Graphic Novel Review: Transmetropolitan Vol. 4 The New Scum AND Vol. 5 Lonely City

I admit to feeling a little bit guilty as I write this because it has been ages since I read the material I'm sharing with you...and by the time this post actually goes live, more time will have passed between the actual reading of and blogging about. (I read these on April 9th and 10th.) Two reasons for the long delay come immediately to mind:

Reason the first:  I've had a few reads recently that I've wanted to write timely reviews for, so I've bumped them ahead in the queue.

The second: I'm a little unsure of the worth of reviewing anything after the first three volumes or so of a long comic series...if someone has made it this far into a series, they'll probably keep reading regardless of my review right?  And if someone is reading my review of the 4th, or 8th volume of a series, is that gonna make them want to read volume 1?  I can come up with good arguments for and against either question...

In the end, my answer for anything regarding the blog is this: If I have something to say about it I'll say it.

So, in regards to a long comic series; if I think there is something worth mentioning about a particular volume, I'll blog about it here.  So maybe that means there wont be reviews about volumes 6 and 7, but there will be for volume 8, or whatever.

Well, it just so happens that I do have something to say about these books, or maybe more accurately, I have something to say about my comic reviews and the actual reviewing these comics will be a good way to discuss that issue too.

One of my favorite blogs about comics is 4th Letter!, particularly the posts written by David Brothers, a guy who always seems to have intelligent, compelling and challenging things to say about comics and the medium.  Well, he recently wrote a post where he said:

"...if you write a review that’s got one paragraph of art discussion toward the end… mannnnnnn. I looked at the eight most recentreviews on CBR and seven out of the eight have a few paragraphs about the writing, one paragraph about the art, and then an outro. Like they’re writing from a template. Boring.


Listen, here’s a challenge to everyone who writes reviews, especially if you do this lazy words-first thing. Find a comic you like. Write a review that’s predominately about the art, and leave one short paragraph toward the end for the writing. Talking about art isn’t hard. You look at it, you examine how it makes you feel and how it portrays the action on the page. Take a close look and find something you like, and then talk about why you like it.

This is simple, and if you’re writing about comics, you should be able to do this. You don’t have to be fluent at art. You just have to be conversational. Comics is a visual medium. There are words, yes, but when you open a page, the first thing you see is the pictures. So how about you pay attention and talk about the pictures in something more than a perfunctory manner?"

I read these paragraphs and I though to myself: Fuuuuuuck.  I am so guilty of that.

Maybe that isn't true about every comic review I post, but it's true for the majority, and certainly, anytime I've spoken about the Transmetropolitan series, that has been the case for sure. Which is a total injustice because Darick Robertson is responsible for some really great art in this series.

What strikes me as most interesting about Robertson's art in Transmetropolitan is that his art is highly detailed, and expressive and evocative, but there are a lot of times when I don't like looking at it.  The guy is masterful at capturing and depicting the grit and the grime and the ugliness of life and there are times when he does this so well it can be painful to see because it is so true to life.  

There's a single page splash in The New Scum that has just burned itself right into my brain and refuses to be scrubbed away.  There's a bunch of single page splashes throughout the opening sequence of this trade, and they are meant to depict the pictures of the city that Spider Jerusalem has captured via his glasses.  The one that I can't get out of my head is of two men carrying a spitted dog between them and the caption says: "The dogmongers carrying their wares to market."  In the foreground there's a flaming oil drum and the eyes of the two men are just completely lifeless.

It's the lifelessness of the eyes that gets me because I've seen that look, that complete lack of spark in people's eyes before. Even though it is hard to see when I'm reading a comic to escape and forget about life, stuff, whatever, it is an incredible talent that Robertson possesses.  I can't really think of too many other artists that can really capture the human condition and all the craziness and sadness and tragedy that exists in cities, or the world.

I guess what I'm saying is that there's a rawness and realness to Robertson's work. Whether he's drawing Spider in a sumo-suit, screaming at the top of his lungs while charging his assistant, or drawing the absolute worst of police brutality, he brings life and all its joys and harsh truths to the page and that is what makes these Transmetropolitan books special, unsettling, memorable and ultimately worth reading.

For my money, it's Robertson's ability to bring Warren Ellis' nutty, futuristic world to life that really gives this comic an identity.  His art defines the series and raises it up to a higher level.  So, if you are reading this and haven't given the Transmetropolitian series a shot yet, I encourage you to do so.  It's a comic sereis that will challenge your comfort zone as much as it will thrill and entertain. 

Book Review: The Wind Through The Keyhole

Ok, sure, when news of this book came out, I wasn't exactly dancing the commala in excitement. In fact, I was a bit wary of the whole idea.  However, I slowly came around and decided to make this one a day-of-release purchase when it came out.  Well, I tried to do that at least, but my book store of choice was sold out of copies by the time I got there and had to wait two days for new ones to come in.  Woe is me!

Believe it or not, I survived that terrible ordeal and took it upon myself to devour this tasty morsel in as few sittings as possible.  Of course school and life conspired to make that dream shatter and I was instead relegated to scraping together all the tiny quiet moments in my life and turning them into Dark Tower reading moments.  In the end, the consumption arrangement didn't matter, because damn it, I was once again back in Mid-World with my old pals Roland, Jake, Eddie, Susannah and Oy, and I was willing to say a big thankee to Sai King for that.

The Wind Through The Keyhole is best described, as it has been elsewhere a hundred times over, as Dark Tower 4.5, meaning that it fits nice and snug between Wizard and Glass and Wolves of the Calla.  If you are new to the series, or just working your way through, and you get to read this one in sequence, I am pretty fucking jealous, because I think this book works best in sequence rather than as an add-on after one has read the whole series.  The reason I say that is because, with the whole series behind me, there was a bit less tension in this one than there could have been.  Still, this was a fun and entertaining addition to the Dark Tower series.

My favorite thing about this book is that it is a story-within-a-story-within-a-story.  I don't know why, but I love that kind of shit.  The novel begins with Roland and his ka-tet holing up in an abandoned town to wait out a brutal storm called a Starkblast.  While the weather rages on outside, Roland entertains the crew with a story from his gunslinging youth, titled Skin Man.

This story features Roland and his former ka-tet mate, Jamie DeCurry, as they travel to a distant barony to investigate a series of grisly killings that may be the work of a shape-shifter.  When they arrive in Debaria, Roland and Jamie encounter a town still reeling from the night's previous attack which left a score or more farmers, field hands, women and children dead.  Miraculously, there's one survivor, a young lad by the name of Bill Streeter.  Since young Bill is Roland's only and best  lead in finding the killer, he quickly puts together a plan to nab the skin-man.  The catch is, young Bill plays a critical role in said nabbing and in order to calm Bill's nerves before the big event, Roland tells him the story of The Wind Through The Keyhole, an origin story/coming of age tale of sorts for Tim Stoutheart, a legendary Gunslinger.

Though I enjoyed each of the three stories this book provides, my hands-down favorite was the title story itself, The Wind Through The Keyhole.  This is one of the finest works of storytelling I've had the pleasure to enjoy.  It felt like I was reading a classic fable or folktale as told by Stephen King...a very awesome experience.  This one had some great classic fantasy elements in it, complete with haunted forests, dragons, dark magic, and even strange little people that I pictured as a cross between oompa-loompas and brown barbaloots. (Probably not how King intended them to be imagined, but fuck it, I'm my own man.)  All this with some decidedly King-esque twists and mutations to old standards and you have one fantastic story.

Aside from The Wind Through The Keyhole portion of the novel, the rest of the book was borderline mediocre in terms of entertainment value...which is kinda strange given that The Wind Through The Keyhole story is the furthest removed from having a connection to the actual Dark Tower series.  The reason I didn't enjoy the other two portions as much boils down to the fact that I already knew what happens before and after those events; so there wasn't much tension to either story line.  That doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy this book, or that I didn't savor each new, fresh moment with Roland and his ka-tet, but this one lacked the power that a book possesses when the reader does not know how things will turn out. Don't get me wrong, the whole book is a good one, but for me, it suffered from being an after-the-fact addition to the main storyline.

All told, it was pretty sweet to back in Mid-World and I'm grateful for the opportunity for new Dark Tower material, especially stuff that didn't alter or change what had already come before.  The kicker is, this didn't really add anything to the story either and in no way feels essential to the series.  Sure it's a good book, but it could be taken completely out of the series and it wouldn't effect a damn thing.  You can't say that about any of the other books in the series, and I think that's where King faltered most. Sure, he slipped this one in nicely between books 4 and 5, but it doesn't really matter because he doesn't really do anything other than give some side story and fill in unnecessary details that we don't really need to know.

So...yes, I'm happy this book exists; purely because I'm a big fan of the Dark Tower books.  Yes, the book is a fun and entertaining read, and even has some extended moments of sheer brilliance, but for me, the book was lacking because it fails to be an essential addition to the Dark Tower series.  Solid, but not solid gold.

Grade: B

I Get Around

Today I have the pleasure of Guest Poster of the day over at Bookworm Blues.  Sarah asked me if I'd like to to take part in her Special Need in Strange Worlds event, and of course, I jumped at the opportunity.  Not only was she kind enough to grant me the opportunity, but Sarah also said some very kind things about me in her introduction, which totally brightened my day!

If you haven't yet stopped by Bookworm Blues today, stop and and take a look at my guest post, My Favorite Differently Abled Characters. While you're there, take the time to read through all the other amazing guest posts people have contributed...they are quite impressive.

Graphic Novel Review: Nightmare Alley

One things for sure, Seattle is a pretty sweet place to live if you are into comics.  Not only are there some baller comic shows to hit up, but we also have some great comic shops as well.  Among the best of 'em is the retail shop for indie publishing house Fantagraphics Books.  Fantagraphics is responsible for publishing some of the very best cartoonists in the business, and for publishing cool underground comics. Their stuff is always high quality when it comes to printing and binding and all that stuff that makes a book feel special when you hold it in your hands.

In an effort to not blow all my money on comics, I hold myself to about two visits to Fantagraphics per year.  The thing is, I always leave having spent more than I anticipated, all because they have such an amazing selection of comics on hand.  My most recent trip yielded a few sweet purchases, one of which I've already spoken about here, Seth's It's a Good Life if you Don't Weaken, and at least one more that I'll cover here at a later date.

Anyway, I always try to pick up one thing that seems a little out of my ordinary reading comfort zone, and this time I took a chance on Spain Rodriguez' Nightmare Alley.  I've been entertained by carny tales before and this one looked like a it had a bit of a mix between Tod Browning's Freaks, Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes with a dash of Priest's The Prestige.  As it turns out, Nightmare Alley is it's own beast, yet reminiscent of those other works I mentioned as well.

When the story starts out, the primary character, Stanton Carlisle is low-rung assistant in a mind reading act, which is part of a traveling carnival.  Thanks to some sleeping around, a fortuitous death, and his own skill, Stanton quickly rises up though the ranks and before too long has left the carnival life behind for greener pastures.  Eventually he comes to headlining his own show as The Great Stanton, which though lucrative, isn't enough.  With swindling in his blood, Stanton starts up an elaborate, phony, yet convincing career as a spiritualist which really starts the dough rolling in.  The problem is, Stanton is plagued by strange dreams, and the unquenchable desire to always make more money.  What transpires is one of the more tragic rise and fall stories I've read.

Nightmare Alley was originally a novel, then a movie, and now finds a new medium as a graphic novel.  I've never been such a huge fan of adaptations, as I'm a firm believer that the medium something is created in should be the destination, not merely a vehicle for the work being adapted into other mediums.  We see this most often with books and comics being adapted into movies, but rarely the other way around as is the case with this one.

Biggest word bubbles ever.

So how did Nightmare Alley fare as an adaptation?   Well....it's pretty awkward at times.  The biggest thing I had a problem with was that there were some ginormous word bubbles all throughout the comic.  The  gigantic word bubbles were pretty obnoxious, and tended to drag down the pacing of the story.  This also put a lot of the onus on the words rather than the art which, in my opinion, was detrimental to the comic.  I wish that when Spain had made his adaptation, he had trimmed down the dialog to be comic-friendly.  That doesn't have to mean cutting a shit load of material either, it must means altering the source material to work best in the new medium.

This adaptation also suffered from some awkward transitions.  There were times when the comic would move from moment in the story's timeline to the next with no warning or context for a change.  This was confusing as hell, and frustrating to say the least.

Spain uses the four panel page as his standard, go-to format for most of the book, with deviations from this format occurring every now and then.  I don't recall having seen this four panel approach used extensively before, but it was both a blessing and a curse for me here. I liked that it allowed for Spain to really fill the page with lots of detailed art, but often, much of the large panels will just filled with the huge word bubbles.  It seems silly to work in such a large panel format, then utilize the space for something that ultimately took away from the story.

Spain's cartooning was a bit hit or miss for me as well.  There were some pages I couldn't take my eyes off, and others that flew completely off my radar.  His style wasn't exactly something that I immediately fell in love with when I flipped through the comic prior to purchase, but it is a style that matches up well with the content of the story.  I really enjoyed his pages and panels that depicted the carny life.  He really captured the seediness and weirdness that is such a big part of the whole traveling carnival.

Spain was also quite excellent when it came to creating atmosphere with his art.  This played out in a lot of different ways, but was most notable when he wanted things to feel creepy and strange.  He was really good at utilizing unique angles to depict scenes which, while subtle, helped make certain scenes and sequences have more power.

In the end, Nightmare Alley had too many ups and downs for me to really enjoy the whole package.  The story had too many awkward moments, and I attributed this to a weak adaptation from novel/film to comics.  Though Spain's art was the real, and only star, it was often overshadowed, or overwhelmed by the monstrous word bubbles that plagued nearly every page.  Sadly, there wasn't really anything to fall in love with here, and I can only recommend this for devoted carny-fiction fans or Spain Rodriguez fans.  Otherwise, I think Nightmare Alley would fall flat for more casual readers.

Grade: C

Coming Soon: More Rocketeer!

First the comics world taketh away, then it giveth back....or technically the other way around since this news is a month and a half old, but whatevs.

The good news is that IDW, the publishing house that has brought us not one, but two awesome Rocketeer anthology mini-series, is bringing a full-length Rocketeer adventure to fans this August.  Even though this was announced waaaaay back in mid-March, I somehow missed this wonderful little piece of good news, but I'm elated enough to share it now.

From the looks of things, the writing will be handled by Mark Waid, and the art by Chris Samnee.  Both choices I approve of for the series.  Waid seems to have a knack for recapturing the silver-age feel in his work, while delivering an entertaining script.  On the art side, Samnee is simply an awesome artist, and he seems like a great match for the Rocketeer.  If you don't believe me, check out his deviant art page.

Here's what IDW had to say about the series:

"IDW is pleased to announce that this summer, Dave Stevens' legendary, high-flying avenger of the skies will soar once again!  This August, renowned writer Mark Waid teams up with the inimitable Chris Samnee to bring The Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom! to comic shop shelves everywhere.
Everyone's favorite adventure-prone jetpack owner, Cliff Secord, finds himself at the center of another adventure when a mysterious tanker pulls into L.A. Harbor carrying dangerous cargo."  

From what I can tell, this is meant to be a four issue mini-series.  Even though this is four more issues of Rocketeer material than I expected, I sorta wish it was more.  Hopefully IDW, Waid and Samnee will have success and they'll keep rolling out more Rocketeer material.  Either way, since this news, for me, came hot on the heels of the imminent end of Sweet Tooth, I feel a bit better about the world of comics.  

Proof that Samnee and the Rocketeer are a good match. 

If you haven't done so already, I strongly urge you to check out IDW's Rocketeer Adventures anthologies.  The first one is available in a spiffy hardcover trade, and the first two issues of the second anthology are available in floppies at your friendly neighborhood comic shop. Do yourself a favor and check 'em out!  


**Special thankee-sais to Comics Alliance and IDW for the info and pics!  

Book Review: Demon Squad - At The Gates

How good are Tim Marquitz' Demon Squad novels?  They're good. Good to the point that I was excited enough when At the Gates arrived here at Battle Hymns HQ to give it the rarely seen "double bump".  What the fuck is a "double bump" you might ask?  Well, a double bump is when I get a book, bump it to the top of my to-read pile, then when I'm done reading it, bump it to the top of my review queue.  See? Pretty special.

Things pick up in At the Gates more or less mere moments after things left off in Resurrection. Frank Trigg's angelic cousin showed up at his front door, beaten to within an inch of her life and bearing the news that Heaven has fallen.  That's a lot to take in all at once and before he can wrap his brain around all that, Frank is forced into action as he must deal with a trio of thugs sent to put an end to his cousin, Scarlett.

Once the dust clears and Frank has a chance to catch his breath, he learns that there's a brutal war going down in heaven with the gates of Eden and a few stalwart defenders the only things that can hold back an army bent on the destruction of not only Earth, but the destruction of Heaven and Hell too.  As per usual, our old pal Frank Trigg finds himself right smack dab in the middle of things, out manned, out gunned, and playing catch up on just exactly what the hell is going on.  The stakes, and the action have never been more epic in a Demon Squad novel as Frank and his friends from DRAC must face down half breed angels, lycanthropes, vampires, and epic death storms that are wreaking havoc all across Earth.

Once again, with another Demon Squad book comes noticeable improvements in every aspect of the book. The plotting is tighter, the dialog sharper, the characters continue to develop, and the world building is greatly improved.  Marquitz is a writer that is improving in leaps and bounds with each novel he turns out, and it is nice to see such developments play out on the page, to the benefit of both the novel itself and the reader's enjoyment.

The most marked improvement comes in terms of the world building.  After reading Armageddon Bound I mentioned that the events that take place in the real world, didn't seem to have too much effect on the regular non-demonic/non-angelic folk who populate the world.  That problem was addressed and remedied to an extent in Resurrection, but Marquitz pretty much put that gripe to rest and buried it six feet deep with the events that take place here.  This improvement is due in large part to the death storms that rock the world.  What I liked best about this element is that it showed just how high the stakes are for Frank and his friends.  The demons and angels are no longer just meddlesome pests that make Frank's life miserable, they are some extremely powerful beings that have the ability to wreak a whole shit-ton of havoc should they choose to and it's the lives of innocents that are affected most.

Craft improvements aside for the moment, I gotta say, it was nice to be back inside the mind of Frank Trigg.  At times Frank's mind can be a pretty strange, horny and awkward place, but most times it isn't that different than being inside my own.  Sure, he'll make you cringe with some of his naughty thoughts, the worst of which pop up at the most inopportune times, but Frank is a pretty lovable guy, with a big heart, and after some of the events that unfold in At the Gates I'm very interested to see where his character arc goes from here on out.

There are times when I've worried that this series might get a bit formulaic: world ending threat, Frank and to some extent, his pals deal with threat, mix in some great dialog, funny jokes, some metal references and Frank trying and failing to get laid and boom, you've got yourself a Demon Squad book.

Sure, there is a familiar feel to At the Gates and all those elements, (which for me have become hallmarks of the series), make an appearance here as well, this is the first time that I've felt the series was moving towards something bigger.  Marquitz doesn't go as far as the big reveal, but he does craftily deliver some tasty morsels that seem to hint at a much grander scheme than I anticipated for this series. Marquitz added a nice layer of history and put in the foundations for greater depth to the story that hint at playing out as the story and series progress.  Let me just say that I am very pleased with these developments.  The layers that  Marquitz added to his characters and to his world all point towards even more greatness for the series.

If you haven't had the pleasure of reading either of the two previous Demon Squad novels, Armageddon Bound and Resurrection, do so because these be some good readin'. At the Gates is easily the best of the Demon Squad books thus far.  Every aspect of the previous book is improved upon and Marquitz delivers yet another tantalizing cliff-hanger ending that has me yearning for the next installment.

Grade: A-

Sweet Tooth Coming to an End

I received a piece of sad news yesterday when I discovered that one of my most favorite comic series is coming to an end in only 7 short issues.  

From it's earliest issues, I have been a big fan of Sweet Tooth and for the past couple of years it has been a mainstay on my year-end best comic series lists.  Simply put, there's never been a bad issue of Sweet Tooth and pretty much every issue writer/artist Jeff Lemire has created has been excellent. 

When I read the headline at The Beat, I instantly wondered if the decision to wrap up Sweet Tooth has something to do with Lemire's increased workload on DC titles. I've personally wondedered if Lemire's increased workload led to less time for Sweet Tooth?

In my mind there's been a few shreds of evidence: There was a three issie arc where Lemire didn't do the art, and when he has done the art, sometimes, on a few occasions, panels and pages have looked a bit rushed.  But my own paranoid wonderings aside, the quality has still been better than most, and the overall story has never suffered. In fact, the Taxidermist story arc where Matt Kindt did the art for three issues was some of the best Sweet Tooth stuff yet. Also, if you read the whole article, or the orignal at the Vertigo site, you'll see that I'm probably just suffering from an over active case of paranoia. 

Here's what Lemire had to say about the series coming to an end:

"So why end it now? I want to make one thing really clear…Sweet Tooth is not being cancelled. The decision to end it at #40 is entirely my choice. Truth is, I always knew what the ending of Sweet Tooth would be. It was one of the first ideas I came up with when writing the pitch for the book. The beginning and the end of this story were always pretty much written in stone, it was the middle bit that was fluid, and grew and changed as I went along. So, for me it’s incredibly gratifying to finally get to the end of the journey with Gus and Jepperd. Everything I’ve done with the series so far, everything I’ve built month after month, has all been about this, the final story.

I suppose I could have stretched it out a bit longer. I could have had a few more obstacles pop up along the way to Alaska to lengthen the journey (and the series), but it just felt like it was time. Gus wanted to get to Alaska now…and who am I to argue? I’ll miss my little antlered friend. But I owe it to him to finish his story properly. To “leave it all on the ice” as they like to say up here in Canada. And that means not prolonging the series just because I can.

But don’t give up on me. I really feel the best is still to come. The final arc, THE WILD KINGDOM, will be full of everything you’ve loved about Sweet Tooth as well asmany new surprises, new characters and new revelations. And it all builds to one final double sized, fully painted final issue with #40 this December."

It'll be pretty sad to see this one go, but hopefully the ending will do justice to what has been a truly wonderful and powerful comic. My fingers are crossed that Lemire has some more creator-owned ideas up his sleeve and that he wont just become a full-time DC writer. 

Each of the remaining seven issues will likely be bitter-sweet reads for me...but I can't wait to see how this one ends!