Comic Quickies: Re-imaging Origins

Action Comics #5: Grant Morrison gets another crack at telling Superman's origin story in this issue, and unlike his previous effort in All Star Superman, which only took up a single page, this one get's a full issue's worth of story.

It's a pretty damn good origin story too.  We get to see a little bit of the downfall of planet Krypton, and even some Ma and Pa Kent in their younger days.  (Good job stickin' it to the man Ma and Pa!) There's also some very cryptic foreshadowing going on here, pointing towards some epic stuff in the future for the title.  Which is about time if you ask me.

Morrison has spent the first four issues telling a cute little Superman story about his youthful struggles, but so far the story hasn't been nearly big enough for a character like Superman.  I'm not saying the first four issues weren't good, they were good, but Grant needs to really bring the thunder from here on out.  I have faith in the man.  Looking forward to seeing what he's got up his sleeves.

 Batman #5: I'll make this really simple.  This is the single best Batman comic I've ever read.

It's like this: Batman is stuck in a massive labyrinth, no bat belt, no food, no contact with the outside world, and the only water to be found is likely drugged.  Oh, and he's been in there for at least eight days so far.

Aside from an insanely tense story, what you get here is a journey through delusion and starvation with one of the normally most sharp minded guys around.  When all of Batman's mental walls start to break down due to exhaustion and hunger, it is a crazy trip, and an incredible read.

Accompanying the fantastic writing by Scott Snyder here is by far the best art I've seen from Greg Capullo yet.  I know, I haven't been so easy on the guy in the past, but he not only impressed me here, but pretty much blew my mind with his depiction of the events in this story.  Capullo does a fantastic job of showing the unhinging of Batman's mind, and puts the reader right there next to the big guy.

It's not easy to describe the amazingness of this issue, it really needs to be experienced, and I highly recommend, even if you aren't a comic reader, or a Batman fan, that you go out and give this issue a read.  It is quite amazing, and pretty fucking awesome to look at too.

All Star Western #5: I'm sad to say this, but I think I'm beginning to get tired of this title.  I've started to realize that there isn't much character depth to Jonah Hex, and each issue bears a striking resemblance to those that came before it: Jonah Hex gets in huge fight, and either A) kicks total ass or B) gets in life threatening situation with no feasible way out, and somehow survives to kick more ass.  Wash, rinse, repeat.

I think I failed to notice this routine for so long because I was enjoying Moritat's art so much, but sad to say, even that has begun to falter in the last couple of issues.  I wonder if he's having a hard time keeping up with the monthly schedule because it seems to me that his art is a little rushed looking these past months.  I don't know, hopefully this one will pull itself together, but right now this one is moving towards being dropped.

Prophet #21: Yes, this is technically the twenty-first issue of Prophet, but it is also the first in a new era for the title.  I guess this was a Rob Liefeld comic back in the day and ran for 21 issues, and has lain dormant like a Balrog for some years. Now it's back, freed from the dungeons of Liefeld-dur (Rob Liefeld's castle of shitty comic artistry and writing) and being written by one of my comic creating heroes, Brandon Graham.

It seems like a minor tragedy that Graham isn't doing the art here too, that is until you actually flip open this issue and see the amazing artwork by Simon Roy.  Graham gives Roy's art lots of room to breathe, and I found myself having eye-gasm after eye-gasm as I journeyed through this issue.  Roy's art is simply wonderful.

Graham's writing is pretty flippin' awesome too.  He took sort of a minimalist approach here, with little dialog, or narration boxes, but his scripting is great, and he works in some great fantasy and sci-fi elements that are as creative as anything China Mieville has cooked up.  I definitely wish I had a Dol Mantle (a symbiotic shawl-like creature that appears to have many versatile advantages).  There's plenty of other great ideas to be had in Prophet, and this issue definitely left me hungry for more.

More than anything else, this comic reaffirmed to me how wonderful and creative comics can be when done well.  Graham seems to be well on his way to creating a true gem of the medium.  This is one of the best single comics I've ever read. Check it out!

The Bulletproof Coffin Disinterred #1: Yay!  More Bulletproof Coffin!

The first arc of The Bulletproof Coffin was one of my favorite titles from previous years, so I'm thrilled to see new material hitting the shelves.  I'm a big fan of the David Hine and Shaky Kane writer/artist combo, so I have high hopes for this series.

The first issue seemed to mostly lay out the origin story for The Shield, and felt like it was mostly a stand-alone comic, but it worked in a few other angles that makes me think the six issues in this arc will interconnect in some way.

I'm hoping to see more of the strange pulp-style heroes that only played limited role in the last arc in this current arc.  So far, this one is off to a great start.

Welcome to the DCnU Issue #3 edition (Part 1)

Batman #3: Allow me to take a BIG  sigh of relief.  Why? Because I didn't hate the art in this issue.  Truth be told, this is the best issue of Batman so far.

Not only is there some sweet bat detective stuff going on, but I thought Greg Capullo's art was pretty solid in this issue.  I think what enamored me to it the most is that Capullo seemed to be experimenting with his "lens" and how the panels were viewed by the reader.  This led to some strange panel art, like the one where a conversation between Bruce and Alfred is viewed through the eye holes of the Bat-cowl sitting on a nearby table.  The technique worked best when Batman was doing his detecting and Capullo would highlight clues so that it felt like the reader was detecting alongside Batman.

This title is probably the best written title out of all the new DC stuff I'm reading, and for that reason alone, I will tough out Capullo's art.  Hopefully, this issue is a sign that he's growing into the job, and growing as an artist.

All Star Western #3: The first arc of this new series is tied up in this third issue, which was a surprise, and for my money, felt a bit rushed.  It was like, all of a sudden, boom, on to a new arc!  It looks like Hex will be sticking around Gotham though, and hopefully Amadeus Arkham will continue to be a character, because he's pretty much the only likable character in the title.  Don't get me wrong, Jonah Hex is fun to read, but the man's an asshole.

Aside from the weirdly rushed writing, I felt like Moritat's art looked a bit rushed in this one too.  The beautiful high detail that was prevalent in the first two issues wasn't there, and often there was little to no background art in the panels.  On the other hand, there were two sweet double page spreads, so it almost balances out in the end.  Hopefully Moritat can recapture the thunder in the next issue.

Action Comics #3: I was freaking out when I read the first few pages of this issue, because I thought that all of a sudden Rags Morales had gotten amazing at art.  I figured he must have taken some sort of magical elixir because if I wasn't mistaken, his art was looking a lot like it was drawn by Gene Ha...then I realized it was Gene Ha doing the art on the first few pages.

WOW.  Amazing.  His depiction of planet Krypton before the destruction is bee-yoo-tee-ful.

Back on planet Earth, things aren't going so well for Supes.  He's got the po-po breathing down his neck, some anti-alien animosity aimed in his S-chested direction, and from the looks of things, a showdown with a battalion of robots and a freaky cyborg dude in his future, oh, also the threat of an alien invasion.  Sounds FUN!  I know I can't wait.

Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #3: In this issue Frankenstein and his fellow monster buddies travel to a planet that is literally covered in monsters, and attempt to kill them all.  Then they discover that three other areas of the planet are monster infested as well, and have a giant epic monster to defeat in each of those regions as well.  Can you say "Boss Battle"?

It is almost silly how simplistic and straight forward this comic can be at times, but that simplicity is primarily what makes this a fun title to read.  Yes, this title is sort of a guilty pleasure for me, but so far it has been consistently fun, and highly entertaining.  Plus, as I mentioned before, I am a sucker for monsters, and this is pretty much the mecca of monsters.

Comic Quickies: Welcome to the DCnU Part 3

Batman #1: Between this and Detective Comics,I've had a higher level of anticipation for the Batman title mostly because Scott Snyder is the writer.  I first came across the guy in the pages of American Vampire, which was a solid comic, but suffered from the fact that it is, well, about vampires, and I'm sick of those fuckers.  

Since then, Snyder's star has been on the rise as he's garnered some high praise for, what I've heard, was a wonderful run on Detective Comics (pre-relaunch).  Now, with the big shake up, he's manning Batman.

Confused?  Good.  Moving on.

So how does this first issue turn out?  Overall, pretty decent stuff here.  It starts out with a riot in Arkham prison, and Batman, with help from an unlikely source, puts a hurtin' on pretty much everyone in the rouge gallery.  From there, Snyder introduces the readers to some new bat-gadgetry which serves the purpose of one,  being cool and two, helping to introduce a dumb out of touch reader like me to the current bat-world.  With the help of a fancy facial recognition device, Bruce Wayne chats it up with his proteges, (there's been three different Robins apparently), and rubs elbows with Gotham's ultra-rich elite.

While Bruce is announcing his plan to fix Gotham through imaginative rebuilding, he is cut short, as duty calls and Batman is dragged into a murder investigation.  After some fun Bat-tective work, he discovers Bruce Wayne is the next target for Gotham's latest crazed killer.  That's pretty much the whole issue in a nutshell, but there's more intricacy to the plot than I've laid out, and there's a great cliff hanger ending that has me excited for the next issue.

After reading both this and Detective Comics, I would say Batman is the sure front runner of the two main bat-titles after one issue.  The writing and plotting is just much more solid here, and didn't seem to be just recovering ground that has already been covered over and over.

That said, I was not a fan of Greg Capullo's art.  No, his art is not bad, it is fine, I just really disliked how 90's it looked.  Every page gave me flashbacks to my comic reading experiences as a kid, and as an adult, I expect better. There was nothing special or interesting or new feeling about that art, and that was ultimately pretty depressing.  Maybe I'll grow accustomed to Capullo's style, but I'd rather have a better artist, who has a unique style, working this title.

In the end, this was a great comic, brought down by mediocre art.

All Star Western #1:  Wanna hear the craziest thing about the DC relaunch?  They took Jonah Hex out of the wild west, and plunked him down in...Gotham City!
Ok, maybe not the craziest thing, but still pretty nutty.

Gone are the wide open spaces, and sparse landscapes of the frontier.  This issue opens with a sweeping shot of a Gotham train station and the be-smogulated brackish city-scape in the background.  Enter Jonah Hex, the bad-ass, tough as nails, bounty hunter with the freakish mug and penchant for dealing out steel justice. He's been called to Gotham by none other than Doctor Amadeus Arkham to help investigate a series of murders.

Hex and Arkham make for a weird pairing, but Hex's straight forward, no-fuckin'-nonsense approach to bounty hunting seems to be working.  Some clever detective work, which mostly consists of Hex cracking skulls and forcing the otherwise silent to talk -all while Arkham looks on in abject terror- leads the unlikely duo to be on the trail of a man called the "Gotham Butcher", who is going around killing prostitutes, and is more than likely part of a secret society of Gotham elite.  

Sounds like a pretty cool plot right?  Well, it would be if that didn't also happen to be extreeeeemly similar to the plot of Alan Moore's From Hell, which I also happen to be reading right now.  Yeah, that's a little disheartening, but Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti are definitely not idiots, and are almost certainly playing into the reader's expectation that this is gonna be a variation on the good ol' Jack the Ripper story.  My money's on a big-ass twist in the next issue that sends this plot in new directions.  Fingers crossed.  Please don't re-write From Hell.  Please.

A good reason to pick up this book is that, (hey-oh!), there's actually a good fucking artist, who has his own unique style, working on it.  That artist is none other than the singly named Moritat.  Moritat makes the early-industrial era Gotham every bit a character as Jonah Hex or Amadeus Arkham.  The city looks great, as do the folks who populate it.  And populated it is!  The city has a dirty, over-crowded, claustrophobic look and feel to it that gives the city a personality.

Moritat also does this interesting thing where the primary characters of a given panel are inked with a thicker line than the rest of the panel.  This makes the important people stand out, and seem more in focus than the rest of the art.  It makes the comic have a more cinematic feel, as there is a definite focus on particular people and places while the background, though exquisitely drawn and detailed, seems to be out of focus.   Like it or not, and I lean towards liking it, it is an interesting way to ink a page.

My biggest complaint with the comic is that the coloring is pretty damn lackluster.  The color palate for the issue seems to be varying shades of gray with a bit of sepia tone added in.  This makes everything look pretty flat, and doesn't do justice to the art.

Despite a plot that is remarkably unoriginal, and some weak coloring, I liked this issue way more than I thought I would.  It was a lot of fun, and nice to look at.  Hopefully there'll be a big twist in the plot next issue so I can carry on with reading this this title.


Ok, since I like lists a lot, I'm gonna rank and grade the 7 DCnU titles I've read from worst to best.

7. Animal Man: D
6. Detective Comics: C-
5. Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E.: C
4. Batman: B-
3. All Star Western: B-
2. Action Comics: B
1. Batwoman: B+



Ok, now let's head across the seas to Marvel and see what they've been doing with Daredevil...

Here Comes Daredevil #1:  Last weekend I went to the Jet City Comic Show here in Seattle.  Bearing almost no resemblance to the much larger and much more epic Emerald City Comicon, the Jet City Comic Show is a much more humble and sparsely attended affair.  Nonetheless, there's plenty of great comic creating talent on hand.

The coolest thing is, since the attendance is pretty low, there's no lines or rush to talk to folks and you can more or less hang out and chat it up to your heart's content (or until they are clearly sick of you) with a variety of comic creators.  One question I got asked a lot was the ol' "what comics are you reading?".  To which I name a few of the titles in my pull-box and say that I mostly read creator-owned stuff, and mostly stay away from the "big two".  However, on multiple and separate occasions, I was told that I should check out the new Daredevil comic, because it is, to paraphrase, really good.

Figuring such high praise from folks in the industry was too much to ignore, I grabbed the first few issues and lo and behold! Here Comes Daredevil is really good.  The comic takes sort of a back to basics approach to Daredevil, and eschews the dark and gritty approach that has been the norm for the book for a long time.  There's nothing wrong with the dark and gritty Daredevil of yore, but I like the new Daredevil.

It opens with Daredevil stylishly thwarting a kidnapping at a mob wedding, then moves on to Matt Murdoch's personal life as a lawyer,  where his career is in jeopardy due to the fact that there's a big media blitz going on because it somehow slipped that Matt Murdoch is Daredevil.  Though his cover is solid, the media is persistent, and like real life, does a better job of wrecking the poor guy's life than it does of telling a compelling story.

After being thrown off his current trial by the judge, it is up to Daredevil to find a link between his client and greater conspiracies.

As great, and compelling as the story is, the art, handled oh so well by Paolo Rivera, is great.  Rivera excels at making Daredevil's movements seem fluid, graceful and flawless.  There's real energy to his art which is a wonderful thing.  I haven't seen the likes in any other super hero comic, and for that reason alone, this is a special book.

I never thought I'd be recommending a Daredevil comic, but here I am.  Here Comes Daredevil is definitely worth a read.   There's four issues out so far, so check 'em out!

Comic Shop Birthday Blowout

This past Friday the 13th, local Seattle comic shop extraordinaire, Arcane Comics held their 7th annual birthday bash. Aside from promoting tasty eats and yummy beverages, they also scored big time and got four awesome local comic creators to come into the shop to sign, sketch and add some flavor to the event.

Hip Flask of Elephant Men, drawn by Moritat

Mark Rahner of Rotten fame was there.  I had a very cool chat with him about how he and Robert Horton go about co-writing an issue of Rotten.  Basically they meet up at a bar and hammer out the stories.  Rahner said he tends to write the parts that feature Agent Wade, because he is more like Wade, and Horton writes the Flynn parts because he and the character are also similar.

Rahner said they have the whole series plotted out, and know pretty much exactly how everything will play out.  There is a bit of a risk that their publisher, Moonstone, wont give them the full run they deserve, so they might need to compress things a bit to squeeze in the full plot.  My fingers are crossed that wont be the case.  Rotten is one of those under-appreciated gems.  I know I've urged you all before, but check out this comic.  It is worth a read for sure.  

Matt Southworth, the artist of Stumptown was also there doing sketches and signing stuff.  Southworth mentioned that his band was playing in town the following night so he and I talked for a while about his musical influences.  He was kind enough to hook me up with his band's CD and add an amazing sketch on the inside of my Stumptown graphic novel.

Stumptown sketch by Matt Southworth.

Also in attendance was Moritat, the artist of some Elephant Men issues and DC's fairly recent relaunch of The Spirit.  He was kind enough to draw a very cool sketch of Hip Flask, one of the characters from Elephant Men, which you can see above. 

Rounding out the comic creator crew was Stefano Guadiano, an artist who is best known for his work on the highly acclaimed Gotham Central.  He brought some original pages to sell and did sketches as well.

All in all, it was a damn fun party and a great signing/sketching event as well.  If you are a local Seattleite, I urge you to check out Arcane Comics, it is truly the finest comic shop in a city filled with some pretty amazing comic shops.