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COMICS! |OT| February 2015. No ship girls. Oh, we got a Tank Girl though!
- Thread starter Spike Spiegel
- Start date
Future Foundation
Member
It would've been kinda cool if Marvel had tried this with Star Wars #1.
my name is ed
Banned
So I went to a Q&A session with Scott McCloud. He's a pretty good at presenting himself and is very interesting. Someone asked him if he had to send 5 books back in time to himself, which ones he would send, he included Hawkguy in them. Hawkguy stays winning
Freezasaurus
Member
I wanna check out his new book. Barnes & Noble already has it.
LOL, that issue is still clogging up $1 longboxes everywhere.
TheDarkKnight774
Member
But they did fulfill their prediction.
I'm trying to finish some of my comixology backlog before resubbing to MU ( and waiting for a deal)...
Batman: Harley and Ivy three issue mini from Paul Dini and Bruce Timm: This was the girly hijinx i was looking for and did not find in the new 52 Harley, whacky adventures with the bonus of Bruce Timm art. The story could have been a little better in the second and third issue but I love the passive aggressive relationship between Harley and Ivy sooooo: random 8/10.
Batman: Harley and Ivy three issue mini from Paul Dini and Bruce Timm: This was the girly hijinx i was looking for and did not find in the new 52 Harley, whacky adventures with the bonus of Bruce Timm art. The story could have been a little better in the second and third issue but I love the passive aggressive relationship between Harley and Ivy sooooo: random 8/10.
Baron von Loathsome
Member
What did you do with sillymonkey.
Yeah, I saw it in there the other day...going to wait for IST or Amazon prices but definitely going to pick it up.
Loved that mini so much. Agree that the second two issues are weaker but they are still good. The relationship between Harley and Ivy is perfect here. I love Ivy's complete inability to stay mad at Harley and how earnest Harley is at trying to be a good friend and help the team. Unsurprising considering it is Paul Dini. Timms art is stunning as usual.
TheDarkKnight774
Member
It was great. And having Timm sneaking in his more lewd stuff into the book was fun to see.
I would die if they did another mini. I would love to see either of them on a dc book again. Dini was wonderful in Bloodspell.
I embraced the lewd.
^^^^ haven't read Bloodspell yet, it's on the shelf of things that are books. I'm trying to temper my expectations based on not loving his pre-new 52 small Zatanna run, but it does sound great.
It's just a fun read with great art. Free of all storylines/events and such. Maybe it's over too soon, thats my only complaint. Joe Quinones Black Canary and Zatanna are frantastic.
Tyrant Rave
Banned
Bloodspell is awesome. Wish it was longer but every bit of it was great.
BuddyJoeHooker
Member
Wish they would change it up more on the girly hi-jinks duos. Although Black Canary/Zatanna was very fresh.
Still the best team up is this
Still the best team up is this
Haven't posted here for a while since I haven't been reading too many comics. Been reading more of what I got in the Image Humble Bundle.
The Fuse Volume 1- meh, didn't feel that much more interesting than crime shows on TV beyond the setting.
Deadly Class Volume 1 - Pretty decent
Nailbiter Volume 1 - Much better than I would have expected since I'm not huge into gore type horror.
Getting Seconds and The Sculptor in the mail this week from Amazon and I'm eager to dig into those.
The Fuse Volume 1- meh, didn't feel that much more interesting than crime shows on TV beyond the setting.
Deadly Class Volume 1 - Pretty decent
Nailbiter Volume 1 - Much better than I would have expected since I'm not huge into gore type horror.
Getting Seconds and The Sculptor in the mail this week from Amazon and I'm eager to dig into those.
evilpigking
Member
Just noticed how many projects Lemire is working on coming up. Hope he doesn't spread too thin. Well when they are collected most of them will likely end up on my shelf...$_$
slightconfuse
Banned
issue was fine till the ending. that Band B runis pretty underratted imo
slightconfuse
Banned
BenjaminBirdie
Banned
BoosterDuck
Banned
Alright guys I'm going to get a Galaxy Tab S 10.5" to read comics on.
I dare you to tell me why I shouldn't
I dare you to tell me why I shouldn't
Reallifedickparty.com
You might end up with a Waifu like some of us.
You should totally do it.
lol ComicGAF needs to keep up with us, Zombine.
I had one and ended up with an ipad air 2....it's a toss up. I had a lot of nitpicky problems with the tab s...with the three tab s's that i had and returned. The screen is amazing and larger than ipad air 2's, it's also marginally lighter despite being larger, and the screen aspect ratio is better for comics than Ipad.
Downside is relatively cheap build quality in that it's all/all? plastic and the capacitive buttons on the side always get pushed by thumbs when holding the tablet in portrait mode. I'd recommend it though with those caveats over the ipad air 2 for comic reading.
I made it all the way to chapter 11 of Evil Within only to throw in the towel, which is what i threatened after every chapter. I don't enjoy the game so much as i want to get through it while wishing i was enjoying the game.
ViewtifulJC
Banned
Ayy lmao how the fuck did I manage to get banned the week of a new Stray Bullets
And now for a long belated attempt to catch up on a week of comic news. First order of business, this post right here:
This post
This. Post.
I stare at the blinking cursor, waiting for words to come out, but they cant be found. There are no words.
Moving on to comic news, DC relaunch seems cool conceptually. Like maybe theyre gonna break out that dat 90s aesthetic they love so much, but then I saw the Finches are still doing trash Wonder Woman comics and GL will keep being ass and its like nah man nah we still bout dat life.
-Bat-Mite and Bizarro could be funny, but who asked for a Doomsday ongoing like for real. Dan Jurgens and Scott Lobdell launching books in 2015, thats the world we bout to enter fam. They couldnt find Fabien Nicenza oh whoever from that washed-up veteran squad they assembled for Convergence? If you written any kind of comic before, DC got you, bruh. Even if you didnt, theyll put you on Wonder Woman anyway and count it as a point for diversity.
-Patrick Gleason writing his own book, hoping he can break the streak of bad-and-or-boring Batman comics by writer/artists like Tony Daniel, Neal Adams, David Finch, Francis Manuapul, and Cameron Stewart. Speaking of Batgirl writers, Black Canary is hella jocking her style, but Annie Wu is a great artist. Cant be as boring as Batgirl tho Brenden Fletcher pls you did that All-Star Flash comic in Wednesday Comics my nigga.
-Really great to see our boy Ed(that is his name) finally cracked the big time on Midnighter, I recognize that cover art anywhere.
-Bryan Hitch got a JL book with the Big 6 and Token. Hes been working on it for years, so he should have the first two issues done by now with a limited amount of inkers. Dream big, yall.
-How the FUCK did Shazam not get an ongoing exactly? While they were filtering though the Convergeance pile of Has-Beens and Never-Was, did they not see they got fuckin Jeff Parker and Evan Shanier, team supreme from Flash Gordon, already doing a Captain Marvel book? Its easy, just go up to them and be like yo, this book yall doing now? We need you to keep doing it. Like, forever. Kthx
-Real talk, only book Im legit HYPE about is Ennis/McCrea coming back to Hitman, the finest non-Doom Patrol DC comic ongoing of all-time. I really wonder how you even do a Section Eight 6-issue mini. Theyre pretty one joke characters. The kind that do their spots in the gimmick matches, crowd cheers, then they go away. Now theyre in the main event? Im interested to see what Ennis does with that shit, besides take the piss out of it obviously.
-Giffen/DeMatteis JL will never die tho, thank God for small miracles.
Anyway, what the fuck else happen A-Force, right? Thats a thing I guess. Superman got a new power/costume, but that got overshadowed by Geoff Johns leaving after that one story. Like he just cleaned up the character in six issues on some Warren Ellis shit and think he can disappear into the night with his cape flowing on some Batman shit. Nigga left the same day that new JMS Superman Vol 3 dropped, on some poetic ish. Like how we live in a world where he got three volumes of that bullshit but Wonder Woman Earth One aint even got a rumored release date on Bleeding Cool tho. I think Isak_Borg stopped by to do his usual thing, namedrop the comicspeoples he talks to and tease some CMX shit that didnt amount to nothing.
Bendis left X-Men! The next step in Marvels destruction of the X-Franchise has come to past. Si Spurriers time to step up to the plate and go down with the ship. Hes a skilled writer with an obvious love of X-Men, only problem is he keeps getting stuck on C-tier books starring C-level characters with C-list artists for C(anceled)-sales. Put him on the flagship with somebody dope like Stuart Immonen, and problem solved, superstar writer time.
Finally, lets get to last weeks batch of comics, which were some good ones, let me tell you. Savage Critics ratings do apply.
You know I had to plug Stray Bullets #50 from the jump, right? Sometimes folks, comics will make you angry. Comics will break your heart, as the King once said. And sometimes, they just make you so apathetic towards the damn thing that youll file them away on your bookshelves and spend weekends during impromptu starring contests with them. You dont want to read em, think about em, nothing. Fuck em! But then in the back of your head, you think breh, you live in a world where Stray Bullets still gets published regularly. A perfectly paced crime comic that always gives your moneys worth, always treats violence with consequences, always sounds like a million bucks, always on point with its sequential 8-panel grid storytelling. Like damn b, life aint that bad. And you feel good, ya know? Real good. You say, Yeah, imaginary conscience in a made-up fiction of JCs design, youre right! Im gonna read comics and feel good about it! Then you pick up the latest Green Lantern trade, get halfway through and think, what the hell am I doing with my life this was the only Saturday I have off fuck Fuck FFFFFFFFUCK
But as good as Stray Bullets was, and it was EXCELLENT like always, it wasnt the best of the week. No, I have to give that honor to Hawkeye #21. You can be this late when youre the hardest working superhero comic being published today. Every single element of the creative team, right on down to the lettering and the coloring choices, are working in complete unison to tell a story filled with thrills and tragedy, tenderness and intrigue, humor and humanity. Theres a honest warmth to Clint/Jessicas short conversation, a combination of Fractions script, Ajas body language and framing, the deaf reading of words and lips that puts us right into Bartons perspective in a distinctively comic book way, the color choices as lips kiss and depart. Theres a sequence where the visual iconography of a bikes tail light disappears into the distance as the coming of vans filled with Tracksuit Draculas approaches dramatically. Theres a sequence of a scared civilian at the door, intersped with flashes of approaching addias and Uzis, drawing closer and closer on his face until the tension is released with a big splash page thats stylized like a window of the building itself. Theres a sequence in which puts us right in Clints perspective after a terrifying ambush. In between black outs of undetermined amount of time, you get brief glimpses of whats happening. Comics have no motion, no real sound, we only see these important panels that tell a story in some sequential order. By putting us behind Clints eyes, its marries that form to function, as Clint and the reader put the still images were seeing in order, imagining the motion in-between them to tell a narrative. Its final two pages are powerful, a crushing defeat mixed with fist-pumping optimism. Cathartic victory that only can be bittersweet, and raising the stakes even higher on what should normally be a rah-rah finale.
It is, in all its essentials, an EXCELLENT comic, a perfect comic. The kind of comic that only happens when you combine a writer, artist, colorist, and letterer that have been one of the best in their respective fields for years, and had the time to hone their craft. It is the platonic ideal of the 21st century Marvel superhero comic. Hip and cool, but doesnt let affectations stand in place of real people. A story of a flawed person trying to be a hero. Like Casanova, what started as a pop done-in-one adventure serial evolved into an experimental genre comic masterpiece that married disparate influences like Edgar Wright, the Rockford Files, and Will Eisners Contract with God into something unique and modern. The next issue can come in 2016 for I fuckin care if its this good, but I hope it doesnt cuz I need to read the conclusion like yesterday. Good luck following this shit, Lemire/Perez.
Like anything popular, there are imitators. In the wake of 2011s Hawkeye have come a string of comics that lift its surface elements but rarely seem to put in the hard work required to build it. Its not enough to get an artist whos just this side outside the mainstream but just inside the contemporary hipster design sensibility, graft on a chippy inner monologue and a pet animal and call it a day, but books like Black Widow and Secret Avengers seem to think so. You can add Ant-Man #2 to that group, too. Its not bad, not really, theres just no spark to anything. No life. Another down-on-his-luck Marvel superhero with irreverent jokey narration captions and he ends up adopting a pet at the end, too. Its derivative, and it wasnt for the inherent likability of Scott Lang, you wouldnt need to read it. And even then its, $4 bucks, nigga. You aint that likable, man, youre just OK.
Squirrel Girl #2 is different, tho. Its not pretending to be fun like Nick Spencer comics, it IS fun. Its a silver age comic done with a modern web comic sensibility. It balances a tricky line between parody and pastiche; between mocking its character and her world and genuinely believing shes awesome. The kind of stupidly charming book youre not in a rush to read, and then you pick and think why the fuck did I wait so long to read this. Well on its way to stealing the crown of Just The Most Delightful Damn Thing from Silver Surfer, real talk. Its GOOD, yall.
Couple things go through your head reading Spawn #250. A) Wow, 250 issues of Spawn! I didnt even know they still published this shit in 2015! and B) Wow, this comic is trash! Like, REALLY trash! Maybe even impressively trash, maybe? Good use of disposable money there, me. Its like somebody kidnapped this mothafucka when it was a child and raised it on a steady diet of early Image 90s comics and afternoon television. Like it lived off the reservation, completely unaware of Images current creative renaissance and it still thinks its 1992 on some The Village type shit. Did I just spoil the Village for you? Let me spoil this comic for you, too: CRAP!
Superman yeah we off that, DROPPED!
Grayson #7 continues to be that one DC book for people who dont like most of what DC is putting out nowadays. Its a grounded spy comic, a dense read with great characterizations that imply interesting character backgrounds married to cool Morrison comic booky elements. That said, this is the worst issue theyve done yet. Fill-in art is real fill-in here, lotta minor storytelling hiccups that start to add up by the end. Its an OK issue to whats usually better than that.
Star Wars #2 was even better than the first issue, after setting up a string of fireworks, it now gets to start lighting those badboys and giggling as they explode. Big damn hero moments sit alongside hilariously inept Threepio scenes, and Luke starts a developing a real character arc here, in that shaky middle ground between blowing the Death Star but a long way from being a real Jedi. The issue belongs to Darth Vader tho, who frankly hasnt been this badass in God knows how long. You can practically hear the Imperial March reading this shit, and youre reminded me why hes such an iconic villain. Thats the best thing you can say about this Star Wars comic, that it feels like the original trilogy. Hilariously decompressed, yes, and not attempting to break any new ground, most definitely. But through a combination of Aarons voices for the cast and knack for pulp material, Cassadays realistic characters and widescreen panels, Laura Martins rusty colors bringing the world to life, and Eliopoulos lettering that makes people talking on a radio and Threepio talking distinctive from one another, it succeeds in crafting a breathless cinematic pulp adventure feel of Star Wars. As totally commercial product that cant really change any of its principal characters, its about as GOOD as it can realistically be. About 10x as exciting as Brian Woods relaunch was, holy hell that was boring.
Lady Killers #2 continues be a perfectly OK genre exercise. Not really a story yet, just a concept. 1950s house wife whos secretly an assassin. Mostly works as a showcase for Joelle Jones sexy women and Laura Allreds pop colors. They tease some drama for next issue, which might amount to something, might not. Very surface level appeal here.
Two VERY GOOD Grant Morrison scripted comics came out on Wednesday, but illustrated in totally different ways for similar horrific effect. Annihilator is brought to life by Frazier Irving, who goes the route of making it look like some of kind of plastic dollhouse nightmare. He uses odd perspectives and rubbery faces to make the story more artificial, more of a performance, which is great for a story-within-a-story thats happening here. This kind of meta, self-aware ground has been mined by Grant again and again since The Coyote Gospel, but its never quite looked like this, and it makes it seem fresh and anew. Meanwhile, Nameless is more of a straightforward boys adventure title. Well, straightforward for a book that invokes the Occult, dream logic, alien invasions, and really fucked up shit on random subreddits. First issue is very much in the vein of Raiders of the Lost Ark, theres an in media res opening that showcases the world, who the main character is and what he does on some exciting incident, then switches over to a lot of exposition. The great thing about Raiders of the Lost Ark is that even the exposition scenes surge with energy or have a forward momentum to them, and in Nameless Burnham/Fairbairn keep finding new ways to make all the scene setting visually interesting. Theres a good link to some of Chris thought process on how he crafts certain scenes, but in general its really, really strong stuff. Im in for the ride.
I think Cheska put it best describing Saga #25 as comfort food. Every single time you get a new issue of Saga, youll get a regular dose of well-defined, visually distinctive characters doing various soap opera in space things, with Hazels spoiler-filled narration framing it as an fable that actually happen, and had an ending, and BKV has plans for all this. Fiona Staples is what really makes it tick, of course. Her art makes even the most esoteric or outrageous sci-fi/fantasy design seem accessible and logical. Theres something to be said for a good that always consistently GOOD, in pretty much the same way every time. The dependable anchor of pullists everywhere. All I can hope is Ghüs doesnt get killed any time soon.
Shaft #3 was GOOD, too, mostly cuz of Bilquis Evelys evocation of 1970s. I think they got the one good Dynamite colorist on this shit, a muted color palette for that 70s crime movie feel. Chick draws the best noses, which is a weird thing to point out, but its true.
Karen Traviss is writing this anti-GI Joe book, and its just a big ol pile of ponderous, poorly paced garbage. Gotta stop giving Karen Traviss chances, she burned all them bridges. AWFUL! Comix.
Finally, Miracleman #15 came out. Well, technically it came out back in 1988, but Marvels reprint is finally here. The most sought after issue of this most sought after legendary title. Its the comic Mark Millar thinks hes been making for the last twenty years. Identity Crisis wanted so BAD to be Miracleman #15. SUPER dark, edgy as shit whole goddamn London gets destroyed, niggas hanging from barbwire on twisted poles, kids being murdered, cats and dogs living together; mass hysteria. The superhero concept taken to its natural conclusion. Alan Moore earns all of, every single bit of it, even the religious side bits of characterization. Marvel edits out the N-word in here which is bizarre. Of ALL the things to edit in this issue. This is a comic where Marvelman throws a car filled with people in at a Kid Marvelman, where a homophobic slur is on the same page, where dude brags about shitting in skulls, but the N-word was that nah pls edit think of the children moment. Shit is still EXCELLENT though, because its Miracleman #15, and even after years of dark-ass superhero comics even by Alan Moore himself, this is still pretty much the apex of that particular strand.
And I think thats it. I know youre all been worried about me, or Marvels reboot, or DC still releasing Dan Jurgens and Scott Lobdell books on unsuspecting masses in 2015, but rest easy friends. No matter how many bans, censorships, or reboots are out there, there will always be COMICS!
And now for a long belated attempt to catch up on a week of comic news. First order of business, this post right here:
This post
This. Post.
I stare at the blinking cursor, waiting for words to come out, but they cant be found. There are no words.
Moving on to comic news, DC relaunch seems cool conceptually. Like maybe theyre gonna break out that dat 90s aesthetic they love so much, but then I saw the Finches are still doing trash Wonder Woman comics and GL will keep being ass and its like nah man nah we still bout dat life.
-Bat-Mite and Bizarro could be funny, but who asked for a Doomsday ongoing like for real. Dan Jurgens and Scott Lobdell launching books in 2015, thats the world we bout to enter fam. They couldnt find Fabien Nicenza oh whoever from that washed-up veteran squad they assembled for Convergence? If you written any kind of comic before, DC got you, bruh. Even if you didnt, theyll put you on Wonder Woman anyway and count it as a point for diversity.
-Patrick Gleason writing his own book, hoping he can break the streak of bad-and-or-boring Batman comics by writer/artists like Tony Daniel, Neal Adams, David Finch, Francis Manuapul, and Cameron Stewart. Speaking of Batgirl writers, Black Canary is hella jocking her style, but Annie Wu is a great artist. Cant be as boring as Batgirl tho Brenden Fletcher pls you did that All-Star Flash comic in Wednesday Comics my nigga.
-Really great to see our boy Ed(that is his name) finally cracked the big time on Midnighter, I recognize that cover art anywhere.
-Bryan Hitch got a JL book with the Big 6 and Token. Hes been working on it for years, so he should have the first two issues done by now with a limited amount of inkers. Dream big, yall.
-How the FUCK did Shazam not get an ongoing exactly? While they were filtering though the Convergeance pile of Has-Beens and Never-Was, did they not see they got fuckin Jeff Parker and Evan Shanier, team supreme from Flash Gordon, already doing a Captain Marvel book? Its easy, just go up to them and be like yo, this book yall doing now? We need you to keep doing it. Like, forever. Kthx
-Real talk, only book Im legit HYPE about is Ennis/McCrea coming back to Hitman, the finest non-Doom Patrol DC comic ongoing of all-time. I really wonder how you even do a Section Eight 6-issue mini. Theyre pretty one joke characters. The kind that do their spots in the gimmick matches, crowd cheers, then they go away. Now theyre in the main event? Im interested to see what Ennis does with that shit, besides take the piss out of it obviously.
-Giffen/DeMatteis JL will never die tho, thank God for small miracles.
Anyway, what the fuck else happen A-Force, right? Thats a thing I guess. Superman got a new power/costume, but that got overshadowed by Geoff Johns leaving after that one story. Like he just cleaned up the character in six issues on some Warren Ellis shit and think he can disappear into the night with his cape flowing on some Batman shit. Nigga left the same day that new JMS Superman Vol 3 dropped, on some poetic ish. Like how we live in a world where he got three volumes of that bullshit but Wonder Woman Earth One aint even got a rumored release date on Bleeding Cool tho. I think Isak_Borg stopped by to do his usual thing, namedrop the comicspeoples he talks to and tease some CMX shit that didnt amount to nothing.
Bendis left X-Men! The next step in Marvels destruction of the X-Franchise has come to past. Si Spurriers time to step up to the plate and go down with the ship. Hes a skilled writer with an obvious love of X-Men, only problem is he keeps getting stuck on C-tier books starring C-level characters with C-list artists for C(anceled)-sales. Put him on the flagship with somebody dope like Stuart Immonen, and problem solved, superstar writer time.
Finally, lets get to last weeks batch of comics, which were some good ones, let me tell you. Savage Critics ratings do apply.
You know I had to plug Stray Bullets #50 from the jump, right? Sometimes folks, comics will make you angry. Comics will break your heart, as the King once said. And sometimes, they just make you so apathetic towards the damn thing that youll file them away on your bookshelves and spend weekends during impromptu starring contests with them. You dont want to read em, think about em, nothing. Fuck em! But then in the back of your head, you think breh, you live in a world where Stray Bullets still gets published regularly. A perfectly paced crime comic that always gives your moneys worth, always treats violence with consequences, always sounds like a million bucks, always on point with its sequential 8-panel grid storytelling. Like damn b, life aint that bad. And you feel good, ya know? Real good. You say, Yeah, imaginary conscience in a made-up fiction of JCs design, youre right! Im gonna read comics and feel good about it! Then you pick up the latest Green Lantern trade, get halfway through and think, what the hell am I doing with my life this was the only Saturday I have off fuck Fuck FFFFFFFFUCK
But as good as Stray Bullets was, and it was EXCELLENT like always, it wasnt the best of the week. No, I have to give that honor to Hawkeye #21. You can be this late when youre the hardest working superhero comic being published today. Every single element of the creative team, right on down to the lettering and the coloring choices, are working in complete unison to tell a story filled with thrills and tragedy, tenderness and intrigue, humor and humanity. Theres a honest warmth to Clint/Jessicas short conversation, a combination of Fractions script, Ajas body language and framing, the deaf reading of words and lips that puts us right into Bartons perspective in a distinctively comic book way, the color choices as lips kiss and depart. Theres a sequence where the visual iconography of a bikes tail light disappears into the distance as the coming of vans filled with Tracksuit Draculas approaches dramatically. Theres a sequence of a scared civilian at the door, intersped with flashes of approaching addias and Uzis, drawing closer and closer on his face until the tension is released with a big splash page thats stylized like a window of the building itself. Theres a sequence in which puts us right in Clints perspective after a terrifying ambush. In between black outs of undetermined amount of time, you get brief glimpses of whats happening. Comics have no motion, no real sound, we only see these important panels that tell a story in some sequential order. By putting us behind Clints eyes, its marries that form to function, as Clint and the reader put the still images were seeing in order, imagining the motion in-between them to tell a narrative. Its final two pages are powerful, a crushing defeat mixed with fist-pumping optimism. Cathartic victory that only can be bittersweet, and raising the stakes even higher on what should normally be a rah-rah finale.
It is, in all its essentials, an EXCELLENT comic, a perfect comic. The kind of comic that only happens when you combine a writer, artist, colorist, and letterer that have been one of the best in their respective fields for years, and had the time to hone their craft. It is the platonic ideal of the 21st century Marvel superhero comic. Hip and cool, but doesnt let affectations stand in place of real people. A story of a flawed person trying to be a hero. Like Casanova, what started as a pop done-in-one adventure serial evolved into an experimental genre comic masterpiece that married disparate influences like Edgar Wright, the Rockford Files, and Will Eisners Contract with God into something unique and modern. The next issue can come in 2016 for I fuckin care if its this good, but I hope it doesnt cuz I need to read the conclusion like yesterday. Good luck following this shit, Lemire/Perez.
Like anything popular, there are imitators. In the wake of 2011s Hawkeye have come a string of comics that lift its surface elements but rarely seem to put in the hard work required to build it. Its not enough to get an artist whos just this side outside the mainstream but just inside the contemporary hipster design sensibility, graft on a chippy inner monologue and a pet animal and call it a day, but books like Black Widow and Secret Avengers seem to think so. You can add Ant-Man #2 to that group, too. Its not bad, not really, theres just no spark to anything. No life. Another down-on-his-luck Marvel superhero with irreverent jokey narration captions and he ends up adopting a pet at the end, too. Its derivative, and it wasnt for the inherent likability of Scott Lang, you wouldnt need to read it. And even then its, $4 bucks, nigga. You aint that likable, man, youre just OK.
Squirrel Girl #2 is different, tho. Its not pretending to be fun like Nick Spencer comics, it IS fun. Its a silver age comic done with a modern web comic sensibility. It balances a tricky line between parody and pastiche; between mocking its character and her world and genuinely believing shes awesome. The kind of stupidly charming book youre not in a rush to read, and then you pick and think why the fuck did I wait so long to read this. Well on its way to stealing the crown of Just The Most Delightful Damn Thing from Silver Surfer, real talk. Its GOOD, yall.
Couple things go through your head reading Spawn #250. A) Wow, 250 issues of Spawn! I didnt even know they still published this shit in 2015! and B) Wow, this comic is trash! Like, REALLY trash! Maybe even impressively trash, maybe? Good use of disposable money there, me. Its like somebody kidnapped this mothafucka when it was a child and raised it on a steady diet of early Image 90s comics and afternoon television. Like it lived off the reservation, completely unaware of Images current creative renaissance and it still thinks its 1992 on some The Village type shit. Did I just spoil the Village for you? Let me spoil this comic for you, too: CRAP!
Superman yeah we off that, DROPPED!
Grayson #7 continues to be that one DC book for people who dont like most of what DC is putting out nowadays. Its a grounded spy comic, a dense read with great characterizations that imply interesting character backgrounds married to cool Morrison comic booky elements. That said, this is the worst issue theyve done yet. Fill-in art is real fill-in here, lotta minor storytelling hiccups that start to add up by the end. Its an OK issue to whats usually better than that.
Star Wars #2 was even better than the first issue, after setting up a string of fireworks, it now gets to start lighting those badboys and giggling as they explode. Big damn hero moments sit alongside hilariously inept Threepio scenes, and Luke starts a developing a real character arc here, in that shaky middle ground between blowing the Death Star but a long way from being a real Jedi. The issue belongs to Darth Vader tho, who frankly hasnt been this badass in God knows how long. You can practically hear the Imperial March reading this shit, and youre reminded me why hes such an iconic villain. Thats the best thing you can say about this Star Wars comic, that it feels like the original trilogy. Hilariously decompressed, yes, and not attempting to break any new ground, most definitely. But through a combination of Aarons voices for the cast and knack for pulp material, Cassadays realistic characters and widescreen panels, Laura Martins rusty colors bringing the world to life, and Eliopoulos lettering that makes people talking on a radio and Threepio talking distinctive from one another, it succeeds in crafting a breathless cinematic pulp adventure feel of Star Wars. As totally commercial product that cant really change any of its principal characters, its about as GOOD as it can realistically be. About 10x as exciting as Brian Woods relaunch was, holy hell that was boring.
Lady Killers #2 continues be a perfectly OK genre exercise. Not really a story yet, just a concept. 1950s house wife whos secretly an assassin. Mostly works as a showcase for Joelle Jones sexy women and Laura Allreds pop colors. They tease some drama for next issue, which might amount to something, might not. Very surface level appeal here.
Two VERY GOOD Grant Morrison scripted comics came out on Wednesday, but illustrated in totally different ways for similar horrific effect. Annihilator is brought to life by Frazier Irving, who goes the route of making it look like some of kind of plastic dollhouse nightmare. He uses odd perspectives and rubbery faces to make the story more artificial, more of a performance, which is great for a story-within-a-story thats happening here. This kind of meta, self-aware ground has been mined by Grant again and again since The Coyote Gospel, but its never quite looked like this, and it makes it seem fresh and anew. Meanwhile, Nameless is more of a straightforward boys adventure title. Well, straightforward for a book that invokes the Occult, dream logic, alien invasions, and really fucked up shit on random subreddits. First issue is very much in the vein of Raiders of the Lost Ark, theres an in media res opening that showcases the world, who the main character is and what he does on some exciting incident, then switches over to a lot of exposition. The great thing about Raiders of the Lost Ark is that even the exposition scenes surge with energy or have a forward momentum to them, and in Nameless Burnham/Fairbairn keep finding new ways to make all the scene setting visually interesting. Theres a good link to some of Chris thought process on how he crafts certain scenes, but in general its really, really strong stuff. Im in for the ride.
I think Cheska put it best describing Saga #25 as comfort food. Every single time you get a new issue of Saga, youll get a regular dose of well-defined, visually distinctive characters doing various soap opera in space things, with Hazels spoiler-filled narration framing it as an fable that actually happen, and had an ending, and BKV has plans for all this. Fiona Staples is what really makes it tick, of course. Her art makes even the most esoteric or outrageous sci-fi/fantasy design seem accessible and logical. Theres something to be said for a good that always consistently GOOD, in pretty much the same way every time. The dependable anchor of pullists everywhere. All I can hope is Ghüs doesnt get killed any time soon.
Shaft #3 was GOOD, too, mostly cuz of Bilquis Evelys evocation of 1970s. I think they got the one good Dynamite colorist on this shit, a muted color palette for that 70s crime movie feel. Chick draws the best noses, which is a weird thing to point out, but its true.
Karen Traviss is writing this anti-GI Joe book, and its just a big ol pile of ponderous, poorly paced garbage. Gotta stop giving Karen Traviss chances, she burned all them bridges. AWFUL! Comix.
Finally, Miracleman #15 came out. Well, technically it came out back in 1988, but Marvels reprint is finally here. The most sought after issue of this most sought after legendary title. Its the comic Mark Millar thinks hes been making for the last twenty years. Identity Crisis wanted so BAD to be Miracleman #15. SUPER dark, edgy as shit whole goddamn London gets destroyed, niggas hanging from barbwire on twisted poles, kids being murdered, cats and dogs living together; mass hysteria. The superhero concept taken to its natural conclusion. Alan Moore earns all of, every single bit of it, even the religious side bits of characterization. Marvel edits out the N-word in here which is bizarre. Of ALL the things to edit in this issue. This is a comic where Marvelman throws a car filled with people in at a Kid Marvelman, where a homophobic slur is on the same page, where dude brags about shitting in skulls, but the N-word was that nah pls edit think of the children moment. Shit is still EXCELLENT though, because its Miracleman #15, and even after years of dark-ass superhero comics even by Alan Moore himself, this is still pretty much the apex of that particular strand.
And I think thats it. I know youre all been worried about me, or Marvels reboot, or DC still releasing Dan Jurgens and Scott Lobdell books on unsuspecting masses in 2015, but rest easy friends. No matter how many bans, censorships, or reboots are out there, there will always be COMICS!
Freezasaurus
Member
tl;dr
Welcome back!
Welcome back!
KoruptData
Member
I imagine JC had a Word document saved throughout his ban just waiting to be copy and pasted tonight.
Gonna take umbrage to your X-Men thing, JC. A writer doing a 15-issue run on a book seems to be the new Marvel Standard. X-Force's ending at #15. Secret Avengers's ending at #15. Young Avengers ended at #15. There's probably a lot more, it's A Thing now, you get a year-long run in which you can tell a sort-of more or less complete story and then you put everything neatly back in the box.
Didnt all the books you said start after AvX?
Its a bit longer...
ViewtifulJC
Banned
The thing all those books have in common? They sell like month old hotcakes. They tell creators to plan for 12-15 issues in case they hit that 20k kiss of death, but if they take off, like Hawkeye or Ms Marvel or Magneto? The sky's the limit.
Well, Secret Wars is the limit, I guess, before they cancel everything and reboot.
They're all post AvX, yeah, but I think also more importantly post-Hawkguy. It's basically using the same framework of letting a creative team run wild, except with added constraints and sometimes fill-ins to make sure it comes out on time.
In a world where there's two volumes of the KSD Captain Marvel, I cannot believe 20k is a kiss of death. They go in for exactly three TPBs that will be long sellers because people like me will go "oh yeah, Young Avengers' a goddamn modern masterpiece, probably even the only comic of the now, here meaning: not stuck in the mid-to-late 90s like almost every other comic out there". Realistically, I cannot see how a Young Avengers #16 would've gone.
ViewtifulJC
Banned
Marvel is REALLY trying to make Carol Denvers happen, yo. They got a movie to promote, and diversity quotas to meet. They tried relaunching for the quick boost in sales, variants, totally unearned anniversary issues, event tie-ins....
KSD pls. At this rate they gon have to make Captain Marvel film about Kamala Khan
KSD pls. At this rate they gon have to make Captain Marvel film about Kamala Khan
my name is ed
Banned
which Ed are you talking about haha
I'm dreaming big. Im saying he's got 4 done.
Times like these could really use the old :lol emoticon
Simon Spurrier is probably my pick to write X-Men after Bendis. The writing on X-Men Legacy was good and I'd like to see him play with better characters at this disposal.
TheDarkKnight774
Member
JC is back. Quick..start the stray bullets reading club before he gets banned again
Welcome back human comic book dictionary!
Welcome back human comic book dictionary!
my name is ed
Banned
Its already out. Im not sure how the staggered the releases are for certain places but it was available at my LCS.
I kind of wonder how much pressure he felt to put out a really great comic. If you're writing landmark books on comics, you better be able to make a good one yourself haha