I’m not saying it’s not recursive; I’m not saying it’s not weird; I’m not saying it’s not bad for the industry, really, although I don’t necessarily think it is except in that it’s a lost opportunity. But just because you (and I) don’t like a storytelling convention, that doesn’t mean it makes bad stories, just ones you and I won’t like. (This is essentially the same argument I’m making on the bad comics artists thread.)
I think the reason the Enelsian commander is female is just what it had to be given the earlier story about the Enelsian scout. Now, you can make your argument there. (And of course the other woman had to be a woman for obvious reasons.)
Can you come up with a superhero writer who has more well-rounded female characters than Busiek?
There’s also Quarrel 2 and Flying Fox and that girl who goes out to live on a farm… Lots of good female characters there. (In KBAC)
This Week:
Ultimates 2: Of COURSE! There is no room for gods in the stories that Millar is writing. It’s still indeterminate, but it’s also shelved. Hercules is one thing, but the pantheon is far too wide for this story.
Twilight Experiment 1-3: On someone’s reccomendation. Hm. Interesting. It’ll do. It’ll do pretty well.
Ultra #8: A good ending. A good series. Pick it up… it’s a story about seven days in the life of a professional woman who’s a famous model and superheroine. With a typically messed up life.
City of Heroes #11. Getting better every issue, I’m almost sad it’s going away.
Marvel Milestones featuring Iron Man, Ant-Man, and Captain America:
Iron Man, Ant-Man and Cap’s first/origin stories, and the first Golden Armor story and a later all about Iron Man.
(Stories from: Tales of Suspense 39, 40. Tales to Astonish 27. Captain America Comics #1. Tales to Astonish #55)
You know, I think the first Iron Man story has some really interesting aspects to it. The terrifying armor. The enlightened professor. Hm. All gone now, though.
Off the top of my head, Warren Ellis, Ed Brubaker, Alan Moore, and probably Greg Rucka (based on what superhero work of his I have read). I imagine Gail Simone’s up there too, but again, I haven’t read enough to judge.
By no stretch of the imagination is Busiek even close to the worst comics writer, super hero or otherwise, with regard to this issue. I’m especially critical of Astro City precisely because it’s so often held up as one of the great examples of super hero storytelling, and often cited as one of the most mature works in the genre. It’s also his baby, and not an inherited universe owned by corporate masters as so many other super hero works are, so he a much broader canvas available than most.
JSA: I only picked up the arc to whet my appetite between GL: Rebirth issues, but I loved it and will definately be picking up future issues. cmkeller is right; the everything is back to normal it was only a dream thing is a little cliche, but I’m willing to look the other way this time.
[fanboy]Starwoman is hot.[/fb]
Adam Strange: I picked this up to get ready for the Rann/Thanagar war miniseries. Meh. I guess you need issues like this to wrap up loose ends and move plot. If I had followed the entire series I probably would have liked it more.
GL: Rebirth*: Batman is a dick.
Yes, I know it came out last week, but I couldn’t make it out then.
Steve Dillon KICKS ASS in Ultimate X-Men! I’ve missed him since Punisher, and think he’s a perfect fit for this book. Anybody know his productivity, is he considered a fast, average, or slow penciler? Hope he sticks around for awhile.
**
GLA Misassembled**
Picked this up on a lark a few weeks ago and finally read it, more heart than I expected, a surprisingly interesting story. Put me down for issue #2.
I believe Dillon drew every single issue of Preacher (except for the one-shots and associated specials), and that book wasn’t well-known for any delays.
This had to be one of the “smallest” weeks on record. I can’t recall the last time I left (or rather, this week, was carted from) my LCS with so few titles.This had to be one of the “smallest” weeks on record. I can’t recall the last time I left (or rather, this week, was carted from) my LCS with so few titles. (Also would have posted earlier, but I was out sick much of this week.)
I was so glad to see Vril Dox/Brainiac 19 (or whatever the heck he is) exit the story in Adam Strange #7. I hope it’s permanent. His inclusion made little sense to me to begin with. While I’ve no plans to follwoin the Rann-Thanagar War story in the months to come (though I’m definitely getting the OMAC and Villains United title), I do hope Strange continues to work closely with the Omega Men: there are the makings of a good character dynamic between him and Tigorr here, and one any on-going Adam Strange title will really need. Ferry’s art remains fun: three cheers for his colorist.
I didn’t recognize the villain, but checking the net I found the following references, for anyone who want to know more:
I for one like the heavily politicized retcon Hudlin’s worked into his first Black Panther #3 storyarc. He really isn’t deviating all that much with what came before. In fact, given current events, it’s almost surprising that he hasn’t gone further. For instance, having the current Klaw lead a covert assassination team into Wakanda instead of having the “powers that be” coming up with a trumped-up reason for an outright invasion of Wakanda, in the name of spreading the virtues of democratic reform (after all, Wakanda is a tribal theocracy of sorts) and free-market globalism. It might be because I just finished books about Catholic Spain’s and France’s plots against the reign of England’s Elizabeth I; and the America’s covert disasterous (for Chileans) Cold War operations in Chile, (or that I simply read the papers about the War in Iraq); but I have no problem buying into what many have charged as terribly simplistic characterizations of the National Security Council, or Euro-centric economic elites in the new Pather title. Also, I’m particularly enjoying how Hudlin is fleshing out the Panther’s supporting cast “back home” in Wakanda itself; and it’s always fun seeing Batroc the Leaper, the most irreverant (if not one of the wierdest) of Lee and Kirby’s Cold War mercanary characters. The books also been blessed with really nice coloring, complementing some of the nicest Jansen inks I’ve seen in quite some time.
I’ve often wondered if Mark Millar intentionally played off the legend of the slumbering and returned King implied by the Arthurian Myth in his first year on the Ultimates, which focused on the revival, and triumphant return of Captain America, but his echoing of the story of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemani [the place in which Jesus Christ suffered the Agony and was taken prisoner by the Jews - see the Catholic encyclopedia at http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06540a.htm ] in Ultimates 2 #5 has me dying to see him take the analogy further, even unto a cruxifixion (with Cap as the Roman Soldier with the spear?) and resurrection. I also enjoyed the way he worked in the fact that Thor’s belt is the source of his great powers in the original mythology. (This does make me wonder why he and Bryan Hitch chose not to include the gloves in the new character design.) It all shows thoughtful advance planning in this arc, and I’m dying to see how it all plays out.
As for the speculation surrounding the identity of the whistle blower in the Ultimates, quite frankly I don’t think we have enough to say who it is exactly yet.
I think there are good reasons to suspect the Widow (as an agent of the new Russian Republics, still smarting from thier loss of superpower status, and perhaps jealous at not being able to compete in the new “superhuman” arms race), Betsy Ross (guilt, plain and simple) or Wanda Maximoff (brighter than her incestuous, easily manipulated twin, acting as an agent of her father’s covert foriegn policy, gently prodding homo sapiens superhuman deterrents into costly, self defeating confrontations). I think we’ll have to wait for new clues.
I do find it suitably creepy that Fury’s next mission for the Ultimates will take them to the Middle East, which definitely raises the possibility that the source really began with Nick Fury: who much as governments has historically withheld information (see the books “At Dawn We Slept” or “Day of Deceit” - both on FDR & Pearl Harbor - http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai…g=UTF8&v=glance http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai…035952?v=glance ), covertly staged “Gulf of Tonkin” type incidents; to mobilize public support for military engagement abroad; Fury may well have leaked the information about Banner, to goad the Ultimates into silencing Thor, before he manipulates them and their European counterparts into action in the morass of Middle Eastern conflict.
I used to really like Sienkiewicz work… but as an inker… well, I can think of other books he’d “fit” better than this one… though I am glad to see Tom Grummett on a team book like this … I liked his recent fill in issues of the Teen Titans a lot better than his work here.
Same here… I’ve been following Batgirl, Teen Titans, the Outsiders and Brids of Prey as well as read ID Crisis and this summers’ Batman War Games, and all those titles connect to those two miniseries.
Dillon is reputed to be very, very fast when he wants to be. I can’t recall which titles (other than the Punisher was one of them) where he delivered three books a month for a couple of months…
Joe Bennett seems to be equally fast. Starting this month, he’s covering both Hawkman (he’s been doing good, pulpy, lurid work here) and Birds of Prey (taking over for Ed Benes) for DC.
Just as an aside, Thor’s belt (in mythology) was never the “source” of all of his powers. It was simply an artifact that imbued him with twice his normal strenght. He did, however, need special gloves to throw Mjolnir.
Back in the day you had Stan Lee, E. Nelson Bridwell, Roy Thomas, Jim Shooter, Jo Duffy, John Byrne and Denny O’ Neil.
These days? Alan Moore. Christopher Priest. Mark Waid. Grant Morrison. Warren Ellis. Jeph Loeb. Gail Simone. Gilbert Hernandez. Bill Willingham.
Open it up to “comics writers” in general and the list becomes considerably wider, although I will charitably guarantee a spot for Busiek in the middle TOP 25.
Note: this is the week Cliffy finally gets rid of the gift certificate that’s been burning a hole in his pocket since Christmas.
Thirteen – This is brilliant. A well-paced complete-in-one volume story about a slightly telekinetic London punk who gets caught up in a fight over his head. This is written by Lucifer’s Mike Carey and beautifully illustrated (in color) by Andy Clarke. Clarke is great, although he does use too many lines on men’s faces. For no good reason DC calls it Thirte3n on the cover, but there’s no leet-speak of any kind, so don’t be fooled. A fabulous book…
Sadly, DC has dicontinued the line of their 200 AD reprints, effective in August. Fortunately, Rebellion (publishers of 2000 AD) are picking up the slack. Now if only they can get linked up with a U.S. distributor so I don’t have to pay crazy shipping fees.
The Maxx vol. 1 – Whoa, this is very cool. Like everyone else I assumed at the time that this was just another air-headed Image book about an ultraviolent superhero. Actually it’s much more interesting than that. The Maxx is a bum in a superhero costume who has delusions of being the king of a “lost world” type Outback. He is taken care of by Julie, a bombshell social worker who has her own counterpart in the fantasy world. Or is the whole thing in Julie’s head, a way of hiding from the horrors of her past? I don’t know but I’m enthralled.
Invincible, vol. 4: Head of the Class – This is a wonderful book. Here we see the fallout from the big events of the previous arc. This also sets up several interesting developments for the future on both the superheroics front and also in Mark’s personal life. But even though these issues are mostly building to the future, the dialogue and characterization is spot on. Plus the art’s nice too.
Gotham Central #30 – One of the series’ best issues. Montoya and Allen interrogate Dr. Alchemy, who is openly playing with them. The question is who really is smarter, and who is giving out the rope. This series always seems to have more promise than it actually delivers, but this ish was an exception.
Mnemovore #1 – Great. As a set-up issue to a horror/mystery miniseries, we don’t get a lot of answers here, but the characters are drawn really well, and so quickly that you already feel for them by the time the action starts. The book stars Kaley, a former Olympic snowboarder who gets slective amnesia after an accident. Most of the book follows her as she wanders through her life, trying to remember those in it. The end takes a decidedly creepy turn. Everyone go buy this today.
Cliffy, is this really your first exposure to the Maxx? If so, e-mail me. I might have something you will want, and it’s yours if you’re interested!
(And just in case you didn’t know about it, MTV also produced an animated series based directly on the comic, even using some of the actual art from the comic. I’m not sure if it’s available on DVD, but check eBay for the VHS version! Next to Sin City, it’s one of the closest and most accurate adaptations of a comic to another medium.)
Yes, and all I can say is (a) I hope it picks up and (b) picking up an issue of Action Comics reminded me of why I don’t read Superman. But I’m a Captain Marvel fan (both DC and Marvel), so I’ll be following the arc.
Such a shame that DC never provided promotional support fo the Humanoids & 2000AD books. Even if a potential reader happened to stumble across one of their ads (which, at least in the case of the Humanoids books, appear to be concentrated in Metal Hurlant. Talk about preaching to the choir), usually all they consisted of was a pretty splash page with the title and creator’s names listed. I don’t think I’ve seen an ad for a 2000AD reprint at all. Your summary makes this book sound like exactly the sort of thing I would have bought had I known about it. I’ll definitely make an effort to track down a copy. My “old” LCS stopped carrying the European reprints, but maybe my newly discovered “new” not-so-local, but far superior comic shop will still have a copy. DC’s still stocking the back catalog, right?
Am I correct in thinking Mnemovore is a Marvel book? I know the cover looked enticing at the comic shop this weekend, but I held off. Do you know whether they’re going to play it as a straight horror title, or tie it into the MU?
Spellbinders is a new six issue miniseries by Mike Carey, which started a couple of weeks back. That’s produced by Marvel, and is set in the teenage end of the Marvel Universe (think Runaways meets Dr. STrange). Mnemovore is a DC Vertigo title about a crippled Olympic hopeful who is aware of something terrible and Lovecraftian coming down the pike. It looks like straight horror to me, with no linkage to the DCU superheroes.
That said, the Morrison/Sook Seven Soldiers: Zatanna is worth a look. It’s the only Seven Soldiers miniseries that’s caught my attention so far.
