

Ghost Riders Heaven's on Fire #1

I'm not sure what's going on here; I guess this kicks off Jason Aaron's last story arc on Ghost Rider? But they're relaunching it as a miniseries? I dunno. I still haven't read the damn book, but I always hear that it's great. Maybe this will be worth a shot. More than one flaming motorcycle dude, big demon battles or something, Roland Boschi on art; yeah, it could be all right.

Greek Street #2

Some people (like that asshole Tucker Stone) thought that the first issue of this Vertigo book was terrible and pretentious, but I read it and actually kind of liked it. Maybe I'm an easily-amused semi-intellectual who likes to play "Spot the Reference" (that explains why I like Fables, I guess), but it was interesting and bizarre, and I'm usually willing to give Peter Milligan the benefit of the doubt. I'll still wait for the trade though.

House of Mystery #16

More Vertigo stuff; like other books, I need to read the previous volume, dammit. I have no idea what's going on in this storyline, but Richard Corben draws this issue's guest story, so I'm all over it (when it gets collected).

Incarnate #1

I wouldn't normally bother to mention this sort of thing (unless I thought of a dumb joke or something), but I'm reviewing it for Comics Bulletin. It's one of those celebrity books, by Gene Simons' son Nick, and it's about immortal demon-gods preying on humanity in a manga style. Dumb? Kinda. You can read my thing for more; the link's up at the top of the post.

Invincible Iron Man #16

Matt Fraction keeps detailing Tony Stark's descent into drooling idiocy, and Salvador Larocca keeps tracing photos. I actually don't mind this book as of late.

Jersey Gods #6

This is another one that I need to catch up on; I considered buying the first trade last week, but decided I was spending too much already and had too damn many books sitting next to my bed unread. I'll try to get to it at some point though, since I do like what I saw of the Kirby-esque cosmic action. I hope it doesn't disappoint.

Luke Cage Noir #1

I haven't been following the Marvel noir comics at all, since I find the whole exercise to be kind of dumb, but this one might be worth a look in case it can manage to capture a Devil in a Blue Dress feel or something. Probably not very likely, but you never know when you might be surprised.

Tyrese Gibsons Mayhem #1 (of 3)

Oh lord, why would I bother to mention this. Celebrities, dabbling in comics! Annoying! I guess it's just to link to Brian Hibbs' recent column about dealing with Gibson and promoting the book, which I found quite interesting. The comic itself seems dumb though, just a generic vigilante superhero thing. Avoid, says I!

Wednesday Comics #5

Hey, I realized the one serial from this that I didn't mention last week: Sergeant Rock! What was I thinking? That one's been cool, mostly due to Joe Kubert's art. It'll be funny if it's just Rock getting the hell beat out of him for the entire series, and then getting rescued in the last installment. So yeah, this series is a fun read; I'm thinking my favorite is Kamandi, with the absolutely beautiful artwork. Strange Adventures is also damn good, as is Hawkman. I can probably just copy and paste those last two sentences each week for the rest of the run.

Witchfinder In the Service of Angels #2

Tucker seemed to hate this one too, so I bet I would like it. Mike Mignola writes another Hellboy-verse thing, and it's probably spooky and cool. I'll watch for the collection.

8-9-3 GN

This Xeric Grant-winning graphic novel by Jack Hsu is about a Yakuza assassin having action-packed adventures, and it looks like it could be pretty cool. He says he's influenced by stuff like Crying Freeman and John Woo movies in this interview (which also has some preview art), and that's not bad company to aspire to. Yeah, I could check it out.

Abstract Comics Anthology HC

Fantagraphics' newest anthology is a collection of, well, read the title. I saw the book at MoCCA, and it looked pretty nice, which was actually contrary to my expectations. It's definitely more of an art piece, but you can't really expect anything else, I guess. Still, it's fascinating to see what you can do with comics when you're dealing with non-representational, non-narrative imagery, stretching the limits of the medium. Give it a look, artsy-fartsy types! You can download an excerpt at Fanta's site.

Agents of Atlas Prem HC Dark Reign

I mentioned this series above, so now I'll pimp it again: this collects the first story arc, and it's really good comics. Read it! Except I would wait for a paperback version, since the hardcover really isn't all that necessary. But that's just me.

Complete Jack Survives HC

Buenaventura Press is releasing this collection of Jerry Moriarty's classic strip from Raw. It was apparently an attempt to connect with his father and write about the latter's life, and it's received quite a bit of acclaim. Chris Ware writes the introduction to this volume. Seems like one of those "important" reprints that everyone should read; I imagine I'll glance at it in a year or two.

Death of the New Gods TPB

So, by all accounts, this was pretty fucking awful. I think it was supposed to be a sort of prequel to Grant Morrison's Final Crisis, but if anything, it served to make people leery of anything having to do with the New Gods. Did anybody read it? Can anybody tell me what actually happened? I think I glanced at an issue or two out of curiosity, and it seemed to have nothing to do with Final Crisis; the Infinity Man was killing Metron or something, and I guess the Source had taken on a body and was killing other people, and it didn't make any sense, and Superman was crying. Wow, it's total train wreck awfulness. So yeah, don't buy it, but if somebody wants to tell me all about it, feel free.

Edgar Allan Poe's Tales Of Death And Dementia TP

Simon & Schuster are putting out this kid-targeted adaptation of some of Poe's stories by Chris Grimly. I don't know how well Poe works in comics form, but this could still be kind of cool.

Warren Ellis' Frankenstein's Womb GN

The latest graphic novel in Warren Ellis' Apparat sub-imprint, this seems to be a bit of historical fiction about Mary Shelley traveling to Frankenstein's castle and getting the inspiration for her famous novel. I've really dug the other books of this sort that Ellis wrote, so this should be another good one, I expect. Art is by Marek Oleksicki; Avatar always seems to get those foreign guys to draw their books, don't they?

Gigantic Robot HC

Also from Buenaventura, this new Tom Gauld book looks pretty amazing, as anyone who has seen any of his art would expect. I guess it was on display at MoCCA, but I missed it. It's kind of expensive, being only 32 pages for $17, but it's really large with board book pages and features some stunning artwork, so maybe it's worth it. You can see some preview pages here.

Gwaii SC

Arcana is publishing this kiddie comic about a young sasquatch having adventures or something. Looks like it could be kinda cute. Maybe.

Irredeemable Vol 1 TP

Hey, this is another example of those violent superhero books I was talking about above. Being Mark Waid's over-hyped series about (basically) Superman going evil, it got a bit of flack when the first issue debuted, but it's turned out to be a decent story about people not being sure what to do when the most powerful superhero on earth decides to just randomly start killing people and shit. Sometimes effective and scary, other times kind of dumb, but not terrible or anything. So here's the first volume if you want to get on board.

Locas HC Vol 2

Oh man, it's another huge collection of Jaime Hernandez's amazing stories from Love and Rockets. I'm not sure if this collects the entire second volume's worth of work or not, but it does include Ghost of Hoppers and The Education of Hopey Glass. I'm torn as to whether I should get this or wait for the softcover collections that will surely follow, but I do definitely plan to own these stories in some form or another. Greatness. Here's where you can download an excerpt, if you need persuasion.

Magic Pickle And The Garden Of Evil TP

More kids' comics. Scott Morse has this new volume in his goofy series; I haven't read any of it, but I've heard that it's tons of fun. I'll have to check it out sometime.

Metal Men TPB

This is the softcover collection of the Duncan Rouleau written-and-drawn miniseries from a year or two ago. I was interested in it at the time, but I never did get around to reading it. Maybe this is my chance, but since I've kind of lost the will, I might look for it at the library or something rather than buy it. Take that, DC!

MMW Golden Age Young Allies HC Vol 1

Do people buy these pricey collections of old Marvel comics? I am kind of interested in reading some of the golden age stuff, but there's no way I'll spend a ton for these sorts of things. Might be fun reading though. There's a recommendation for you.

Pax Romana Volume 1 TPB

Jonathan Hickman! I really liked this series about dudes going back in time and fucking around with the Roman Empire. It's the kind of thing that I hope Hickman can still find time to do now that he's doing a lot of work for Marvel. The "volume 1" indicates a follow-up; make it happen, Hickman!

Rose GN Graphix Ed

Didn't this come out last week? Did I even mention it? Eh, just in case, it's a sort of prequel to Bone written by Jeff Smith and illustrated by Charles Vess. It's pretty decent fantasy stuff, and it's also quite easy on the eyes. Not really necessary to the whole saga or anything though.

Spider-Man And The Human Torch HC

This is a fancy, overpriced collection of the miniseries that Dan Slott and Ty Templeton did a few years ago exploring the history of the two title characters. It's pretty good reading though, making for a fun look at their relationship and even being kind of touching at the end. Hmm, that sounds lame. Fine, don't buy it then.

Transmetropolitan Vol. 3 New Print TPB

The next volume of the current version of this series' collections, this one contains issues 13-18, the "Year of the Bastard" storyline. I thought these were going to be expanded or something, combining two volumes into one, but maybe I'm wrong. Anyway, I like this comic, but I haven't read all of it. I need to do so.

When We Fall GN

Wow, this looks like it could be incredibly, obnoxiously precious, but maybe also compelling and emotional? It's by somebody who calls himself "Mr. Clement", and it's about a rabbit who "travels through time to collect a spaceship filled with cookie crumbs of broken relationships". Yikes. It does look nice though, so maybe the "cute shit all about feelings" style won't drag it down. Or maybe I'm a cranky old bastard who has no room for emotions in his black heart, and this is actually a wrenching masterpiece or something. Take your pick.

Young Lovecraft GN

This is the first print volume of a Spanish webcomic about, obviously, a young H.P. Lovecraft and his humorous adventures. Sounds interesting, but if the sample given on the English translation of the website is any indication, it's not all that different from the usual American webcomics that are quippy and fairly dumb. Maybe it gets better?

Tezuka's Black Jack Vol 6 TP

Man, I'm behind on this series as well, and I love me some Tezuka. Awesome surgery and crazy shit; this series rocks. I'll have to try to catch up soon.

Shonen Jump Vol 7 #9 September 2009

And finally, it's the latest issue of the boys' manga, with lots of speed lines and sometimes-comprehensible action. I've read this one, and I might write about it if I get around to it in between all my Kirby obsessions and whatnot. I miss Shojo Beat.

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That appearst to be the extent of interesting releases, from where I'm sitting. Not much for me to buy, which is nice. I'm sure there will be more to come soon though.

Today's post of randomness

No big content to crow about here, just a collection of links and thoughts and whatnot:

Looks like Fantagraphics is running a weekly Blecky Yuckarella strip by Johnny Ryan. Fun!

I mentioned one or two things that were announced at NYCC that interested me, and it looks like there were several others of note, mostly gathered in this post at Robot 6. For one, Dark Horse's Noir anthology of crime comics looks really cool; it seems like crime comics are on the rise, and since that' a genre that I'm coming to enjoy quite a bit, that makes me happy. Announced creators on the series include Brian Azzarello, Ed Brubaker, Rick Geary, Jeff Lemire, Sean Phillips, Fabio Moon, Gabriel Ba, and several others. Coming this September. Awesome.

Also cool from Dark Horse: a miniseries by Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson called Beasts of Burden that functions as a sequel to their short stories in the Dark Horse Book Of... series. I think I've only read one of those, but I thought it was great and wanted to read more (did Dark Horse ever release a collection of just those stories? I thought they were going to), so this sounds pretty sweet. Here's an interview with Dorkin at CBR which contains some really nice-looking artwork. Man, I love Jill Thompson. Coming in August.

I'm not sure what to think about a new Alias miniseries from original creators Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos. That series is one that I love (although I should probably try to revisit it and see how well it holds up), but since it ended, Bendis seems to have done his best to destroy everything that made the Jessica Jones character interesting. Even the later issues of The Pulse, which also featured Gaydos on art, were agressively boring; I remember one that featured Jessica talking with Sue Storm about motherhood that nearly made me fall asleep. That, more than anything involving the Avengers or Houses of Ms or Secret Invasions, is where I started to sour on Bendis. I suppose he might have something interesting up his sleeve, but I kind of doubt this new thing will be much more than the usual "hang around with Luke Cage and discuss parenthood" story that Bendis seems to want to do with the character these days. Who knows, I'll see.

Oh, I should also mention that Viz is releasing Taiyo Matsumoto's GoGo Monster. And also Inio Asano's What a Wonderful World! Hells yeah.

And on a completely different note, I watched the movie adaptation of Wanted last night, and holy crap was it dumb. It made me long for the subtlety and nuance of Mark Millar's writing on the original series. And other than a few nifty visual ideas, it was pretty boring, filing all the rough edges off Millar's script to turn a misanthropic story about a world where supervillains won into a lame thing about assassins, because they are more likeable, I guess. James McAvoy was annoying (although I thought he did a pretty good American accent), and the plot was soooo stupid, basing itself on unbelievable convolutions of logic (so they turned him into a super-killer in order to get him to kill his father, and never expected that he might come back and use all his awesome powers on them?). Just...ugh. It did almost redeem itself at points through some cool visuals (I liked a shot in which we saw a train car fall down into a deep gorge and wedge itself between the walls, with the "camera" then swooping down until we could see the car from below; sure, it was all done in computers, but it was a nice bit of virtual camerawork) and ridiculous action ideas like guys shooting each other's bullets out of the air. And a lengthy bit in which McAvoy stormed through a factory shooting guys was pretty cool, even up through a bit in which he shot a guy in the eye, then stuck his gun in the eye-hole and kept shooting out the back of his head. That's the kind of over-the-top action I can get behind. But too much idiocy surrounded it, dragging the movie from "so bad it's good" to "just plain bad". Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Also: googling "Wesley Gibson" brings up no results? I could understand if his name was something made up, like Namchar Harkback, but isn't Wesley Gibson common enough of a name that something would pop up? That's the most unbelievable thing in the movie, which is saying something.

This week begins lateness season

Not that I really care, but last week's holiday apparently delayed the new comics releases until Thursday (that's why I'm not posting this until Tuesday, of course). Take that, addicts!

Oh, and check out my review of Criminal #7 over at Comics Bulletin. I love that series.

New comics this week (THURSDAY, 12/4/08):

Army@Love Art of War #5

I believe this is the final issue of Rick Veitch's sequel miniseries. Hopefully it will sell well enough to spawn more. I know I'll be picking up the collection.

Boys #25

Superhero decadence! X-Men spoofery! Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson! I wish I didn't have to wait to read this!

Charlatan Ball #5

Joe Casey continues his Kirby-inspired magic-based weirdness, with Andy Suriano illustrating. I dig this series quite a bit.

Criminal Vol 2 #7

The final issue of the current storyline, and the last one we'll see until Brubaker and Phillips return from doing Incognito, a supervillain-based series that debuts next month. I'll miss it; this is great comics. See the link above for my review.

Fight Or Run #1

People have been talking about this goofy video game-ish thing from Kevin Huizenga; I'll have to check it out if I see it. I kind of like Huizenga, but I certainly don't worship at his feet like most people seem to these days. This does seem like fun though.

Haunted Tank #1

A new Vertigo take on the longtime DC war comics property. This one sees some soldiers in Iraq get advice from the ghost of the Confederate general. Does hilarity ensue, or poignant violence? I dunno; it could go either way. There does seem to be an interesting racial theme, from the descriptions I've read. Frank Marraffino (who?) writes, and Henry Flint draws.

Hellboy The Wild Hunt #1

A new eight-issue miniseries from Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo. Will it be comprehensible? Or will it just look pretty? I'll find out when it's collected, I guess.

Marvels Eye of the Camera #1

Oh boy, it's a sequel to Marvels. Why? Only God and Joe Quesada know, I suppose. I've read this first issue, and man oh man am I not interested in this sort of thing. I was never that big of a fan of the original series, but I don't remember it being this tiresomely reverent toward all things superheroic. Or maybe that was why I didn't like it in the first place; I really don't care for that sort of over-serious examination of what it would be like to be a man on the street during the Silver Age. Can't we tell some real stories here, rather than constant rehashes of 40-year-old stuff written for kids? Ugh. Anyway, this seems to be less of a sequel than a story that takes place within the original series, examining the dawn of the Silver Age and what it was like to see the Fantastic Four and other superheroes first appear. Kurt Busiek writes, and Jay Anacleto tries to imitate Alex Ross. Enjoy, if you like that sort of thing, but really, isn't this the reason people call comics fans "babymen"?

Punisher Max X-Mas Special

It seems like there always has to be a Punisher Christmas special, for some reason. I guess people think it's hilarious to contrast the happy holiday with violence and gore. This one is written by Jason Aaron, with art by Roland Boschi (cover by Chris Bachalo!). Whee!

Sandman Dream Hunters #2

I still say the original illustrated story was fine, but I'll have to check this out at some point, simply because I dig P. Craig Russell. That's all.

Alex Toth Edge of Genius Vol 2

Hey, Alex Toth is pretty great, isn't he? I should read more of his stuff. Here's a collection, to aid in that discovery process.

Astonishing X-Men Vol 2 HC

The second half of the Joss Whedon/John Cassaday run on the series. Pretty good stuff, and it probably reads better collected than it did coming out ever-so-sloooowly. Check it out, especially if you were disappointed with the second storyline; it only gets better from there.

Cleburne GN

A Civil War-era graphic novel written by Justin Murphy, with art by Al Milgrom, involving a Confederate general who recruited slaves to fight for the South. Could be interesting. Here are some preview pages.

Creepy Archives Vol 2 HC

Classic stories from the revered horror anthology. I suppose I should try to read some of these one of these days.

Daredevil Miller Janson Vol 2 TPB

The second collection of Frank Miller's classic run on Daredevil. Pretty good stuff, for superhero adventuring. I guess I would recommend it if you haven't read it before, but I think Miller has done better.

Godland Vol. 4 TPB

Ooh, it's been too long since I've read this crazy Joe Casey/Tom Scioli bit of cosmic Jack Kirby-esque craziness. I think when I left off, the Triad (three aliens named Ed, Eeg-Oh, and Supra) were about to attack Las Vegas, Adam was locked out of Infinity Tower and about to battle a giant wasp monster, and his sister was off in space getting transformed into some kind of wacky energy being. Now I can see what happened next. Sweet!

Invincible Iron Man Vol 1 HC

I kind of liked this Matt Fraction/Salvador Larocca series when it started, but it has faded in my estimation since. I guess it's not awful, but I find myself wishing Fraction could be plying his awesomeness at something like Casanova rather than plugging away at superheroic status quo junk. Still, it's worth reading if you're into that sort of thing.

Spirit Vol 1 TPB

The first collection of Darwyn Cooke's run on the character, now in slightly cheaper softcover (it'll still cost you $20 though). Good stuff here; check it out if you're annoyed by Frank Miller's Sin City-lite movie version of Will Eisner's classic character.

Tale of Despereux Movie GN

I guess this is a new CGI-animated movie, about a big-eared, swashbuckling mouse? And here's the comics adaptation, by Matt Smith and David Tilton. I don't know which would be preferable.

Complete Terry And The Pirates Vol 5 1943-1944 HC

Milton Caniff is pretty awesome. I have the first volume of this series laying around; I should start reading it sometime.

Tiny Life GN

A weird-sounding book about a guy returning to his childhood home to discover himself, by Nick Jones. I could certainly take a look, even if Tim Callahan hated it.

War At Ellsmere TP

Faith Erin Hicks got some acclaim for her recent book Zombies Calling, and here's her follow-up, about mysterious supernatural happenings at a girls' boarding school. I never read the first book, but I wouldn't mind, and this one looks pretty good too. Maybe I'll get to it/them someday.

Wasteland Vol 3 Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos TPB

Aw, yeah, this series is really good. This volume mostly details the defense of the city of Newbegin against a Sandeater attack; it's pretty well done, with some excellent art by Christopher Mitten and continued good plotting by Antony Johnston. I wouldn't start reading the series here, but I'll definitely recommend it as part of the whole. Come on, post-apocalyptic awesomeness abounds in every issue! Don't miss out!

Aria Vol 4 GN Tokyopop Edition

Not too much on the manga front this week; mostly volumes of stuff that seem notable. For instance, it's another volume in that Martian gondolier series that I want to read someday. Ah, someday; when I get there, all will be well.

Legend Of Zelda Ocarina Of Time Part 2 GN

So how did this series turn out? I dig the Zelda games, so I could see myself reading a manga version of the story. Here's volume 2.

St Dragon Girl Vol 1 TP

I just reviewed this one, about a martial-arts-rocking girl and her magician sort-of-boyfriend. It's not bad.

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And that's pretty much it. More content this week, I assume. If I get to it. Ah, laziness, how I embrace you.

The Black Diamond: Bypassing everything else out there

In case I don't get around to mentioning it, some movies I saw recently: Burn After Reading is pretty entertaining, if not anywhere near the Coen brothers' best work. I did like the oddly distancing stylistic techniques, like the bombastic score that made it sound like everything was important and world-shaking, when in actuality it was pointless nonsense. Good times, even if it's not going to be winning any Oscars.

On the other hand, The Visitor might be my favorite movie of the year, with an affecting story of personal connection among unlikely people, and a heartbreaking examination of the effects of the U.S. immigration policy. Damn good movie; check it out if you get the chance.

Also, I've got a review of Criminal volume 2 #6 over at Comics Bulletin. That's a good series.

And to business:

The Black Diamond: Get in the Car and Go

Written by Larry Young

Art by Jon Proctor

Damn that Graeme McMillan. His introduction to the collected version of The Black Diamond is so insightful, any attempt at critical analysis that I attempt could invite charges of plagiarism. It's a nice bit of preparation for the book, going over a lot of the themes and ideas, but not going too over the top with the praise. That's why he makes the big bucks, I guess.

But it helps to have somebody like McMillan to splash some water on you before you jump into the pool, because simply reading the back-cover summary won't prepare you for the story within. Larry Young seems to promise a "love-letter to the 1970s drive-in movie", but he delivers something much stranger, more of an examination of storytelling, full of misdirection as to where the plot is headed and what it's really all about.

But that main high-concept is a good one: 50 years in the future, the air travel industry has collapsed, and it has been replaced in the United States by the eponymous elevated intercontinental highway where miscreants and nonconformists can live away from the regular Joe Sixpacks. Dentist (orthodontist?) Don McLaughlin's wife is the daughter of the Black Diamond's designer, and when she is kidnapped from a conference in Baltimore, he has to race across the country from his home in San Francisco to save her. That's a great plot-starter, and while it's not like Young doesn't deliver some thrills related to "Doctor Don"'s quest, he also spends entire chapters ignoring it while characters have conversations that only occasionally involve the plot. It could be called Tarantino-esque, especially since the dialogue is quite mannered and not at all "realistic" (not that that's a problem; Young can write some pretty entertaining backs-and-forths), but this even takes a step beyond the film auteur's stylish postmodern revamping of old genres; these characters don't just discuss pop culture, but the mechanics of storytelling itself.

There's also the gradual encroachment of a larger conflict, as the government decides to end the lawlessness of the Black Diamond, sending the army to clean things up. This provides some interesting commentary about global politics and the U.S.'s reliance on oil (a fanciful notion; we're supposed to believe there will be any left in 50 years?), but it ends up providing an odd separate narrative that frankly isn't as interesting as the main one. And even that main "gotta save my wife" quest, which does have some great moments (see below), ends kind of abruptly. Overall, the story doesn't take as much of a narrative arc as a rising curve that just kind of stops. It's definitely an odd duck of a story, and while Young does acknowledge it with his "meta" ending (which even goes so far as to step out of the story and provide script excerpts and a sort of author insertion via captions, it's still kind of unsatisfying.

Or is it? As mentioned, Young is definitely participating in some misdirection, and he seems to delight in confounding expectations. He's busy describing the rules of how stories work, so why not blatantly break those rules? Whether this bothers you enough to be a dealbreaker probably depends on how adventurous you are in what you like to read, or at least what sort of tolerance you have for Young's shenanigans.

And of course, you might or might not like Jon Proctor's art, which has its own stylized appeal (or lack thereof). The character work in early chapters could charitably be described as awkward:

But he does noticeably improve on that front as the story progresses (even if we still occasionally have trouble telling characters apart). And even at those opening stages, the real appeal of his artwork begins to shine through: the dynamic design sense. The sleek lines of cool cars and the long stretches of roadways make for some excellent page design:

And his thick, ragged brush strokes provide some wild rubble and explosions, along with some expressive sound effects:

As the book progresses, Proctor's designs get more and more out there, eventually leading to crazy art-deco panel layouts filled with eye-searing washes of fluorescent color:

And in the finale, he turns the army's presence into repetetive, iconic imagery that calls to mind Soviet propaganda:

It's striking stuff, and a large part of the appeal of the book. Young's storytelling has a freewheeling quality that might lose the reader at times, but the book is rarely boring to look at.

Overall, I don't know if I could recommend this unreservedly; it's too quirky and strange for somebody expecting a bunch of car chases or something. But if you're willing to open your mind a bit and try to let Young's weird energy in, it's incredibly enjoyable, and unique enough of an experience to be pretty noteworthy. If that sounds like your kind of thing, well, you've probably already read it, but if you haven't, do check it out.

This review was based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher.

New comics, and ponderings about my buying habits

I think I'm getting to the point where I wonder if many of the comics I buy are worth the money I spend on them. Sure, there are some that are totally worth every penny, but there are plenty that leave me wondering why I bothered. I think I've reached the point where I'm going to attempt to dial back my weekly spending and focus on trades, collections, graphic novels, manga, etc. So I think I'll look at each book this week and decide if I want to keep buying the series, or if I want to wait for the trade (or drop it altogether). Off we go:

The Boys #8
Written by Garth Ennis
Art by Darick Robertson



This series seems to be plugging along regularly, making fun of superheroes and throwing in lots of gross-out humor and profanities. This story arc seems to be slightly different than the previous one (at least so far), as Hughie and Butcher investigate the death of a young gay man with links to the superhero Swingwing, a parallel to Nightwing. Meanwhile, Tek Knight, the Batman analogue, is having more sexual problems. Maybe this will lead to another big brawl, but for right now the story is focusing on exploring the sexual issues of this world and developing the characters. There's an amusing bit where Hughie objects to Butcher using terms like "poof", but then he is afraid to go into a gay bar and interact with actual homosexuals. It's enjoyable enough, and I'm sure hilarity will ensue in the future. (EDIT: After reading Alan David Doane's comment on this review, I realize that my wording makes it sound like the little character bit between Butcher and Hughie is amusing and a setup for future hilarity. I actually was referring to the issue as a whole with the last sentence there, and I agree with Alan that it was a good character moment that brought some unexpected depth to the characters in a book that seems to be mostly focused on superhero satire. That's what I get for rushing through this without thinking it over or proofreading).

Should I keep buying it? Certainly.
Monthly issues or trades? I'll have to decide after this arc is over.
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Criminal #7
Written by Ed Brubaker
Art by Sean Phillips



The arc continues to plug along, with exciting developments for Tracy Lawless as he infiltrates his brother's former gang in an attempt to find his killer while they perform a heist. Brubaker writes some great crime fiction, and this chapter is excellent, as the gang performs the first part of the job, which involves breaking a guy out of prison who has the plans for the second part of the job. Very exciting. Plus, we learn how this story is connected to the first story arc when Tracy visits Leo in prison in order to get a reference on his criminal resume. I can't wait to see where this goes.

As for Phillips' art, I've said before that I wish he would stick to this sort of thing and stay away from the superhero/zombie stuff that he sometimes does. His style suits this sort of story perfectly, with lots of moody shadows and atmospheric details (although he hates drawing buildings and cars, according to Brubaker's afterword; that was amusing, because this issue contains a lot of those). One thing I noticed in this issue was how well he draws women's faces, differentiating them from his men's faces, which usually have sharp corners and rough lines:



Instead, the women's faces have smooth curves and sharp lines:



Nicely done.

Should I keep buying it? Definitely.
Monthly issues or trades? I like the "backmatter" text pieces that various authors contribute about noir films, and I don't think those are included in the trades, so I'll stay with the monthly issues.
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Hellboy: Darkness Calls #3 (of 6)
Written by Mike Mignola
Art by Duncan Fegredo



This series is tons of fun, even if I'm still having trouble following the plot. Not that it's too convoluted or anything, but I'm just not familiar enough with Hellboy's history. This issue, he fights an army of corpses mustered by his old enemy (I think) Baba Yaga:



He even gets to do the old gag where a bunch of bad guys pile on top of him and he crawls out from under the pile and runs away. That's a classic. He also gets some help from giant wolves:



Man, Fegredo is really knocking the art out of the park here, cramming an insane level of detail into the panels while still keeping close to Mignola's signature style. Wow. In future issues, it looks like Hellboy will have to face a creepy guy named Koshchei the Deathless, along with Baba Yaga herself, I assume. Lots of crazy stuff is going on here, and I can't wait to see what's coming next. Here's my pull quote:

"Hellboy: it's the book to read if you want corpse-kicking action!"



Should I keep buying it? Yes!
Monthly issues or trades? I'll finish out this miniseries in monthly format, but I figure I'll buy trades for any future (or past) stories.
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The Immortal Iron Fist #6
Written by Matt Fraction and Ed Brubaker
Art by David Aja and Russ Heath



Holy crap, this is an awesome book. We get the big showdown between Iron Fist(s) and Steel Serpent, along with Hydra's armies and the Heroes for Hire gang (that is, Luke Cage, Misty Knight, and Colleen Wing). Sweet! Tons of cool stuff, like Luke celebrating the team-up:



Colleen cracking wise while diving down an elevator shaft:



Misty yelling "Aww, yeah!" while blowing away Hydra agents (no picture for that one, but just imagine it), and some kick-ass kung-fu poses:



And lots more! Next storyline, Danny travels to some mystic dimension to represent K'un L'un in the tournament of the Seven Cities of Heaven. Sweet. It's an awesome, awesome book, and I can't get enough of it.

Should I keep buying it? Of course!
Monthly issues or trades? I'm thinking I'll switch to trades, although I'm going to have to figure out if next month's issue spotlighting the story of a past Iron Fist, the Pirate Queen of Pinghai Bay, is going to be included in the first trade or the second. Okay, I looked it up on Marvel's site, and it says volume 1 contains issues #1-6, so I think I'll be dropping this one to wait for future collections.
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Jack of Fables #12
Written by Bill Willingham and Matthew Sturges
Art by Tony Akins and Andrew Pepoy



As somebody who is intimately acquainted with the creators of this book, I think my opinion has a lot of weight when I say it is awesome. The current storyline is called "The Bad Prince", which is a good counterpoint to the storyline running in the sister book Fables, called "The Good Prince". I'm not sure what poor nobility has to do with the story so far though, other than Jack stating that he was once a prince for two days. The rest of the issue deals with his recapture by Priscilla Page and the circumstances of his (probable) escape. I won't spoil them, but I will say that there is a hilarious running gag in which Jack alternates between telling us via caption the good news and the bad news of his circumstances. We also get some hints about the larger running storyline, such as Jack's connection to Wicked John and what's going on back at Golden Boughs. And one crazy-ass final page. I don't know what's going to happen next, but I'll be reading it.

Should I keep buying it? Yes. This is getting monotonous, isn't it?
Monthly issues or trades? Hmmmm. I'll have to decide as I read this storyline. I'm enjoying it monthly, but there's really no reason not to wait and read stories all in one chunk.
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Marvel Adventures: Avengers #14
Written by Jeff Parker
Art by Leonard Kirk



Well, this book is pretty fun, but I'm starting to wonder if it's worth my money. This issue, the team gets pulled back in time (or to an alternate universe, maybe) to help some villagers that are regularly robbed by bandits. If the story seems familiar, you might have watched The Seven Samurai at some point. Or The Magnificent Seven. Or some other variation on the tale.
It's still a pretty fun take on it though, with the team changing their uniforms to fit the period, training the villagers in ways to fight (Hulk's training is the best):



And appointing Wolverine as leader for the mission:



It's very enjoyable, but it's just so lightweight, I don't think I can justify spending three dollars a month on it. Especially since I'm getting more and more sick of superheroes lately; I'm figuring I'll drop pretty much anything that I don't really like.

Should I keep buying it? Unfortunately, no.
Monthly issues or trades? Since it is a fun book, and I do like Jeff Parker, I suppose I could pick up one or more of the digest collections sometime.
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The Nightly News #6 (of 6)
By Jonathan Hickman



Well, the series wraps up in explosive fashion, with some change apparently being effected. Was all the violence worth it? Surprisingly, Hickman seems to be saying it was, but I'm not sure. It's been a subversive series all along, with readers seemingly encouraged to cheer as the evil media spokesmen were being murdered, but there were also some hints that the group behind the murders were an unthinking cult just following orders, and that's not any better than listening to a profit-obsessed media. But with the revelation of the cult's mastermind, Hickman seems to be celebrating the murder spree they went on, even hinting at a sequel aimed at another evil group of people. I'm not sure what to make of it, but I did find the story quite enjoyable.

And the art was also pretty damn cool, revealing an incredible design sense and an intention to push the limits of what comics can look like. Great stuff, and I think Hickman will be a major talent. At the end of the book, he announces two upcoming miniseries that will be appearing soon: Pax Romana (written and illustrated by Hickman) and Red Mass For Mars (written by Hickman, illustrated by Ryan Bodenheim). Plus, two more coming in 2008: Transhuman (written by Hickman, art by J.M. Ringuet) and The Return (written and illustrated by Hickman). Unless Hickman does something to really turn me off, I'm sure I'll be reading all of those.

Should I keep buying it? Um, the series is over.
Monthly issues or trades? Well, for future miniseries, I might consider waiting for the trades, but I might want to buy the monthly issues to support Hickman. We'll see.
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White Picket Fences #2 (of 3)
Written by Matt Anderson and Eric Hutchins
Art by Micah Farritor



I kind of liked the first issue of this miniseries, but this one doesn't really do anything interesting. We get some more scenes of the kids and their antics, more scenes of neighborly competition, and some backstory that was probably already obvious. There's a decent scene in which the general negotiates with a Martian ambassador, but it's nothing amazing. And it seems the whole thing can be resolved if Charlie (the kid) returns the laser trigger to the army, and even though he knows this, he can't figure out what to do. I'm sure there will be some exciting stuff of some sort in the final issue, but I'm not really stoked about it.

And the art started really bugging me, with characters' heads often seeming too large for their bodies, the kids looking like adults in some panels, and a freaky shot of Charlie's mom in which she seems to be related to Plastic Man:



So, I don't think I'll bother getting the final issue of this. Too bad; it had potential.

Should I keep buying it? Nope!
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X-Men: First Class #1
Written by Jeff Parker
Art by Roger Cruz



I figured I would give this a shot after enjoying the recent special, and it's really pretty good. I've never really liked Roger Cruz's art since I first encountered him as a fill-in artist for Chris Bachalo on Generation X, but he's really improved; his art is actually quite good and suits the style of this book excellently. This issue is about Jean Grey spending some time with the Invisible Woman in order to see a fellow female superhero at work and get some motherly advice and stuff. It's a lot of fun, with lots of hugs and hero worship, amid fights with the likes of the Mad Thinker and his Awesome Android. But then the rest of the X-Men freak out and think she's leaving the team to join the Fantastic Four, so they go to beg her to come back, just in time to join her for the fight. It's a really fun book, with lots of good details, like Jean using hairbrushes telekinetically while putting on makeup, or Johnny Storm putting the moves on Jean, much to Scott's chagrin. This is the kind of book that Jeff Parker is great at writing, filling the issue with character details while still throwing in lots of action. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be following it. It's a good book, probably one of the best things Marvel is publishing right now, but like MA: Avengers, it's just kind of lightweight, and I don't think I want to spend three dollars a month to read it. I'll still recommend it to anybody looking for a good superhero comic though.

Should I keep buying it? Unfortunately, no. Sorry, Parker!
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So that's it for this week. I'll have to continue this examination of what to continue buying and what to drop or wait for the trade. Just for fun, I'll try to list off the top of my head what I should keep reading in single issues and what to switch to trades for.

Read monthly:

All-Star Superman
Batman (if I keep reading it)
Y: The Last Man (It's almost finished)
Local
Madman Atomic Comics
Criminal
Casanova
Runaways (for now)
Astonishing X-Men (it's almost over)
Fell (for the backmatter)
The Goon

Wait for the trade:

Powers
Fables
100 Bullets
Jack of Fables (maybe)
The Boys (maybe)
Immortal Iron Fist
Newuniversal
Desolation Jones (after the current arc, if it ever continues to come out)

Not sure:

DMZ
Ex Machina
Godland
The Spirit

Okay, that's enough for now. I might update this list if I think of other series.