Finally, finally I get around to reviewing this! It’s been a busy few months for me, but now I finally have a new job (!!!) I should have lots more free time. So I reckon I will use it to blog.
What did I think of Wednesday Comics? Well, the Supergirl and Wonder Woman strips were far and away the best, I think.
I really enjoyed the layout, colours, lettering and dreamlike quality of WW. Not to mention that Etta Candy was fantastic and the portrayal of Diana herself excelled all expectations. Fans of the silver age Wondy should have loved this strip as so far as I can tell it’s got all the components of that era’s work.
As I’ve said in previous reviews, I loved the Supergirl strip. Amanda Connor and Jimmy Palmiotti did really really well. Connor’s simplistic art worked very effectively, (she draws very good cats) and with only a few lines she creates a wonderful sense of mood. As to the last strip, I thought it very dull and a bit of a let down until I got to the twist. This is a somewhat overused twist but it worked and left us with a feeling of fun. Great stuff. I also feel somewhat vindicated over my love of Kara, in that she got headline status on the last issue.
Honourable mention goes to the Hawkman strip, which has to be the manliest thing I’ve read this year, and possibly the manliest thing I’ve ever read. He taunts a T-rex then takes it on single-handedly. He nearly yells that he’s the goddamn Hawkman. He dives into the mouth of the aforementioned T-Rex and cuts his way to the reptile’s brain with a handy knife he had stashed away, in order to kill it.
Now if you’ve ever read anything more manly I’d like to know!
So, apart from Supergirl, Wonder Woman and Hawkman I wasn’t really impressed with Wednesday Comics. I won’t be buying the hardcover, and until they reprint the 3 strips I do like in a cheaper and more collectible format, I think I shall be sticking with the weeklies. This is unfortunate, as I have a space problem.
Showing posts with label wednesday comics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wednesday comics. Show all posts
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Super reviews
Told ya I bought a lot this week. After this post there's one more to come, which will cover GA/BC, Booster Gold and Red Robin. this post features spoilers for Adventure Comics #1/504, Action Comics #890, Superman Secret Files 2009 and Wednesday Comics #6.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Adventure Comics #1/504 Pretty pretty pretty. Oh the skies. All pinks and golds and blues and greens. Oh I haven't seen art this pretty in quite a while. The colourist is named Brian Buccellato. Give the man an award. is this what the skies are really in (the west of?) America? I live in a pretty pretty county, which I name the flatlands, and if I ever got out into the countryside for a sunset I think we'd have skies like this. But not as expansive. One day I'm gonna get to America for a couple of months and do a road trip across the South and the West.
In this issue we see Connor re adjusting to Smallville life. He's grown up so much in the past few years and is now trying to reconcile the Superman part of him with the Luthor part of him. Krypto steals his thunder and rescues the girl, eliciting cries of the cuteness of the cape. Ugh, I know women like that, I am not one of them. Bart is incredibly hyperactive. More so than usual I thought - he seems rather young in this, but maybe he's just very happy to all his friends to be back.
The Legion of Superheroes backup caught my attention. I maintain they've all got stupid names but this was interesting. This Starman character seems a bit mad, or at the very least clueless about 12st century life. I read somewhere that he's meant to have schizophrenia. Well i'm pretty certain that that my friends, is not an accurate depiction of someone with schizophrenia.
It looks like the main and the backup stories will interlink, which is good. I'll stick with Adventure Comics for as long as they have Superboy as the lead and they stick with this art team.
Action Comics #890
Oh my, right back in the action. After last months poor performance this issue is back on form and completely action packed (pardon the pun).
We get to see a lot of what the average joe in the DCU thinks of Kryptonians, Kal and Kara come to earth chasing Ral-Dar and along with Mon-El save a bunch of pilots. Nightwing and Flamebird get treated like celebrities and Thara gets jealous. Christopher acts rather young in this, which is fitting seeing as he has physically if not mentally or emotionally grown in a pretty short space of time. Lois and Clark have a gorgeous reunion and there are some further reveals about the rogue Kryptonians who Thara and Chris have been after (so did not see that coming!), and also about who is working with who.
Overall the art is good, some places it seems average, other places, like with Lois and Clark's reunion and Chris and Thara's fight it is very effective.
I still don't care about Captain Atom but I am definitely gonna keep this book on the pull list.
Superman Secret Files 2009
I ummed and ahhed about whether it was worth getting this book and in the end i'm glad I did. It's got a lot of character backstory which was helpful for finding out about Non, what Kara's current history is and how Argo City/Kandor/Brainiac and the destruction of Kryption fit in. I am not so fussed about the maps of New Krypton or Kandor, but I know that will please a lot of other people.
As for the stories, Ursa's one was vaguely interesting, I suspect i'm not overwhelmed because I don't care much either way for the character. There is certainly nothing wrong with the story. Mon-El's story was delightful - it followed him and his partner on an average day/week in the SP. I like Mon but I don't like his short haircut. I don't like him enough to follow him into the pages of the new JLA but I am tickled by the idea of SuperMon.
The Kara/Thara story was fantastic. I loved young Kara's clothes! Very Linda Danvers (my avatar) esque:
She also has little blue shorts and calf high red boots on. (Picture stolen from Anj).
In the funeral scene Kara was wearing a black version of her uniform - harking back to one of the Kelly (?) issues where she's wearing Connor's shirt, saves a kid from a bus and the kid mentions that Supergirl shouldn't wear black, it's too dark. Well, black is certainly appropriate for the funeral. Interesting that Alura was in red and white though.
I'm always interested in religious stories in comics so seeing young Thara was a delight. Mischievous young Kara resetting the nanny bot was fun.
All in all a pretty excellent issue.
Wednesday Comics #6
Kara takes the super pets to a yuppie Aquaman and Streaky plants sea urchins on her. :D One thing I haven't mention about Connnor's art is that I really admire the way Krypto is recognisabley the same dog breed as the Krypto in the main Super titles. I know jack all about drawing, but it seems to me Connor have quite a simple style, yet it's very very effective.
The Superman stip was all of 5 panels and didn't really do much. I haven't read any of the others and right now am not particularly bothered about the rest, with the exception of the Wondy strip.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Adventure Comics #1/504 Pretty pretty pretty. Oh the skies. All pinks and golds and blues and greens. Oh I haven't seen art this pretty in quite a while. The colourist is named Brian Buccellato. Give the man an award. is this what the skies are really in (the west of?) America? I live in a pretty pretty county, which I name the flatlands, and if I ever got out into the countryside for a sunset I think we'd have skies like this. But not as expansive. One day I'm gonna get to America for a couple of months and do a road trip across the South and the West.
In this issue we see Connor re adjusting to Smallville life. He's grown up so much in the past few years and is now trying to reconcile the Superman part of him with the Luthor part of him. Krypto steals his thunder and rescues the girl, eliciting cries of the cuteness of the cape. Ugh, I know women like that, I am not one of them. Bart is incredibly hyperactive. More so than usual I thought - he seems rather young in this, but maybe he's just very happy to all his friends to be back.
The Legion of Superheroes backup caught my attention. I maintain they've all got stupid names but this was interesting. This Starman character seems a bit mad, or at the very least clueless about 12st century life. I read somewhere that he's meant to have schizophrenia. Well i'm pretty certain that that my friends, is not an accurate depiction of someone with schizophrenia.
It looks like the main and the backup stories will interlink, which is good. I'll stick with Adventure Comics for as long as they have Superboy as the lead and they stick with this art team.
Action Comics #890
Oh my, right back in the action. After last months poor performance this issue is back on form and completely action packed (pardon the pun).
We get to see a lot of what the average joe in the DCU thinks of Kryptonians, Kal and Kara come to earth chasing Ral-Dar and along with Mon-El save a bunch of pilots. Nightwing and Flamebird get treated like celebrities and Thara gets jealous. Christopher acts rather young in this, which is fitting seeing as he has physically if not mentally or emotionally grown in a pretty short space of time. Lois and Clark have a gorgeous reunion and there are some further reveals about the rogue Kryptonians who Thara and Chris have been after (so did not see that coming!), and also about who is working with who.
Overall the art is good, some places it seems average, other places, like with Lois and Clark's reunion and Chris and Thara's fight it is very effective.
I still don't care about Captain Atom but I am definitely gonna keep this book on the pull list.
Superman Secret Files 2009
I ummed and ahhed about whether it was worth getting this book and in the end i'm glad I did. It's got a lot of character backstory which was helpful for finding out about Non, what Kara's current history is and how Argo City/Kandor/Brainiac and the destruction of Kryption fit in. I am not so fussed about the maps of New Krypton or Kandor, but I know that will please a lot of other people.
As for the stories, Ursa's one was vaguely interesting, I suspect i'm not overwhelmed because I don't care much either way for the character. There is certainly nothing wrong with the story. Mon-El's story was delightful - it followed him and his partner on an average day/week in the SP. I like Mon but I don't like his short haircut. I don't like him enough to follow him into the pages of the new JLA but I am tickled by the idea of SuperMon.
The Kara/Thara story was fantastic. I loved young Kara's clothes! Very Linda Danvers (my avatar) esque:
She also has little blue shorts and calf high red boots on. (Picture stolen from Anj).
In the funeral scene Kara was wearing a black version of her uniform - harking back to one of the Kelly (?) issues where she's wearing Connor's shirt, saves a kid from a bus and the kid mentions that Supergirl shouldn't wear black, it's too dark. Well, black is certainly appropriate for the funeral. Interesting that Alura was in red and white though.
I'm always interested in religious stories in comics so seeing young Thara was a delight. Mischievous young Kara resetting the nanny bot was fun.
All in all a pretty excellent issue.
Wednesday Comics #6
Kara takes the super pets to a yuppie Aquaman and Streaky plants sea urchins on her. :D One thing I haven't mention about Connnor's art is that I really admire the way Krypto is recognisabley the same dog breed as the Krypto in the main Super titles. I know jack all about drawing, but it seems to me Connor have quite a simple style, yet it's very very effective.
The Superman stip was all of 5 panels and didn't really do much. I haven't read any of the others and right now am not particularly bothered about the rest, with the exception of the Wondy strip.
Friday, August 07, 2009
All in all, A Much Better Week
Far superior to last week.
Spoilers ahead for Superman: World of New Krypton #6, Wednesday Comics # 5, Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps #2 and 3, Buffy #27
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The winner by far this week was Superman: World of New Krypton #6.
I am loving this series. Instead of doing a general review I want to focus on Kara's costume, specifically her cape.
We start off with the tried and tested version, gold trimmed, tucked in around her neckline:
Then we get a different version, all high necked and, well, just take a peek:
Doesn't she resemble Alura there? In both the top and bottom left panel their costumes and stance fit together really well, you can see the familial relationship. I really love how they've done this. Now Kara has moved back to Krypton and has resolved to join the science guild in order to get to know her mother better, it's wonderful to see her posture and body language mirroring Alura's. Kara looks like she's got her mother's back and it also appears like they are nearly at an equal level in Krypton and the family heirarchy.
What is odd is that later Kara is drawn with a different neckline to her cape:
It's no longer covering her neck and is instead tucked into her top. I prefer the high necked version. It looks more regal, which befits a girl trained by Amazons and the daughter of Krypton's ruler. It's also distinctive. If I could influence the artists I would request the high necked version be made a permanent addition.
This book is superb. It has me engaged with the Codename: Patriot storyline. That's high praise from me.
Wednesday Comics # 5
Amanda Connor clearly knows cats because she's got the characteristics down pat.
Diana discovers her tiara.
Clark wonders where he came from.
Everything else I'd be happy to ignore.
Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps #2 and 3
I got fed up of waiting for #1 to come in and read #'s 2 and 3. Boy am I glad I did! These rock. A great introduction to the different corps. Tales of the Star Sapphires was the best in issue #2 - it was done in what i guess you'd call a pink wash. Really effective. Carol Ferris was very real in it.
Lady Bleez in the Red Lantern story seems to have mutated into a version of Harley Quinn. Odd. Gratifying to see once instance of a woman going bad and actually wearing more clothes when evil though. The Orange Corps story was ratehr desolate wasn't it?
As for issue #3, the Green Lantern Kilowog story was beautifully illustrated and a lovely insight into both GL and Kilowog's history.
Arisia's tale had lovely shades in the colours but I don't like the overall style. I was thankful for the Blackest Night #0 commentary as I haven't got this issue.
Buffy #27
Ugh, the art in this still sucks. But the issue itself was better than last month's. The premise of not using magic is an interesting one. The cover is worth drawing attention to.
I found copies of the Buffy omnibuses in Waterstones the other day. I am very tempted to buy them, but they are 17 quid each. Ouch. Anyone else read them? What do you think? I liked the art in volume 2.
Spoilers ahead for Superman: World of New Krypton #6, Wednesday Comics # 5, Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps #2 and 3, Buffy #27
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The winner by far this week was Superman: World of New Krypton #6.
I am loving this series. Instead of doing a general review I want to focus on Kara's costume, specifically her cape.
We start off with the tried and tested version, gold trimmed, tucked in around her neckline:
Then we get a different version, all high necked and, well, just take a peek:
Doesn't she resemble Alura there? In both the top and bottom left panel their costumes and stance fit together really well, you can see the familial relationship. I really love how they've done this. Now Kara has moved back to Krypton and has resolved to join the science guild in order to get to know her mother better, it's wonderful to see her posture and body language mirroring Alura's. Kara looks like she's got her mother's back and it also appears like they are nearly at an equal level in Krypton and the family heirarchy.What is odd is that later Kara is drawn with a different neckline to her cape:
It's no longer covering her neck and is instead tucked into her top. I prefer the high necked version. It looks more regal, which befits a girl trained by Amazons and the daughter of Krypton's ruler. It's also distinctive. If I could influence the artists I would request the high necked version be made a permanent addition.This book is superb. It has me engaged with the Codename: Patriot storyline. That's high praise from me.
Wednesday Comics # 5
Amanda Connor clearly knows cats because she's got the characteristics down pat.
Diana discovers her tiara.
Clark wonders where he came from.
Everything else I'd be happy to ignore.
Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps #2 and 3
I got fed up of waiting for #1 to come in and read #'s 2 and 3. Boy am I glad I did! These rock. A great introduction to the different corps. Tales of the Star Sapphires was the best in issue #2 - it was done in what i guess you'd call a pink wash. Really effective. Carol Ferris was very real in it.
Lady Bleez in the Red Lantern story seems to have mutated into a version of Harley Quinn. Odd. Gratifying to see once instance of a woman going bad and actually wearing more clothes when evil though. The Orange Corps story was ratehr desolate wasn't it?
As for issue #3, the Green Lantern Kilowog story was beautifully illustrated and a lovely insight into both GL and Kilowog's history.
Arisia's tale had lovely shades in the colours but I don't like the overall style. I was thankful for the Blackest Night #0 commentary as I haven't got this issue.
Buffy #27
Ugh, the art in this still sucks. But the issue itself was better than last month's. The premise of not using magic is an interesting one. The cover is worth drawing attention to.
I found copies of the Buffy omnibuses in Waterstones the other day. I am very tempted to buy them, but they are 17 quid each. Ouch. Anyone else read them? What do you think? I liked the art in volume 2.
Monday, August 03, 2009
Detective comics, Wednesday comics, Superman and Teen Titans – a disappointing week, all told
Sort of spoilers for Detective Comics #855, Wednesday comics #4, Superman #690 and Teen Titans #73.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Detective Comics #855
I really wanted to be blown away by this. I wanted to be blown away by Kate Kane. As it is, 2 issues in and I’m not feeling
anything for Kate. The only person I’m interested in is Alice.
As for Renee, nope, I’m not feeling the love there either. In FC: Revelations Renee was jumping out at the page, grabbing my throat and forcing me to pay attention. This backup is missing something. Maybe it’s simply that I don’t care for the plot, but, I’m not sold on the art (for either feature), which isn’t helping.
If you want to read a better review head on over to Retconning my Brain – Sam has far more intelligent and interesting thoughts than I.
Wednesday comics #4
Supergirl featured an angry Streaky, which was great. Wonder Woman was a dense story with good layout. Superman is getting into the swing of it’s story.
The rest I could quite happily leave.
Superman #690
A set up issue. I hate set up issues. It should be possible to do the same plug and story building ian regular issue, instead what we have here is a Steel vs Atlas subplot, A Guardian and SP subplot, a Zatarra subplot, a Dr Light (Kimiyo) and the Guardian subplot and a Sodam Yat subplot. None of which link in to each other at all.
I choose my comics based on characters. I will (usually) follow characters through bad writing and bad art (unless it’s really really bad). I’m interested in Steel, his appearances and his relationship with Natasha in 52 was one of the highlights of that series. I like this snotty Zatarra. I’ve liked what I’ve seen of Dr Light in other books. But to really get into them you need more than a few pages, and to make it a good issue you need to have the events linked together. I’m sure that at the end of the Codename: Patriot crossover everything will link in, but right now it’s not working.
I am considering dropping this title. Mon-El was a high point for me, but now I’m finding his appearances less and less frequent, and without Renato Guedes art I’m not drawn in anymore.
I feel the same about Action Comics – initially I cared about Nightwing and Flamebird, the religion angle was intriguing, but the last couple of issues have been boring and again, the art is horrible.
Teen Titans #73
On the other hand, no matter how crap TT gets I will always buy this. At least with the current roster of folks.
The cover is crap, I’ve already forgotten who’s died (or even if we were ever told who’s in the coffin), the art is very average and it’s got the fucking Calculator in.
But, there are good character moments (Eddie) and the fourth to last page where they were supporting each other ready to go back into battle was inspiring. OK, so I’m easily inspired, but the expressions in the bottom panel of that page are good.
The Ravager backup feature is another reason I won’t drop this. The washed out sepia influenced tones on the memory panel is really nice. I thought Rose was gonna get herself a sidekick when the lil kid turned up, but it appears no. The plot is a bit obvious and been done before, many times.
I don’t think I’ve ever had such a crap week. The only good part was the Adventures Comics preview. The comic shop also made a mistake in my order and put another copy of Supergirl # 43 in my pile, which I only noticed halfway down the street, so went back and got a refund, and another copy of Power Girl #3, which I didn’t notice until I was back in the office and so gave it to a friend. I don’t think she’s read it yet.
So, I am currently dissatisfied with Superman, Action Comics, Power Girl, Booster Gold and Detective Comics. I think I will give Detective Comics and Power Girl another couple of issues, but if they don’t buck up I will probably drop them. I don’t need to read about lesbians in comics enough to keep buying Det Comics, and if Power Girl keeps up the body discussions I will get very very bored.
Booster Gold gets one more chance. Superman and Action Comics get maybe 2 more chances, then I’ll only buy it if Kara appears in them due to the crossover, or if Supes comes back to Superman.
*sigh* It’s not helping that my mortgage is up for renewal next year and I’m a lil bit concerned about money..Damn recession.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Detective Comics #855
I really wanted to be blown away by this. I wanted to be blown away by Kate Kane. As it is, 2 issues in and I’m not feeling
anything for Kate. The only person I’m interested in is Alice.
As for Renee, nope, I’m not feeling the love there either. In FC: Revelations Renee was jumping out at the page, grabbing my throat and forcing me to pay attention. This backup is missing something. Maybe it’s simply that I don’t care for the plot, but, I’m not sold on the art (for either feature), which isn’t helping.
If you want to read a better review head on over to Retconning my Brain – Sam has far more intelligent and interesting thoughts than I.
Wednesday comics #4
Supergirl featured an angry Streaky, which was great. Wonder Woman was a dense story with good layout. Superman is getting into the swing of it’s story.
The rest I could quite happily leave.
Superman #690
A set up issue. I hate set up issues. It should be possible to do the same plug and story building ian regular issue, instead what we have here is a Steel vs Atlas subplot, A Guardian and SP subplot, a Zatarra subplot, a Dr Light (Kimiyo) and the Guardian subplot and a Sodam Yat subplot. None of which link in to each other at all.
I choose my comics based on characters. I will (usually) follow characters through bad writing and bad art (unless it’s really really bad). I’m interested in Steel, his appearances and his relationship with Natasha in 52 was one of the highlights of that series. I like this snotty Zatarra. I’ve liked what I’ve seen of Dr Light in other books. But to really get into them you need more than a few pages, and to make it a good issue you need to have the events linked together. I’m sure that at the end of the Codename: Patriot crossover everything will link in, but right now it’s not working.
I am considering dropping this title. Mon-El was a high point for me, but now I’m finding his appearances less and less frequent, and without Renato Guedes art I’m not drawn in anymore.
I feel the same about Action Comics – initially I cared about Nightwing and Flamebird, the religion angle was intriguing, but the last couple of issues have been boring and again, the art is horrible.
Teen Titans #73
On the other hand, no matter how crap TT gets I will always buy this. At least with the current roster of folks.
The cover is crap, I’ve already forgotten who’s died (or even if we were ever told who’s in the coffin), the art is very average and it’s got the fucking Calculator in.
But, there are good character moments (Eddie) and the fourth to last page where they were supporting each other ready to go back into battle was inspiring. OK, so I’m easily inspired, but the expressions in the bottom panel of that page are good.
The Ravager backup feature is another reason I won’t drop this. The washed out sepia influenced tones on the memory panel is really nice. I thought Rose was gonna get herself a sidekick when the lil kid turned up, but it appears no. The plot is a bit obvious and been done before, many times.
I don’t think I’ve ever had such a crap week. The only good part was the Adventures Comics preview. The comic shop also made a mistake in my order and put another copy of Supergirl # 43 in my pile, which I only noticed halfway down the street, so went back and got a refund, and another copy of Power Girl #3, which I didn’t notice until I was back in the office and so gave it to a friend. I don’t think she’s read it yet.
So, I am currently dissatisfied with Superman, Action Comics, Power Girl, Booster Gold and Detective Comics. I think I will give Detective Comics and Power Girl another couple of issues, but if they don’t buck up I will probably drop them. I don’t need to read about lesbians in comics enough to keep buying Det Comics, and if Power Girl keeps up the body discussions I will get very very bored.
Booster Gold gets one more chance. Superman and Action Comics get maybe 2 more chances, then I’ll only buy it if Kara appears in them due to the crossover, or if Supes comes back to Superman.
*sigh* It’s not helping that my mortgage is up for renewal next year and I’m a lil bit concerned about money..Damn recession.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Reviews 23.07.2009
Well this is nice. I’m reviewing something the same week it came out. Spoilers ahead for Wednesday Comics #3 (so-so), Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #5 (tickle worthy), Green Lantern #43 (Prologue to Blackest Night), Green Lantern #44, Power Girl #3 (so-so), Gotham City Sirens #2 (tits and asserific), Supergirl #43 (wow), Adventure Comics #1 preview (double wow).
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Wednesday Comics #3
The Supergirl strip continues to delight, Amanda Connor’s art is lovely and I’m really enjoying the little details she’s putting in, such as the kids petting Krypto. I hear tell that this type of story is very silver age. I wouldn’t know as I haven’t read much silver age stuff, but now I’m more inclined to give the old fashioned stories a go.
Kamandi is just an old fashioned adventure story really.
Superman is still lovely – full of emotion.
Tim’s derision of Wednesdays and the violence it brings, in the Teen Titans strip, makes me chuckle. I think it’s great how this strip contains more than one group of Titans.
The Wonder Woman story is very full of information, but that doesn’t make it bad. The colours are beautiful, the lettering is really effective and I find it really interesting. This strip has received a lot of criticism, but I’m not getting that.
Flash has just got a whole lot more interesting, what with Barry visiting the future.
I no longer have any interest in Metamorpho, Strange Adventures, Metal Men, Sgt Rock, The Demon & Catwoman, Batman, Hawkman, Deadman or Green Lantern.
Final Crisis: legion of 3 Worlds #5
Oooh this went all meta! I am a big fan of these types of stories so was very tickled by the outcome of this one. Not really much else to say. We finally saw the reunion of Superboy and Bart with the Titans and respective families - the scene was set up in the same manner as that of Green Arrows return from the dead.
Green Lantern #43 (Prologue to Blackest Night)
I succumbed and placed all Blackest Night titles on standing order. Initially I wasn’t going to bother with the prologue issues but I was told that I really should get GL #43. Post reading, I’m not that bothered by it, but I guess it’s good to see where Black Hand came from since he’ll be an integral part of Blackest Night.
Green Lantern #44
J’onn is back and beats up on Hal and Barry. John Stewart is at the site of Xanshi when all the black power rings descend and proclaim the dead to Rise. As the man says, That ain’t good.
It sure isn’t!
Power Girl #3
Ultra Humanite’s ship is powered by a giant organ. Hur hur. Innuendo aside, that’s a frickin’ great idea! Terra and cameos from the JSA made the final installment of this story more interesting. I was rather enamoured of the way in which Peej and Terra rescued Manhattan. The new alien ladies look like great fun and remind me of why Amanda Connor’s art is so good.
Hopefully now that this arc is completed we won’t see any more discussion of the use or ownership of Peej’s body.
Gotham City Sirens #2
The idea of Selina getting training from Talia Als Ghul on how to hide Bruce’s secret for the world is just terrible. An awfully cackhanded way of resolving last issue’s cliffhanger.
Although the colouring and pencils in this issue is gorgoues, the gratuitous tits and ass isn’t. The scene where the criminal blokes are checking out Harley and we only see a torso, that’s not gratuitous - we are seeing her from their perspective and they only see her as a hot piece of meat.
Every other scene of Catwoman, Ivy and Harley where their breasts, bum, legs or lips take centre stage, that’s gratuitous. It is interesting that the other women in the comic (bystanders) aren’t objectified like this, so it seems to be that the artist (or editor, whoever makes these decisions) is deliberately choosing to make the 3 heroines uber sexy. While I understand that they are all sexy and each has their own way of using their sexuality, that doesn’t mean that every.single.scene. has to objectify them. When the 3 of them are together, alone, in the warehouse they won’t be using their feminine wiles on each other. It follows that the art should reflect this. Yes, they are wearing sexy costumes, but their costumes don’t require them to arch their back or for the focus to be on their hips, groin, chest or grossly distort their anatomy. I’m thinking specifically of the first splash page with Selina tied up. What is going on with Ivy’s thigh. Legs, and joints do not work that way!
Supergirl #43
Oh my I’ve been waiting a long old time for this issue. The cover is beautiful and would make a perfect poster. Kara thinks so too as she has a photo of it on her desk. That is incredibly egotistical and weird. Who has pictures of themselves on their desks? Well, I know people do, but I think it’s bizarre. It’s similar to have a portrait of yourself up in the living room…
This issue gave us a lovely snapshot into Kara’s home life on Krypton. The arrangement of items in her room, the way the clothes are strewn across the chair and floor and the objects she has decorating her room all give us more insight to both Kara’s personality and Kryptonian life. Her white outfit that’s he’s wearing at the desk is evocative of 2 of the Tonner Supergirls doll. I wonder which design came first?
Kara is a typical teenager in this installment, by that I mean self centred and self pitying, and I don’t mean that as a criticism. She is convinced that her mother is sending her on all these chores in order to punish her. Her mother is actually doing it as a favour to her so that she can learn more about her new world and make an informed choice when it comes to choosing a guild.
I thought this was a great piece of characterisation. Who here hasn’t, as a teenager, been so convinced of their rightness and world view that they cannot fathom that their parents may have a different motivation for asking them to carry out chores.
This sub plot also served to further differentiate Kara from other heroes. Dinah Lance, Barbara Gordon, Wonder Woman would never have jumped to the same conclusion. Granted, they wouldn’t be put in that position because they don’t have the adult-teenage mother-daughter dynamic, but nevertheless as adult women they have maturity and an understanding of life that you generally don’t have as a 17/18 yr old. It tells us more about her and contributes to an individual characterisation that distinguishes her from not only adult heroes but also her teenage peers, Mia, Cassie Sandsmark and M’Gann M’orzz wouldn’t have had the same interpretations of her mother’s requests.
I am not faulting Kara for reacting the way she did, it’s something everyone goes through and it’s necessary as you grow up to be a mature, responsible adult. It’s really good to see that she’s not being treated as standard teenage hero model 3 and it also helps us see her growth from issue #1 to now.
All in all, an excellent issue.
Adventure Comics #1 preview
The art in this is ace. Colours, pencils, layout, all of it. It looks like the first issue is going to re-establish Connor’s place in the DCU, comparing him to Superman’s career, re-connecting him to his friends (hello there Bart!) and looking at how he performs with potential disasters. This is going to be a must on the pull list.
Currently listening to: Patti Smith's Easter.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Wednesday Comics #3
The Supergirl strip continues to delight, Amanda Connor’s art is lovely and I’m really enjoying the little details she’s putting in, such as the kids petting Krypto. I hear tell that this type of story is very silver age. I wouldn’t know as I haven’t read much silver age stuff, but now I’m more inclined to give the old fashioned stories a go.
Kamandi is just an old fashioned adventure story really.
Superman is still lovely – full of emotion.
Tim’s derision of Wednesdays and the violence it brings, in the Teen Titans strip, makes me chuckle. I think it’s great how this strip contains more than one group of Titans.
The Wonder Woman story is very full of information, but that doesn’t make it bad. The colours are beautiful, the lettering is really effective and I find it really interesting. This strip has received a lot of criticism, but I’m not getting that.
Flash has just got a whole lot more interesting, what with Barry visiting the future.
I no longer have any interest in Metamorpho, Strange Adventures, Metal Men, Sgt Rock, The Demon & Catwoman, Batman, Hawkman, Deadman or Green Lantern.
Final Crisis: legion of 3 Worlds #5
Oooh this went all meta! I am a big fan of these types of stories so was very tickled by the outcome of this one. Not really much else to say. We finally saw the reunion of Superboy and Bart with the Titans and respective families - the scene was set up in the same manner as that of Green Arrows return from the dead.
Green Lantern #43 (Prologue to Blackest Night)
I succumbed and placed all Blackest Night titles on standing order. Initially I wasn’t going to bother with the prologue issues but I was told that I really should get GL #43. Post reading, I’m not that bothered by it, but I guess it’s good to see where Black Hand came from since he’ll be an integral part of Blackest Night.
Green Lantern #44
J’onn is back and beats up on Hal and Barry. John Stewart is at the site of Xanshi when all the black power rings descend and proclaim the dead to Rise. As the man says, That ain’t good.
It sure isn’t!
Power Girl #3
Ultra Humanite’s ship is powered by a giant organ. Hur hur. Innuendo aside, that’s a frickin’ great idea! Terra and cameos from the JSA made the final installment of this story more interesting. I was rather enamoured of the way in which Peej and Terra rescued Manhattan. The new alien ladies look like great fun and remind me of why Amanda Connor’s art is so good.
Hopefully now that this arc is completed we won’t see any more discussion of the use or ownership of Peej’s body.
Gotham City Sirens #2
The idea of Selina getting training from Talia Als Ghul on how to hide Bruce’s secret for the world is just terrible. An awfully cackhanded way of resolving last issue’s cliffhanger.
Although the colouring and pencils in this issue is gorgoues, the gratuitous tits and ass isn’t. The scene where the criminal blokes are checking out Harley and we only see a torso, that’s not gratuitous - we are seeing her from their perspective and they only see her as a hot piece of meat.
Every other scene of Catwoman, Ivy and Harley where their breasts, bum, legs or lips take centre stage, that’s gratuitous. It is interesting that the other women in the comic (bystanders) aren’t objectified like this, so it seems to be that the artist (or editor, whoever makes these decisions) is deliberately choosing to make the 3 heroines uber sexy. While I understand that they are all sexy and each has their own way of using their sexuality, that doesn’t mean that every.single.scene. has to objectify them. When the 3 of them are together, alone, in the warehouse they won’t be using their feminine wiles on each other. It follows that the art should reflect this. Yes, they are wearing sexy costumes, but their costumes don’t require them to arch their back or for the focus to be on their hips, groin, chest or grossly distort their anatomy. I’m thinking specifically of the first splash page with Selina tied up. What is going on with Ivy’s thigh. Legs, and joints do not work that way!
Supergirl #43
Oh my I’ve been waiting a long old time for this issue. The cover is beautiful and would make a perfect poster. Kara thinks so too as she has a photo of it on her desk. That is incredibly egotistical and weird. Who has pictures of themselves on their desks? Well, I know people do, but I think it’s bizarre. It’s similar to have a portrait of yourself up in the living room…
This issue gave us a lovely snapshot into Kara’s home life on Krypton. The arrangement of items in her room, the way the clothes are strewn across the chair and floor and the objects she has decorating her room all give us more insight to both Kara’s personality and Kryptonian life. Her white outfit that’s he’s wearing at the desk is evocative of 2 of the Tonner Supergirls doll. I wonder which design came first?
Kara is a typical teenager in this installment, by that I mean self centred and self pitying, and I don’t mean that as a criticism. She is convinced that her mother is sending her on all these chores in order to punish her. Her mother is actually doing it as a favour to her so that she can learn more about her new world and make an informed choice when it comes to choosing a guild.
I thought this was a great piece of characterisation. Who here hasn’t, as a teenager, been so convinced of their rightness and world view that they cannot fathom that their parents may have a different motivation for asking them to carry out chores.
This sub plot also served to further differentiate Kara from other heroes. Dinah Lance, Barbara Gordon, Wonder Woman would never have jumped to the same conclusion. Granted, they wouldn’t be put in that position because they don’t have the adult-teenage mother-daughter dynamic, but nevertheless as adult women they have maturity and an understanding of life that you generally don’t have as a 17/18 yr old. It tells us more about her and contributes to an individual characterisation that distinguishes her from not only adult heroes but also her teenage peers, Mia, Cassie Sandsmark and M’Gann M’orzz wouldn’t have had the same interpretations of her mother’s requests.
I am not faulting Kara for reacting the way she did, it’s something everyone goes through and it’s necessary as you grow up to be a mature, responsible adult. It’s really good to see that she’s not being treated as standard teenage hero model 3 and it also helps us see her growth from issue #1 to now.
All in all, an excellent issue.
Adventure Comics #1 preview
The art in this is ace. Colours, pencils, layout, all of it. It looks like the first issue is going to re-establish Connor’s place in the DCU, comparing him to Superman’s career, re-connecting him to his friends (hello there Bart!) and looking at how he performs with potential disasters. This is going to be a must on the pull list.
Currently listening to: Patti Smith's Easter.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Reviews part 8: Zombies! Swooning! Cheesecake! Angst! Zombies!
[Edited to give the post a title]
Spoilers ahead for Empowered volume 3, Action Comics # 879, Wednesday Comics #2, Superman/Batman # 62, Titans #15 (Zombie preparation), Blackest Night #1 (Zombie attack)
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Empowered volume 3
This was a re-read, chosen for it’s quickness and lightheartedness. I’d left Justina Robson’s Selling Out someplace else and didn’t want anything to disturb that story.
Empowered did the trick. This is a story about a superheroine (superchica) whose powers are in her suit. She’s a rather inept crimefighter so her suit gets ripped quite often, which leads to her losing her powers. Emp then gets tied up, kidnapped and held for ransom as the plot demands it. It’s all in black and white which I find disappointing – it’s easier for me to read colour art, but having said that the art is very clear so that’s not really a problem.
Emp has a boyfriend, Thugboy, ex Witless Minion, and a best friend named Ninjette. There is also the Caged Demonwolf (who speaks in alliteration and is an eldritch starspawn imprisoned inside power-draining alien bondage gear), and the superhomeys, who are rather mean to Emp. The idea came about after Adam Warren was sick of being asked to draw sexy damsels in distress at conventions.
It is amusing and does succeed in poking fun at the superhero genre - see the sexy librarian episode and the A.R.R story. There are some genuinely touching bits - such as when Thugboy is talking about how Emp sleeps and his origin memoir.
Adam Warren draws very well but I’m not convinced about his writing skills. Some parts are very good, others seem more forced. Maybe that is down to the style though – the language of this annoys me, ‘superchica’, ‘witless minions 4eva yo’ etc. I realise that is part of the joke but it still grates. I think I take things too seriously somrtimes...
The last story features a captured Ninjette beign rescued by Emp and Thugboy. It’s good to see Emp be useful, but also notable to Linda Danvers fans that she gets wings during the confrontation. I have no real evidence that this is in any way linked to the earthborn angel story, but I like to draw parallels.
On the whole it’s worth checking out. Probaby best to start from volume 1 though – I think my reading of it suffers from coming in halfway through.
Action Comics # 879
First thoughts are that nearly a week after reading this I can’t recall much of it, that’s probably not a good sign..[swiftly opens comic and flicks through]..oh yes, the 2 crazy Kryptonians, Nightwing and Flamebird are due for a fight with some orcs.. Flamebird gets caught and the orc leader takes a peek inside her mind. We see Chris, a crystal rose, an angry Kara, Ursa, robots and some other Kryptonian folk.
Then it does get interesting, the Flamebird aspect of Thara bursts through and burns the orc folk to a crisp. She also get wings….curioser and curioser.
We also see Lois get confirmation from Mon-El that her father’s bones aren’t in his grave, proving to Lois that he’s not dead. The art shows her reaction beautifully (it’s a happy one).
Mysterious lady with the blue face reveals more of her powers – teleportation I am assuming, although as we don’t actually see it occur it could be something else (an ability to step out of time for instance).
The Super titles are gearing up for the Codename: Patriot crossover and I am not remotely interested. The back up is Captain Atom, and again I don’t care one iota. I could easily drop this title, but I won’t because I’m a completist.
Wednesday Comics #2
The format is wonderful, the art is so varied and I love the fact it’s out of continuity. Two weeks in and I have more of a handle on the stories. I do not care for Strange Adventures, Metal Men, Sgt Rock, The Demon and Catwoman or Green Lantern.
I think the strongest stories are Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash and Supergirl –
Superman because of the art and the way range of emotions they’ve packed in already.
Wonder Woman because of the density of it, the unusual lettering and setting of the story.
The Flash for the split panel aspect and the recent cliffhanger. Supergirl is just all out fun – nothing too serious is going to happen here.
I am pleased to see Teen Titans including all aspects of the team and a well balanced Tim. Neil Gaiman is having a lot of fun writing Metamorpho, going for an old time feel, but the strip itself isn’t outstanding. Batman has made me like Batman. Kamandi I have never come across before but am very much enjoying. Deadman has good art and layout. Hawkman is Hawkman-y - I liked issue #1s Flap Flap Flap narration and was disappointed to see this strip being told from Hawkman’s POV.
Overall, a winner.
Superman/Batman # 62
If it weren’t for the advent of the zombies this would have been hands down my favourite book of the week, nay, month. The basic premise is the junior sidekicks - Tim and Kara - hanging out for lunch, talking about their mentors and remembering their first team up.
Tim is not angsty, he’s happy, friendly and well balanced. There is such a marked difference between him in this issue and Tim in Red Robin. Nevermore999, if you’re reading this post, you’d love this issue.
There’s a truly wonderful depiction of Batman (and his teeth) fighting crime in Gotham, and Kara is in secret identity mode, meeting Tim as Linda Lang. Rafael Albuquerque is a damn fine artist. Colours are done by Rob Leigh – he’s got a really important job in this issue as he shows the different moods of both the protagonists and the rooms/places they occupy.
I think this version of Kara is the one most people wanted to see when the Supergirl was first launched. She’s not snarky or messed up, she’s heroic, honourable and pure - so pure the horrors of Arkham Aslyum drive her to a black rage. As much as I love this issue I prefer immature snarky Kara to immature peppy Kara. What can I say – pep and innocence irk me.
Robin and Kara have each other backs throughout the issue and by the end their friendship is cemented, both preventing the other from crossing the line.
They should definitely do this again or at the very least give Robin and Supergirl their own mini series. Either set it out of continuity or place it back before the crises started, before Tim went angsty and lost everyone he loves and when the Titans were still fun.
Titans #15 (Zombie preparation)
Purchased as the internet gave me a heads up about it – this issue is centred around Tempest. In it we learn that Dolphin (wife) and Cerdian (kid) have died. This right royally pisses me off because I loved Dolphin. The issue is mostly about Tempest angsting over how he brings doom to all he knows, probably linked to his purple eyes. Slizzath, Tempest’s brother, reveals himself as being on the side of the Blackest Night, Garth goes to Gotham to chat with Dick, (it’s mighty bizarre to see someone else under the cowl) and decides that he will take up the post of King of Atlantis.
The last page is a glorious image of Garth sitting on the throne, mirroring the opening page of Arthur sitting on the throne.
The story will be continued in the Blackest Night mini and in the Blackest Night: Titans mini. Which means another one to add to my pull list because, lets face it, the main reason I was interested in this was the prospect of a zombie Aquaman. Now zombie Dolphin will be added to the mix I’m delighted.
The actual issue was ok. Not great, but not bad.
Blackest Night #1
Run for the hills the zombies are coming!
I’m not sure what else I can add to anyone else’s comments and reviews. I loved the issue. I’m a massive zombie fan, a big horror movie fan actually. My favourites seem to be from the 80s (Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, the Ash movies, Poltergiest), with a few more recent ones thrown in (Cabin Fever, 28 days later, Dog Soldiers). In amongst these The Night of the Living Dead films are a favourite. Zombies are a bloody awesome concept. Anyone seen the X-Files zombie episode? At the end they all get up and dance.
So, the promise of the entire dead DCU returning to (undead) life tickles me immensely and has left me smiling whenever I have thought about it.
There’s some lovely moments in the book – in particular the Rogues graveyard and Alfred. Zombie Ralph and Sue are horrifically delicious.
I really really like the Flash’s Rogues - they seem to be a group of folks who are really just trying to get by, they’re happy to thieve and pillage but they look after their own and they’ve got some morals. They’re not out to take over the world, they aren’t out to murder needlessly and they’re not evil. They’ve got a lot going for them and I find them really interesting. Since you ask, Captain Cold is particularly interesting.
If folks are interested, The Aquaman Shrine has a post up giving info on all the dead heroes that Hal shows Barry.
[Just a minor gripe – when will we see the Caped communities first reactions to Bart and Kon coming back? I would like to see FC Legion of 3 Worlds #5 pretty sharpish please]
Now, I know I’ll end up buying the Titans, Batman and Superman tie ins, how important do you reckon it will be to get the Green Lantern and Tales of the Corps tie ins too? Pretty important I reckon. I’m just starting to read Green Lantern, starting from v2 (Hal’s first series), so by the time I’ve finished that I reckon I’ll want to read all the tie ins. Plus, it will be nice to read an event and actually understand what’s going on for once.
*sigh* This will be expensive. But Zombie mayhem will make up for a lighter wallet.
Bring on the brain (heart) eating! Zombiezombieombiezombiezombiezombiezombie!
Spoilers ahead for Empowered volume 3, Action Comics # 879, Wednesday Comics #2, Superman/Batman # 62, Titans #15 (Zombie preparation), Blackest Night #1 (Zombie attack)
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Empowered volume 3
This was a re-read, chosen for it’s quickness and lightheartedness. I’d left Justina Robson’s Selling Out someplace else and didn’t want anything to disturb that story.
Empowered did the trick. This is a story about a superheroine (superchica) whose powers are in her suit. She’s a rather inept crimefighter so her suit gets ripped quite often, which leads to her losing her powers. Emp then gets tied up, kidnapped and held for ransom as the plot demands it. It’s all in black and white which I find disappointing – it’s easier for me to read colour art, but having said that the art is very clear so that’s not really a problem.
Emp has a boyfriend, Thugboy, ex Witless Minion, and a best friend named Ninjette. There is also the Caged Demonwolf (who speaks in alliteration and is an eldritch starspawn imprisoned inside power-draining alien bondage gear), and the superhomeys, who are rather mean to Emp. The idea came about after Adam Warren was sick of being asked to draw sexy damsels in distress at conventions.
It is amusing and does succeed in poking fun at the superhero genre - see the sexy librarian episode and the A.R.R story. There are some genuinely touching bits - such as when Thugboy is talking about how Emp sleeps and his origin memoir.
Adam Warren draws very well but I’m not convinced about his writing skills. Some parts are very good, others seem more forced. Maybe that is down to the style though – the language of this annoys me, ‘superchica’, ‘witless minions 4eva yo’ etc. I realise that is part of the joke but it still grates. I think I take things too seriously somrtimes...
The last story features a captured Ninjette beign rescued by Emp and Thugboy. It’s good to see Emp be useful, but also notable to Linda Danvers fans that she gets wings during the confrontation. I have no real evidence that this is in any way linked to the earthborn angel story, but I like to draw parallels.
On the whole it’s worth checking out. Probaby best to start from volume 1 though – I think my reading of it suffers from coming in halfway through.
Action Comics # 879
First thoughts are that nearly a week after reading this I can’t recall much of it, that’s probably not a good sign..[swiftly opens comic and flicks through]..oh yes, the 2 crazy Kryptonians, Nightwing and Flamebird are due for a fight with some orcs.. Flamebird gets caught and the orc leader takes a peek inside her mind. We see Chris, a crystal rose, an angry Kara, Ursa, robots and some other Kryptonian folk.
Then it does get interesting, the Flamebird aspect of Thara bursts through and burns the orc folk to a crisp. She also get wings….curioser and curioser.
We also see Lois get confirmation from Mon-El that her father’s bones aren’t in his grave, proving to Lois that he’s not dead. The art shows her reaction beautifully (it’s a happy one).
Mysterious lady with the blue face reveals more of her powers – teleportation I am assuming, although as we don’t actually see it occur it could be something else (an ability to step out of time for instance).
The Super titles are gearing up for the Codename: Patriot crossover and I am not remotely interested. The back up is Captain Atom, and again I don’t care one iota. I could easily drop this title, but I won’t because I’m a completist.
Wednesday Comics #2
The format is wonderful, the art is so varied and I love the fact it’s out of continuity. Two weeks in and I have more of a handle on the stories. I do not care for Strange Adventures, Metal Men, Sgt Rock, The Demon and Catwoman or Green Lantern.
I think the strongest stories are Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash and Supergirl –
Superman because of the art and the way range of emotions they’ve packed in already.
Wonder Woman because of the density of it, the unusual lettering and setting of the story.
The Flash for the split panel aspect and the recent cliffhanger. Supergirl is just all out fun – nothing too serious is going to happen here.
I am pleased to see Teen Titans including all aspects of the team and a well balanced Tim. Neil Gaiman is having a lot of fun writing Metamorpho, going for an old time feel, but the strip itself isn’t outstanding. Batman has made me like Batman. Kamandi I have never come across before but am very much enjoying. Deadman has good art and layout. Hawkman is Hawkman-y - I liked issue #1s Flap Flap Flap narration and was disappointed to see this strip being told from Hawkman’s POV.
Overall, a winner.
Superman/Batman # 62
If it weren’t for the advent of the zombies this would have been hands down my favourite book of the week, nay, month. The basic premise is the junior sidekicks - Tim and Kara - hanging out for lunch, talking about their mentors and remembering their first team up.
Tim is not angsty, he’s happy, friendly and well balanced. There is such a marked difference between him in this issue and Tim in Red Robin. Nevermore999, if you’re reading this post, you’d love this issue.
There’s a truly wonderful depiction of Batman (and his teeth) fighting crime in Gotham, and Kara is in secret identity mode, meeting Tim as Linda Lang. Rafael Albuquerque is a damn fine artist. Colours are done by Rob Leigh – he’s got a really important job in this issue as he shows the different moods of both the protagonists and the rooms/places they occupy.
I think this version of Kara is the one most people wanted to see when the Supergirl was first launched. She’s not snarky or messed up, she’s heroic, honourable and pure - so pure the horrors of Arkham Aslyum drive her to a black rage. As much as I love this issue I prefer immature snarky Kara to immature peppy Kara. What can I say – pep and innocence irk me.
Robin and Kara have each other backs throughout the issue and by the end their friendship is cemented, both preventing the other from crossing the line.
They should definitely do this again or at the very least give Robin and Supergirl their own mini series. Either set it out of continuity or place it back before the crises started, before Tim went angsty and lost everyone he loves and when the Titans were still fun.
Titans #15 (Zombie preparation)
Purchased as the internet gave me a heads up about it – this issue is centred around Tempest. In it we learn that Dolphin (wife) and Cerdian (kid) have died. This right royally pisses me off because I loved Dolphin. The issue is mostly about Tempest angsting over how he brings doom to all he knows, probably linked to his purple eyes. Slizzath, Tempest’s brother, reveals himself as being on the side of the Blackest Night, Garth goes to Gotham to chat with Dick, (it’s mighty bizarre to see someone else under the cowl) and decides that he will take up the post of King of Atlantis.
The last page is a glorious image of Garth sitting on the throne, mirroring the opening page of Arthur sitting on the throne.
The story will be continued in the Blackest Night mini and in the Blackest Night: Titans mini. Which means another one to add to my pull list because, lets face it, the main reason I was interested in this was the prospect of a zombie Aquaman. Now zombie Dolphin will be added to the mix I’m delighted.
The actual issue was ok. Not great, but not bad.
Blackest Night #1
Run for the hills the zombies are coming!
I’m not sure what else I can add to anyone else’s comments and reviews. I loved the issue. I’m a massive zombie fan, a big horror movie fan actually. My favourites seem to be from the 80s (Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, the Ash movies, Poltergiest), with a few more recent ones thrown in (Cabin Fever, 28 days later, Dog Soldiers). In amongst these The Night of the Living Dead films are a favourite. Zombies are a bloody awesome concept. Anyone seen the X-Files zombie episode? At the end they all get up and dance.
So, the promise of the entire dead DCU returning to (undead) life tickles me immensely and has left me smiling whenever I have thought about it.
There’s some lovely moments in the book – in particular the Rogues graveyard and Alfred. Zombie Ralph and Sue are horrifically delicious.
I really really like the Flash’s Rogues - they seem to be a group of folks who are really just trying to get by, they’re happy to thieve and pillage but they look after their own and they’ve got some morals. They’re not out to take over the world, they aren’t out to murder needlessly and they’re not evil. They’ve got a lot going for them and I find them really interesting. Since you ask, Captain Cold is particularly interesting.
If folks are interested, The Aquaman Shrine has a post up giving info on all the dead heroes that Hal shows Barry.
[Just a minor gripe – when will we see the Caped communities first reactions to Bart and Kon coming back? I would like to see FC Legion of 3 Worlds #5 pretty sharpish please]
Now, I know I’ll end up buying the Titans, Batman and Superman tie ins, how important do you reckon it will be to get the Green Lantern and Tales of the Corps tie ins too? Pretty important I reckon. I’m just starting to read Green Lantern, starting from v2 (Hal’s first series), so by the time I’ve finished that I reckon I’ll want to read all the tie ins. Plus, it will be nice to read an event and actually understand what’s going on for once.
*sigh* This will be expensive. But Zombie mayhem will make up for a lighter wallet.
Bring on the brain (heart) eating! Zombiezombieombiezombiezombiezombiezombie!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Reviews part 7: The what makes a good (comic) story edition?
Covering comics from last week, herein lies spoilers for Red Robin #2, Superman World of New Krypton #5, Booster Gold #22, Green Arrow/Black Canary #22 and Buffy #26.
I feel like I’ve been reviewing so much lately it’s getting a bit tiresome. Due to this, I have taken a themed approach to this week’s reviews, apologies if it’s a bit wanky.
----------------------------
What makes a good story? Everyone has their own tastes and definitions but I reckon that there are also common defining traits. You want engaging characters, you want an interesting plot, you want something to excite you and there’s that age old cliché – you want conflict. Of course, each individual defines this in their own way, which leads to all the differences in opinion.
Take Red Robin #2. nevermore999 didn’t like this issue. She feels that Tim is a complete ass. I agree, he is moody, rude, disrespectful and possibly having a little breakdown. He’s completely isolated from other heroes and this issue shows that he’s doing that on purpose.
Now, nev doesn’t say whether she thinks the issue is good or not, and i’m not going to assume anything, I’m more using her post as a jumping off point. To me, even though Tim is an ass, I think it’s a good issue. It’s illuminating (darkening?) to see how far Tim is pushing those closest to him away, and it also shows how much support he does have, should he choose to utilise said support. We are again shown Tim’s fighting skills, deduction skills and vigilante methods (the voice). With Bruce gone I think we need to see how Tim is growing into a darker identity – the costume was the first indication of this, now we’re getting the other day to day stuff. I think Tim’s anger with Steph spying on him reinforces this.
For once the cover to this book enhances the story inside. We see Tim-as-Robin fighting Spoiler, in the light, we also see Tim-as-Red-Robin fighting ninjas, in the dark. So he’s fighting everyone, in both aspects of his life.
So, this comic shows that you can still have a good story without liking the protagonist.
Superman: World of new Krypton is a different beast. Whereas Red Robin is an ongoing and therefore has more time to build plot and character etc, this book is a maxi series and has to move the plot along to a pre-determined end, within a set number of issues. Whereas Red Robin was reinforcing Tim’s ‘new’ character, brought about because of the recent events in Gotham, this Superman book has a whole new world to show us. We need to get to know, in a short space of time, as many characters as facets of Kryptonian society as possible. This issue brings us a lawyer, insights into dissident factions of Krypton, the trial system, new knowledge of how much Kal-El inspired his fellows, a traitor, the hope of a new planet and an assassination. Each factor listed above is dealt with clearly and concisely, so despite this being a packed issue nothing is confused and everything serves a purpose.
This book is borrowing much from the Superman films – I’m sure I wasn’t the only one to get chills when viewing the trial scene for the first time. The artist and inker have done a fabulous job in reflecting the mood of the text – the trial scenes are so dark and gloomy and the last few pages when the dome is lifted are so colourful and gentle, perfectly in keeping with the mood of events being depicted.
Booster Gold 22 is an exercise in nostalgia. This issue is produced for old school Titans fans and is mostly all fight. There’s not a lot of depth, there’s no insight to the characters and nothing is resolved. It may appeal to the aforementioned Titans fans but it’s not got a lot of substance. Verdict: Interesting characters, bikinis and a couple of fight scenes doth not a good story make.
Wednesday Comics is the new format comic from DC. What Booster Gold failed to do in a normal length book Wednesday Comics does in nearly all 14 of it’s one page stories.
The Supergirl strip introduced us to the action with a father and kid looking at puppies, giving us a human angle to countermand Kara’s Streaky and Krypto chase, and threw in some humour to boot.
The Hawkman strip uses very few words, most of which consist of ‘flap’ but conveys a sense of loyalty and unstoppableness from the Hawks that left me intrigued as to how it will play out.
Metamorpho is an example of an author having a blast writing something. Gaiman has such a feel for the style he’s emulating you can’t help but smile at it.
Wonder Woman is very surreal and stands out amongst the other stories because it’s very ethereal and because it depicts a much younger Diana than we are used to seeing.
I won’t go through any more, but will conclude by saying that this format showcases the variety of comic writing and art styles and gives us 14 examples of how to write comics without pandering to continuity.
Continuity brings us neatly onto Green Arrow/Black Canary #22. Looking to the stars hates this issue. I think this is chiefly because of the retconning of Dinah’s origin and the way she has been written out of character. I do not believe that this makes it a bad story in itself, although I do accept that it may be considered a bad story in view of years of continuity.
It is the concluding story of the deaf arc which has featured a lot of one Dinah Lance. I have previously written about how I thought this book was rubbish because of it’s failure to live up to the shared name, that if it was called Green Arrow it would have been fine, but with a double billing you need to reflect the title in the plotlines. That’s now been fixed, just before they revert to calling it Green Arrow and give Black Canary her back up feature.
I have enjoyed this storyline, despite the retconning of Dinah’s teenage years. I am happy for retcons to occur, believing that what is written at the time is correct for the character and to say otherwise if fan entitlement, which isn’t for me. I’m more concerned about whether the plot is done well, regardless of whether it is a good idea or not. I think the flashbacks to teenage Dinah are done well, the relations between Ted, Di senior and Di junior are believable and what’s more the art fits. Young Dinah looks like adult Dinah.
Discord’s origin was done well, Dinah’s saving of herself and Discord from the roof explosion did her credit and showcased her as a hero. The parallels between her teenage self and her adult self were drawn, although to what purpose I’m not sure. As it is, that particular aspect and one other are the only faults I have with the story.
In order to make a story good you need to have everything in place, it needs to flow and what you don’t want is for something to jump out at the reader and make them go wtf. If that happens is spoils the story. My wtf moment in this issue was the discussion between Discord and his brother about deafness.
Discord: What I do cannot be considered true hearing. The device I am wearing, of my own design, transmits audio information directly into my brain, bypassing my damaged hearing organs. Yes, I hear, but the sound in my mind is gritty and coarse. It has been stripped of tone and poetry. And beauty.
…..
Brother: This could revolutionise the world for the hearing impaired. Deafness could be cured.
Three problems – firstly, the effect of what Discord is describing sounds very similar to a cochlear implant. Which is quite a small thing, certainly not a great hulking piece of machinery strapped to your arm and head. They’ve been around quite a long time.
Secondly, due to the existence of the cochlear implant this makes the brother’s comment redundant. Thirdly, Deafness doesn’t need to be cured. In fact, ‘curing’ Deafness could be tantamount to linguistic and cultural genocide. It looks to me like the writer has done fuck all research on Ddeafness. This exchange threw me out of the story and will discolour it for me.
The back up story, of Green Arrow this issue, presumably because the main story was about Black Canary, had Dinah confront Ollie about his violence. This has been a long time coming and is one of the nice things about comics – because they are such a long running media you can tie everything together and seemingly innocent words or actions can be shown to have great value at a much later date.
Buffy # 26 is part of season 8 and in a similar manner to DC comics has a lot of back story and universe history to build upon. Sadly, it is not doing such a good job of this as GA/BC. I have lost sense of the overall plot, the art is horrible and I have no idea where this is going. I don’t have a feel for it the way I have a feel for the TV based seasons. The writing isn’t too shit hot and the odd quips that are thrown in can seem rather forced. There are a few humourous moments but these are mainly reminiscent of incidents in previous, not a new action/event/piece of dialogue that occurred due to where the plot is now.
A (very) personal niggle about Buffy season 8 is that every issue I am liking the art less and less. In the comics medium this is going to be a problem. To get something really outstanding, you need to have that match between the dialogue, plot and art, and you need all 3 areas to be good. For me, the art just isn’t very good. This throws me out of the experience (much like the Ddeaf stuff in GA/BC).
So, now I conclude. In my own (highly personal and definitely subjective opinion) I think what makes a comic good is the juxtaposition of good art/dialogue/plot, believable characterisation and relationships and research. Sometimes this believability can exist only for that story arc (GA/BC), sometimes it comes from building on years of character history (Red Robin).
Incorporating a fight or other popular characters is not always a recipe for a good comic. As much as I’m keen on explosions and high kicking ninja shenanigans they don’t mean a lot if there isn’t any substance behind it.
-------------------------------------
Thank you for reading this exercise is self importance. Ooh heck, I feel like a bit of a wanker now. Crumbs.
I feel like I’ve been reviewing so much lately it’s getting a bit tiresome. Due to this, I have taken a themed approach to this week’s reviews, apologies if it’s a bit wanky.
----------------------------
What makes a good story? Everyone has their own tastes and definitions but I reckon that there are also common defining traits. You want engaging characters, you want an interesting plot, you want something to excite you and there’s that age old cliché – you want conflict. Of course, each individual defines this in their own way, which leads to all the differences in opinion.
Take Red Robin #2. nevermore999 didn’t like this issue. She feels that Tim is a complete ass. I agree, he is moody, rude, disrespectful and possibly having a little breakdown. He’s completely isolated from other heroes and this issue shows that he’s doing that on purpose.
Now, nev doesn’t say whether she thinks the issue is good or not, and i’m not going to assume anything, I’m more using her post as a jumping off point. To me, even though Tim is an ass, I think it’s a good issue. It’s illuminating (darkening?) to see how far Tim is pushing those closest to him away, and it also shows how much support he does have, should he choose to utilise said support. We are again shown Tim’s fighting skills, deduction skills and vigilante methods (the voice). With Bruce gone I think we need to see how Tim is growing into a darker identity – the costume was the first indication of this, now we’re getting the other day to day stuff. I think Tim’s anger with Steph spying on him reinforces this.
For once the cover to this book enhances the story inside. We see Tim-as-Robin fighting Spoiler, in the light, we also see Tim-as-Red-Robin fighting ninjas, in the dark. So he’s fighting everyone, in both aspects of his life.
So, this comic shows that you can still have a good story without liking the protagonist.
Superman: World of new Krypton is a different beast. Whereas Red Robin is an ongoing and therefore has more time to build plot and character etc, this book is a maxi series and has to move the plot along to a pre-determined end, within a set number of issues. Whereas Red Robin was reinforcing Tim’s ‘new’ character, brought about because of the recent events in Gotham, this Superman book has a whole new world to show us. We need to get to know, in a short space of time, as many characters as facets of Kryptonian society as possible. This issue brings us a lawyer, insights into dissident factions of Krypton, the trial system, new knowledge of how much Kal-El inspired his fellows, a traitor, the hope of a new planet and an assassination. Each factor listed above is dealt with clearly and concisely, so despite this being a packed issue nothing is confused and everything serves a purpose.
This book is borrowing much from the Superman films – I’m sure I wasn’t the only one to get chills when viewing the trial scene for the first time. The artist and inker have done a fabulous job in reflecting the mood of the text – the trial scenes are so dark and gloomy and the last few pages when the dome is lifted are so colourful and gentle, perfectly in keeping with the mood of events being depicted.
Booster Gold 22 is an exercise in nostalgia. This issue is produced for old school Titans fans and is mostly all fight. There’s not a lot of depth, there’s no insight to the characters and nothing is resolved. It may appeal to the aforementioned Titans fans but it’s not got a lot of substance. Verdict: Interesting characters, bikinis and a couple of fight scenes doth not a good story make.
Wednesday Comics is the new format comic from DC. What Booster Gold failed to do in a normal length book Wednesday Comics does in nearly all 14 of it’s one page stories.
The Supergirl strip introduced us to the action with a father and kid looking at puppies, giving us a human angle to countermand Kara’s Streaky and Krypto chase, and threw in some humour to boot.
The Hawkman strip uses very few words, most of which consist of ‘flap’ but conveys a sense of loyalty and unstoppableness from the Hawks that left me intrigued as to how it will play out.
Metamorpho is an example of an author having a blast writing something. Gaiman has such a feel for the style he’s emulating you can’t help but smile at it.
Wonder Woman is very surreal and stands out amongst the other stories because it’s very ethereal and because it depicts a much younger Diana than we are used to seeing.
I won’t go through any more, but will conclude by saying that this format showcases the variety of comic writing and art styles and gives us 14 examples of how to write comics without pandering to continuity.
Continuity brings us neatly onto Green Arrow/Black Canary #22. Looking to the stars hates this issue. I think this is chiefly because of the retconning of Dinah’s origin and the way she has been written out of character. I do not believe that this makes it a bad story in itself, although I do accept that it may be considered a bad story in view of years of continuity.
It is the concluding story of the deaf arc which has featured a lot of one Dinah Lance. I have previously written about how I thought this book was rubbish because of it’s failure to live up to the shared name, that if it was called Green Arrow it would have been fine, but with a double billing you need to reflect the title in the plotlines. That’s now been fixed, just before they revert to calling it Green Arrow and give Black Canary her back up feature.
I have enjoyed this storyline, despite the retconning of Dinah’s teenage years. I am happy for retcons to occur, believing that what is written at the time is correct for the character and to say otherwise if fan entitlement, which isn’t for me. I’m more concerned about whether the plot is done well, regardless of whether it is a good idea or not. I think the flashbacks to teenage Dinah are done well, the relations between Ted, Di senior and Di junior are believable and what’s more the art fits. Young Dinah looks like adult Dinah.
Discord’s origin was done well, Dinah’s saving of herself and Discord from the roof explosion did her credit and showcased her as a hero. The parallels between her teenage self and her adult self were drawn, although to what purpose I’m not sure. As it is, that particular aspect and one other are the only faults I have with the story.
In order to make a story good you need to have everything in place, it needs to flow and what you don’t want is for something to jump out at the reader and make them go wtf. If that happens is spoils the story. My wtf moment in this issue was the discussion between Discord and his brother about deafness.
Discord: What I do cannot be considered true hearing. The device I am wearing, of my own design, transmits audio information directly into my brain, bypassing my damaged hearing organs. Yes, I hear, but the sound in my mind is gritty and coarse. It has been stripped of tone and poetry. And beauty.
…..
Brother: This could revolutionise the world for the hearing impaired. Deafness could be cured.
Three problems – firstly, the effect of what Discord is describing sounds very similar to a cochlear implant. Which is quite a small thing, certainly not a great hulking piece of machinery strapped to your arm and head. They’ve been around quite a long time.
Secondly, due to the existence of the cochlear implant this makes the brother’s comment redundant. Thirdly, Deafness doesn’t need to be cured. In fact, ‘curing’ Deafness could be tantamount to linguistic and cultural genocide. It looks to me like the writer has done fuck all research on Ddeafness. This exchange threw me out of the story and will discolour it for me.
The back up story, of Green Arrow this issue, presumably because the main story was about Black Canary, had Dinah confront Ollie about his violence. This has been a long time coming and is one of the nice things about comics – because they are such a long running media you can tie everything together and seemingly innocent words or actions can be shown to have great value at a much later date.
Buffy # 26 is part of season 8 and in a similar manner to DC comics has a lot of back story and universe history to build upon. Sadly, it is not doing such a good job of this as GA/BC. I have lost sense of the overall plot, the art is horrible and I have no idea where this is going. I don’t have a feel for it the way I have a feel for the TV based seasons. The writing isn’t too shit hot and the odd quips that are thrown in can seem rather forced. There are a few humourous moments but these are mainly reminiscent of incidents in previous, not a new action/event/piece of dialogue that occurred due to where the plot is now.
A (very) personal niggle about Buffy season 8 is that every issue I am liking the art less and less. In the comics medium this is going to be a problem. To get something really outstanding, you need to have that match between the dialogue, plot and art, and you need all 3 areas to be good. For me, the art just isn’t very good. This throws me out of the experience (much like the Ddeaf stuff in GA/BC).
So, now I conclude. In my own (highly personal and definitely subjective opinion) I think what makes a comic good is the juxtaposition of good art/dialogue/plot, believable characterisation and relationships and research. Sometimes this believability can exist only for that story arc (GA/BC), sometimes it comes from building on years of character history (Red Robin).
Incorporating a fight or other popular characters is not always a recipe for a good comic. As much as I’m keen on explosions and high kicking ninja shenanigans they don’t mean a lot if there isn’t any substance behind it.
-------------------------------------
Thank you for reading this exercise is self importance. Ooh heck, I feel like a bit of a wanker now. Crumbs.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)