Jason's Comic Shelf

It Came From HeroesCon - Action Age Double Feature

2010-06-08T22:53:00.005-04:00

I'd imagine that it's almost impossible to visit every small press and independent table at a comic convention. I know that for every one that I stopped at, even just to look at the wares, there were at least two that I missed. But stopping at the Action Age table was something I had to do. One of the writer/editors, the nefarious Chris Sims, used to work at my local comic shop (before abandoning his glamorous career for the super-glamour of freelance writing). The other, 'radical' Chad Bowers, is my next-door neighbor. I can't make this up.

Along with their artist and partner-in-crime, Rusty Shackles, they had several books available for purchase. I was fortunate enough to leave with two of them.

Awesome Hospital is what the name implies. Forget House. Awesome Hospital beats it up, and takes it's lunch money. Featuring Dr. Dirtbike, Dr. Guitar Solo, and Dr. Space Baby, you won't find a medical institution with more insanity. (That includes mental institutions.) The genius is that it still plays out just like a straight medical drama with all the over-the-top craziness largely going unremarked. The art is cartoonish and fun, and peppered with Kirby-esque visuals that help push the sheer comic-bookness of the concept home. Diagnosis: Way Too Awesome. The only treatment is to watch for the second arc online.

When I first heard the concept for Monster Plus, I thought it sounded too goofy for me. (Sorry, Chad.) In the year 2666, a monster that's equal parts zombie, vampire, werewolf and Frankenstein's monster that was exiled to Mars is possessed by the spirit of Dr. Blake Hunter, and fights against President Mark Darke who's secretly selling out the population of Earth to a demonic entity that feeds on our fear. As crazy as it sounds, it works. When I accepted that the main character was a monster mash-up, nothing else was over the top. And to Chad's credit, everything else kept up with the level of insanity that Monster Plus establishes.

Both of these books are available online either as web-comics (in the case of Awesome Hospital) or as digital downloads. In fact, you can also find many of the pair's creations there - Sims' Solomon Stone and Bowers' Danger Ace are both at Action Age for the reading. There's great comics there, and not just because they're my pals. I recommend giving them a look!

It Came From HeroesCon - Animal Control: Special Creatures Unit

2010-06-07T16:50:00.002-04:00

Over the past two years, I've begun to discover how good independent and small-press books can be. This year, having gotten home from HeroesCon, I find I'm most excited to read the independent and small-press books I picked up directly from their creators.

The first of these is Animal Control: Special Creatures Unit by Panda Dog Press. Writer and self-publisher Rob Anderson had a table at the show to promote a preview book for this title and his energy for the concept is contagious.

In Animal Control's near future, genetic advances have brought with them an onslaught of designer 'pets'. Where the officers of Animal Control used to deal with stray dogs, endangered cats or the occasional snake, the officers in this series have pocket dragons, panda dogs and gator-snakes. It's a concept that's exploding with potential while remaining easily accessible to just about anyone who knows what a dog-catcher does.

The preview book contains two stories, 'Feral' and 'Breeding Stock', the latter of which was a project from Andy Schmidt's Comics Experience Writing Class. Both stories give you an interesting look at what the series could contain. They're backed up by quality visuals provided by Leandro Panganiban. While I have to confess that I don't have the fine eye for art that many comics fans possess, Leandro's pencils help bring Anderson's imaginative creations to life in a way that never veers from plausibility.

The package is rounded out with a third short, 'Girl Trouble', written by Anderson and with art by Eve Yap. It's a tonal shift from the straight-up concept of Animal Control as we follow a wandering Panda Dog's encounter with a young girl. This simple, lighter tale cleanses the palette nicely after stories of animal welfare.

The Animal Control: Special Creatures Unit Preview book accomplished it's mission by leaving me eager to see what directions Rob wants to take it.

According to the Panda Dog Press website, Rob will be at Baltimore ComiCon in August. If you're attending, I highly recommend saying 'hello' to Rob, and picking up a copy of the Preview.

HeroesCon 2010 - An Overview

2010-06-06T18:14:00.002-04:00

I just got back in from HeroesCon and, boy, are my feet dead.

But I mean that in the best way possible.

In previous years, my faithful photographer (then girlfriend, and now wife) and I would adjourn to the hotel room frequently to res up and catalog my purchases during the day. I'd sit in on panels to rest my feet as much as to try to hear the news. But not this year.

This year I stood, sauntered, swaggered and walked as I spent more time with some of the nicest, and most enthusiastic comics fans and professionals a person could ask to meet. From Rob (over at Panda Dog Press) to Thom Zahler (writer-artist of Love & Capes) and the always-awesome Adam Withers and Comfort Love (the masterminds of The Uniques). You have all made this year's pilgrimage to Charlotte into a trip to remember.

I've got so much I want to share about the experience, but I wanted to get the thank you's out there first while I process both the experiences, and the last batch of books I purchased on the way out the door.

Special thanks go out to the guys at Comic Geek Speak. If not for your passion for comics, and the community that's grown up around it, I wouldn't have made the connections to any of the fine folks I met this weekend. Thanks to Murd for remembering my name, and to Pants for the annual feasting at the Golden Corral. It's great to see you guys!

More to come, including pictures of sketches!

Titanium Rain

2009-11-09T05:21:00.003-05:00

Over the past year or so, I've tried to expand my comic reading to include genres other than superheroes as well as publishers beyond Marvel and DC. My discovery of Comic Geek Speak over a year ago has certainly worked to influence my choices some. And it was on their forums and podcast that I first heard about Titanium Rain.

The creators of the book, Josh Finney and Kat Rocha, are mainstays on the CGS forums, who also put in occasional appearances on the podcast as guests, or through voice-mails aired on the show. It was these experiences that prompted me to look into Titanium Rain when the double-sized issues were solicited from Archaia.

And I'm very glad that I did.

Titanium Rain is a war comic, set in the not-terribly-distant future. This is a nice change, since contemporary war comics seem to be nearly nonexistent. (Wildstorm is publishing a book based on the hit video game series, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and that's the only other one I can think of.)

In Titanium Rain, the world's major geopolitical players are involved in a war in mainland China. In an effort to keep up with China's vastly superior population, other nations have begun working to enhance their soldiers. The story focuses on Phoenix Squadron, comprised of 'hacks' - so called because their genetics have been 'hacked' and enhanced. Nano-computers in their bodies help them process the vast amounts of information that a fighter pilot needs to - all in the blink of their cybernetic eyes.

The first issue, which comprises of half the book, works to give you the broad strokes of who's involved in the war while also giving you a taste of the characters in the squadron, and it does a perfectly serviceable job. But the second issue is where the book truly stands out. The second issue, in which two of the pilots from Phoenix Squadron see action, also delves into how these particular pilots came to be here. That was the point where I felt Titanium Rain solidly came into it's own with themes of evolution. This material, as well as the art, is what has me salivating over the next book.

And the art deserves special mention. As a rule, I'm more of a fan of story over art. I don't have the best eye, and others have a far better appreciation of the art of a comic than I do. But Josh and Kat have a style that feels bold and crisp to me. It certainly doesn't look like anything else I've ever read.

If you like 'near-future' science fiction stories, or war stories, you should run to your shop to pick a copy up. (Or at least see about ordering the forthcoming hardcover, which includes plenty of extra material.) Even if you don't love those genres, Titanium Rain is worth a look. It's one of the indie comics that has most strongly justified my exploration beyond Marvel and DC.

My Proposed Comic Order for August

2009-08-18T21:33:00.003-04:00

PREVIEWS #253 OCTOBER 2009 (Net) *Special Discount* Includes a FREE Marvel Previews * Limit 1 at 75% off.
CONAN THE CIMMERIAN #15
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #29 JEANTY CVR
BATMAN AND ROBIN #5
AZRAEL #1 *Special Discount* Limit 2 at 75% off.
BATMAN #691
DETECTIVE COMICS #858 *Special Discount*
WORLDS FINEST #1 (OF 4) CVR A *Special Discount* Limit 2 at 75% off.
SUPERMAN SECRET ORIGIN #2 (OF 6)
ACTION COMICS #882
ADVENTURE COMICS #3
SUPERMAN #693
SUPERMAN WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #8 (OF 12)
SUPERGIRL #46
GREEN LANTERN #47 (BLACKEST NIGHT)
GREEN LANTERN CORPS #41 (BLACKEST NIGHT)
BRAVE AND THE BOLD #28
BOOSTER GOLD #25
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #38 *Special Discount*
REBELS #9 *Special Discount*
REBELS ANNUAL STARRO THE CONQUEROR #1 *Special Discount*
SECRET SIX #14
ASTRO CITY ASTRA SPECIAL #1 (OF 2) *Special Discount*
ASTRO CITY ASTRA SPECIAL #2 (OF 2)
UNWRITTEN #6 (MR)
JERSEY GODS #8
UNCANNY X-MEN #516
CAPTAIN AMERICA REBORN #4 (OF 5)
DARK AVENGERS #10
GUARDIANS OF GALAXY #19
FANTASTIC FOUR #572
INCREDIBLE HERCULES #136
INCREDIBLE HERCULES #137
INCREDIBLE HULK #603
MIGHTY AVENGERS #30 *Special Discount*
NOVA #30
SECRET WARRIORS #9
CRIMINAL SINNERS #2 (MR)
DARK TOWER FALL OF GILEAD #6 (OF 6)
TERRY MOORES ECHO #17
ABSOLUTION #3 (OF 6) WRAP CVR (MR)
ANNA MERCURY 2 #5 (OF 5) WRAP CVR (MR)
BART SIMPSON COMICS #50
SIMPSONS COMICS #159
IRREDEEMABLE #7
INCREDIBLES #3 (C: 1-0-1)
RASL #6 (MR)
PROJECT SUPERPOWERS CHAPTER TWO #4
COMIC BOOK COMICS #4 (RES)
STUMPTOWN #1 (MR) *Special Discount*

HeroesCon 2009 - Day The Third

2009-06-23T03:49:00.002-04:00

The third day of the convention began late for us. Hil and I packed and checked out before heading over to the convention center, stashing most of our belongings in the car. We got to the convention center by noon, and faced a dilemma. There were four different panels starting, and I wanted to sit in on three of them. One panel boasted Brubaker and Epting. Another panel promised a panel-by-panel examination of Brave And The Bold #4 with Mark Waid and George Perez. The third panel was the premier of the Longbox Project, a digital comics initiative.

We opted for the Brave and the Bold panel. We settled into the room and waited for the discussion to begin. While the premise sounded very interesting, we were disappointed when the moderator dominated the discussion. In an hour, we scarcely covered four pages of the comic, with a total of four questions for two awesome creators that didn't come directly from the guy who was supposed to be moderating the panel.

On the show floor, I spent most of my remaining cash to get another sketch from Comfort Love and Adam Withers - this time for Hilary. We were both so impressed with my Hercules sketch, that I wanted to get one of Hilary. It came out beautifully, and I'll post it later - provided Hilary's okay with it.

We bounced around a bit, meeting Mark Waid and George Perez for signatures. Ironically, I got Perez to sign my copy of the Brave and the Bold #1 one year after Mark Waid signed it to the day. I finally managed to track down Zack Kruse, writer of The Contingent, and bought the third issue of his book from him. Returning to the PKD Media booth, I picked up a copy of PKD Media Presents, taking one last chance to meet Shawn Pryor.

We walked the con floor a last bit, collecting a few more signatures. Creators were already leaving, and I found I'd missed Ethan Van Sciver. I did wait in line, though, for Bill Sienkiewicz and got him to sign my copies of the issues for the Demon Bear saga. He seemed particularly happy that my issues were pretty clearly read. I did make a point, though, of stopping by Chris Giarusso's booth. He was giving away free head-sketches, so he drew me as a mini-Marvel Captain America.

But by about 4pm, it was time to leave. I'd made a donation to the HERO Initiative while George Perez was signing, and was down to my last dollar. Rather than try to dive into the markdowns to pick up a few last issues, I gave my last dollar to the CBLDF.

Returning to the car, we began the short trip back to Columbai. This was easily the best weekend I've spent at HeroesCon yet. I was thrilled to meet some folks from the forums, and to get to meet Bryan Deemer, Pants and Murd from CGS, and to get some sketches that were a little more personal. We kept in-budget, and I was within $10 on my rough estimation of the hotel bill.

We're planning to save money again for the show next year. Ideally, we'll be able to save up enough to make a trip North to SuperShow. My one regret is that I turned into a pumpkin after-hours. The shifts in my sleeping habits had a stronger effect on my than I thought. But I want to give thanks to everybody I did meet! I had an excellent time.

HeroesCon 2009 - Day The Second

2009-06-20T21:21:00.008-04:00

The first thing I did upon entering the convention hall today, was to go see Adam and Comfort about my sketch. I have to confess, I was particularly excited about leaving the book in their hands for it's inaugural sketch, and I'm thrilled with the result. I give you, thanks to Adam Withers and Comfort Love, Jason-as-Hercules! I'm completely in love with this sketch.

After meeting with them, My friend Phillip, who occasionally comments on my blog as 'p' and I decided to try Claremont's line. The line itself presented no difficulty, but the lack of Claremont made things a little trickier. We waited here for about forty minutes before giving up. It was disheartening, but Phillip had a limited amount of time. And I wasted a good bit of it, trying to navigate the convention. Booths I thought I new how to find eluded me. After a small amount of shopping, we retired for an early lunch, which allowed Hilary to rejoin us.

Returning to the convention, we first stopped in to see Matt Fraction. Matt's probably one of the nicest and wittiest folks you'll meet at a convention. And while HeroesCon recognized that, providing him a queue similar to those given to Brubaker, Epting and Bendis, he didn't have much of a line. He chatted with us as he signed our books, but we didn't want to monopolize his attention.

We made another attempt to get Chris Claremont's signature on some of our books. Once again we were stymied. While Claremont was there at this point, we were forced to learn something very important about signing lines at comic book conventions. The length of these lines is not determined by the number of people in the line... it's determined by the number of books they're carrying. Another twenty minutes with no movement prompted us to abandon our place once again.

We'd separated from Hilary, so we largely bounced around. We found our way to PKD Media, where Phillip got his copy of Mercury And The Murd signed. We also made some more purchases from twenty-five and fifty cent bins, until Hilary finally caught up with us. I was growing a bit tired, so Hilary and I bid Phillip adieu and returned to our room for awhile to soak up some air conditioning and some water. Hilary had gone through her own odyssey after our separation, catching pictures of storm-troopers, super-heroes and ghostbusters.

After resting in our room, we decided to make one more pass at the convention floor to try and get a few more signatures. And we struck gold. We were in and out of Bendis' line in ten minutes... if that long. In relatively short order, we also hit Claremont's table, got my copies of Pax Romana signed by Jonathan Hickman, picked up my sketch book (where Thom Zahler of Love and Capes drew me as a Green Lantern) and returned to Jonathan Hickman's booth, where he sketched me as Nick Fury. For free. Have I mentioned that Jonathan Hickman is awesome? Next year I'll have to remember that the last hour of the con can be truly magical.

Unfortunately, that was about the point where I ran completely out of gas. Due to my vampire lifestyle, I had trouble getting to, and back to, sleep Saturday morning. Despite my wishes, I completely turned into a pumpkin Saturday night.

Now it's Sunday morning. Our hotel bill arrived in the wee hours of the morning, signalling the beginning of the end of our stay. We're not sure what our departure plans are, but I want to make at least one more run at the show. I've still got a few books I'd like to get signed, and I think I've got cash for one last sketch for the year.

It's 8:21 AM local time, and Hilary's still sleeping. When the alarm goes off, we'll start packing up and finalizing our plans. But for now, it's been my best HeroesCon yet. I've met a few of the CGS guys, I got to chat with most of my favorite creators. I've spent a fair bit of my con budget in support of independent creators , and these sketches are the best memento I could ask for.

HeroesCon 2009 - Day The First

2009-06-19T20:13:00.009-04:00

Hil and I checked in over at the convention center, and took our place in line. This year, the convention actually had two lines: one for attendees who purchased advance tickets, and another for those who didn't. The trick is, that those of us who bought tickets before June 14th were allowed onto the floor half an hour early.

However, the advance-ticket line itself was formidable to say the least. Looping around the interior of the convention center, there were still a good number of people entering. With that in mind, we headed straight over to the table where Ed Brubaker would be signing. I was saddened when he had to cancel from last year's convention, and I had a heavy load including my Captain America Omnibus.

There was a bit of confusion as to whose line we first got in, since Brubaker was seated next to his collaborator on Captain America, Steve Epting. This year, a few of the most popular signers actually have a queue to direct the line. I had a few moments to speak to him as he signed mybooks, and he pointed out something in the script to Captain America #25 (re-printed in the Omnibus). At the end of the script, a block of text is blacked out, and labed as 'Censored', and Brubaker told us that this block of text ties back to the revelations in Captain America #600. A small line was also forming for Brian Michael Bendis, who hadn't yet arrived. And while I was tempted to try to get Bendis' autograph quickly as well, we decided an early lunch was called for.

I returned to the convention a short while later to do a bit of shopping while Hilary retired to take a short nap. I attended the Pint of C.B. panel, where Marvel made a few announcements. Afterwards, I headed down to the convention floor where I discovered not only quarter-bins... but dime bins as well, with some help by Adam Murdough of Comic GeekSpeak. While wandering the floor, I also met Thom Zahler of Love and Capes and Shawn Pryor of PKD Media (and writer of Mercury And The Murd) and bought some of their wares.

All told, in that stretch I bought nearly a hundred comics, and most of them for little more than a song. So after carrying my bounty back to the room, Hilary and I returned to the convention floor, hoping to get signatures from Jeff Smith and Matt Fraction. Unfortunately, the line at the Cartoon Books both was capped. My copies of RASL 1-4 remain unsigned. For now. We decided to wait on seeing Matt Fraction until tomorrow. Instead we found our way to the booth shared by Adam Withers and Comfort Loves, co-writers and co-artists of the independent comic The Uniques.

The Uniques is truly worth mention for a few important reasons. For starters, there isn't a publisher. It's created and published by Adam Withers and Comfort Love, a couple from Michigan. The couple write and draw the book themselves, publishing it on the internet. If you want a physical copy, you can order one on their website via a print-by-order service. The art is gorgeous, and after two issues the story looks like it's got a lot of potential. I bought the first trade from them, as well as handing over my new sketchbook. Hilary provided a theme idea for my sketchbook that I love. It'll be a book of sketches of me... as different comic book characters. I think Adam and Comfort are starting it out with me as Hercules. I look forward to sharing the sketch.

The first day was fun, and I'm a little frightened at the diminishing stack of bills in my wallet, but there's plenty of con left. I'm off to bed to finish recovering for tomorrow.

HeroesCon 2009 - Day Zero

2009-06-19T02:28:00.003-04:00

With all the excitement of Christmas Eve, June 18th finally came. After polishing off my last hours at work, I began the sporadic hurry of final preparations for the show. But eventually everything was packed, and the house shrank into the rear-view mirror.

I opted against a nap yesterday morning, hoping to get one after arriving at the hotel. Sadly, there wasn't really time for it, but we did check in with a little time to relax prior to the CGS meet up for dinner. Hil and I waited in the lobby looking for a gathering of folks we didn't know, which is always an interesting feeling, but before long we saw the group coming together. After a brief introduction period, we piled into vehicles for the trip to the Golden Corral for the Feast of Pants.

At this point, I want to thank Phillip Duncan (Owner/editor of Superheroes-R-Us and AllAboutDuncan online) for providing a ride to the restaurant. Dinner was great, with a lot of conversation and some decent food. This is my first trip to HeroesCon actually seeking to meet some of the folks from The Comic Forums and I wasn't disappointed. Everyone was friendly and open which helped keep me social. Hil may have a different opinion, but I think I was handling being so tired pretty well.

Afterwards, there was some more discussion in the parking lot, followed by some comics trading hands in the parking lot of the Golden Corral. What happened next was very interesting. We traveled to the restaurant in three separate vehicles, and each one found it's way to the Target across the street independently. Phillip needed to pick up a couple things, and at dinner I realized I needed to pick up a sketch book. My book from last year is (still) sitting next to my monitor at home. Phillip actually made a stop he didn't have to in order to help me replace it, for which I'm grateful. We also managed to pick up a new camera for Hil, so tomorrow's post (or whenever I get around to posting more about the con) should have pictures.

Returning to the hotel, I purchased a good chunk of James Robinson's Starman from Phillip which means the show doesn't open to the public for over seven more hours, but I've already purchased a big handful of books.

My plans and thoughts for the show are basically these:

I plan to pick up a few sketches, starting a themed sketchbook. I have no idea what this theme will be, but I'll try to figure something out before I hand it to anyone.
I plan to pick up something new. Two years ago, I started looking at Marvel's cosmic books. Last year it was the bronze age.
I plan to meet creators and get some nice signatures & sketches - these have been the best mementos.
And lastly, I plan to spend some time talking to folks. Not just creators, but other fans.

I'm excited for the morning to get here. Maybe that's why I'm awake.

Discovering Jack Kirby

2009-06-14T07:37:00.003-04:00

Recently, I ordered a stack of reading copies of bronze-age Marvel books off eBay. The books were cheap, and I've discovered over the past year that I seem to really enjoy the sensibilities of that era of comics. I'm also (finally) discovering how awesome the work of Jack Kirby is.

I know, I'm late to the Kirby party. I started reading comics in 2000, and have read mostly current stuff, occasionally venturing as far back as the 1980's. But when DC began publishing Final Crisis, and so many elements of Kirby's Fourth World seemed important, I bought the first two volumes of the Fourth World Omnibus to take a look at the source. Those two volumes astonished me for how quickly and easily they read, especially for books that contained such massive cosmic sagas.

But this stack of books from eBay contained some big surprises. Several of the books offered re-printings of older Marvel stories. I found myself devouring an issue of Marvel Double Feature, or Marvel's Greatest Comics for the Captain America and Fantastic Four stories they contained. As a rule, I tend more towards writers than artists, but Kirby's work is very strong and very distinctive. The Fantastic Four story (one of the original Lee/Kirby... number 87 to be specific) took on a life of it's own. I couldn't stop turning the pages, and for the first time I think I began to understand why the title was as successful as it was.

But the book that surprised me the most was an issue of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Where I expected a quick movie tie-in, I found instead a completely different take on a licensed book. Instead, Kirby (writing and drawing) painted a dystopian future where human-kind had destroyed their environment, and submerged themselves in fictions to escape the horror they had made of their home. And in this setting, a man from the year 2040 encounters the Monolith from the original story, which sends his life shooting off in a very different direction. This wasn't the story I was expecting to read when I opened the pages, but now it's something I want more of.

With HeroesCon drawing near, I don't imagine I'll have enough of a budget to purchase an early Fantastic Four issue, but something like 2001? Maybe. I plan to keep my eyes open, that's for sure.

In Search of Tony Bedard

2009-04-03T05:54:00.003-04:00

Here on my blog, I've given Tony Bedard a lot of flack. A lot of this guff came from his run on Exiles. While I'm starting to suspect that a lot of that ire was misplaced, likely belonging to Chuck Austen who preceded him on the book, much of his mainstream work has been (in this writer's humble opinion) lackluster at best.

One issue on the Outsiders was enough to send me packing. His run on Birds of Prey had a similar result. Awhile back, I began polling my friends to see if they could suggest any good work by Bedard. The only answer I received, from Jim Shelley, was to look into the Negation series from now-defunct Crossgen. The series started off co-written by Mark Waid, so I wasn't positive if he was riding on Waid's coattails, or if the book was entertaining on it's own merits.

Then R.E.B.E.L.S. was announced. I considered picking up the first issue from DCBS, due to a hefty 75% discount... but saw that Tony Bedard was the writer and decided against it. It's not money, but why buy something you're not likely to enjoy, right? Imagine my surprise when several folks whose judgment I trust recommend that I look into the book. So when I found myself placing an order from an online comics retailer, I added the first and second issues.

I'm glad I did.

I'm glad I did for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, the story is fun and unexpected. I don't know much about Vril Dox and L.E.G.I.O.N. but I picked up enough from the Rann/Thanagar war to get the gist. It's an early attempt to create something like the Legion of Super-Heroes in the present, headed by the ancestor of Brainiac 5. However, run by the pragmatic Vril Dox, it has set itself up as a police-force-for-hire. The gist of this book is that someone has managed to usurp Dox's organization and is using it to conquer the worlds it was hired to protect. And of course, Vril Dox is eagerly wanted by whoever's now in charge. Dox is contacted (in a rather amusing and in-character method) by his counterpart in the 31st century. Brainiac 5 is concerned with his own existence, and tries to help guide Dox through this crisis. However, the way Vril Dox interprets Brainiac 5's advice is amusing to say the least. The tone is generally light, and fun... which is something that is frequently missing from modern comics. And the two issues I've read thus-far have been genuinely amusing.

I'm also glad because, as much delight as I seem to take in poking at Tony Bedard, I really wanted to see a good example of his work. For all the complaining and grief, I credit Bedard with two of the laugh-out-loud funniest issues I've ever read, both from his Exiles run. (See "Mission Impossible" and "Rube Goldberg", two examples of hysterical super-hero comics.) But nobody wants to read bad comics. Well, with the possible exception of Chris Sims and his insane love of Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose. (I'm still waiting to see his Tarot/Anita Blake fan-fiction.) I wanted to read something good by Tony Bedard in order to lay off of the guy. I have, and so I will.

The fact of the matter is that I'm now pre-ordering the rest of R.E.B.E.L.S. I look forward to getting the third issue.

Pseudo-Live-Blogging: Grant Morrison's Batman Run - Batman R.I.P.

2009-03-24T02:51:00.008-04:00

Now, gentle reader, we come to the climax of Grant Morrison’s run on the main Batman title. He’s been seeding elements of this story since the first issue of this run. Does it read any better after having re-read the entirety of his run? Let’s find out.

And the opening line says volumes. “You’re WRONG! Batman And Robin will NEVER DIE!” The line has no context though, so I’m not really sure when it is, or who it’s responding to.

A nice introduction to Doctor Hurt, and the Club of Villains. Doctor Hurt is the doctor responsible for the three ‘replacement’ Batmen who recently troubled Gotham. The third of which claimed that he’s the devil.

A typical night in Gotham? Batman and Robin chasing down a wannabe psycho calling himself “The Green Vulture”.

Now here’s something I missed before – Honor Jackson, the homeless person who finds Bruce Wayne, and gives him the ‘Bat Radia’ is there to witness the end of this pursuit. The face is reflected in the Batmobile’s window. Is he really there, or is that in Bruce’s head?

In an interview, I think Morrison said he wanted more of a return to the 70’s/80's ‘love god’ Batman. Check.

The exposition between Robin and Alfred lays out most of the salient points of the last couple of story arcs. A real nod for folks reading this in trade.
An explanation that the Thogal ritual that Bruce underwent is a rehearsal, while living, of the experience of death. Thus allowing Batman to plan for death, and beyond it.

This invitation to the Danse Macabre is what really starts the plot moving forward.
Arkham, with all the doors open and a lot of blood. I’m not sure if that really dawned on me the first time I read this issue.

Batman R.I.P. - Batman In The Underworld

I guess the lull in crime has left Bruce with plenty of time to ponder the mystery of The Black Glove. It probably doesn’t hurt that he’s starting to run into the henchmen of the Club of Villains.

John Mayhew is clearly connected to the Black Glove through the movie he made. I’m not sure how Bruce knows that Doctor Hurt figures in though.

Another deduction on Bruce’s part that I can’t quite follow. He suspects that the Black Glove may go back and involve people his parents knew. Mayhew’s movie was about a group of ultra-rich gamblers who corrupted and split up two lovers. Is that supposed to be about Thomas & Martha Wayne?

The opening panel of this page shows a roulette wheel, alternating black and red. I’m not sure if there’s further meaning besides Jezebel Jet (a black woman with red hair) of the colors, but they were also mentioned in “The Clown at Midnight” where the black ad red petals of flowers would combine to form a deadly toxin. Red and black was also an important theme in DC Universe #0, which replaced the final issue of Countdown.

Doctor Hurt reveals that he implanted a trigger phrase into Batman at some point while he was in his care. The whole point of the fight with Le Bossu’s henchman earlier was to expose Bruce to a drug that will make him more vulnerable to the trigger.

The big confrontation between the tabloid publisher and Gordon helps establish the possibility that Doctor Hurt might be Thomas Wayne, and that Bruce’s childhood might have screwed him up more than his parents’ death. It even alleges that Martha’s family suspect Thomas Wayne faked his death to kill Martha.

I can’t help but wonder if Bruce suspects that Jezebel is involved with The Black Glove. He even specifically says that he thinks this is the way this currently-hypothetical nemesis would work, undermining his belief in his mission and his faith in his cause.And Batman’s computer finally picks up what I noticed immediately when I started re-reading this run, all the ‘Zur-En-Arrh’ graffiti throughout Gotham. That’s the phrase that triggers his breakdown, moving us on to the next issue.

Batman R.I.P. - Zur-En-Arrh

In the last issue, Batman commented that one of the black casebooks was missing.
Right off, we find out where it’s gone. Tim is paging through it, reading of
Bruce’s quest to understand the madness that he faces.

Bruce Wayne awakens in a pile of garbage belonging on the homeless Honor Jackson. But
Jackson claims he knows Bruce from somewhere, probably meaning his brief
appearance in the first issue of R.I.P.

As he comes to, Bruce begins to remember some of his encounter with Doctor Hurt. Of course, Hurt knowing the cave’s location and Bruce’s secret identity could just as easily be the result
of the experiment he as part of, or it could be that Hurt really is Thomas Wayne.

With Batman neutralized for the moment, the Club of Villains is targeting his associates. Caligula’s goons ran into Nightwing, while Pierrot Lunaire and Swagman tried to take out Robin. And then there’s the chick, but I don’t know if I ever saw a name for her.

Bruce joins Honor Jackson on an ‘odyssey’ across town, little knowing that the goal is to beg for money to buy liquor. Before leaving him, Jackson imparts him a gift, and some instruction.
Following Honor’s words, Bruce (still amnesiac) finds his way to Crime Alley, and a smack-dealer named Lone-Eye Lincoln.

Nightwing is apprehended by Le Bossu, and incarcerated at Arkham as Pierrot Lunaire.

Triumphant in the ruin of the Batcave, Doctor Hurt dons the Bat-man costume Thomas Wayne once wore to a costume party, furthering the notion that the two are the same.

Muttering to himself, Bruce sews a new Batman costume from brightly colored scraps of cloth. He declares himself to be the Batman of Zur-En Arrh, and the busted radio given to him by Honor Jackson (who could be a ghost or a hallucination) to be the Bat-Radia.

This was a crazy one, but it starts to make sense as the story progresses.

Batman RIP - Miracle On Crime Alley

Batman’s been transformed. Now wearing a motley of brightly colored rags, Batman’s searching out the members of the Club of Villains.

This new incarnation of Batman is either brilliant, insane, or both. He hears Gotham City itself speaking to him through its gargoyles. He sees how Gotham, and Crime Alley in particular are in reality a machine designed to create the Batman.

Now we get some exposition to let us know exactly where the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh came from. It’s an emergency backup personality Bruce created in case he fell victim to psychic attack.

Good to know that Robin’s still loose, and able to call in the cavalry.

I think we’re supposed to know that Bill-the-Cop is doomed as soon as he mentions having a little boy at home, and loving it. We need a red-shirt to illustrate how El Sombrero has booby-trapped Wayne Manor.

There are a lot of interpretations of this interplay between Doctor Hurt and Alfred. Is Hurt really Thomas Wayne? Is he just tormenting Alfred? Is he actually the Devil? If so, then the third Batman was his agent.

I love Batman’s speech to Caligula. He sees clear through him to the washed-up-never-was that he is.

I also think it’s brilliant that the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh is “what you get when you take Bruce out of the equation”.

Poor Jeremiah Arkham. He just can’t catch a break, can he? Or more to the point he catches too many… broken ribs, broken legs, etc.

The red and black roses return Just don’t let them mingle.And who else would be the one to deliver the coup de grace to Batman but the Joker?

Batman R.I.P. – The Thin White Duke of Death

Doctor Hurt sets the scene, not just for the arriving members of the Black Glove, but also recapping for the reader. The Black Glove is a society of the ultra-rich who gather once a year to wager on games of life or death.

Arkham Asylum is resplendent in shades of black and red.

Le Bossu provides his own backstory, as he begins the process of costuming that transforms him from Guy Dax into his hunchbacked alter-ego.

Batman chose the crazy colors for the Zur-En-Arrh costume with a purpose. The bright colors demonstrate confidence, presumably yielding a mental advantage. But Bat-Mite reveals that the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh was a short-term solution to the problem of psychological attack. Running at this intensity means that Bruce has limited time to overcome the Black Glove before he passes out from exhaustion.

I like Batman’s last moments with Bat-Mite. He asks if the Mite is a figment of his imagination, or a super-imp from the fifth dimension. Bat-Mite’s answer is that imagination IS the fifth dimension.

I love how the Joker scars Le Bossu. He’s had to listen to Dax drone on about how his ugliness was on the inside, so he gave it an outlet. And Le Bossu seems puzzled by it.

What’s meant to be a final confrontation between Batman and the Joker plays out pretty well. The titular ‘thin white duke of death’ is only going along with this to prove to Batman the depth of his madness. Bruce thought that a controlled experiment would give him the key to understanding the Joker’s mind. But there’s no reason behind his actions, and no experiment will make his actions make sense.

At this point, there’s still one thing that I don’t really grasp, and that’s the meaning behind the constant reference to black and red. The one explanation I’ve heard that makes any sense is that they point to Jezebel Jet, a black woman with red hair, as an indication that she’s part of the Black Glove. But that’s not satisfying to me, for some reason.

Batman R.I.P. – Hearts In Darkness

Coming to after his fight with the Joker, Batman finds himself back in his traditional costume, strapped into a straightjacket and buried alive in a coffin.

This flashback sequence helps to show you just how great Batman is. While undergoing the Thogal ritual, he found Dr. Hurt’s work on his consciousness and began preparing for the attack. This issue even says it first thing. “That’s the thing about Batman. Batman thinks of everything.”

I love how the narrative points out that there are, ultimately, a finite number of eventualities that a body can be threatened by and that Bruce has planned and practiced for all of them over the years. It lends plausibility to the notion that Batman has actually planned for this eventuality.

The Joker’s big speech to the Black Glove basically amounts to “I told you so”. When
money’s on he table, even the Joker knows better than to bet against Batman.

Talia and the League of Assassins are going to avenge Batman? That’s an interesting twist.

Here, at the end of things, we get the counterpoint to the story’s opening page. With a policeman his captive, Le Bossu prepares to go about his bloody work, declaring that even Batman and Robin are dead, and unable to help him.

This issue really is the pinnacle of Grant Morrison’s run on Batman. The remaining issues are more of a Final Crisis tie-in than anything else. But it brings in almost everything else he used in his run… Damian, Man-Bat Ninjas, and the Club of Heroes all play their parts in this final issue.

There’s one mystery left to ponder… the identity of Simon Hurt. The book itself puts forward a few ideas. Was he really Thomas Wayne? He certainly acted the part with Alfred. Was he Mangrove Pierce, the actor who starred in John Mayhew’s film “The Black Glove”? Or was he the devil, as others have said. I like the possibility that he’s Thomas Wayne, simply because it flies in the face of assumptions we make, that Bruce’s parents were good people.

Cheapo Comics - A Shout-Out

2009-03-10T05:17:00.002-04:00

Recently, I stumbled across a comic service that I've found to be surprisingly enjoyable. Wayne Cordova's Cheapo Comics is like an online 50-cent bin grab-bag service that Wayne started to help thin his collection of issues he has no desire to keep. For $5.00 (which includes shipping) you receive 8-10 comics from his collection.

I've made two purchases from him to date, resulting in most of "Wolverine - The End", a few Supergirl and the Legion of Superheroes, and a handful of other stuff, some of which I'd never even heard of before.

If the concept of a grab-bag, not quite knowing what you're going to get, is appealing, give Wayne's site a look. It's very basic. You click on a Paypal link, and ultimately receive comics. Even better, he's now implented a Spidey grab-bag, yielding a handful of Spidey-themed comics for the same price. Give it a look!

Who Watches The Watchmen?

2009-03-09T03:12:00.006-04:00

I do.

Now, I know I'm hardly the only one on the internet making that joke, but really... how often am I going to get the chance?

So I screwed with my sleep patterns yesterday to go see Watchmen during it's opening weekend. While I was very impressed by Zack Snyder's faithful adaptation to the source material, I felt it ultimately proved the superiority of the comic format for this particular story. What do I mean? Allow me to explain.

When I first heard that Watchmen was going to be adapted into a movie, I was dismayed. Arguably one of the best comic book stories written was going to be mangled beyond recognition for the silver screen. Hearing that Snyder was heading the movie didn't improve my mood, despite his success with Frank Miller's 300. After all, the original work for 300 was splash page after splash page, largely storyboarding the movie out. In fact, material had to be added to make up for a short run-time... and the additions to the story were all pretty bad. I like 300, but all the scenes taking place in Sparta after Leonidas has lead the 300 out were pretty bad. So I had little confidence in the director, and hadn't ever heard of anyone cast in the principal roles. I felt like my disappointment was imminent.

I was very wrong in that regard.

The movie is faithful to the source material... to a fault. What do I mean by that? My understanding is that Zack Snyder fought to keep much of the characterization from the comic in the movie, resulting in an epic running time of two hours 43 minutes. As a fan of the story, I applaud this decision because I care about these characters and I want to see justice done by them. I want them to be sufficiently deep and realized. But this becomes a problem at the point that characterization interferes with the story. This is where the question of format becomes crucial.

Like much of Alan Moore's work, Watchmen is an extremely dense story. I believe that a large part of that density is due to the serial nature of the story. A lot of people refer to Watchmen as a graphic novel because that's the way that we were introduced to it. Just Bill, an acquaintance of mine online, recently mentioned in his podcast that many of us fail to consider what it must have been like to receive Watchmen as a monthly comic book, issue by issue. I think that's a vital point to remember. When you only receive one issue a month over the course of a year, that issue has to be dense. It ideally should bring to mind the events of the last issue, while trying to tell it's own story and still building on a greater story. Reading individual issues presented the reader with places where the story ended... for awhile. Those breaks were important to let the reader digest the material, re-read it if they chose, and perhaps even discuss it while waiting eagerly for the next issue.

The movie, however, places the whole of the story in front of you in one sitting. And while it's remarkably faithful to the source material, I think that it's nature as a movie is a detriment to the story. It expects you to absorb the whole of the experience in one sitting. All the characterization that makes the comic brilliant drags down the movie. The story is lumbering and slow because of the way it's presented. And a story about imminent nuclear annihilation, where the doomsday clock is poised at four minutes until midnight, should never feel slow.

Alan Moore, the writer of Watchmen, V For Vendetta, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and From Hell, among other stories, has a policy of removing himself and his name from any film adaptations of his work. Until seeing Watchmen on the big screen, part of me assumed it was because filmmakers hadn't shown the proper respect to his stories. Now I think I understand why he's said his stories are written specifically as comics, and can't be successfully adapted as movies. If you sacrifice the enormous depth of his writing, you lose the spark that makes the stories special. But if you refuse to sacrifice the depth, the story doesn't work as something to absorb in one sitting.

When the movie was announced, I clearly remember sitting at a meeting of the Comic Club here in Columbia. Jim Shelley (of Flashback Universe fame) suggested that the story would be better served as an HBO mini-series, a sentiment I agreed with. But I agreed for the wrong reasons. I felt that too much would have to be removed from the story to make it into a movie. Instead, I see that the gaps between new installments are an important part of enjoying material of such depth.

I'm curious as to what others think about my comments. Shoot me an e-mail at jovial1@gmail.com and let me know.

Pseudo-Live-Blogging: Grant Morrison's Batman Run - Space Medicine

2009-03-08T04:13:00.004-04:00

Well, folks, another DCBS box arrival and some slightly busier nights have put off my progress on re-reading Grant Morrison's Batman run. But I'm putting my foot down, and reading the issues leading up to Batman: RIP tonight. As stated, I'm skipping past the Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul issues, and getting back to the good stuff.

My recollection is that this story arc is where Batman became difficult to follow, but that this story arc made more sense as the arc drew to a close. Let's see if hindsight helps.

Batman #672 - Space Medicine

The third Batman from the black casebook has arrived. We saw him in issue #666, fighting Damian, but now it's time for Bruce's trial. We know these guys were cops, and he's asking for Commissioner Vane, I guess this was before Gordon's time?
One thing I recall Grant saying is that he wanted to bring Batman back from being so grim and obsessed. Jezebel Jet certainly seemed to have that affect. "We make one another laugh".
Here we go. The third man has shot Batman in the chest, and Bruce is hurt. If I recall correctly, the shot has triggered a heart attack. And as we near the end of the book and go into Bruce's head, we see Batman's glove tracing glowing letters against a black background. "ZUR EN ARRH". And this heralds the first appearance of 'Bat-Mite' in Morrison's run right at the end of the issue.

Of this story, the first issue was pretty straightforward since it's a setup for the chaos to follow.

Batman #673 - Joe Chill In Hell

This issue gets a bit chaotic. It cuts back and forth from Bruce's time in Nanda Parbat enduring the Thogal Ritual, and other memories as he suffers the cardiac arrest from his wound in the last issue.

The Thogal Ritual is important to RIP. "During a seven-week retreat known as Yangti, the practicioner undergoes an experience designed to simulate death and after-death." It's what helped him prepare to face his own death, and allowed him to plan beyond it.
Flashbacks to his beginnings as a masked crimefighter, hunting Joe Chill, the man who killed his parents. Is this the way it actually happened, or a hallucination? It's confusing but I think that as he's suffering cardiac arrest, Bruce is flashing back to the Thogal Ritual, and what he saw there.
I definitely didn't catch this before. A young Bruce Wayne (five years old according to the narrative) has a vision of a coffin carried by Dick Grayson, Ollie Queen, Clark Kent and someone I can't identify, followed by Alfred and Barbara Gordon in a wheelchair. It's clearly meant to be his funeral procession, as he's realized his own mortality. Foreshadowing the death of Batman.
Here's our first glimps of Doctor Hurt. He's the scientist who Batman aided by spending ten days in an isolation chamber. The premise was to advance an understanding of what humans would experience on space missions, isolated from contact. Batman confesses to Robin (presumably Dick) that he really did it to experience madness in an attempt to better-understand the Joker. At this point, Batman begins to lose track of where and when he is. He's not sure if he's in the isolation chamber, being studied by Dr. Hurt, or undergoing the Thogal Ritual. In reality, he's still suffering cardiac arrest from the previous issue.
At the end of the issue, the third Batman revives Bruce... once he's been restrained.

I think the thing that threw me on my original reading of this issue was the fact that even Bruce didn't know when he was. It made it hard to keep a point-of-view. But having some familiarity with the story, I caught a lot more on this reading than I did originally.

Batman #674 - Batman Dies At Dawn

First page, and Doctor Hurt claims he's a Batman Specialist. Foreshadowing his claim that he's Thomas Wayne?
This is big. The third man has a copy of Doctor Hurt's files. "And it's all here. Everything that happened here in this room. To you. To me. To Muller and Branca. The whole story. The post-hypnotic keywords he planted in all of us." Since it's one of those keywords that shut Batman down in RIP.
And as he chases down the third man, Batman begins to suspect the existence of the Black Glove, an enemy who's calculated his every weakness and who has prepared as dilligently as he himself has.

This issue had phenomenal velocity. I couldn't put it down, and I don't think that I could last time either. The third Batman lays out for Batman what he thought was a hallucination - that years ago, the Gotham police in conjunction with the military had tried to build a contingency plan for Batman's death. They sought to prepare three additional men as replacements, should Batman die. And Doctor Hurt was the one responsible. The three Batmen have all been 'reactivated'.

Batman #675 - The Fiend With Nine Eyes

This issue was pretty much devoid of any foreshadowing or hinting about Batman RIP. Dick and Tim suspected that Bruce is losing it again. Bruce believes that the Ten-Eyed Man's attack was orchestrated by the Black Glove, and Talia and Damian sense something suspicious behind the attack on Bruce and Jezebel.

The main thrust of this issue is to introduce Jezebel to the nocturnal side of Bruce's life. It succeeds on that level, but considering the past two story arcs, this issue is a bit weak and not just due to the guest artist.

Next up, Batman RIP.

Pseudo-Live-Blogging: Grant Morrison's Batman Run - batman in bethlehem and The Club of Heroes

2009-02-15T03:20:00.005-05:00

Well, after a lengthy break, I've semi-digested Final Crisis and read a box full of new comics. now, it's back to Morrison's Batman. Lined up tonight, I've got Batman #666, which serves as a kind of endcap to the Black Casebook story, and the truly awesome Club of Heroes story that officially introduced the Black Glove to readers of Batman.

Batman #666 - batman in bethlehem

What we get here is a story of Bruce's son Damian as Batman, defending Gotham against the third 'evil' Batman from the Black Casebook - the one who sold his soul to the Devil, and destroyed Gotham.

The book opens with a two-page recap of Damian's origin, which is pretty old-school. But of course, this origin takes us beyond the story we know, as Damian takes the role of Batman following his father's death. I also like the visual look of Damian as Batman. The trenchcoat look is distinct from Bruce's costume, but in action it's still reminiscent.

Damian-as-Batman seems to be a little rougher on his opponents. There's a bit of blood flowing.

Commissioner Barbara Gordon... I really wish that we had more time to explore that dynamic. I mean, it's one thing for Jim Gordon to perhaps suspect that Bruce Wayne is Batman, but it's something else entirely for Barbara Gordon to have been Batgirl/Oracle, and as Commissioner to have her know that Damian is Batman.

There's a lot of biblical and occult imagery here. The mysterious 'third Batman' is claiming to be the antichrist. Professor Pyg has been crucified upside down in a church, and the murders of Gotham's other crime bosses form an inverse pentacle on the face of Gotham. All this, and the Yeats quotation:

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

There's a lot of blood, again. It's not entirely clear if Damian kills any of the Madmen of Gotham, but he's pretty clearly injured them badly.

"The victory is in the preparation" - I think that phrase sums up Morrison's Batman. He wins because he's always prepared. It's his greatest strength. And while Damian may be different than his father, that much is the same. By booby-trapping all of Gotham, Damian's taken that adage to an extreme. I think the thing I really like here, is that he acknowledges that he'll never be as good as Bruce or Dick, so he went outside the box.

More biblical language, as the Third-Batman refers to the Devil as the Dragon, with wings and black skin. More reference to Revelations.

"The Apocalypse is cancelled... until I say so". Great line. The notion of a Batman who's sold his soul to safeguard Gotham is interesting. Damian also states that his father died at age 14. Do we know how old he is at the time of Final Crisis?

On the whole, I'd kindof like to see a little more of this Batman, but only if written by Morrison.

Batman #667 - The Island of Mr. Mayhew

Wow... right here on the first page, there's a lot more to take in, now that I've got a better idea of what to look for. An unseen figure wearing a black glove addresses a captive. One thing tha is telling, is that the Black Glove speaks in the plural. This can be ambiguous, using the 'royal we', but in hindsight I know that the Black Glove is an association, not an individual. There's also the black and red of the rhoulette wheel.

Something else I hadn't thought of until now... Batman's costume is primarily black, while Robin's current outfit is primarily red.

A room full of has-been Batman wannabes. What a series of images. Especially the Legionary, as he sits and eats. And then we've got Wingman, the closest Batman analogue in the room, and the one who's most vocal about being better than, or earlier than Batman.

And here's the classic setup. It's the locked-house murder. A number of detectives are invited to a secluded estate for a mysterious purpose. They're locked in and challenged to solve a murder. It's been an archetype of enough mysteries that it's been parodied well. It's a great image though, this two page spread of the Black Glove closing over the exploding vehicles of the Club of Heroes. Beautifully styled.

The closing pages of this issue are amazing. The spread covering the death of The Legionary is great, but the last page, with the image of Batman surrounded by flames along the silhouette of the Black Glove's arm is stunning.

Batman #668 - Now We Are Dead!

I love the old-school look of this opening flashback.

These guys all have major baggage. None of the Club of Heroes seem to be able to get along.

Ahh... The Legionary let his city fall into the hands of Charlie Caligula, who later shows up in R.I.P.

Bruce asks Tim what was wrong with the library, where the video of Mayhew's killer was filmed. That's a nice touch, showing that Batman's still testing and teaching Robin.

These page layouts are stunning. A two-page spread on black. The panels make up the shape of Batman's emblem. Overlapping, a panel in the shape of the Black Glove's arm. I'm not normally as big a fan of art as I am of writing, but this is really striking.

And now the Musketeer mentions his own enemy, Pierrot Lunaire who also appears as part of the Club of Villains in R.I.P. I sense a trend. Especially since El Gaucho just mentioned El Sombrero.

This really is a top-notch issue. Absolutely superb in both art and story.

Batman #669 - The Dark Knight Must Die!

The pace of the action's really picking up in the last third of the story. I'm a good way in and it's light on clues, but heavy on activity.

And as the issue draws to a close El Sombrero, revealed to be John Mayhew, reveals the nature of the Black Glove. "People like me live lives beyond the law, beyond morality. The Black Glove is closing around you, Batman".

I think that the three issues that make up the Club of Heroes story are the best issues of Grant Morrison's run on the book. The pacing starts slow, and builds to a frenzy by #669. It reminds us that Batman wins because he's prepared and observant. And it lays a lot of groundwork for the appearance of the Club of Villains in Batman: R.I.P.

Following this, we have two issues of The Resurrection of R'as al Ghul. I think I'll be skipping those, because I don't want to re-read the whole crossover. Next post, I plan to start on the arc that began with Space Medicine. This is where the book started to feel extremely trippy and harder to follow to me, so I'm looking forward to seeing what a re-read is like.

The DCBS Box Cometh

2009-02-03T03:23:00.004-05:00

Well, I've been receiving the majority of my books via DCBS for about six months, maybe a little more. I figured a little examination of the changes in my habits might be in order.

I've had no complaints with my local comic shop. It's been a good place, all told. They have a pretty good selection of back issues, in the time I've had a sub-form with them, there have been very few problems, and they employ one of the internets most notorious comics bloggers, which certainly makes for some fun shop-talk. But as gas prices rose last year, I found that I needed to stretch my dollar, and the discounts provided by online servies like DCBS became too tempting to resist.

My strategy was probably a bit more complicated than most. I continue to purchase Trinity at the shop every week. I've had good experiences there, and I want a reason to stop by every week. I also purchased my big event books (Secret Invasion and Final Crisis) there, so I didn't feel I had to dodge spoilers for weeks. I experimented with subscribing to a few books directly from Marvel. I chose Amazing Spider-Man (at $1.39 per issue), Captain America, X-Factor, The Invincible Iron-Man and Daredevil (all at $1.67 per issue) since I figured those were titles I'd likely want to keep for 12 issues. The rest comes in a box shipped at the end of the month.

The plan has held up pretty well. I've been satisfied enough with my subscriptions from Marvel that I'm expanding my books from their service to include New Avengers and Thor. (This is also in response to the price increase, as the price I was able to subscribe to the books was around $0.70 cheaper per issue than DCBS' standard discount.) I plan to renew my subscriptions to Invincible Iron-Man and Captain America. I will probably renew Daredevil, and I'm debating whether to keep up with X-Factor.

I finished purchasing my major events from the local comic shop of choice, and I plan to do the same with The Battle For The Cowl. (Though I may discontinue if I don't care for it.) I'm still purchasing Trinity every week, and I like stopping by every Wednesday. I've also used them to check out new series that I contemplate ordering via DCBS, or to try to fill in the issues prior to my first pre-ordered issue. As an example, I recenly discovered Terry Moore's Echo. I managed to track down the first eight issues, but the first issue I had pre-ordered was #10. I asked the local comic shop to pull a copy of issue #9 for me. And when the issue released, they made sure I walked out with a copy. I plan to order DC's next weekly series from the local comic shop to continue this trend. I may stick with it, even if it's a turkey, just to have a reason to stop by once a week.

The gap between boxes took some getting used to for someone who was used to getting all of his new comics each week. New Comic Day was like a holiday that came every week. But now the arrival of a new box of comics really does feel more like a holiday. I get excited that when I wake up in the evening, I'll have a big box of comics to page through, and a new issue of Previews to browse. Filling the gap between boxes is helped by the books I get by mail from Marvel. I've been re-reading parts of my collection, and purchasing back-issues either on-line or from the local comic shop. Lately here at work, a friend has given me access to his wireless network, so the internet has also been a big help. It's also slowed down my reading habits, allowing me to stretch the new reads from that box out over a couple weeks. And then there's the zen experience of cataloging and filing away. So much of my life is a storm of chaos, it still strikes me dumb with the realization that I like keeping this one facet of my life organized.

Well, I have five more hours to work, and then I need to go to sleep. If I stay up, the UPS fairy might not leave my box!

Support Captain Britain and MI:13

2009-02-01T17:28:00.004-05:00

Friends, Captain Britain protects us from Skrull Magic, the Mindless Ones, and Vampire Lords from the Moon. Do your part to support him by purchasing Captain Britain and MI:13. Seriously, if you don't want Dracula to come down from the moon to bite you, buy a copy.

Pseudo-Live-Blogging: Grant Morrison's Batman Run - The Black Casebook

2009-01-31T03:14:00.006-05:00

Well, since I'm not procrastinating anything by returning to Morrison's Batman run (and the fact that I'm kindof eager to undertake a similar exploration of Final Crisis) I return to Batman with issues 664 and 665.

Batman #664 - Three Ghosts of Batman

Ah, Man-Bat Ninjas. Grant Morrison, you so crazy.
"He says you're cool, like James Bond" - I'd never thought about it, but it's a remarkably accurate comparison. Both are, essentially, highly trained people, but not superhuman. Both use high-tech gadgets to accomplish their goals. But where Bond does his work in a tuxedo, Bruce puts on the cape and cowl. Of course, Bruce's entrance in this scene is very Bond as well.
It's interesting to watch Jezebel Jet trying to work her way under Bruce's skin. What's supposed to look like a romantic dinner where the pair bond over shared pain almost looks like she's probing him. Maybe I'm reading too much into it?
More Zur-En-Arrh graffiti in the background as we transition back to Gotham.
Massive guy in a luchadore mask - I wonder just how much I'm supposed to think of Bane.
The comments about this big lug being steroid fueled continue the 'Bane' thoughts, but the massive stomp right on Batman's back makes it pretty clear.

Batman #665 - The Black Casebook

It's good to see that no matter how rough a town Gotham is, when a Bane/Batman mashup tries to smash your spine, a hooker will drive you home.
Ahh, Bruce Wayne's penthouse. I mention this, because in interviews I believe Grant Morrison referred to loving the Batman of this era, where he lived in the city to be more centrally located. Again, with the posh living and secret passages, James Bond similarities aren't far off.
Even Bruce draws the connection between Magilla the Gorilla from the last issue and Bane.
Another hint of the Black Glove. After defeating Bane-Bat, not only does the criminal up and vanish, but the Mayor is leaning on Gordon to stay away from this. The implication being that someone else is leaning on the Mayor... somebody rich and influential.
As Talia returns following the Batman and Son story arc, she's interested in Bruce having been seen with Jezebel Jet recently. I wonder if she's aware back here that Bruce is being targeted by the Black Glove.
As Bruce and Jezebel kiss, we see a shot of a pair of hands holding binoculars, spying on them. Hands wearing black gloves.

Some thoughts after reading these two issues.

This story begins to re-introduce some of the elements of Batman that have been missing since Crisis on Infinite Earths rebooted the DC Universe, and Frank Miller's Batman: Year One redefined the Caped Crusader for the modern era. Morrison seems to want to bring back Batman's encounters with aliens and with the supernatural. This is an important aspect that carries over into 'Zur-En-Arrh' and the R.I.P. storyline.

These two issues are pretty straightforward. It could be argued that the next issue, #666 belongs with these two. The stories reference three 'alternate' Batmen that Bruce encountered... one who killed criminals with a gun, another who was a steroid-fueled mass of rage, and a third who sold his soul to the devil and destroyed Gotham. Issue #666 is a clear reference to the final of those three, but because that is a story of Damian Wayne, not Bruce, I'm going to reference it separately.

Well, That Took Longer Than Expected

2009-01-27T07:06:00.003-05:00

Well, overcoming the forces of work, and procrastination, I've finally managed to finish the first draft of the script I've been working on. And now that this is done, I'll return to Grant Morrison's Batman run on my next work-night.

My job may suck, but it's something of a perk to be able to get away with reading comics on the clock, much less do that while blogging about it.

No Lie

2009-01-20T21:21:00.002-05:00

Ordinarily I'd gripe about comics arriving late. It's something that nobody likes. And the past few months, either Marvel or the Postal Service has had a few issues with my subscription. As a rule, I'm not griping because I still get the issues before I get the DCBS box they WOULD be in, if I bought them that way.

But today, I got my copy of Captain America #5. That's today, January 20th, 2009... the day of the inauguration of the newest President of the United States, Barack Obama. This one, I'll let slide.

Blog-Brake

2009-01-08T16:40:00.003-05:00

I've been trying to blog a bit more regularly lately, but I'm going to have to put the brakes on for a wee bit. I really need to focus on finishing up the script I'm working on for Jim Shelley's Flashback Universe. So I'm going to need to keep my focus on getting that wrapped up, before I continue my reading of Morrison's run on Batman, or speculating that Azrael is on the comeback.

I'll get back to the rest of that stuff when I've got it wrapped up.

New Azrael Mini-Series Announced!

2009-01-05T03:16:00.002-05:00

It's right here, folks. Can it be a coincidence that, once again as Bruce Wayne is removed as Batman that Azrael once more takes the scene?

But admittedly, this doesn't sound like Jean-Paul Valley... no matter how much I really want it to be. The solicitation mentions the Suit of Sorrows, so maybe something noteworthy will come out of the truly mediocre resurrection of Ra's al Ghul. (Seriously, DC... if you're going to make such a big deal out of bringing a character back, you should maybe, I dunno, do something with them.)

The fact that this is running in parallel to The Battle for the Cowl means that it's less likely that we'll have a full-on Az-Bats revival, but a guy can hope... right?

Pseudo-Live-Blogging: Grant Morrison's Batman Run - The Clown At Midnight

2009-01-04T03:09:00.004-05:00

Now I come to it... the infamous prose issue. Posing as a regular comic book, this verbal bomb nestled amongst my regular week's comics, waiting to ambush me with text. my recollection was that I had trouble reading this issue, but that's probably because I wasn't expecting it. This is from a time not long ago that I didn't follow solicitations months in advance. And as a prose piece, it's a bit more dense than typical comic fare. So now, as we approach the second anniversary of it's release, here are my thoughts as I read the issue.

I like the quote it starts with - "There's something about clowns at a funeral and it's hard to say if it's sad or if it's funny." I wonder if Grant wrote that, or if it came from something else. If so, major props to Grant. I have to think that quotes about clowns and funerals would generally be in short supply.
Two pages in, and here's a reference to black and red flowers. More foreshadowing for Batman R.I.P.
Are the doctors in Arkham ever going to realize that the Joker is just too bugnuts crazy to write off? Oh, we know he's the Joker... but he's too frail to be any threat to anybody this time. Pff.
I'm not quite half-way through, and there's a third reference to red and black. I just didn't catch on that these color references were going to be at all important. And once again, it's red and black flower petals mixing to form a toxin.
And there's a reference to the Killing Joke, during the Joker's 'Circus Ringmaster' phase, when all of his henchman seemed to be carnival sideshow performers.
I like the mosquito poisoned by the Joker's blood, that the very essence of the Joker is toxic.
There've been constant references to checkerboards, which alternate red and black. The 'reborn' Joker views Harley as a checkerboard, but this 'new' Joker loathes 'board games'. Morrison's intention here seems to be to split Harley from the Joker. She's fine for the animated series, but not for the Joker he wants to write. Heck, imagine the Joker from The Dark Knight with Harley. She doesn't work there.

That's a meaty read for something that looks like a comic book. But it's a good one. Morrison waxes a bit prosaic early on in his descriptions, but it's a good story. It ties together all of the various changes in the Joker from camp to psychopath. But make no mistake, this is definitely more of a Joker story than a Batman story.

I can't help but wonder if Morrison has specific plans for the Joker. Through most of the rest of his run thus far, the Joker stays locked up in Arkham as Batman begins to wrestle with the Black Glove. But he foreshadows the doom coming to Gotham if the Joker does escape... and he walked out of Batman R.I.P. with his freedom.

I have to confess, I'd been a little nervous about reading this one, specifically because I remember it as such a weighty, heavy read. I'm not saying that it wasn't, but it's definitely a good read as well. And it continues to foreshadow elements that Grant Morrison would use over the course of his run on the book. There's all the red and black, of course, and a mention of Nanda Parbat. It's neat to pick up on these things now, even if I didn't realize their significance initially.

Pseudo-Live-Blogging: Grant Morrison's Batman Run - Grotesk (Ostrander Fill-In Story)

2009-01-02T05:00:00.002-05:00

So, here are the thoughts that go through my head as I read the Grotesk arc by Ostrander and Mandrake, published between Batman & Son and The Clown at Midnight:

Wow... this isn't very good.
So these guys want this other guy's sister? Ten gets you twenty he's the villain.
This is so bad it's giving me a headache.
Johnny Karaoke? SERIOUSLY? And his Geisha Grrls?
Headache... getting worse!
Once again, a Gotham vigilante thinks Batman should understand his mission of vengeance.
I think this headache is actually my brain trying to escape from my skull so that it can poke my eyes out. I don't blame it. In fact, it might be for the best if it succeeds.
Well, at least we won't have to worry about seeing Johnny Karaoke again.
And the sister dies too, so we have no loose ends that might bring ANY of this back around. Outstanding.

Well, in the final analysis, the best thing I can say about John Ostrander's four issue cliche is that I'm done reading it. Now I feel like I need a shower. And some steel wool. I'd have rather gone a couple months without an issue of Batman than read this. I'm normally the first one in line to scream when a book I like has delays. "Why not give us a filler story" I might say "while the regular team tries to get their book back on track?"

If you hear me say this, remind me that his line of thinking got us "Grotesk".

Pseudo-Live-Blogging: Grant Morrison's Batman Run - Batman & Son

2008-12-29T01:20:00.013-05:00

As you may know (or care) my job leaves me with a fair bit of empty time in the middle of the night. How do I fill the empty hours, you ask? Instead of pondering exisential crises, I've been reading a lot of comics. Having recently read through Batman #681, I've been playing with the idea of re-reading Morrison's run over the course of a few nights of work. There are definitely a few issues in there that aren't very straightforward on their first read. I figured I'd like to see if they made more sense as a bigger part of a coherent whole. So I grabbed a handful of issues before I came in tonight, and I'm going to write my impressions as I re-read them.

The only issues I plan on skipping are the Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul issues. I'll probably even post my comments as I torture myself by re-reading the Grotesk story arc that popped up early in Morrison's run. Hey, my torture is your enertainment. I get that.

Now, because I do have to ge up and occasionally do bits of work, I'm just going to save drafts, and push the 'Publish Post' button once at the end of the night. (Hence, pseudo-live-blogging.)

So let's get started with Batman #655, the start of Morrison's run.

Wow, talk about starting off with a bang. The commisioner's been gassed! The Joker's beaten Batman with a crowbar. I can't help but wonder if it's the same one he beat Jason Todd with.

Okay, just noticed that. Graffitioed all over the wall on the page with the title/credits is "Zur En Arrh". Seriously, it's ALL OVER the wall. That's really something Morrison was playing from the beginning.

I don't know what amuses me more... that Alfred actually feeds the Bats in the cave, that Bruce has never noticed, or that the bats apparently have a favorite meal. Those are some spoiled rodents.

I like the scene where Alfred is coaching Bruce on the finer points of being Bruce. It's a nice commentary on the Batman books.

Damian gets a nice intro in this issue. It's subtle, but you can pick up on the fact that he's a bright kid. He's good enough to pick out the father he's never met in a crowded room. Of course, that may be in part due to the fact that Bruce is so used to being Batman.

This issue's a nice entry point. It throws a fair bit of Batman at the reader, with Jim Gordon, Alfred, Robin, The Joker and Kirk Langstrom... but it never quite manages to seem overwhelming. It also punctuates the 'grim and gritty' with a few surprising bits of humor.

Grant... you had me at Ninja Man Bats.

I love the interplay between Batman vs Ninja-Man-Bat action, and the comic-book art panels on display in the museum. Really neat way to work in sound effects, etc.

I like the way Batman goes through plans A through D in a matter of seconds, as he waches the situation escalate.

It might be a tip that Jesebel knows that Bruce is Batman. As Alfred helps her out of the museum, she comments that Bruce Wayne is still inside with the Prime Minister's wife.

This one's another solid issue, but where the last issue was largely setup, this one consists mostly of action. But it's never hard to follow and it's never dull. There are also nice touches to help explain Batman's almost superhuman tactical skill. He comments (via inner monologue in a caption box) that the cowl's mic is so sensitive it can pick up the Man-Bat's navigational shrieks.

Wow... Talia just tells Bruce that he's Damian's father and he's already showing him around the cave?

The confrontation between Damian and Robin seems a little sudden. I don't know, maybe it's just that Tim has been around long enough as Robin that I don't expect him to immediately feel threatened by Damian.

I like that Batman is making wry comments on Damian's spoiled behavior. It's good to remind us that Bruce does have a sense of humor.

I like the idea that the police try to infiltrate the gangs of Gotham's costumed criminals. Nice touch. But in the first issue, didn't they say that Batman had coralled pretty much all of the costumed crooks in the city? Was the Spook too small a fish to count?

The notion of Damian as a rival for Tim is a really neat idea. I wonder why they never let him into the Robin title? That would have made for some great reading. The more I read about Damian, the more I like him. He's absolutely brilliant, but criminally misguided.

Does anything ever surprise Alfred? Beaten up by Bruce's son and locked in a closet, and he's right back to business as usual? I suggest testing him for metagene activity.
Damian's a surprising character at every turn. He's brilliant, and dangerous with a criminally skewed view of the world. But seeing him desperate for Batman's approval? I'm suspicious. But this first four issue arc has me wishing we'd spent more time with him.
Batman has a rocket? I can see boats, cars and jets... but I tend to have a little trouble with the non-traditional vehicles.
Why does Batman refuse Talia? If he joins her, she'll help him fight crime. I'd have liked a little more explanation for saying no. Granted, kidnapping the wife of the British Prime Minister seems a bit of a complex task for making the offer, but it did get Bruce to spend some time with Damian.

I think I'm going to draw this post to a close here. Maybe I'll stick with generating a post for each story/story arc.

What did we get out of this issue? "Zur En Arrh" all over Gotham City. Jezebel Jet was introduced to Bruce's life, and we know she plays a big role later on. Damian was introduced, and he also comes back into play... both for the Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul and in Batman R.I.P.

It's also a good, fun Batman story. If you haven't read it, I'd recommend picking it up. Aside from the buildup towards Batman R.I.P. this one's an entertaining story all on it's own. Grant Morrison is showing his love not just for Batman, but for Bruce Wayne. He's referencing some of the earlier, crazier Batman stories with elements like space ships and Zur En Arrh... that's a trend that definitely continues later into the run, and is key to Batman R.I.P. It's good stuff.

Strangers in Paradise

2008-12-20T06:52:00.002-05:00

Wow.

A rather generous soul where I work has loaned me, in bits and pieces, the entirety of Strangers in Paradise. I finally finished reading it tonight, and I'm sortof processing the entire experience.

The book is, by no means, perfect. The story has several spots that don't fit right. There are either inconsistencies in the story based on something we've previously been told, or events as they unfold don't jive with flashes of the future we received in earlier issues. So to be evenhanded, there are definitely inconsistencies. What made this a stand-out book in my mind, is that it involved me so much in the characters lives... it caused me to emotionally invest in them enough that the inconsistencies didn't bother me.

There's a specific point fairly early in the ongoing series where the book flashes ten years or so into the future, and shows where the characters are now. And while the ongoing series hits several of the beats predicted by that segment, we never catch up and move forward from that point. And while that gives the book a disjointed feel if you dwell on it, I'm enchanted enough by the characters not to care.

The series is largely an emotional soap opera surrounding three characters... Katchoo, Francine and David. The primary dynamic of the story is a non-traditional love triangle. David loves Katchoo, Katchoo loves Francine, Francine doesn't know WHO she loves. She's had a string of bad relationships with men, but isn't ready to move to a same-sex relationship with her High School friend and current roommate, Katchoo. Katchoo has no interest in men, but David knows that somewhere down the road, she's going to need him and he's determined to be there for her when that day comes. The events that separate these characters and bring them back together probably aren't that far removed from the fare of daytime soap operas, but after a point I was so drawn to the characters that I didn't care. I just had to know how it ended, even knowing that prospects were dim for one of the three.

The series also has plenty of comic relief from not only the main characters, but from a wonderful supporting cast. And by the end, even Francine's sleazy ex-boyfriend is shown to have a decent side to him.

But I don't know if I could have stood reading this on a month-to-month basis. The need to know what comes next is strong. And when I could easily reach for the next issue, that was manageable. That said, it's gotten me to pay more attention to Terry Moore as a writer and artist. As of my most recent order with DCBS, I've picked up Runaways from Marvel, which he is currently writing, and I'm going to start ordering his new independent series Echo.

The Battle for the Cowl?

2008-12-15T10:17:00.003-05:00

So the identity of Batman is going to be up for grabs amongst all of Batman's associates past and present? Who's going to be Batman? Dick Grayson? Jason Todd? Tim Drake? Bruce Wayne? It'll never happen, but here's my pick for the new Batman...

Who is it?

.
.
.

Jean-Paul Valley!

This would be the greatest sucker-punch in the world. Who has the largest amount of experience as Batman, short of Bruce Wayne? Yeah, sure... maybe he let a murderer die, possibly condemning his last victim to a slow and horrible death. Okay, he's got moments where he goes just bat-sh!t crazy. But I think I would applaud the sheer cojones a move like this would require.

Who says nothing good happened in the 90's?

Secret Invasion - A Dear John Letter

2008-12-07T09:38:00.002-05:00

Secret Invasion,

I don't know how to tell you this, but our relationship has just changed too much. You're not the comics event that I fell in love with anymore.

In the beginning, it was like everything was a game. You teased me with clues, allegations and innuendo. You lead me on, and I willingly followed the promise of your mystery. "You don't really know what's going on in the Marvel Universe" you told me, and despite having been burned once or twice before, I believed you. I followed you through New Avengers, and Mighty Avengers. Our courtship culminated when your premier issue was finally delivered into my rough hands and it was wonderful.

But something happened after that day. I don't know if it was you, or if it was me... but the mystery had ended. You tried... you tried so hard, as you revealed some of your mysteries to me through New Avengers and Mighty Avengers... but the magic between us had vanished. Maybe we lingered too long in the Savage Land? But the games, and guessing disappeared, and everything was straightforward. I tried to adjust. I held out hope that you were playing a deeper game, preparing to surprise me with your conclusion.

But you didn't. You became just another action comic spectacular, along with the token death in the final act for shock value. For all that, I might have still loved you... but your conclusion broke my heart. I don't know what you see in Dark Reign. The two of you don't seem to have anything in common. I can't even imagine how you met, much less what you talk about. But the growing closeness between you two leaves no room for me. I'm leaving.

I'm not leaving the Marvel Universe... nothing that extreme. But, I don't know if I'll be seeing you around for awhile. It's awkward though, since I know I'll be seeing Dark Reign all over the place for a few months. It saddens me, because I really thought we had the potential to make it.

Goodbye.

Jason

The Greatest Batman Story Ever!

2008-12-03T04:19:00.002-05:00

We've had stories where Bruce Wayne was put on trial for a crime that only revealing himself to be Batman could possibly clear him of. We've had stories that put Bruce Wayne in a wheelchair. We've had plenty of stories where someone close to Bruce has learned that he's secretly Batman.

Blind Justice, running from Detective Comics has them all! That's right, Bruce Wayne on trial over a decade before Bruce Wayne: Murderer! A wheelchair-bound Batman four years before Knightfall! What? You haven't read this epic by Sam Hamm? Told in two oversized issues sandwiching a single issue middle chapter, it's got more story than three normal Batman story arcs!

While investigating a strange series of crimes, Batman learns of a secret government cabal performing research within Waynetech. Disposable villain, Dr. Kenneth Harbinger has been experimenting on implanting chips into people in order to control them remotely. When Bruce threatens to shut them down, they come right back saying that they know his secret. If he moves against them, they'll go public. Unwilling to be bullied, Bruce Wayne prepares to file charges only to find himself arrested and charged as a communist spy! Apparently the cold-war era US government didn't smile on billionaire playboys in charge of multinational corporations who spent a lot of time in Communist China at impressionably young ages. Who knew?

Of course, Bruce could explain that he was training with martial arts masters so that he could become a dark avenger of the night... but yeah, talk like that would put him in Arkham sharing a cell with the Penguin. So instead, he prepares a legal defense. Or he would, except that Dr. Kenneth Harbinger, having permanently shifted his mind into another body to break free of the secret government cabal, tries to gun Wayne down. Failing to kill him, it does leave Bruce paralyzed. Gee, without Batman to do the legwork to exonerate Bruce Wayne, things look bleak don't they?

Enter Plot Device #3, disposable supporting cast. Early in the story, Bruce helped reunite Jeannie Bowen with her long-lost brother Roy Kane, who was one of the innocents the cabal experimented on. Accidentally discovering that Bruce Wayne is Batman, Roy offers to let Bruce pilot his body by remote, allowing Batman to return to duty! Repelled by the notion, Bruce reluctantly agrees. Of course, by learning Bruce's secret we can already guess something about Roy... and as one would expect, he's not getting out alive. While he's able to recover the information he needs to prove that Bruce Wayne was framed, 'Batman' is killed. It seems Roy wasn't quite the athlete that Bruce is. So we also get another level of stuff for Bruce to torture himself over as he torches every last bit of the technology that allowed him to endanger Roy's life.

If you haven't ever seen this masterpiece for yourself, check out Detective Comics #598-600.

Recent Re-Reads: Batman - War Games, Acts 2 and 3

2008-11-27T05:50:00.003-05:00

Okay, better late than never. While I've still got it roughly in my head, I figure I'll talk about what turned me off about the rest of War Games.

I think I mentioned that what I liked was the mass-Gang-Warfare that was tearing Gotham apart, leaving Batman pretty impotent to stop it. He was pretty much going from one place to another putting out fires, without achieving anything noteworthy. It was like Knightfall writ large. In that story, he was chasing down a couple dozen psychopaths, whereas here every street gang in Gotham went to war at the same time.

But after the first act, the story felt like it lost focus on those players. You stop hearing mention of the specific gangs involved. The whole thing seems to just descend into anarchy. And by the third act that's precisely what happens. While anarchy might very well be a more frightening scenario, they never really stated why the gangs fell apart.

Instead, these acts focused on the notion that since this was all based on Batman's plans, then Batman knows what he has to do in order to 'win'... and what happens when that completely backfires on him. Here you have a classic Batman-is-a-dick moment, when he overrides Police Commissioner Akins and basically takes charge of the Gotham police. When he blows it, he's blown any trust that Akins had for him, and made an enemy of the cops. Now, I think this was pretty much an editorial mandate... but so soon after Bruce Wayne: Fugitive when Bruce realizes he needs to soften up a little, let his friends and associates in a little further, and act less like an ass... well, is't it a bit soon for this?

Then there's the torture of Stephanie Brown. While, thankfully, DC decided to spare us the explicit details (a decision they wouldn't repeat in Infinite Crisis, or the DC Universe at large in it's wake) there's still a lot of uncomfortable violence directed her way. But while it's not something I'm comfortable with, it actually sat better with me on the re-read. I shudder to think what we would've seen had this been a little more contemporary. When DC shows us Wonder-Dog mauling Marvin fatally and chasing Wendy around Titans Tower... who knows?

But ultimately, one of the most disappointing things about War Games is that while it was a major crossover event designed to change Batman's continuity... it barely hung in there before it was almost completely reversed. And now that Spoiler has returned, there's almost no element of this story that still stands. In hindsight, War Games is completely skippable, and for something that dominated eight titles for three months, that's kindof sad.

Recent Re-Reads: Batman - War Games, Act 1

2008-11-20T18:40:00.003-05:00

So between large boxes of comics once a month, I'm spending a lot of time re-reading stuff I've already purchased. This helps justify my actually keeping my comics, as well as allowing me to help update entries in my database.

So last week, I re-read the three-month, 25-chapter epic War Games. This book occupied every book DC published that was even tangentially related to the Batman universe. Even Legends of the Dark Knight which was usually kept exempt from crossovers was occupied. This story is relevant, considering my recent rant on liking Marvel's crossovers more than DC's because of the lasting impact on their respective universes. Particularly, my gripe was that Marvel accomplished visible goals with their crossovers while DC tends to just use theirs as a reset button.

This one is an exception to that rule. This crossover largely existed to shake up Batman's status quo, revamping his relationship with Gotham's police and set up a new 'head criminal' in Gotham. So in this case, DC was actually doing something I think was worthwhile. The problem is that after the first third, I think the story just flounders.

Here's the gist. I think by now we all know that Batman plans for every possible (and apparently impossible) contingency. I mean, a man who keeps a backup PERSONALITY is probably ready for everything. Including the possibility that every gang in Gotham might go to war at the exact same time. Stephanie Brown, who was Robin for about a week, steals that particular contingency plan, and decides she's going to prove herself to Batman by carrying it out. I mean, if she can make one of his plans work, then he was wrong to fire her... right? Show of hands if you think this was a good idea.

She sets up a meeting with all of Gotham's top (non-lunatic) criminals, and is suitably shocked when they start killing each other. Out of 21 attendees, eight survive. So most of Gotham's gangs are now leaderless and wanting blood. This part of the story highlights Batman's helplessness to contain the chaos. Tim is still retired as Robin, Nightwing isn't even in Gotham yet, so it's basically him, Catwoman and Batgirl versus every crook in Gotham. Nightwing does make it to Gotham in this chapter, but he's got his own baggage. This act basically culminates in a standoff between several gangs of criminals and the police at Tim Drake's high school where one of his fellow students (and daughter of one of the new mob bosses) has been shot. Batman and his crew are able to save the day, but not in time to save the girl, who's bled out.

Throughout this first act, Batman has no idea what's going on, or what prompted all this. He's wondering who's behind it. The audience only learns as Stephanie confides in Catwoman that she set up the fatal gangland meeting, but that the key figure involved didn't show up... some hood named 'Matches' Malone. (Most Batman fans are aware that 'Matches' Malone is a criminal identity Bruce Wayne set up for dealing directly with Gotham's underworld to gather information, etc.)

Through this first act of the story, it's directed and tight. Sadly, that doesn't seem to last beyond the first act. I'll see if I can't post tomorrow to discuss where this one goes downhill in Act 2.

Vaya con Dios, Blue Beetle

2008-11-12T21:06:00.004-05:00

One of the books that I’m most disappointed about in that regard is a book like Blue Beetle, which we are cancelling. That’s a book that we started with very high expectations, but it lost its audience along the way. Recently, we felt that it was standing on firmer ground, and was getting a more positive response. The problem is that the firmer ground and positive response is not enough to keep the book afloat. So unfortunately, we had to cancel that series.

So sayeth Dan Didio in a recent interview with Newsarama.

I've been thinking a lot about the Blue Beetle for the past couple of days. While having lunch with a friend yesterday, I remember saying that I just didn't love it as much as I did when John Rogers was writing it but I couldn't really come up with a reason why. And it's not the first time I've had that opinion of the series... I initially dropped it after the sixth issue, learning that the Scarab was a piece of alien technology. I don't know if it was that conclusion specifically, but something in the book failed to grab me at that point, and it took me eight months to give it another chance.

Now, I haven't dropped the book. I thought about it after Will Pfeifer's two issues, but ultimately decided to hang in there to see if Matt Sturges could do anything. I thought about all this while I tried to pinpoint what it was that was missing, and after a day and a half or so, I think maybe what's gone missing is a sense of direction. When John Rogers introduced the Reach in issue #12, he started a story that essentially ran for 14 issues, and provided the Blue Beetle with a threat that only he could sense, much less stop. And the last four issues of his run were a thundering conclusion that cemented Jaime Reyes as a hero... and brought that story to a close.

The thing is... direction requires time and stability. Following Rogers, we got three issues that could essentially have been skipped. Jai Nitz' experiment in Spanish-language comics, and two stories by WIll Pfeifer did more to hurt the book, I think, than anything. Hindsight is 20/20, and it seems to me that following Rogers' run on the book, what it needed was someone who was going to stick with it, and take it somewhere. That's why I've stuck around, even though the book doesn't feel to me that it's 'as good'. I want to give Matt Sturges a chance to get his feet under him with the character, and try to go somewhere. Too bad it sounds like he won't get the chance.

Marvel Comics Events

2008-11-11T13:45:00.002-05:00

I'm just pondering before going to sleep late today... what do people think the resolution of Secret Invasion will be? I was talking with Chad about this a bit over lunch today. There's some belief out there that the logical conclusion is a Skrull occupation of Earth. I think this would be cool, but it would be too disruptive to books that have, in recent years, been permitted to go on with their own stories without having to bend the knee to big events. (Captain America and Daredevil spring to mind.)

I got to thinking about it another way... the last two massive events (House of M and Civil War) implemented massive editorially-mandated changes to the entire Marvel Universe. House of M removed almost all mutations from the planet, making mutant-minority stories relevent again. Civil War shook up all of the character relationships, increasing the levels of uncertainty present in the Marvel Universe, while creating a grey-area for unsanctioned heroes to function in.

What kind of editorial goals could be accomplished in Secret Invasion? Is the Hood's recently revealed connection to Dormammu going to lead to a resurgence of mystical characters in the Marvel Universe? (Dr. Strange has been conspicuously absent since World War Hulk.) Is a Skrull occupation (or at least presence) on Earth going to lead to a more prominent connection to Marvel's cosmic heroes like the Guardians of the Galaxy?

One thing I have to give Joe Quesada credit for, is that many of the crossovers and events on his watch have served an editorial function and been used to tweak the Marvel Universe... and while I may kick and scream about the individual changes, it probably IS more interesting to read than it was three or four years ago.

Anybody have any thoughts on where this is all going?

A Vote for Darkseid is a Vote for Anti-Life!

2008-10-14T09:49:00.002-04:00

Holy cow! I called it! Campaign manager G. Glorious Godfrey saw my post, and just e-mailed me a link to the following video! The Dark Lord of Apokolips is preparing to smite the inept leadership of our puny world, and I for one say... it's about time!

Remember! Anti-Life justifies your hatred! A vote for Darkseid is a vote for Anti-Life!

Darkseid in '08!

2008-10-12T20:32:00.002-04:00

With all the wonderful economic and geo-political news today, I think that we all agree that the time has come for a change. Neither the Republicans or Democrats truly have the well being of the US citizens at heart. The third party candidates mean well, but have largely proven incapable of garnering enough attention to have a serious chance. I think it's time for a Fourth Party!

A Fourth World Party!

I'd like to declare that Darkseid is my candidate in these perilous times! Amidst rising inflation and unemployment, as well as the devestation being wrought on the stock market, I say that the only valid choice is no choice at all! In times such as these, Free Will is part of the problem, and Darkseid's platform of Anti-Life is the only answer. Free will just leads to dissatisfaction with things beyond the ability of the average person to change! Surrendering it to Darkseid is the first step to change!

And the best part of all? A vote for Darkseid is a personal victory, regardless of what happens on November 4th! You don't even have to leave your home! Embrace the anti-life equation, and make Darkseid your candidate today!

The Would-Be Super Villain In All Of Us

2008-10-09T17:41:00.004-04:00

Well, my nocturnal schedule has kept me away from my blog for longer than I'd anticipated. And miraculously, I haven't bought any comics that have truly inspired me to rant... which must be a good thing. Because, I'm in fact here to rave.

While listening to this episode of Comic Geek Speak, I heard mention of an independent book called The Nearly Infamous Zango. It's the story of Lord Alfred Zango, Jr. He's the heir to a masterful criminal legacy, when his father eliminated the city's superheroes. But he just spends most of his days on the sofa, still wearing his pajamas, watching television.

The three issues currently in existence are filled with cyborg gorillas, apple-monsters and a henchman who loses a body part in almost every issue. If you like fun, you owe it to yourself to check this book out. And what's even better, writer/artist/creator Rob Osborne has an wesome deal. For $7, he'll ship you three issues all signed. It's the same deal he offers people at conventions, except that $7 includes shipping too! Just click on through to his store. It's an awesome read.

The New Gods

2008-09-06T09:25:00.002-04:00

As a DC fan, of course I'm reading Final Crisis. A big part of the problem, though, has been that I feel like I'm missing a lot. As I considered this, I came to the conclusion that maybe I just didn't have a good enough background with Jack Kirby's New Gods.

Now, bear in mind that ultimately Paul Dini and Bruce Timm are responsible with my entering comics. I was in college with Batman: The Animated Series was running, and I fell immediately in love with it. Much moreso than with the Tim Burton movies that inspired it. Later, when it was introduced, I watched the Superman series as well... and I believe it was this series that introduced me to Darkseid, and by extension the New Gods. I don't recall an explanation of the Anti-Life Equation, and still know, I suppose, surprisingly little about New Genesis.

So, with the aid of instocktrades.com I purchased the first volume of Jack Kirby's Fourth World Omnibus. This should hopefully allow me to experience the work from the beginning, as though I were buying all of Kirby's books off the rack.

Just last night I read through over half of the volume, but I'm not sure what my impressions really are. I mean, it's weird and wonderful. Starting with a bang, elements of Kirby's mythos appear rather quickly. But most of what I've read is establishing material, setting up the conflict between New Genesis and Apokolips, and the secret nature of the war between these two worlds carried out on our own.

I'm hoping that it will give me a keener insight into Final Crisis. I'll try to post more thoughts about the book itself here after I've finished it.

What I've Been Doing

2008-08-20T22:29:00.003-04:00

Well, I'm now officially Count Jovial1, Creature of the Night. I've got a new third-shift position, and while it's not going to help my complexion, it does generally leave me some good time for reading.

Since I'm finding myself with a bit of a shortage of new comics to read between DCBS boxes, I'm taking a cue from Bill over at Just Bill's Comic Drawerbox to re-read some of my back material. It's not quite the same, as Bill is still working on catalogging his collection. As my collection is much more modest, I'm taking it as an opportunity to get some benefit of keeping my comics.

So that leads (invariably) to the question... what have I been reading?

I've been going back and reading some of my Batman books from 2000-ish. Rucka's Detective Comics, Brubaker's Batman run and Grayson's Gotham Knights. And, on the whole... I'm finding that they're holding up pretty well from my perspective. I loved the division between the Bat-titles. Each one had a purpose, and I thought the writers did a pretty good job of differentiating the books. I've also just re-read the first 10 issues of Gotham Central, in light of Rucka's joining Brubaker and Lark on Daredevil.

I've also been re-reading some of my (limited) Superman books. I'm not sure if I've read many truly great Superman stories, and I'm sortof paging through what I have to see how it holds up. I've reread the Sacrifice crossover resulting in the death of Maxwell Lord, and the One Year Later story that crossed Superman and Action Comics. If anybody can recommend a good Superman read, please let me know. I know one friend has suggested the Election 2000 stuff. I'll have to check that out.

A couple more weeks, and I'll have another shipment from DCBS to add to the collection.

DCBS - First Shipment

2008-08-04T20:30:00.002-04:00

Today I received my first shipment of comics from DCBS. I thought I'd take a moment to record my impressions, since I know that at least one of my friends is also just trying DCBS out.

The comics came well packaged. I paid the nominal fee to have them bagged and boarded. They came as promised, and tightly bound into two small bricks of comics. Those two mini-packages were themselves packed into a box filled with foam packing peanuts. Everything seems to be in excellent condition.

I initially thought that the quality of the boards being used was less than I was used to, but I'm going to take that back. There was one board in the first comic I read (She-Hulk #31) that didn't seem to have a 'smooth' side. The boards in each of the other books I've been able to read thus far have been perfectly fine. I've swapped that board out, and have no complaints.

I was initially nervous about getting the lion's share of my books only once a month. I think I've discovered over this past month that those were unfounded concerns. It gives me time to go back over my growing collection of back-issues to re-read those things that I thought were particularly worthwhile. Thus far, I have to say I'm an enthusiastic fan of getting my books this way. If you're looking to save a little cash on your comics, and if you've got something to help fill the time between shipments, DCBS is a great way to go.

DCBS

2008-07-29T23:30:00.002-04:00

Well, today I received notification that DCBS has printed a label for a shipment to me via DHL. This is exciting news to me, since I haven't been reading most of my books this month. And to this point, I've been very happy with DCBS... but it all comes up to the point where goods haven't yet changed hands.

Don't get me wrong... I'm not afraid that it's a scam, or that something will go horribly, horribly wrong. But I have a deeply held belief that full judgement needs to be withheld until all parties have what they want. They've got my money... I'm just waiting to see my comics. Nothing's late or anything. I went with once a month shipping (more on that in a moment) and I did so knowing what I was going into. Once I've gotten my July comics, they'll get a full endorsement to anybody who reads my blog.

In the break in which I haven't been getting many new comics, however, I've been starting to hit the stack of unread books that's needed putting-away for months or longer. I've also been dipping into my own back-issues. As much as I like Dini's run on Detective, it's nice to slip into Greg Rucka's run on the title. I don't think there's any aspect of Detective Comics coming out of No Man's Land that I didn't like... the cop-story ambience, the expanded Gotham City PD, and the gorgeous two-toned artwork. It's great stuff, and I'm glad I have time to re-enjoy it.

Duplicate Issues

2008-07-27T23:49:00.002-04:00

It happens to just about everybody who acquires enough comics to be considered a collection. Maybe you get a wire crossed in your head between what you want and what you already have. Or maybe you just buy a big box of comics off eBay that was part of an estate sale, and wind up with four copies of the first issue of James Robinson's The Golden Age.

Over time, you're almost destined to wind up with duplicate books... they take up space, and they don't really add anything to your collection. I've been wondering how to handle them for about a month now. Tonight I started giving it more thought. Most of these issues are not anything I paid any princely sum for, and I'm not looking for a lot in return. Really, I'd just want enough to cover postage and send the books on their way. Sadly, most of the sales options that leap to mind have fees bundled in, that make giving the books away problematic at best.

I mean, I've considered giving them away, and in some cases I've gone and done so. But I don't know if I have three friends who would want a copy of the first issue of The Golden Age. Anybody have any suggestions?

Best. News. Ever. (Today)

2008-07-21T13:12:00.002-04:00

According to Newsarama, both Casanova and Last of the Independents are the targets of Hollywood movie deals. A big congratulations to Matt Fraction on his success! Here's hoping it won't make him too cool to attend HeroesCon in 2009!

The Bronze Age

2008-07-09T22:11:00.002-04:00

As I've mentioned here or there, I don't have a large history with comics. I've only really been into comics for about seven years. As such, despite being old enough to have read some of the tail of the bronze age when I was little... I didn't.

That's not entirely true... I remember having comics, primarily Superboy comics when I was younger... but I never really read them.

But this year at HeroesCon, most of what I purchased came from a stand advertising bronze-age Marvel books for $1 apiece, or 11 for $10. I was a little unsure of what to get, not having much experience with that period, but I'd listened to Marv Wolfman's interview on Word Balloon a couple months ago, and decided to buy a big bunch of Tomb of Dracula. I'd looked into picking up some of it locally awhile ago, but found it to be a little more than I was willing to pay for single issues. (Of course the Omnibus' release is imminent.) I also picked up a smattering of the Fantastic Four, Captain Marvel about 11 issues of Thor and a couple spare Dr. Strange... and I haven't had a bad read yet!

I can see why these comics inspired Jim and Pierre to create Flashback Universe. And I can understand why Marvel wants to try to replicate that energy in Amazing Spider-Man. It's seriously some great stuff, and I'm going to have to see if I can't keep my eyes open for more.

In Honor of Independence Day

2008-07-06T11:59:00.003-04:00

Here in the US, we just celebrated our Independence Day. (I celebrated mine by showing my dependence on my job, and working some overtime.)

As I was perusing some of the comics I've read in the past couple of weeks, I came across the page to the left. Comics fans familiar with the bronze age stuff from the 70's and early 80's will remember those wonderful Hostess cake full-page comic ads that populated both DC and Marvel featuring the likes of Green Arrow, Red Tornado, Spider-Man and The Hulk.

I don't recall seeing this particular page before, but I nearly burst a gut laughing. Hopefully clicking on the page should bring you to a full-size (readable) scan of the page.

Anybody reading the current Captain America series by Ed Brubaker should also get a particular laugh out of how his first story arc might have ended, had Cap been creative enough to employ cream-filled sponge cake!

Heroes Con 2008 - Post Con Report - Sketches - The Hulk!

2008-07-02T12:34:00.004-04:00

I got one other sketch as HeroesCon drew to a close. As we left Ron Wilson's table, very happy with my new sketch of the Thing, the Official Comic Shelf Photographer observed a sign advertising "Lousy Full Color Sketches" by Jim Salicrup.

That's right, Jim Salicrup, writer of Spidey Super Stories.

Of course, I wasn't aware of that at the time. Like many, I'd heard about the Spidey Super Stories series courtesy of Chris Sims' Invincible Super-Blog. So while I wasn't entirely aware of the rare opportunity in front of me, I'm fortunate enough that Salicrup's name did stick in my head. So I stopped, and watched him sketch. He was even working in the rare medium of fruit-scented magic marker! Say what you want about most of the artists at the convention, I didn't smell fruit around any of them.

When he was done, I handed over my sketchbook, and the requested modest fee and was gifted with the masterpiece on this post. It still smells fruity.

I'll have more pictures from the convention in future posts!

Heroes Con 2008 - Post Con Report - Sketches - Turtle Power!

2008-06-30T11:53:00.003-04:00

One of my earliest comic book memories is borrowing a friends' brothers' original black & white issues of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I read them back before they were a cartoon, back when they killed people.

Back when they were totally awesome.

So I thought it was truly cool to see that Peter Laird, who co-created the turtles with Kevin Eastman would be at HeroesCon. At one point, I had found and purchased a copy of the Raphael/Casey Jones one shot, but in all the moving I've done, it seems to have lost it's way.

That said, the only book I had for Mr. Laird to sign was a re-print of TMNT #1 issued a year and a half ago to promote their last video game. I convinced the employees of a local game shop to give me a copy some months ago. He signed it graciously, and the next day I went over to him and obtained the sketch on the right. This guy still draws the turtles excellently. He whipped up this little sketch in no time at all.

The 90-est Cover

2008-06-26T20:01:00.003-04:00

After reading several other entries, I've decided to try throwing my hat into the ring in regards to the 90-est Cover Ever. Now, I didn't start reading until we started into the 'aughts so my collection of 90's books isn't very robust compared to others.

Presented for your inspection... Cable #1. Note, if you will, that there are as many guns on the wraparound cover as there are characters. Observe the Shoulder-Pads Of The Future! Witness the total lack of visible feet! May I call attention to the foil logo? And located right next to the logo sits the burst declaring that Cable #1 is a first issue, and thus... a collector's item! This example also displays the ridiculous overload of pouches and bandoliers evocative of the era.

It might be possible to locate a cover that evokes a stronger 90's vibe... but should you? Can your body handle the strain?

Has anybody else noticed that these are all Marvel covers?

Heroes Con 2008 - Post Con Report - Sketches - The Thing

2008-06-25T10:52:00.005-04:00

At Chad's suggestion this year, I procured a pocket sketchbook for the purpose of... well, acquiring sketches.

Now, the writing tends to grip me more about comics than the art. It's just the way I'm wired. I don't think art is inconsequential... in fact I know it's aboslutely crucial for the medium. In a collaboration between artist and writer, the writer may be the one making the story up, but the artist is the one actually telling it to an audience. I may personally have come up with the greatest and coolest stories never comitted to paper, but without the artwork to convey those stories to an audience, they're less than nothing. I guess what I'm trying to get at here is that one of my failings is to get more excited over writers than artists. But I think that the convention this year may have taken a big step towards breaking me of that.

Like a fool, I waited until Sunday to try to get some sketches. What this means to folks who haven't ever been to a convention, is that the only people who could take the time to sketch in my book were those who asked for money. It's a perfectly reasonable request, as these people are providing you with original artwork that is essentially one of a kind. Ron Wilson may have drawn The Thing a thousand times, but the one in my sketchbook was drawn for me. That's totally worth compensation. There are a plethora of artists who'll provide free sketches, but if you're not on-hand Friday to ask, and drop off your sketchbook... well, there's always next year. But as these folks are doing it out of a generous love for the fans, I don't have the heart to rail against the system.

Now, here's a peek at the sketches I was fortunate enough to get. In order to keep the page from getting too cluttered (and to let me draw out my post-con writing that much longer) I'll do one sketch per post.

Ben Grimm, also known as The Thing is one of my favorite comic book characters, period. As I mentioned above, Ron Wilson, a Marvel penciller from the 70's and 80's drew the classic story in which the Thing must face the alien Champion to determine the fate of the world. After having read about that story a couple times online, I obtained a copy, and loved it. So when I walked up to him at the convention, I knew I wanted him to sketch the Thing for me. He was busy with other commissioned artwork, including a gorgeous two-page spread (I'm not sure if the Official Photographer got a picture of it or not.) but decided he had time to do a quick head sketch.

It's awesome stuff. We chatted a bit while he drew. And I think he was originally going to just do the sketch in pencil, but as we spoke, picked up a pen to go over the lines. He drew this in no time at all, but it's easily one of the best things I got out of the convention.

Con Report Interlude: Dead Space

2008-06-24T15:04:00.004-04:00

I received an e-mail today from a fellow affiliated with Electronic Arts today. After my sole prior incident, you might think I'd be used to people I don't know delivering warm, filling content... but I'm not. (It's all rather flattering, really.)

After a brief introduction, he moved on to the game, Dead Space. (For anyone who isn't aware, despite this being a Comics blog, I'm a voracious devourer of video games. As a rule, I don't discuss them here, but it's another subject that feel very strongly about.) Aside from the game, he wanted to make sure I knew about the accompanying comic book that was being released prior to the game's release.

Truth be told, though the game definitely had my interest, I hadn't paid any attention previous to his e-mail. As with anything else, a licensed comic book can range from very good (Image's adaptation of the PC game Freedom Force to Marvel's embarassing Marvel Nemesis: The Imperfects, tying into an equally bad game. I'm ashamed to have to admit that I actually own three issues of the latter.) With a few links provided, I figured I'd give a look to the material provided. Below should be the video feed for the online viewing of issue #3. In a move that's been popular over the past few years, the comic serves as a prequel to the game, explaining the initial situation when you put the disc into your system and turn it on.

Now I'm not sure if this is a preview, or if it contains the entire issue, but it strikes me as something with some promise. The art looks strong to me, and the creative team (Ben Templesmith and Antony Johnston) seem to have some work to their credit. Blending science fiction and horror has always struck me as one of those things that's very difficult to pull off well. When I stop by Ye Olde Comic Shoppe tomorrow, I think I'm going to see if I can find an issue or two.

Heroes Con 2008 - By The Power of Fraction!

2008-06-23T21:13:00.007-04:00

The personality who impressed me the most at the convention had to be the guy in line asking Roy Thomas to sign about fifty different copies of the same trading card, despite a good dozen people behind him.

But if you asked me who made the best impression on me at the show this year, the answer would undeniably be Matt Fraction. Not only does the guy have a solid grasp on what makes many of the Marvel Universe's most interesting characters tick, but he's also just so darned cool to talk to. Whether he's running a panel single-handedly (with only Ed Brubaker via cell-phone to back him up), diverting a line to keep the aisles of the convention free, or just chatting... he makes it all look easy, and he does it with style.

He was the writer I was most looking forward to meeting at this year's show. As such, I'd brought more of his books to the show to be signed than anybody else. I brought enough that I didn't feel comfortable carrying them in one shot. After presenting him with the Marvel stuff in the morning, I caught back up to him in the afternoon. The day was wearing on him, and talking with fans (and possibly mugging with Rick Remender seated next to him) was drying out his throat. As he was talking to a convention employee, Official Comic Shelf Photographer Hilary dug into a bag, producing a bottle of the Hilton's best water on the spot. (She was carrying around several of them.) Matt was so grateful, he included the following inscription on my Casanova: Luxuria hardcover:

To translate: "thank you for water. you have saved my life. Fraction!"

And that's the coolest thing I got at the show.

Heroes Con 2008 - Post Con Report The First

2008-06-22T17:58:00.005-04:00

Another year is past, and at this moment, HeroesCon is officially over. I'm back in Columbia, trying to digest my experience as I gaze at the small mountain of bronze-age Marvel books that I gleefully carried home.

Each year I attend the convention, I find that it's less and less about acquiring comics. I mean, check this out... I was at the show for three days, and got six more books than I did two years ago. I was late Friday, and left a little early today, but that's still plenty of time to go shopping. I think it's a key change in how I experience the convention. Whereas initially it was a big shopping spree, it's become the way in which I connect with the folks who create this entertainment that I enjoy.

I waited in line for a good half hour to let Roy Thomas sign two issues of King Conan that I picked up the previous day. While in line, I thought... this guy worked right alongside Stan Lee. Ron Wilson signed Marvel Two-in-One Annual #7, where the Thing decided the fate of the world in a boxing match. Matt Fraction signed... well, he signed a whole lot of stuff, while sharing anecdotes and and telling me how much he appreciated the fact that I purchased his work.

And at the advice of my friend Chad, I bought a small sketchbook and took the experience a step further by asking several artists to grace it's pages with a picture. And I think that those sketches are the most treasured items that came out of HeroesCon with me. While I'm sure that those artists draw plenty of sketches like the ones they did for me, those sketches are still unique.

I'll provide more details later, possibly with pictures taken by my official Comic Shelf photographer (and unofficial Matt Fraction Watergirl) Hilary. But to close out, here are some statistics. I took my laptop up with me, and updated my database each day.

118 Books purchased at a total price of $111.64
Average purchase price: $0.95/issue
31 Books signed at the convention this year

An Existential Quandry!

2008-06-19T22:22:00.004-04:00

I'm in the middle of preparing for HeroesCon. I'm going to be tired at work tomorrow, but I don't particularly care. As I'm pulling books to take with me to the con, I decide to pull Avengers #350. Steve Epting, known across the country for his work on Captain America, pencilled this book and I figure he might want to sign something that isn't Captain America #25 on Saturday.

So imagine my surprise when I find that the book is already signed by Steve Epting! I've only met the man once, last year at Free Comic Book Day when I got him to sign my copy of Captain America #25. I'm almost positive I didn't have this book with me. I'm completely stymied, because I don't think I could have gotten this book signed. But unless someone else was in the habit of writing the name 'Steve Epting' in their comics, what else could this be?

Can I legitimately ask the man to sign this book... again? I'll take it with me anyway, but I'm really not sure what the etiquette is here. Anybody have any suggestions?

DC Has Issues...

2008-06-14T09:16:00.002-04:00

There's a great article over at the Comics Should Be Good blog discussing the astonishing silence of DC Editorial in regards to both Grant Morrison dishing on the inconsistencies between Countdown, Death of the New Gods and Final Crisis. It also goes into the matter of Chuck Dixon's mysterious, and apparently unsought departure from DC.

While both issues strike me as being Editorial in nature, the occurences themselves don't disturb me. Stuff happens all the time, right? But the deafening silence from DC is astonishing. You'd think that as a major publisher, you'd want to keep plot points straight for your major Summer Event... especially on obscure little details like who dies and when.

But I can look at that screw up, roll my eyes and forget about Death of the New Gods. I did that about Countdown months ago. But when DC made such a noise about the return of Chuck Dixon not just to DC, but to several of the Batman-related titles to see that they almost don't want to acknowledge that he's gone is shocking. I know we don't have any right to the details, but right now all we have is Dixon's terse confession that his departure from DC was not voluntary. It's showing a lot of restraint and professionalism on Dixon's part while DC continues in an ominous silence.

I don't know what's going on over there, but it would be nice to hear something from them. Especially at a time when I'm dropping DC books with greater and greater frequency. I don't see myself staying with Batman and the Outsiders beyond Dixon's last issue... and I'm not exactly joined at the hip with Robin either. Dixon's return to the book, and the return of Stephanie Brown kept me from dropping it a couple months ago. Looks like it might be headed back to the chopping block after Batman: R.I.P.

Sightings - A Rant

2008-06-11T20:53:00.003-04:00

It seems like only yesterday that DC's editorial staff told it's readers that special books with something important would carry this special 'SIGHTINGS' banner, and that within those issues would be something the readers would want to see. My personal understanding of the concept was that when something big enough to reflect notice in the DC Universe at large happened, this banner would appear on the cover of the book, so that fans would know to look. It's a good idea.

In my opinion, it's been misused completely in the two books I know of that have carried it.

Justice League of America, Vol. 2 #21 carried thie banner. What happened in Justice League #21? Libra recruited a loser criminal called the Human Flame for his new incarnation of the Secret Society, or Injustice League, or whatever they're deciding to call the faceless mass of supervillains for this Crisis. And I guess they beat up a few Leaguers doing it. Well... was there anything in this mess that wasn't covered by the first issue of Final Crisis? Not that I'm aware of. By comparison, Final Crisis #1 did not carry the 'SIGHTINGS' banner, and in that issue they killed a prominent mainstay of the Justice League. That would seem slightly more important to me.

Action Comics #866 arrived in stores today, and once again, another book bearing the banner. I've been steadfastly ignoring Geoff Johns' run on Action Comics for several reasons, so once again... a book that I wouldn't have normally read has a banner telling me something important is happening. It's a light week, so I nibble. I don't see anything noteworthy in the title, except that Johns is now apparently re-telling or re-imagining Brainiac's pre-Crisis history. (For the sake of further spoilage, I won't go into it here, but Wikipedia sums it up nicely.) Where's the landmark event in this book that makes it a must-read? Could someone please tell me?

Well, THAT'S pretty sudden...

2008-06-11T10:34:00.003-04:00

While peering through my RSS feeds during my siesta, today, I observed a short post on Occasional Superheroine indicating that Chuck Dixon is no longer employed by DC Comics. Seriously, the post on his own forums is right here. It's too short to be cryptic per se, but it does lead me to wonder what precisely happened?

What... did he kill Dan Didio's dog or something? Did they just hire him back to revive Spoiler, and salvage a few issues of Batman & the Outsiders?

On that note, does anybody think that Batman & the Outsiders will continue beyond what Dixon already had in the pipe?

Virgin Comics

2008-06-10T21:21:00.002-04:00

Wow... in the year that I've blogged, I've received a handful of comments and e-mails from unexpected corners... something I'm grateful for. This is the first time anybody's e-mailed me with content.

It could be my ignorance, but I've never heard of Current.com before receiving an e-mail pointing me at the video embedded above. (That's right! I've now embedded a video! I've just stepped into 2005.) I'm not positive if there's any business connection between Current.com and Virgin, but as Gotham Chopra seems to appear on Current.com, it does seem like a possibility.

But moving past the potentially promotional nature of the piece, it's an interesting video about the creation of a stronger media industry in India. The increase interest in anime and manga from Japan over the past decade shows that US consumers are open to this kind of entertainment from foriegn sources. Heck, the Indian film industry (Bollywood) has a following in our country, which birthed the Motion Picture Industry. Comics and animation from India could very well prove popular, especially as fans become more jaded with mainstream US comics.

As I move my comic purchases online to save money, maybe I'll take a look at a few of Virgin's titles.

Let's Do the Time-Warp Again!

2008-06-10T10:49:00.003-04:00

Wow. I've already read this week's issue of Amazing Spider-Man.

Wow.

Coming to me apparently via the US Postal Service's temporal delivery service, I have this Wednesday's issue of Amazing Spider-Man.

Now I realize there's no street date on comics. I mean the script for this issue was probably finished at least three weeks ago, possibly even further back. And it's not like Marvel's going to fine themselves $10,000 for shipping me the book early. I'll just have to remember to check the mail more often. Truth be told, this actually arrived yesterday. I'm just so conditioned to think of New Comics and Wednesday as the same concept that getting a book on Monday or Tuesday... that's just crazy-talk!

I've actually subscribed to four additional books through Marvel, at a special price of $19.97. (Sadly, the offer was limited to four titles.) So Daredevil, Captain America, The Invincible Iron Man and X-Factor will be coming to me factory direct from the House of Ideas. It's good to know that even as I begin to move towards online purchases for my new comics, I'll still get a few books near their ship dates.

Marvel Comics... Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

2008-06-05T11:01:00.003-04:00

It's weird... over the course of one day, I had two experiences that carried me to two very different thoughts about Marvel as a whole.

First, let's start with the positive. I got my first issue of Amazing Spider-Man direct from Marvel. It arrived day and date with the 'newsstand' release. I received it in the mail on the day I would have purchased it in the store. That's extremely cool. With the alternatives I'm exploring regards to getting my comic fix cheaper, it's great to know that this option is letting me purchase Amazing Spider-Man three times a week for less than half the cover price. My purchase price for the issue was roughly $1.39 and I can't complain about that.

What I can complain about is Secret Invasion. I love the concept of the event, and in some ways the execution has been pretty cool... but I can't for the life of me figure out why I'm paying an extra dollar for it. It's not a longer title... it's not bereft of advertising. Why is it more expensive than any of the other 32-page monthlies out there? Can anybody answer me that? Aside from that complaint, there's also the usual gripe that it's Bendis doing what Bendis does. The entire second issue could be summed up by saying "we think that Mockingbird from the ship isn't a skrull." Maybe I need to re-read it, but I think that's all that actually happened in SI #2.

But I think that the positive outweighs the negatives. And on top of that, Marvel's offering me further discounted titles for being a subscriber. I guess that'll make up for an extra dollar a month.

Something I Don't Want To Do

2008-05-29T13:58:00.002-04:00

So, it's no surprise that with the US economy sprialing down the tubes, that everything's getting more and more expensive. This trend, fortunately, hasn't hit comics yet... but as $40 won't fill my gas tank anymore, anything I can do to help lower costs is something to be admired.

To that end, I'm finding myself seriously considering dropping almost my entire sub-form, and going to an online service like DCBS for most of my comic books. I've already taken a first step in removing my comics from ye olde comic shoppe by subscribing to Amazing Spider-Man, now three times a month, directly from Marvel. (They've got a rather nice deal, available via the above link, offering 36 issues, a full year of the book for $49.97.)

Services like DCBS allow you to place advance orders through their service at seriously discounted prices. However, it seems to me that you're responsible for placing your order each month, so you have to keep much more on top of what you're buying. And the big downside (as I see it) is that to take the best advantage of the service, you get your month's worth of comics in one shipment.

There's a special joy, to me, in purchasing new comics directly from the store every week. The guys down at ye olde comic shoppe don't need to ask my name, they know where my pull file is. I know a few of them, and consider them friends. I'd feel a little guilty pulling my business from behind the store, but when it all comes down, less money spent is less money spent. I've been shedding titles over the past few weeks, but I'm not sure that's enough.

Now, I'd plan on keeping 'event' comics on sub-forms at the store. I don't want to wait to read Final Crisis #3 until weeks after the news sites have already posted all of the spoilers. And any orders I'd place via DCBS will be for two or three months in the future.

So, I'd ask anybody reading the blog to chime in... have you used an online comic service? What did you think? Do you have a strong thought on the subject one way or another? Let me know!

Defining Moments in Cool

2008-05-24T08:41:00.006-04:00

Henry Peter Gyrich may very well be the defining a-hole of the Marvel Universe. Hey may have stolen a prototype weapon meant to help defend the earth from a mystical threat from another planet, and used it to zap Storm, draining her powers. And he may run secret black-ops projects and employ former nazis trying to construct his power-base in the Initiative's training camp at Fort Hammond.

But it takes some serious cool to wear sunglasses inside a space suit! I couldn't pull that off... what if they slid forward? What if they made your nose itch?

Agent Gyrich... I salute you!

This image brought to you by the wonder and majesty of ROM#63 in which Forge supervises construction of a gigantic orbital weapon to zap all of the menacing Dire Wraiths off the Earth at once. Somebody saw a little too much Star Wars.

And Now For Something Completely Different...

2008-05-23T19:24:00.003-04:00

As a rule, I keep my posting to this blog limited to comic-book related subjects only but today I'm going to make an exception.

What I enjoy most from my comic books, and from any other media that I consume, is quality storytelling. Ideally when I crack a book (whether it's got paragraphs or panels) I'm looking to be taken away to another place... whether it's Gotham City, Azeroth or the decks of the Galactica, I'm looking for a writer (sometimes assisted by artists or actors) to immerse me in the lives of other people and their own personal struggles.

Today, I completed Grand Theft Auto 4.

It's no big surprise that I love video games, but it was a surprise to me that I really enjoyed this one. I'd played a couple of the earlier GTA games, but they'd largely wound up as stress relievers for me. Had a bad day? Open up with a shotgun in a crowded street, and see how long it takes for the cops to bring you down. The story was simplistic at best, as you went from one mafia cliche to another, pulling off more difficult crimes until I lost interest. That's usually something that happeed fairly quickly. That's NOT what happened in GTA4.

I bonded with the main character, Nico Bellic pretty quickly. For the three people who might read this without being aware of the specifics, in GTA4 you play as Nico, an illegal immigrant from an unnamed country in Eastern Europe. He arrives in a fictionalized version of New York called Liberty City, to find that his cousin's promises of wealth and opportunity are unrealized dreams. Most of the activities that Nico takes a part in are no different than those in the previous games... but he's given an interesting past, as the survivor of a civil war in his homeland. He also has a personal mission in Liberty City as he searches for the man who betrayed his unit in the war, leading to the death of men he'd known from childhood. It's a story of vengeance that, for me at least, had a real impact. I cared about Nico, and about the new friends he made in his new home.

I came to the climax of the story today, and while the events of the climax are sad, I can honestly say I'm satisfied. The game's makers, Rockstar North, didn't skimp on the story. There was a theme that ran through the entire game (and it took me over 40 hours to reach the end.) In an art form where the pacing, and to some degree even the content are not decided by the creators, I'm truly impressed that the story told in this medium was as mature and developed as it was. This game deserves to get some press... for the right reasons.

Heroes Con 2008 Preparation -or- Hunting the Wild Autograph

2008-05-12T10:10:00.002-04:00

As we roll inevitably into a sweltering South Carolina Summer, I find comfort in the fact that it means that the annual pilgrimmage to Charlotte and Heroes Con draws nigh.

I love Heroes Con... it's usually adjacent to my birthday, which means I almost always have some money I can spend there. It might be a bit of a drive, but I've yet to have a bad experience there. And the experience has only gotten better since I added two items to the menu: signings and panel discussions.

The panel discussions are thoroughly enjoyable. I won't pass up on the DC Nation panel, because even though my interest in DC's heroes is waning in favor of Marvel, I can't deny that Dan Didio brings energy and enthusiasm into a panel. Even if I don't like what he's saying, he usually manages to amuse me. The Marvel panel last year fell really short of my expectations, and the fact that I don't see Joe Quesada on the guest list makes me wonder if we aren't going to see the same thing again this year, but hope does spring eternal. And if nothing else, the panels give me a place to rest my legs and look over my haul thus far.

But one thing that I think has really energized my experience at the convention is bringing books with me to be signed. I'm not usually an autograph junkie, and I don't tend to bother famous folks when I do stumble onto them, but I think that the signed book is the perfect memento of a comic book convention. I look at the scrawl on the cover, and it manages to take me right back to the experience of waiting in that line, and helps to keep the day fresh in my head. And the guest list for this year is considerable. Right now I find myself seated at my computer, trying to decide what to take with me.

Just a little over a month to go, and the excitement is building.

Taste the Irony...

2008-05-08T13:47:00.002-04:00

Recently (as in yesterday) I walked into Ye Olde Comic Shoppe with a list of titles that I had decided to drop from my monthly pulls, after much soul-searching. One of those titles was DC's (well, in all honesty most if not all of the titles dropped were from DC... but I digress.) Among those titles was DC's The Brave and the Bold.

The relaunch of The Brave and the Bold was relaunched with an awesome story, told in a tag-team fashion like a campfire story. We went from Batman and Hal Jordan to Hal Jordan and Supergirl to Batman and the Blue Beetle, spiraling out in ever widening arcs of coolness. But subsequent stories were less and less cool, until I realized I was no longer excited about the title. That of course meant it was time for it to go away.

Enter today, as I'm reading Newsarama and see that J. Michael Straczynski will be writing the title come November. Now, folks that know me well enough, know that I'm a big fan of JMS. I discovered Babylon 5 late, but fell head over heels in love with it. I was a big fan of his run on Amazing Spider-Man... well, up until editorial mandates such as The Other and Civil War hijacked the book from him. And now I find that he's going to be taking over the book I just dropped. Figures. At least I'll have time to put it back on my sub form before it comes out.

Free Comic Book Day 2008

2008-05-03T13:24:00.005-04:00

I challenge anyone to say that they got a better Free Comic Book Day than I did. When you get a genuine piece of Chris Sims artwork, signed by the master himself, life gets no better.

I've been neglecting blog posts as I settle into a new work routine, but as I said I'm also working on a writing project. I'm speaking to a couple of artists, which has me enthusiastic. I've wanted to try to write something with the goal of seeing it published, and to actually be moving in that direction is a great feeling. And with a few exceptions, the world of comics has been just making me sad, as Fraction and Brubaker prepare to wrap up their run on The Immortal Iron Fist, as the Order ends, and as Amazing Spider-Man continues a very mediocre Brand New existence.

But there is one thing I feel the need to weigh in on, and that's the new Iron Man movie. If you like comic books, you have to see this movie. I'm not an easy person to see a movie with, because my mind loves to pick apart the things that I DON'T like about it, rather than focus on the things that I do. And I'm saying, quite sincerely, that I could not find anything in Jon Favreau's interpretation of Iron Man that I did not, at the very least, like. Much of it I loved. This is easily on the level of Sam Raimi's original Spider-Man movie... but the more I consider it, the more I put it on the level of Spider-Man 2. I'm quite possibly on the way of declaring it the highest mark for a comic book movie out there.

To help put this all in perspective... I don't care for Iron Man in comics. I have purchased precisely 8 issues that have 'Iron Man' somewhere in the title. Eight. And if anybody hasn't told you, wait until the credits are done. There's a brief, but very exciting reward for doing so.

Better Late Than Never... The Secret Six Receive an Ongoing Series!

2008-04-19T16:01:00.005-04:00

Several powerful staffing changes (The end of The Order, removing Matt Fraction from Iron Fist, Removing James Rodgers from The Blue Beetle, etc.) had drained my will to post for awhile. But this piece of news has finally revitalized my will to live.

The Secret Six were probably the best thing to come out of Infinite Crisis. (Though looking back, it seems that there wasn't much worth taking out of that particular event.) Nevertheless, a book that can make Catman as cool, or perhaps even cooler than Batman on some levels, has something very strong going for it.

I'd been actually wondering where these characters had been lately, going so far as to wonder if I needed to look for them in Salvation Run. But the news has come out from NY ComiCon... the Secret Six will receive a new ongoing book with Gail Simone as writer.

What else have I been up to? I'm still working with Jim Shelley on developing two interesting teams of characters for Flashback Universe. I'm also finally getting moving on trying to obtain the help of an artist in developing one of my concepts as a pitch. The concept is one I'm really excited about. It's very much a comic I'd want to read myself, and while I can think of one or two issues that work in kindof the same way, I don't think I've seen anything on the stands that's really like what I'm picturing. I posted requests for an artist/partner last night on a few artist sites, and I've already gotten a couple replies to look at.

I'll post more on that as things fall into place!

Things I Shouldn't Have To Complain About

2008-03-13T02:28:00.003-04:00

Many times, my experiences with the various and sundry forms of entertainment that help to occupy my waking hours pass without negative incident. (Or to put it simply, most of the time when I'm having a good time, everything goes as planned.) But every so often, little annoyances pop up. As solitary incidents, I can usually overlook them... but occasionally the same thing happens one time too many... and that means that you, gentle reader, get to listen to me complain about it.

Tonight's complaint? Staples.

We're all familiar with the way a comic book is put together... it's usually about 16 long sheets of paper with pretty pictures, folded across it's width held together by two staples near the edges. Simple, right? I thought so too. With a greater and greater frequency, I'm finding that the innermost sheet isn't bound by one of the staples. It's pulled free. I certainly didn't do it... I have more care for my comics than that, certainly. (My file cabinets, and bags/boards should attest to that fact.)

Now, I'm a person who can deal with minor issues. I wound up purchasing two copies of the same issue of Gargoyles a few months back. It was pulled when it originally came in, and then apparently a reorder pulled another copy. I didn't notice until I got home, but hey... mistakes happen. And interestingly, this issue was already the subject of a mistake... apparently on the first printing, there was an error... a page of art was re-used. But it's no biggie.

However, when at least one of my books every other week has the very middle almost ready to fall out, it starts to get annoying. Maybe this is just another sign that Jim Shelley's Paper Comic DeathWatch is winding down time for the industry. But I can't see any good reason for repeated quality issues like this. The culprit this week was my issue of The Mighty Avengers.

Maybe I need to start tracking which books have this issue. The two that leap immediately to mind are both Marvel publications. Please fix it. Contrary to what others might think, I really don't like to complain. Every moment I'm here pounding away at my keyboard like a demented monkey struggling with the finer points of King Lear is a moment I'm not enjoying my comics... and isn't enjoying comics the whole point of reading them?

New Comic Day 03/12/08

2008-03-11T23:39:00.003-04:00

Well, this week looks to be the quiet after a few very busy weeks. A break will be nice, and possibly give me a chance to better acquaint myself with Super Smash Brothers Brawl. While my own tastes are more grounded in the traditional 2-D fighting game (particularly those of the SNK variety), I'm starting to see the appeal of the game as I actually learn what it is I'm trying to do in it.

Nevertheless, I'm here to talk about comics, not games. Here's the anticipated shopping list. On the DC side of the tracks, we have:

BOOSTER GOLD #7
GREEN LANTERN CORPS #22
SUPERMAN #674

Meanwhile, adds to my list the following offerings:

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #553
ANNIHILATION CONQUEST #5 (OF 6)
AVENGERS INITIATIVE #10
MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS #7
MIGHTY AVENGERS #10
X-FACTOR #29

Regarding Marvel Comics Presents, I'm learning over the years that I'm actually a fan of the Anthology format. I even read the anthology-formatted US edition of Shonen Jump for awhile. Yes, I gave money to the vile terrorists that funded Naruto and Yugioh attacks on our great pastime. Primarily I was doing this in the hope that Ruroni Kenshin would be added to the roster, but I learned through the readng that there were a few titles that were enjoyable.

An anthology is a great book when you're not quite in the mood for a full on meal, so you order the appetizer platter. You might not like everything they bring you, but you're going to enjoy at least some of it. In the case of Marvel Comics Presents, Marvel has done the admirable job of cooking up a couple of pretty good staples in the form of Weapon Omega and Vanguard, two twelve part stories to anchor the more adventurous additions to the book... stories from lesser known (or unknown) writers, stories that are a little more 'out there'... On the whole, I've been rather pleased. Pleased enough, I suppose to continue to pay a $1 premium for it, but hey... so far I feel I'm getting my money's worth.

Gnashing of Teeth? Check. Commence Wailing!

2008-03-04T13:06:00.002-05:00

Newsarama broke the story that John Rogers, the writer who has consistently stunned me with the new Blue Beetle, is leaving the book.

Newsarama: Right up front, John, are you leaving Blue Beetle?

John Rogers: It's temporary, although I don't know exactly when I'm coming back to the book. What happened is, essentially, Keith and I always wanted to tell the origin story and #25 wraps up that origin for Jaime.

This continues the trend where I post about something I'm feeling enthusiastic about, and the universe (oh so subtley) reminds me that I'm not supposed to. In the Newsarama interview, Rogers states that he'll be working on a big crossover mini-series (I wonder what that might be part of?) and an ongoing series.

I do want to say that the past 24 issues have been excellent... and at this point, I'm willing to give the 25th issue a pass... but I don't see how this could avoid being an awesome issue.

Long term plans on the book aren't specified, beyond Wil Pfeiffer is doing at least the first story arc following Rogers' departure. Rogers does sthate though, that he'd like to return to the book when he can, but wants to focus on his new projects.

Thanks, John, for one of the best DC-produced superhero comics in recent memory.

New Comic Day 03/05/08

2008-03-03T20:28:00.003-05:00

Well, due to a work week that's working out pretty far from my own expectations, I don't think I'm going to be able to pick up my new comics on Wednesday this week. Another part of the less-than-ideal is that because my boss is on vacation, I'm finding myself with plenty of extra time on the non-Wednesday parts of this work-week.

Enough that I'm actually going to get back to posting my shopping list, at the very least.

So here it is... what I plan to spend my hard-earned scratch on this week:

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #12

DC SPECIAL RAVEN #1 (OF 5)
DETECTIVE COMICS #842
GREEN LANTERN #28
NIGHTWING #142
NORTHLANDERS #4

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #552
DARK TOWER LONG ROAD HOME #1 (OF 5)
PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #17
TWELVE #3 (OF 12)
UNCANNY X-MEN #496

The return of the Dark Tower in comics is something I greatly look forward to. (I was quite happy with the previous adaptation.) While I don't doubt that there are plenty who took issue with it, I though it portrayed the meat of the story very well. And while these early chronicles of Roland Deschain's life don't convey the bizarre post-apocalyptic fantasy that fills the novels, it's still some great reading.

The Twelve is also an interesting project. The timely coincidence that caused it and Dynamite's Project Superpowers is interesting in and of itself. But I'm particularly amused to see that some characters are actually shared between the two. The one that comes immediately to mind is Dynamic Man, Curt Cowan.

I'm still kicking a few story ideas around. A few of them are for Flashback Universe, and one or two of my own devising. In particular, I think I've got a neat angle on a comic story based on the Terminator movies and TV show. If anybody has any clue as to who has the license, I'd be appreciative if you could kick it over to me.

If You're Not Reading The Blue Beetle...

2008-02-28T02:20:00.003-05:00

Then you're part of the problem. I mean it. You're a mean, mean person who doesn't want to see good comic books, and probably kills pixies in his spare time.

Now, I don't really care about your Pixie Genocide, as pixies have nothing to do with my hobbies. But good comic books? Yeah, I care about that. And the Blue Beetle is seriously a good comic book. I can understand, Jaime Reyes is easy to miss. His name isn't "Superman" "Batman" or "Wonder Woman"... and he doesn't have a power ring... but right at this moment, if I was called upon to name my favorite super-hero, it would be Jaime Reyes.

In the current Blue Beetle, DC has taken a young, genuinely earnest kid who doesn't really know what he's doing, and over the course of 24 issues has turned him into a hero. And the current story arc is using almost everything that the series has turned out to date. I haven't seen Metron or Lonar yet, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if they show up in the next issue. And the issue that hit shelves today (or yesterday, as it's 2:25 am) pays tribute to Dan Garrett as well as Ted Kord. There's more raw excitement in this book than any comic I've read for weeks, and that includes Grant Morrison's Batman, and Ed Brubaker's Captain America. (I'd add Daredevil to the list, but I haven't read that yet and I don't want to cheat.)

Seriously, you owe it to yourself to look into this series. It got off to a slow start on the introductory story arc, but it has been a phenomonally consistent, knock it out of the park book. I can't praise it enough. If you haven't been following it... pick up a few back issues, and catch up because I get the feeling #25's going to knock it out of the park.

Saturday Morning Cartoons and Comics

2008-02-11T11:38:00.000-05:00

As a child of the late 70's/early 80's I tend to think that I was treated to some of the best, most interesting Saturday Morning Cartoons in existence. I grew up enthralled by the Super-Friends, Scooby Doo, Dungeons and Dragons, and even Pac-Man. But one of the cartoons that stuck with me the longest (ironically, the one that I almost never managed to watch because at the weighty age of five, you don't really understand the concept of a 'schedule') was Thundarr the Barbarian.

For the uninitiated, Thundarr was an attempt to steal some of the popularity of Conan the Barbarian, mixing it with a little bit of post-apocalyptic road-warrior and a dash of Star Wars. Set two thousand years after the fall of man, we're introduced to a savage world full of super-science and sorcery. The titular Thundarr was Conan-lite with what amounts to a lightsaber. He had two sidekicks... Ariel the token woman and sorceress, and Ookla the comic relief/wookiee-wannabe.

After watching an episode recorded via DVR last night, I stumbled across a familiar name in the credits.

Jack Kirby

While he didn't design the main characters according to the Wikipedia article, it sounds like he designed almost everything else. Until I gained a real love of comics (about 7 years ago or so) I'd never heard of Kirby, despite the fact that I knew precisely who Stan Lee was, and could recognize him on sight. Now I find myself wondering is there anything that Jack Kirby hasn't influenced? The fact that he was involved with Thundarr doesn't surprise me a lick in hindsight, but it was a surprise to see his name there.

Edit 2/12/08

In what seems to be a badly timed case of foot-in-mouth, the creator of Thundarr the Barbarian (among many other characters in the fields of both comics and animation), a giant by the name of Steve Gerber, just passed away. I started seeing the news last night beore going to bed. Here's Mark Evanier's posting about it, as he knows far more about this pioneer of the imagination than I do.

From what little I've read about him last night and this morning, the world is a sadder, grayer place without him.

Irony and the Young Avengers

2008-01-31T17:44:00.000-05:00

I've recently been re-reading the Young Avengers with the launch of the Young Avengers Presents mini-series, and in the introductory story arc I was just struck full in the face by irony. In the Sidekicks story arc, Kang the Conqueror is attempting to recover Iron Lad, who is his younger self. He's arguing that Iron Lad must return to his own time so that he can grow into Kang or the damage to time will be disastrous.

Yet in the Avengers Forever maxi-series, Kang himself was willing to risk the universe itself to himself avoid becoming Immortus, the lord of Limbo.

Kang, a despot whose hypocrisy is greater than Time itself. That's irony.

Avengers Assemble! Assemble! Assemble!

2008-01-31T02:21:00.001-05:00

In a freak occurance rivaling an obscure astronomical alignment, we received not one, not two, but three Avengers books in a single week! But which Avengers book should I really be reading, and which one is just another excuse to kill a tree? Good question. Let's take a look at them and find out.

In this year's New Avengers Annual, we're treated to a super-villain gang-up which almost rivals the invasion of Avengers Mansion by the Masters of Evil in the excellent Under Siege story. The only thing that holds this one back is that despite having even more and bigger bruisers than Baron Zemo, The Hood's gang is trounced in a single issue by Dr. Strange. Ouch. Still, it's nice to see this particular team fight something instead of bicker over who's acting 'Skrully'. But it's still a bit unclear when this story falls. Spider-Man's still wearing his black suit, so I guess it's pre-One-More-Day. Too bad Mephisto's spell couldn't fix Marvel's shipping schedule.

And who can make fun of an Avengers book's shipping schedule without a good belly-laugh at The Mighty Avengers. While it's certainly not as late as the legendary All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder, it's still worth noting that this issue ties in with an issue of the New Avengers that I bought over three months ago. If it were my call, I might have dropped this issue, and just tried to pull a bit closer to getting this book on track. But I guess the fun of seeing a massive Wasp-symbiote beating on the Avengers is fun... and it's nowhere near as decompressed as so many of Bendis' other Avengers titles. It's still probably the weakest of the week in my book though, since the New Avengers Annual's carnage is a bit more satisfying.

Which leaves the big A for Avengers: The Initiative - a book that has yet to disappoint me. I've read other folks commenting on the fact that new characters are such a difficult proposition for the big two comic publishers in a market where people want Spider-Man three times a month, and where Batman appears in no fewer than three books of his own. Matt Fraction's The Order is an example of an extraordinary book comprised almost entirely of new characters that's just been flushed. The Initiative is another title that's chock full of characters, many of whom haven't existed for a year and if you'll allow me the pun... it's a Marvel. Start with a bunch of fresh faces, looking to be the next Avengers, add in a bunch of super-powered trainers (with an excellent nod to Taskmaster as the current drill seargent) and top it all off with Henry Peter Gyrich's paranoid layers of conspiracy and you've got enough content for years. What's better, it's written by Dan Slott, who is one of the writers who seems to have the firmest grasp on the concept that people read comic books for fun. Hands down, it's your best Avengers book despite the fact that most of the front-line Avengers fail to put in any kind of appearance. It's always one of the first books I reach for when I've got it.

So that's a Triple-A Wednesday. Now I'm off to get some sleep.

What did you expect me to talk about, the New Captain America?

New Comic Day 01/30/08

2008-01-30T13:25:00.000-05:00

Wow... a week without Spider-Man? What's up with that? Add in the conclusion of Messiah Complex, and finally things are starting to quiet down on my anticipated purchase list.

BATMAN #673
BLACK ADAM THE DARK AGE #6 (OF 6)
DEATH OF THE NEW GODS #5 (OF 8)
TRIALS OF SHAZAM #11 (OF 12)
AVENGERS INITIATIVE #9
CAPTAIN AMERICA #34
DAREDEVIL #104
MIGHTY AVENGERS #8
NEW AVENGERS ANNUAL #2

The big news this week, is of course the debut of the new Captain America. I won't go into specifics in case there's someone reading who actually doesn't know. I will say, sadly, that it isn't Steven Colbert.

Picks for the Week 1/24/08

2008-01-24T02:14:00.000-05:00

While I'll confess that I haven't finished reading this week's comics (still got a couple to read) I think I've figured who the big standouts are, at least to my point of view. I do have to say that maybe one of them hasn't struck me as a downright great read... but that at least gave me a resurrected Zombie Captain America... and you've got to award bonus points for that.

I think the first stand-out is The Order. I know I just posted about this series going away, but this issue was just great. The main thrust of the issue is an interview between Anthem, head of The Order, and Namor as the King of Atlantis waits for a higher profile super-team to come and pick him up. And for an issue where the main action consists of two men sitting at a table, talking this was just great stuff. Matt Fraction's dialog, and the interspersed flashback panels do a lot to make this a very readable issue. I've read every issue of the Order to date, and the last two are no-brainer purchases. I mean seriously, the only excuse to not buy this book is to be sans brain. Not even Zombie Captain America has that excuse anymore!

Young Avengers Presents #1 was also a really good read. While the book does have a plot, and moves from beginning to end, the whole issue is really a character study of this young, angry black man who dresses up in the colors of the American flag, calls himself Patriot, and for the moment at least, isn't precisely sure why anymore. I've missed these characters in the Marvel Universe, and I'm glad to see them getting some attention. (It doesn't hurt that Matt Fraction will be writing the last issue of this mini-series.)

Lastly, I've got to continue to give the thumb's up to the Blue Beetle. Appearing not only in his own book this week, but also in the Teen Titans, just the character of Jaime Reyes is something that the DC Universe has needed for as long as I've read it. The Spider-Man parallels are all over the place... both are bug-themed, neither are terribly experienced or confident, and both frequently come out as being incredibly out of their depth, but like a young Peter Parker, Jaime's earnestness makes me love the character. Now Jaime's trying something pro-active and taking the fight to the Reach, the creepy aliens out to enslave Earth. John Rogers' writing has really made me a believer in this series, and I'm rooting for the bug as he takes on the Reach... I just hope that he's not overly successful. Part of the new Blue Beetle's charm is that he doesn't really know what he's doing any more than your or I would. I think that the character needs to stay in, just over his head... but I'm absolutely in love with the series.

I've still got a couple books to read. Maybe I'll have to post an ammendment if either She-Hulk #25 or Legion of Super-Heroes #38 beat out one of these three... but I think I'm probably pretty safe.

Sadly Prophetic

2008-01-22T08:05:00.000-05:00

What's the old line... that they only stop making something once they know that I like it? I think everybody's felt that way at least once in their life, but sadly I've just been hit with that sensation again.

Per this Newsarama article (which itself is paraphrasing the latest Word Balloon podcast), Matt Fraction's The Order will end with issue #10.

I guess all there is to say is, Thanks Matt! You gave us a superhero team book that had some different team dynamics. The Order was a more interesting read than the New Avengers, and a much more timely read than Mighty Avengers. (I'm not even going to compare it to the Justice League titles, which have only in recent months approached something I'd read.)

New Comic Day 01/23/08

2008-01-21T14:48:00.000-05:00

Well, I find myself stuck around the house sick, imagining just what might await me on Wednesday. (Though it'd be nice if I had some new comics to read today.) So looking forward to that far-off Wednesday, this is what I saw in my future:

For starters, I didn't see New Warriors last week, so hopefully that was delayed until this week. If I can't find it at the Dragon, I'll just have to check online for it. Here's the other stuff I can picture myself buying:

BLUE BEETLE #23
TEEN TITANS #55
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #548 BND
ASTONISHING X-MEN #24
ORDER #7
SHE-HULK 2 #25
X-MEN #207 MC
YOUNG AVENGERS PRESENTS #1 (OF 6)

So what is there to say about it? There's the obvious slant towards Marvel... but that's not really surprising me at this point. I've been aware for a few months that the Marvel books have held a bit more appeal for me than DC lately. Teen Titans is up on the chopping block, though. While the Titans of Tomorrow... Today story arc was pretty middle-of-the-road at best, it did hearken back to the story arc that got me interested in the Teen Titans as a whole. Unless this issue impresses me, I think it's going to be one more DC book that has a date with the axe.

I always look forward to a new issue of The Order. It seems to be a real challenge in either Marvel or DC to start a new title that uses entirely original characters. And the way Fraction ignores the typical group dynamics of a super-team gives the book very different feel. The closest comparison I can come up with is DC's sadly short series, The Power Company as another title that was made up of (I believe) new characters with a very different group dynamic.

And that's about it for my new comic plans for the week. Looks like a light one, which will be appreciated by the wallet. Time for Jason to go dig through the stuff he hasn't filed away yet. I know there's some stuff I haven't read yet in there somewhere.

Sick (Again!)

2008-01-21T06:10:00.000-05:00

Well, once again I find myself ill, and it actually has nothing to do with One More Day. (Unless MJ secretly asked Mephisto to give me the flu. Again.) I guess that's what I get for working at the homeless shelter.

Looks like it's going to be time to try cashing in on the paid time-off I should have accrued in the full year I've now worked for the company. That should be about as difficult as repulsing Galactus, Devourer of Words with a turkey baster.

Shadowpact

2008-01-15T07:58:00.001-05:00

Is Bill Willingham off Shadowpact? The last story arc lacked some 'oomph' and the arc that started last month isn't wowing me to any great extent either.

New Comic Day 01/16/08

2008-01-13T11:42:00.000-05:00

My new comic day post comes a bit early, as I'm going to be spending the next three nights working. So here's what Jason expects to be buying on Wednesday, when he's had a chance to come down from three 13-hour night shifts:

BOOSTER GOLD #6 $2.99
CHECKMATE #22 $2.99
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #17 $2.99
ROBIN #170 $2.99
SHADOWPACT #21 $2.99
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #547 BND $2.99
CABLE DEADPOOL #49 $2.99
IMMORTAL IRON FIST #12 $2.99
INCREDIBLE HERCULES #113 $2.99
MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS #5 $3.99
NEW WARRIORS #8 $2.99
NEW X-MEN #46 MC $2.99
WORLD WAR HULK AFTERSMASH WARBOUND #2 (OF 5) $2.99

I'm going to give McDuffie another arc on Justice League... probably because I really want to like the book. I mean, it's the Justice League,and it's supposed to be a good book.

I need to double-check, but have they retitled the Incredible Hulk to Incredible Hercules? I thought that was just the story arc. I'd try to look it up, but I'm going to have to get ready to go to work shortly.

I'm debating whether or not to drop Shadowpact. It's looking like Bill Willingham is no longer writing the series, and I just don't feel as enthusiastic about Matthew Sturges stories. But Sturges' has begun his second story arc, which is usually the mark of a new ongoing writer.

Robin is sortof on the same bubble that Nightwing was on last week. I was considering dropping it, but Peter Tomasi turned in a pretty durned good first issue. I'll be looking to see if I get some more of that with Robin this week.

All that's left to see is whether there are any changes in the shipping lists by the time I get to the store.

Brand New Spidey-Post

2008-01-10T00:04:00.000-05:00

As the fallout hits on message boards across the country and the internet breaks in half, I have to say it for myself.

Brand New Day isn't that bad.

Honestly, I didn't expect it to be. Despite what some of the more radical/paranoid bloggers might be saying, I doubt that Joe Quesada is trying to ruin Spider-Man. I think I've gone on the record stating that I can see where he's coming from in regards to some of the changes. (Or at least the removal of Spider-Man's marriage.) So the story itself wasn't bad. The $3.99 price tag was a little unpleasant, but a quick check of Previews for the coming week indicates that next week the book drops back in line with a regular title.

And at the end of the day, I think I'm willing to pay $2.99, thrice a week to the Spidey braintrust. After due consideration, Spider-Man's spider-senses have helped him to avoid the cancellation list. Now let's see some of these great stories you couldn't tell us because Spider-Man was married.

Brand New StatusQuo

2008-01-08T00:20:00.001-05:00

I'm going to try to make this my last post regarding the One More Day/Brand New Day stuff. (Well, alright, I'll post if I decide to drop it, or if they keep the price at a ridiculous $3.99, which will cause me to drop it.)

Deep down, I guess I wish Joe Quesada would just come out and say "Alright, you got us. We're rebooting Spider-Man to what we feel was a more exciting time in his life, to help get the character back to the iconic vision of what he's about." Now, I liked Spider-Man where he was. He'd matured and grown both as a hero and a person. The issue in which he and May talk about why he's Spider-Man (Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 2 #479) was the single issue that truly sold me on comics as a medium. So if they feel that it's best for the character to reboot him, I can understand that... and while it may change the things that I like about him, I'll probably give it a look.

But for Joe Quesada to to say that the way he's doing this protects decades of continuity makes me angry. In reality, he's taking years worth of Spider-Man stories and flushing them, or at least instilling a great deal of doubt as to whether or not they ever happened. What about Spider-Man: The Other - Evolve or Die? Did that happen? Do the other Avengers remember that Spider-Man was an Avenger? Is he still part of the New Avengers? If they do remember, do they remember that his Aunt lived with him in Stark Tower? How is May's house back? The only answer to these questions that makes any sense is that these things never happened. Because if they did, any Avenger with any degree of curiousity could figure out who Spider-Man was based on the old lady he brought with him to Stark's Tower.

I can cope with the fact that Spider-Man as I came to enjoy the character is gone. I can probably even like the new status quo. But either own up to the reboot, or stop talking about it. It's the statement that this doesn't invalidate everything I've read that makes me go on and on about this.

New Comic Day 01/09/08

2008-01-07T19:34:00.000-05:00

It's been a few weeks since I've been able to actually look ahead at the week. Here's what I see waiting for me:

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #20 $2.99
NIGHTWING #140 $2.99
SPIRIT #12 $2.99
SUPERMAN #672 $2.99

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #546 BND $3.99
HULK #1 $2.99
MIGHTY AVENGERS #7 SII $2.99
TWELVE #1 (OF 12) $2.99
PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #15 $2.99
X-FACTOR #27 MC $2.99

What's worth talking about?

I guess the first thing on the tip of my tongue is Amazing Spider-Man and Brand New Price-Point. There'd better be something in there to justify an extra $1.00 or it's going to be Brand-New-Cancellation time. I'm already pretty disgusted by the end of One More Day, and I don't fancy the idea of a Brand New Day costing a Brand New Buck. Is that enough of the Brand New jokes? Okay, I'll move on.

I'm a bit curious as to what I've done to deserve a second issue of Mighty Avengers in as many months. I didn't eat my vegetables, I didn't go to bed on time, and I certainly didn't stop teasing my sister. But two issues in two months for no reason? That's patently ludicrous.

I'll give Green Lantern Corps another post-Sinestro-War chance to hold my interest, but I'm just not certain if it can do it. If you can turn it into the Guy-and-Kyle show, though, there's a chance. The Spirit probably won't be sticking around too much longer either. I've enjoyed Darwyn Cooke's relaunch, but my personal impression is that it's one of those books that not just anybody can pick up and write.

Lastly, there's Jeph Loeb's new Hulk series. I'm wondering how we're getting a second monthly Hulk book, especially when Bruce Banner's pretty firmly under wraps right now. I guess this month we'll find out.

One More "One More Day" Post

2008-01-06T19:27:00.001-05:00

As a child, my Mom would frequently tell me "Stop picking at it, Jason. You're only making it worse."

You can probably guess about how well I took that advice.

It seems as though there's nothing else in comics that deserves discussion as much as One More Day so I'm going to back up the car here, and run over it again. Well, figuratively speaking.

Weeks after JMS' now legendary blog post in which he reveals that he asked to have his name removed from the final two issues of One More Day, Comic Book Resources interviewed Joe Quesada about the story now that it's complete. In the second segment of the interview, he begins to address JMS' comments. To summaraize, he goes on to say that Straczynski didn't object to the idea of writing a retcon story to undo Spider-Man's marriage to Mary Jane, which anyone who's been following comic book news for a few years should know is a bee that's seriously up Joe Quesada's bonnet. He implies that this was also the planned way to undo Peter's unmasking on live TV.

Continuing here in part three of the interview, Quesada says that when it came down to the fourth and final issue of the story, JMS turned in a script that wasn't what Quesada, and the writers on Brand New Day, the Spider-Man relaunch were expecting. It didn't jive with where those guys were starting their stories from. Straczynski fought for his vision of the story, but with three teams already at work on new material, everything had to end a certain way. JMS agreed to try to give them what they needed, but in the end he gave Quesada, Axel Alonso and Tom Brevoort permission to change what they needed to in order to make the story fit the way they wanted.

The crux of the story differences, according to Quesada, is that JMS wanted Mephisto to make one small change in an early Spider-Man story, that would ripple forward in time resulting in a new continuity with the needed changes. By contrast, the current story contains all the subtlety of the worst-comic-trend-of-2006, Superboy-Prime beating on the walls of reality. Basically, Mephisto snaps his fingers, and Peter wakes up in Aunt May's house (which burned down almost three years ago around issue #516 or so). He goes to a party, and runs into Harry Osborne, who's looking quite well for someone who's supposed to be dead. Nobody knows that he's Spider-Man anymore.

According to Joe Quesada, the "Mephisto casts a spell" explanation is designed to preserve years of Spider-Man continuity. In Quesada's own words:

This, in my mind, while it neatly puts the pieces back in some way, was not what we wanted to do. First, it discounted every issue of “Amazing” since that story arc. Second, the series of events that it discounts in the Marvel U are too far-reaching to contemplate. And third, it had severe ramifications for the creators already well underway on “Brand New Day,” the thrice-monthly “Amazing Spider-Man.” In other words, there was just no way to tell Joe’s story without blowing up the entire Marvel U and every Spider-Man’s fan’s collection. What we originally discussed with Joe and the group was much simpler and cleaner: The wedding? Something happened on the wedding day that prevented it from happening. The unsmasking? Mephisto makes people forget it; much like the Sentry, it happened -- it’s just no longer remembered. And Harry? Well, there’s always a price to pay when you make a deal with the devil. Is it a perfect solution? Absolutely not. Does it get us to where we want to be? Yes.
...
So, to get this straight, OMD doesn’t actually negate the previous 20 years of Spider-Man stories?
Exactly, that’s precisely what we wanted to avoid. What didn’t occur was the marriage. Peter and MJ were together, they loved each other -- they just didn’t pull the trigger on the wedding day. All the books count, all the stories count -- except in the minds of the people within the Marvel U, Peter and MJ were a couple, not a married couple. To me, that’s a much fairer thing to do to those of us who have been reading Spider-Man for all these years. Like I said, is it perfect? No. As far as we investigated, short of divorcing Peter, nothing really is.

So, according to Joe, the past twenty years of Spider-Man continuity is left untouched except for the fact that Peter and MJ weren't married. And from a big-picture vantage point... that might look like a good solution. But in an e-mail to Newsarama, JMS responds to Quesada's comments in the interview. In it, he states that while he thinks that Joe Quesada pretty accurately represented their exchanges, he felt that his reasons for disagreeing with the changes were omitted. For the sake of folks who've already read it, he points out that simply undoing everything with magic is sloppy, and leaves a ton of loose ends. Does Aunt May have a scar from where she was shot? If everybody just forgot that Peter was Spider-Man, is there still news footage of the unmasking? Was Harry brought back from the dead, or has he been alive all this time? If you ask him what he did last summer, will he have an answer? That sort of thing.

While it's hard to call this story a firestorm, since JMS and Joe Quesada are going to such lengths to keep things civil, it's pretty clearly a huge story. But I think that it highlights something very specific about Marvel's outlook. It seems to me that Marvel is very much about what happens next, while "what's gone before" takes a distant back seat to it. And it makes sense. Marvel doesn't make anywhere near as much money on their history as they do on what they're doing right now, or preparing to do next month. It's a bigger priority for them to have "Brand New Day" come out, then to tie up everything neatly. Big events are quickly forgotten and swept under the rug to make room for the next big events. The Other was supposed to redefine Spider-Man and his powers. Only Peter David's Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man addressed the story at all.

In general, I consider myself more of a Marvel fan than a DC fan right now, but things like this in their editorial culture bother me. How can a story really have resonance, or really connect with readers for more than a month and a half when the company is racing at a breakneck pace into the next event?

While I liked Peter being married to MJ, it's not the idea of undoing the Marriage that has my brain doing backflips over the story... it's the sloppiness of it. The average comic book reader is far too sophisticated for "It's magic... we don't have to explain it" to fly as an explanation. But that's what we're being asked to swallow. At this point, Dan Slott is just about the only thing keeping me interested in Spider-Man. I'll give Brand New Day a look... but I won't guarantee I'll stick around.

The "One More Day" Post

2008-01-02T00:33:00.001-05:00

Well, all four issues of the retcon Spider-Man story "One More Day" have arrived. (Or as I prefer to think of it, they've been dropped from a great height onto an unsuspecting populace.) But why take my word for it? Let's go straight to the source. Taken from his website, in his own words, this is what J. Michael Straczynski has to say about the story.

In the current storyline, there's a lot that I don't agree with, and I made this very clear to everybody within shouting distance at Marvel, especially Joe. I'll be honest: there was a point where I made the decision, and told Joe, that I was going to take my name off the last two issues of the OMD arc. Eventually Joe talked me out of that decision because at the end of the day, I don't want to sabotage Joe or Marvel, and I have a lot of respect for both of those. As an executive producer as well as a writer, I've sometimes had to insist that my writers make changes that they did not want to make, often loudly so. They were sure I was wrong. Mostly I was right. Sometimes I was wrong. But whoever sits in the editor's chair, or the executive producer's chair, wears the pointy hat of authority, and as Dave Sim once noted, you can't argue with a pointy hat.

So at the end of the day, all one can do is try to do the best one can with the notes one is given, and try to execute them in a professional way...because who knows, the other guy may be right. The only thing I*can* tell you, with absolute certainty, is that what Joe does with Spidey and all the rest of the Marvel characters, he does out of a genuine love of the character. He's not looking to sabotage anything, he's not looking to piss off the fans, he genuinely believes in the rightness of his views not out of a sense of "I'm the boss" but because he loves these characters and the Marvel universe.

And right or wrong, you have to respect that.

It's a big quote, but I wanted to take the utmost care not to take any of his words out of context. For any who want, you can find the full text of this quote here. So from the context of the quote, it seems pretty clear that this story was an editorial mandate, and Straczynski was pretty set against it.

When your writer doesn't like a story, I'd generally call that a problem. And when he wants to have his name taken off of it? Well, that just really speaks for itself, doesn't it?

I think that this is possibly one of the worst comic stories I've ever read. Seriously, this is just bad on a level that's difficult to comprehend. For those that know me... I think The Dark Knight Strikes Again is light years beyond OMD. For starters, the only real conflict is internal, which is something that's difficult to carry out to begin with. But come on... the second half of the story was completely predictable. And was there anyone who didn't figure that they'd bundle in a retcon for Peter's unmasking along with his separation from MJ?

Here's the thing... I've got no problems with separating Peter and MJ. I'm not a blind fanatic that Spider-Man has to be married. I'll even go so far as to agree that a married super-hero's stories are limited in an important way. I don't think we had to undo the public knowledge of Peter's existence of Spider-Man yet... I still think there were probably some neat stories to tell there, but hey... not my call. I can live with both of those changes, but if you're going to write a story explicitly to retcon a few facts about a character's continuity... and if you're going to make a big 'event' out of it... at least try to do it artfully. Try to do it with some skill, and intelligence. One More Day was like trying to crack an eggshell by hitting it with a bus. The results are painfully direct and incredibly sloppy. Not to mention just plain bad.

Not Much With the Posting

2007-12-31T01:29:00.001-05:00

Despite the impression folks might have gotten with my awe and wonder at 46" of Hi-Def video goodness, the new TV really isn't what's kept me from posting. I'm in the third round now of a battle royale with whatever funky virus is going around. This time, I've managed to cut off it's resources, stop it from recruiting bacterial allies, and I'm hoping that some Excedrin and a whole lot of orange juice will clobber it early. (Let's face it... working four 13 hour shifts, only to come home sick on your first day off really stinks.)

I hope everybody's having an agreeable holiday season. I look forward to getting back to it as soon as I've kicked this cold's butt.

House Trashing, Round Two!

2007-12-21T15:24:00.001-05:00

I really do have some commentary on the current week's comics. But my comments are slightly delayed as I tear the inside of our beautiful home apart to make room for a Christmas gift to myself. (I'd take a picture, but honestly I'd be ashamed to.) It's being delivered tomorrow, so I've been clearing out the entertainment center before preparing to move it elsewhere in the house. (As my first piece of self-assembled furniture, as well as something that's withstood the ravages of the past 9 years pretty well, I'm loathe to part with it.)

But tomorrow's phrase of the day is "Merry Christmas".

A Moment of Holiday Zen...

2007-12-20T14:00:00.000-05:00

Hearing hair-metal band Twisted Sister belt out "O Come All Ye Faithful" to the familiar tune of "We're Not Gonna Take It" has just made my holiday.

Odds & Ends

2007-12-19T12:20:00.000-05:00

I don't think I posted anything here yet, but I've finished my first comic script. Thanks a lot to Jim Shelley for giving me a chance to try my hand. I definitely learned a lot about the process. I'm looking forward to getting something else going.

Also, if anybody who checks out my blog hasn't ever seen any of the Floating Hands Studio's comic book parodies, you haven't truly lived. Somewhere in the primordial past, someone sent me a link to the video "X-Men: Death Becomes Them" in which the X-Men are confronted by Magneto, but devolve into squabbling about how many times they've each died. (With a special non-surprise twist at the end!) Check them out! They've got a spot-on parody of House of M that's 130% more entertaining than the original!

File Cabinet Update and New Comic Day 12/19/07

2007-12-18T16:45:00.000-05:00

I got the replacement for my faulty filing cabinet today, so I've been busy emptying the last of my Drawerboxes, and going through my assorted short-boxes to clear them out as well. The verdict is that I'm down to a single short box of stuff that I haven't put into the file cabinets yet.

Sixteen Drawerboxes and five short boxes put comics into 11 of my 12 drawers. One of them is still completely empty.

I've still got plenty of space in most of the drawers I'm using as well, which makes me happy. These things are definitely a step up in price from any kind of box, and I'm honestly not sure where I'd fit another one without some serious reorganizing.

It's been more of a project getting them loaded up as well, because of my ignorance at the beginning of my comic purchasing days. Before I understood about the differences in size between Golden, Silver, and Current age comics, my first bags and boards were comically mis-sized golden age supplies. A lot of boxes are designed to accomodate comics of that size though, so it wasn't an issue. Until the cabinets came. So I had to re-bag/board possibly a couple hundred books. The drawers are 18" wide, which can accomodate two rows of current-age books . But those golden-age bags and boards were just too wide.

On the whole, I'm pretty satisfied. I've noticed a tendency on the part of the books to try to shift over within the drawer. I'm going to need to get something to try to keep the rows orderly. I'd been contemplating cardboard after talking to some friends, but I'm starting to wonder if I might be looking for something a little thicker.

I bought a hundred title dividers from Heroes & Dragons, only to find that I didn't buy enough. (And I'm not just talking about the detritus that builds up, random scattered issues of things that didn't turn out to be worth buying more of... I've got a few titles that I'll have to dig a little more for.

If I can get the shifting sorted out, I don't think I'll have a single complaint with these things. They're:

Sturdy
Cat-proof
Lockable

I'm not going to be hauling them to conventions anytime soon, but for home use I'm pretty content.

Now, on to this week's planned purchases:

BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS #3 $2.99
CHECKMATE #21 $2.99
DETECTIVE COMICS #839 (GHUL) $2.99
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #16 $2.99
SHADOWPACT #20 $2.99
SUPERMAN #671 $2.99

CABLE DEADPOOL #48 $2.99
IMMORTAL IRON FIST #11 $2.99
INCREDIBLE HULK #112 $2.99
MARVEL HOLIDAY SPECIAL $3.99
MIGHTY AVENGERS #6 CWI $2.99
NEW X-MEN #45 MC $2.99
SHE-HULK 2 #24 $2.99
THE ORDER #6 $2.99
WHAT IF CIVIL WAR $3.99
WORLD WAR HULK WARBOUND #1 (OF 5) WWH $2.99

Looking at the list, there are definitely some titles that I'm on the fence about. Batman & The Outsiders is pretty decent... but Chuck Dixon could write a Batman title in his sleep. I'm giving it one more issue before I make a decision. She-Hulk is also one that is probably on the outs. What I loved about the title during Slott's run was the sheer insanity of the courtroom drama combined with the self-referential super-hero stuff. I almost always felt like the title was making fun of comics, and it worked. I haven't seen that in Peter David's run.

The one thing that's absolutely mandatory is the Marvel Holiday Special. I've been picking these up for a few years now, and they've never failed to entertain... whether putting J. Jonah Jameson in the role of Ebeneezer Scrooge (Visited by Captain America, The Thing, and Spider-Man as the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future), or casting Ultron in the role of Santa Claus, I've always gotten a good chuckle.

This is the last new comic day before Christmas, so if I fail to post again until next week, Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, Blessed Yule, or whatever ceremony, rite or eldritch ritual you subscribe to!

New Comic Delay, 12/12/07

2007-12-13T14:06:00.000-05:00

Well, I've had a fairly busy week thus far. I didn't get to post what I intended to purchase this week because I was working through Wednesday morning. I still haven't been able to post about what I actually purchased, because I've been busy getting three new legal-size filing cabinets out of their very bulky boxes.

That's right... as much as I've enjoyed having the drawerboxes to hold my comic collection, I'm stepping up to actual drawers. Three legal sized filing cabinets ought to hold the vast majority of my comics... once I've got everything set up and my inventory transferred that is. I've confirmed that one (slightly) overfull drawerbox transitions to roughly half of a file cabinet drawer. The transition is going to require that I re-bag a few comics. Early in my comic purchasing I mistakenly bought a set of golden age bags and boards, using them for the comics I bought at the time. I can get two rows into an 18" wide drawer, but I'm going to need to get my books into current-age bags.

I'm going to have a busy few days. I'll post a few pics maybe, when I've got it done.

*****************

Breaking News on Broken Filing Cabinet!

One of the drawers in one of my cabinets doesn't open all the way. I'm going to have to touch base with Staples tomorrow to see about getting a replacement. I've still gotten all but three of my Drawerboxes into two of the cabinets, and I've probably got room to empty one of those.

World War Hulk: Aftersmash

2007-12-07T10:17:00.001-05:00

World War Hulk is currently my favorite comic 'event' of all time. It spun out of 14 months of well-told Hulk story by Greg Pak, and it kept a laser-focus on what it was about.

So what did I think of the epilogue, World War Hulk: Aftersmash?

I thought it was a very fitting close to the Hulk stories I've been so in love with for more than a year now. It wraps up loose ends I didn't even know about. (Sue me, I haven't been reading Heroes for Hire.) It gives the Warbound a chance to leave World War Hulk behind as heroes... every member gets a chance to do something heroic except Brood. (But considering the Brood, is that really all that surprising?) It shows us Hercules and Amadeus Cho working together to try to hold Manhattan together... literally. We get Tom Foster, Goliath's nephew, learning that vengeance just leads to more vengeance.

There are a lot of great moments in the book, and everyone involved comes off as a hero. I'll miss Greg Pak when he leaves the Hulk, but he's given us an epic run with the character. World breaking stuff, really.

Words of wisdom...

2007-12-07T01:16:00.001-05:00

If you're wearing a dress... don't go commando to that superhero smackdown. 'Nuff said?

These words of wisdom, brought to us by Justice League of America, Vol. 2 #15

CrossGen was right?

2007-12-05T12:23:00.000-05:00

Since I started thinking about pitching a story idea to Jim Shelly of Flashback Universe, I started thinking a bit more about digital distribution of comic books. It makes sense, since that's one of the pillars at the project's foundation.

So when I stumbled onto a link to this article from Publisher's Weekly, I had to take a gander.

CrossGen began publishing comics at about the same time I started buying them. It was a less than ideal timing for me as a consumer, because I wasn't yet an educated consumer. I didn't know what was good, and I didn't even really know what I liked. So I wound up buying a lot of everything, and then became disheartened when a lot of it failed to really grab me. (I blame a lot of that on all the X-Men comics I bought in those dark times.)

But I did always remember the CrossGen books, even when I stopped buying them. They were on my mind very recently, though, as I read Negation, which was described to me as some of Tony Bedard's best work.

However, I'd abandoned the label before they started making their comics available digitally at no charge. To summarize the article, series that were made available digitally saw a sizeable upturn in sales for multiple weeks. It's a conclusion that makes sense... while there are a lot of comic book fans who are most interested in the story and the art, it's ingrained into a lot of us, I think, that we want to possess the physical book. As I take a look at 22 boxes full of comics, I find it hard to argue with that conclusion.

Sadly the article doesn't provide the details of CrossGen's digital comic initiative, so I don't know if the books were downloaded as files, what format was used, or what kind of restrictions were placed on the books, but the fact that five years ago someone had studied digital comics and found a positive correlation between digital comics and physical sales says a lot for the digital model.

Eventually the big two will have to address this new format. But something definitely seems off watching them both demonize what's basically working for them as free advertising.

New Comic Day 12/05/07

2007-12-04T22:34:00.001-05:00

Well, another week inevitably rolls around with another set of new comics to buy. Though honestly, this week's looking a bit thinner than usual. On the DC side, we've got:

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #15
JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #11
ROBIN #169 (GHUL)

Marvel's looking a little better though.

ANNIHILATION CONQUEST #2 (OF 6)
AVENGERS INITIATIVE ANNUAL #1 SII
THE ORDER #5
UNCANNY X-MEN #493 MC
WORLD WAR HULK AFTERSMASH WWH
X-MEN DIE BY THE SWORD #4 (OF 5)

I've been a fan of the Avengers Initiative comic, so I'm looking forward to that title's annual. Matt Fraction's The Order has been refreshing, probably because almost all of the characters are completely new additions to the Marvel Universe.

Annihilation Conquest is holding up alright through the two minis I read (Wraith and Quasar) and the first issue's keeping me for the second. World War Hulk was a great read, so Aftersmash is a no-brainer for me.

Now if I can only keep myself away from the back-issues of Marvel Team-Up, I ought to be alright.

Mark of Shame - 11/29/07 - Teen Titans #53

2007-11-30T11:25:00.000-05:00

I know I'm not the only one that misses days when we didn't get images like this in our comic books, right?

Obviously there's nothing wrong with putting an image like this in a blog post, because any kind on the street could walk into a comic shop, and buy the comic it came out of. But could someone tell me just why imagery like this is needed? I don't personally want to see people I'm supposed to see as super-heroes tearing the heads off of people.

I think this is the point at which I label 'Infinite Crisis' a total failure. Wasn't it supposed to give us back a comic book universe in which superheroes acted like heroes again? Is this what heroes act like, Mr. Didio? And compared to Brad Meltzer's run on Justice League of America, this is restrained.

I understand that there's going to be a level of violence in superhero comics. That's fine... it's expected, and enjoyed. But why do we need such a graphic and bloody image? Can anybody give me a solid reason why it's necessary?

I was hoping to just have a light-hearted talk about Marvel Team-Up #74 (as mentioned yesterday) in which Spider-Man and the cast of Saturday Night Live foil the Silver Samurai. Maybe tomorrow.

Master of Comedy... AND Teleportation!

2007-11-29T13:03:00.000-05:00

Who knew? If John Belushi still had that teleportation ring, he might be alive today! The full story including Spider-Man, Nick Fury and the Black Widow fighting Boomerang and the Silver Samurai (with John Belushi's teleportation ring, darn him) can be found in Marvel Team-Up #83.

The theft of said ring occurred in Marvel Team-Up #74, an issue that has already gone onto my Most Wanted list.

The Trial of Tony Bedard

2007-11-28T18:45:00.000-05:00

A little while ago, I posted, detailing the reasons for my negative impression of Tony Bedard's work in comic writing. I also stated my intention to hunt down a few issues of the CrossGen series Negation, as a friend had provided it as an example of something Bedard wrote that didn't suck.

I received the issues today. I've read them through, and I'm digesting them.

I'm not sure who came up with the pitch for the series, but I really like the idea. It's the story of a group of people plucked out of the CrossGen Universe, and dragged into another dimension to be studied by the forces of the Negation Empire, ruled by the God-Emperor Charon who plans to invade the CrossGen universe. So we're starting with a cool concept, and a mark in it's favor.

And I have to admit that over the course of the first six issues, it certainly didn't suck. In the first two issues, Tony Bedard shared writing credit with Mark Waid, but the book certainly didn't tank in the third issue. (And it's not like Mark Waid's never written a bad comic... I only need to think of his three issue run on Top Cow's City of Heroes series for evidence.)

Naturally over the course of the issues, the prisoners attempt to escape, which turns them into fugitives in a strange universe. In two small groups, they manage to escape their prison, pursued by their former jailor. So on some level, it's a pretty archetypical story as a group of disparate individuals with few common ties must evade a massive force. I think one of the things that bothered me about the first six issues was that we learned very little about any of the characters. It's possible that some or all of them originated in other CrossGen books that either I haven't read, or don't recall so that's not as heavy a criticism as it could be. One thing that I did particularly like was that one of the main characters, Obregon Kaine is considered a major threat despite the fact that he doesn't have any weapons or any powers... It's his ability to organize and rally the others that makes him a threat. To me it draws parallels to Captain America. He never had as much raw power as some of the other Avengers, but because he was the one who could pull the others together and orchestrate things tactically, he was the most important Avenger on the field

My final verdict on what I've read is that it was a pretty enjoyable read. It's not great, but it rises above mediocrity and moves along well. It doesn't do enough to erase all the stuff I've read that's left such a bad taste in my mouth, but I think it does go to show me that he's capable of writing something pretty decent.

New Comic Day 11/28/07

2007-11-27T17:44:00.000-05:00

Well, a stint of three 13.5 hour shifts is behind me, and I've got a few days off, which means it's time to catch up and see what I'm going to be looking at tomorrow. Here we go!

DC

BATMAN #671
BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS #2
BLUE BEETLE #21
FREDDY VS JASON VS ASH #2 (OF 6)
GREEN LANTERN CORPS #18
SUPERMAN ANNUAL #13
TEEN TITANS #53
TRIALS OF SHAZAM #10 (OF 12)
DEATH OF THE NEW GODS #3 (OF 8)

Marvel

CABLE DEADPOOL #47
DAREDEVIL #102
MARVEL ZOMBIES 2 #2 (OF 5)
SENSATIONAL SPIDER-MAN #41 OMD
X-MEN #205 MC

I've also read over on Phil Looney's Poptown (from whom I confess I shamelessly ripped off the idea of talking about comics I haven't bought... yet!) that the newest issue of Casanova hits tomorrow as well. I'm just now trying to jump on, reading up on the hardbound Luxuria trade but I think I'll keep my eyes peeled for the latest issue too.

The pattern continues, that Messiah Complex is vastly more interesting than the Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul. I'm hoping that this issue bucks the trend. If any of the current Bat-family writers can make this a better read, my money'd be on Morrison. I don't even feel too guilty for having bought New X-Men last week for the simple fact that the rest of the story was crammed into their book, so I had to endure those characters less than I might have otherwise.

I'll give Chuck Dixon a few issues to sell me on the new Batman & The Outsiders series. But I do have to say at the outset that the first issue was far better than the final issue of the Outsiders a few months ago. (Until I get the first six issues of Negation, which have been shipped from mycomicshop.com I'm trying to hold off on the smack-talk about Tony Bedard but that really was a bad issue.)

I do note that two stories which appear to have suffered some delays are progressing today. On the Marvel side, we have One More Day, and on the DC side we have the conclusion of the Camelot Falls story. And for the wait, I have the privelege of paying an extra buck or so. Anybody else feel like they're getting ready to bump prices up on us?

I'm also working my way through Alan Moore's From Hell. When I was in middle school, it was something like the centenniel of the Jack the Ripper murders, so for a few weeks it was big news. There was even a made for TV miniseries featuring Michael Caine as Inspector Aberline. Moore's book isn't what I'd describe as an easy read, but I'd be lying through my teeth if I didn't say that it wasn't good stuff.