Comic Quickies:

Mystery Society TPB: I read this one a few weeks back, and have just barely enough thoughts about it to give it a review.  Granted, not enough thoughts for a full review, but enough to warrant an appearance here on Comic Quickies.

Mystery Society is another item from my comics club haul, and another title that I likely would have passed over otherwise.  This one follows a rich husband and wife team who pull off clandestine operations in the name of good for all mankind. When we meet said couple, the dude, Nick Hammond, is on a mission in Area 51 attempting to recruit some new agents for their organization. What you get is a bunch of ninja/James Bond style action, and some semi-exciting thrills.  This one reminded me of Umbrella Academy and a little bit of Planetary, but in the cheap knock-off sort of way.  Not really a good thing.

The interesting tid-bit here is that it features art by one of my new favorite comic artists, Fiona Staples, who has been killing it on Saga lately.  Her art here is from about two years ago, and while her work in Mystery Society is quite good, I will definitely say that she has experienced improvement.

Overall, this was entertaining, but not overly impressive.

Godzilla Half-Century War #1 of 5: Buying this comic was a no-brainer.  It was written and drawn by James Stokoe, a guy that blew me away with his work on Orc Stain.  Apparently, Stokoe is a huge Godzilla fan, and getting to make a Godzilla comic is basically a dream come true for the guy.

Well, all that shows because this is one incredibly entertaining and engaging first issue.  It starts with Godzilla majorly fucking shit up in Tokyo as one tank commander, Ota Murakami, attempts to deal a bit of damage to the beast while saving the lives of innocent civilians.  Along with his tank operator, Kentaro, the two become the only effective means of limiting the damage and death that Godzilla lays down.

Sure, it's kinda a standard way of starting out a Godzilla comic, but Stokoe does a great job of introducing the primary characters and delivering some absolutely awesome Godzilla action.  Most importantly, the action is great, and as I've come to expect from Stokoe, the art is absolutely fantastic.  Moving forward, this looks to be a really great mini-series, and I'll be eagerly anticipating each of these issues.

Blue Estate #12: Sure it's been a while between issues, but I'm always willing to wait for an issue of Blue Estate simply because it is always awesome, and easily one of my favorite reads of the week.

This 12th issue wraps up "Season One", or what is basically the first major story line of the series. All the story threads that have been building and building over the past eleven issues pay off here, and the conclusion is pretty damn entertaining.  There's a great combination of shocking and hilarious moments that play out in this issue, and I'm glad that Kalvachev was able to pull it all together for an awesome finale.

Blue Estate is definitely one of my favorite comic series, and it's one that I highly recommend.  Each issue has been a great blend of hilarity, action, and wild plot development.  This comic is definitely one that will keep the reader on his or her toes and leave you wanting more.  I'm not totally positive that there are more issues of Blue Estate planned after this, but my fingers are crossed that there will be more of this amazing comic to come in the very near future.  As far as crime comics go, or any kind of comic for that matter, this is one of the best.

Batman #12: Well, we've reached the one-year mark with all these new DC titles, and after starting out reading seven of the new fifty-two comics, I've whittled that list down to a paltry two titles.  One of those that's still left kicking after all this time is Batman.

Truth be told, Batman has been just barely hanging in there as I've been a bit bored with the whole "Court of the Owls" story line.  Give me some classic bat-villains damn it!  The Owl business was a bit too trumped up for my tastes. That being said, this 12th issue was quite good...probably because there was no sign of any Owl garbage, and the art was done by Becky Cloonan, who totally rocked it.

What this issue did have was a sort of back to the roots approach that was told through the point of view of Harper Row, a Gotham City electrician who is intent on helping the Batman do his crime fighting thing in her own little way.  Harper essentially figures out how Batman controls the CCTV cameras throughout the city while he is doing his thing, and tries to do the Caped Crusader a solid by bolstering his system.  Her plan, though filled with good intentions, backfires with nearly deadly consequences.

Sure, this issue didn't have great over-arching plots and all that, but it was cool to see Batman through the eyes of a regular Gothamite.  Not to mention, the writing and art were much better than usual here too.  My hope is that the whole "Court of the Owls" business is behind us, and moving on Snyder can deliver more compelling Batman stories.

News: John Layman to write Detective Comics!

So the other day, while I was recovering from my July 4th celebrations, DC announced that they had selected their new writer and artist team for Detective Comics.  Much to my surprise, they went and named John Layman of Chew fame as the Dark Knight's new writer...Holy fucking wild card choice Batman!

Layman takes over with issue #13 and follows up writer/artist Tony S. Daniel whose run on the DCnU Detective Comics I could only tolerate about three issues of.  So, even though this is Layman's first real crack at mainstream big two comics, I'm thinking it's a positive turn of events.

Layman had this to say about the announcement:

"Obviously, this is a happily surreal and exciting turn-of-events for my career. Not only is this my first work within the DC Universe, but I get to work on one of DC’s undisputedly coolest and highest-profile characters. I’m going to take a look at the role of criminal organizations within Gotham City, hopefully from a perspective that does not get considered very often (if at all). From the symbiotic relationship a master criminal must have with Gotham in order to survive, to the lowly, often faceless criminal underling hoping to rise up the ranks. All that, plus Batman’s gonna play with a bunch of crazy new toys and kick all kinds of butt."

Joining him on the art front will be Jason Fabok, who I'm pretty sure has done some Batman art before, but I'm not positive, and I'm too lazy to look it up.  Either way, judging from that sweet cover, which features one of my favorite bat-villains, The Penguin, he looks like an improvement over Daniel's 90's style art which I wasn't a fan of.  


I gotta say, John Layman as the new Detective Comics writer seems like a total wild-card choice, but I think there's a very good chance he'll infuse some much needed life into a character who, though I love him, can be mishandled at the best of times.  I'm looking forward to seeing what Layman has in store for Batman.

Sources: John Layman's Facebook Page and DC Comics.

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 1

With DC comics spitting out 52 new titles this month, there's a lot to talk about in the comics world.  The problem with all these "new" titles, is figuring out which ones are worth reading.  For the most part, I had no problem saying "no fucking way" to the majority of "the new 52" but nostalgia, curiosity, and some great creative teams have peaked my interest enough to get me to add seven titles to my pull list, along with a handful of other titles that'll be getting the ol' flip check in store.

So without further ado, I give you part 1 of my DCnU Comic Quickies...

Action Comics #1: If you're a long-time reader of the blog, you'll know that I loved Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's All Star Superman enough to name it one of my top 5 graphic novels of the year last year.  If you aren't long time reader, well, that's ok too.

Anyway, when I saw that Grant Morrison would once again be writing Superman, my inner nerd went wild.  Now, I'm not in any way a Superman fan.  I never even liked the guy that much as a kid.  He always struck me as far too over powered, and boring.  However, Morrison has this crazy knack for making Superman interesting.  Interesting to the point that he made me love a comic about Superman.  Believe me, that takes some skill.

So, how was Action Comics #1?  I was not let down.  The comic starts with Supes literally sniffing out corruption and dealing out some steel justice in a rather Batman-like way.  From there we learn that this is a story about Superman's early days in Metropolis, before all his powers come to full fruition.  The Man of Steel is more Man of Suspicious Interest as he's pursued by police, and plotted against by the government who enlist the help of Lex Luthor.

I got the feeling that Morrison is trying to take a back-to-basics approach to Superman, where he is truly a man of the people, fighting for those who can't fight for themselves.  That concept came across well here, and it is a concept I can definitely get behind.

Yeah, Superman's "costume" looks a little bit off with the patched jeans, and shoes he borrowed from Goofy, but I liked that he's a bit powered down.  I actually found myself caring about his safety and health a couple times, which is a new thing for me.

The art, which is handled by Rags Morales, was a bit hit or miss for me.  I think I read somewhere that Superman is supposed to be about 5 years younger than the JLA Superman here, but there were a few panels where he looked downright old.  Like, in his 50's.  Aside from that, I can't really complain, Morales' art is competent, but not astounding.

Aside from writing Superman in such a way that made me care about the guy and take interest, Action Comics #1 was also just a great fucking comic.  From start to finish it was a spellbinding read, and was easily my favorite, and least flawed, title I've read so far from the new 52.

Animal Man #1:  I was initially interested in Animal Man because it's written by Jeff Lemire, a guy who is right up there as one of my very favorite comic writers.    That initial interest skyrocketed when I got a good look at Travel Foreman's cover and some of the interior art.

That interest and excitement waned considerably once I got the actual comic in my hands and flipped open to the first page of art to see flat, texture-less, unattractive art.  This style prevailed for about two thirds of the issue while Animal Man, A.K.A. Buddy Baker is going about his usual family man/costumed hero day.  However, after an intense hostage situation at a children's hospital, where we get a glimpse at Buddy's powers, Buddy returns home, goes to bed, and proceeds to have one hell of a nightmare.

The dream sequence, is quite easily, some of the coolest art I've seen in comics.  It's got everything from rivers of blood, to fleshy disembodiment, to strange talking beasts.  This dream sequence leads to an intense real-world moment for Buddy and his family, and finishes off the first issue with a solid shocker of an ending.

After this first issue, I'm firmly on the fence with Animal Man.  If Foreman had been able to bring the thunder all issue long, and deliver 20 pages of great art, rather than 4 pages of great art, I'd be heaping praise on what is a well written comic, but for my money, is lacking consistency in the art department.

Detective Comics #1:  Without a doubt, Batman is my favorite superhero.  Probably because there is nothing "super" about him, he's just a regular guy, albeit incredibly fit, and a touch crazy.  Ever since I've returned to comics as an adult, I've been hoping for an opportunity to jump onto some Batman titles and read the adventures of my childhood hero.  That opportunity never presented itself, at least not without me having to read a few graphic novels worth of key back story from the last decade or so of Bat-history, until the relaunch.  Once the relaunch was announced, I immediately signed up for the two key Bat-titles, Detective Comics and Batman, to be added to my pull list.

Of the those two titles, I'm less excited about Dectective Comics mostly because Tony S. Daniel handles both the writing and the art.  I'd flip-checked some of his past bat-work and never been all that impressed with either his writing or his art.  I figured I'd give it a shot though, especially considering how much I've been wanting to read some Batman the last couple years.

The comic itself turned out to be a pretty solid, if somewhat standard Batman comic.  It's got all the usual Bat-stuff you've seen hundreds of times, like Batman sprinting/jumping/bat-grappling from roof top to roof top, Batman driving the batmobile through holograms into the bat-cave, Batman engaging in some banter with Alfred, Batman talking with Gordon, Batman disappearing on Gordon mid-sentence while his back is turned, and so on...I almost felt like Daniel was filling out a checklist of necessary, cliched bat-moments while interspersing them into the story.

The story, though somewhat juvenile, is pretty interesting; It deals with the Joker, so that is an instant plus, and has a pretty gruesome and shock factor-ish ending which could potentially lead to some cool plot lines down the road.  I don't want to be too hard on Daniel, his art in this issue is pretty strong, and reminiscent of Frank Miller's Dark Knight Batman art.  The writing is pretty decent too, I just think I hold any Batman comic to pretty high standards, and this one didn't quite reach those heights.  I'm definitely excited to see more of what Dectective Comics has to offer, but slightly on the fence about his title.