Comic Book Reviews May 6th, 2013

I've been catching up on my comic book reading for the past couple of weeks, and thought it was time to post a few reviews. We're doing two titles I've mentioned here before, and all three are from DC Comics' current "New 52" continuity.

All Star Western could for the most part have been part of the old DC Universe with only a few tweaks. It is quite possibly one of the top five books being published today. The writing is excellent and the artwork is perfect for the time period. Bounty hunter Jonah Hex has starred in the first nineteen issues, in stories set primarily in 1880's Gotham City, with Dr. Amadeus Arkham, the person who would found the legendary Arkham Asylum, along for the ride. The title features a back-up story set in the same era, highlighting western characters such as El Diablo, the Barbary Ghost, and Bat Lash, as well as a new version of Tomahawk, Dr. Thirteen and an early version of Stormwatch. Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti have captured the essence of the era perfectly in this series. All Star Western is a series that belongs on everyone's comic pull list.

The biggest disappointment in the "New 52" for me so far has been Justice League. This book is supposed to be the flagship title of the company, but it comes off as the same-old, same-old. We've seen almost all of these stories before, in one form or another, and the original iterations were much better. The artwork, yes, it's pretty darn good. Jim Lee is the only real original Image graduate that actually improved since those halcyon days of artists who cared little for human anatomy. But the book is severely lacking. The Justice League always seems to be bit players in someone else's story. From the hackneyed origin story with Darkseid to bring Cyborg into the JL fold, to the "Throne of Atlantis" storyline, and the current one, which portends to be a retelling of "Tower of Babel" and the Justice League: Doom animated feature, I find myself not caring about any of these characters. Superman and Wonder Woman getting friendly? Yawn. Batman being nosy and underhanded. Ho-hum. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. How about having these people act like heroes again, rather than bit players in other sagas or spoiled brats?

Finally we have The Movement, written by fan favorite Gail Simone, noted for stints on Wonder Woman, Batgirl, and several other popular titles. This book is set in Coral City, a previously unknown municipality in the DC Universe. There's a lot of corrupt cops, one cop trying to do his best, a possibly possessed young man who's a serial killer and a bunch of young metahumans. What there isn't is a cohesive story. I've only read the first issue, but nothing in it makes me want to leave the house to look for the second. I have no empathy for anyone in this story. I've read some of Simone's Batgirl issues, and they made sense and were entertaining. If this is how she writes when creating her own characters, then she should stick to established ones. Freddie Williams III provides some interesting art, very reminiscent, at least to me, of some of the art on Rachel Pollack's Doom Patrol run. But it's not interesting enough to shell out money for the next issue.

I'd have to say that, right now, The Movement is the absolute nadir of the "New 52" imprint, even topping Liefeld's Hawk and Dove for that honor.

I'm so proud of myself for not making any obvious puns on the name of that last book.  Next time around, some of the "Marvel Now!" titles, including Dark Avengers, Indestructible Hulk, and Savage Wolverine.

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A Week of Good Stuff begins: Starman Volume 9 - Grand Guignol

I've decided to make it easy on myself. This is a week of reviewing stuff that I like. No, stuff I LOVE. This is the Week of Good Stuff.

I don't know if I've ever mentioned this here, but James Robinson's Starman was the single greatest comic book in the history of the medium.

Big claim, huh? Not really. This was the only truly wonderful thing that has ever come out of a major crossover event at either DC or Marvel. Or anywhere for that matter. Alan Moore and Grant Morrison deconstructed heroes in Watchmen, Doom Patrol and Animal Man. James Robinson built them back up into true heroes and human beings in the pages of Starman.

Robinson has a special flare for writing comic books that shows his love and respect for the medium. A throwaway line here mentioning Commando Yank or Codename: Assassin, a picture of the original Justice Society in a background there, all the while pacing what was really an 84-issue story of a single man in the fictional world of Opal City.

This tale begins with the abrupt murder of David Knight, who had just taken the hereditary identity of Starman from his father. His brother Jack, a tattooed slacker and collectibles nut, is forced to take up the mantle. But he does it reluctantly and does it his own way. No costume, just a leather jacket and goggles and a long golden Cosmic Staff.

It is no spoiler to tell readers that Jack grows into his role as a hero and defender of the city. It also is no spoiler to say that he eventually gives it all up for the love of a woman and his newborn son. It would be a spoiler to reveal many of the twists and turns that got him there, and which opened up a new world to readers.

My favorite story line is encapsulated in Starman Volume 9: Grand Guignol. This trade paperback features a yearlong adventure that has Jack returning from a trip to outer space to find Opal City besieged by almost every major villain that had been featured in the series so far, led by a villainous version of the Shade, the erudite anti-hero who had become one of Jack's friends. Luckily, Jack has friends, such as the Elongated Man and his wife, Adam Strange, another Starman, Black Condor, Phantom Lady, the Black Pirate and a family of policemen dedicated to protecting their city. He also has the help of his own father, the original Starman.

This is one of those perfect stories. Triumph and tragedy, life and death. It is all here, on as mythic scale as we have in today's world. There's a realism amid the flying capes and elastic fists and radioactive men that draws you into Opal City on a level that's hard to explain. You cheer the triumphs and you weep for the lost as if they were real people.

And not to forget the other contributor: Peter Snejbjerg provides some atmospheric art. His style if very reminiscent of the Brothers Hernandez in Love and Rockets, and is a perfect compliment to Robinson's story.

The series has recently been recollected into the Starman Omnibus series, so it is very easy to find all of the series.  You can jump right in anywhere, or start from the beginning. It doesn't matter. Each volume in the trade paperback series has everything you would want in a great comic book.

This series is one of the very few things in the planet that I would label inspiring.

Book Review: Showcase Presents Ambush Bug

When reviewing the names of super-heroes and super-villains that everyone knows, there's a select group that comes to mind: Superman, Spider-Man, Batman, Wonder Woman, Wolverine, Hulk, Ambush Bug, the Fantastic Four, Captain America, the Silver Surf ... umm what? You don't know Ambush Bug? But I'm sure Ambush Bug knows you. And Showcase Presents Ambush Bug is the only collection of his original adventures that we're probably ever going to see.

Ambush Bug knows most comic book readers because he's one of the few characters that knows he's in a comic book. Before getting all meta on us, the character began as somewhat of a throwaway villain in DC Comics Presents #52, facing off against Superman and the New Doom Patrol. He was created by Keith Giffen and Paul Kupperberg. Back then he was a happy-go-lucky (and slightly murderous) bad guy who could teleport using these little bugs. It was a few months later, in #59, when Ambush Bug was steered into a more comedic role, when he inadvertently went to the 30th Century with Superman and was engaged by the Legion of Substitute Heroes. Back then, the Subs were thought of in the same vein as the Legion of Super-Pets in sheer usefulness, so hilarity reigned.

Ambush Bug made several more appearances in Supergirl, Action Comics, and DC Comics Presents before he earned his first mini-series, which was so popular he got a Stocking Stuffer special followed by a second mini, a Secret Origins origin, and a second special before comic books turned all dark, grim and serious again.

All of these funny books (and for once that phrase is truth-in-advertising) are reprinted in Showcase Presents Ambush Bug, another volume in DC Comics' black-and-white series of trade paperback reprints. The stories all have an element of humor to them, and Ambush Bug, knowing that he's in a comic book, does his best to strain all the conventions of comic books that existed back in the eighties, the era of the DC fanboy and the Marvel zombie. It's fast-paced comedy, like if SCTV was combined with Cracked.

Showcase Presents Ambush Bug is an excellent read, both as a reprint volume and just as something to page through when you're bored and want to snicker a little now and then.

Comic Book Review: DC Comics' I, Vampire

Well, eventually I'd get around to profiling something that might interest all the vampire fans out there. I had no idea it would be a re-imaging of a late-seventies vampire comic book.

I didn't really have high hopes for the I, Vampire title when I saw it in the listings as one of DC Comics' "New 52" revamped comic books. I was sort of assuming it was just going to capitalize on Twilight and all the sparkly vampires that are so popular nowadays. I also held off on doing anything more than just paging through them until the first story arc was complete. After six issues, the story is still on-going, and leading into the series' first crossover (with Justice League Dark), so I decided to sit down tonight and read the series. It turned out to be a pleasant surprise.

For neophytes and non-fans, I, Vampire was originally a back-up series featured in House of Mystery. It told the story of Andrew Bennett, an English nobleman who was turned into a vampire over 400 years ago. Instead of allowing the passions and power of being a vampire to overcome him, Bennett instead only killed animals for blood and strove to just live what remnant of his life he could. The turning point in his story came when he transformed his beloved Mary into a vampire, so they could live together forever. Unfortunately, Mary succumbed to the lure of the power being a vampire offered and started a society of the undead known as the Blood Red Moon, becoming known as the Queen of Blood. Bennett was horrified by what he did, and swore to kill Mary and all of her followers. At the end of the series, which also featured a team-up with Batman in the pages of Brave and the Bold, one of Bennett's assistants was able to kill Mary, allowing Bennett's spirit to finally rest.

This new series is apparently close to the original in plot, but with definite stylistic and artistic differences. Bennett is still striving to kill Mary, who has plans to become the ruler of the planet and use the human population as cattle. Bennett has a professor friend who is also a vampire hunter (after Bennett saved his life), and they are later joined by a young girl who was seeking vengeance on all vampires for the death of her mother and father. The series begins in modern day Boston and heads out for Gotham City, firmly establishing the continuity in the newly-rebooted DC Universe.

The comic book is presented in a very cinematic manner. It reminds me of The Last Man on Earth in the way the world around the vampires is a very drab and grey world. Few bright colors are used, with a preponderence of greys, blacks, whites and of course reds dimly illuminating the landscapes of I, Vampire. The vampires themselves, at least the older ones, are the vampires of popular legend, turning into wolves, mists and bats. Sunlight doesn't kill these vampires; though it does removes most of their powers. The only thing that does is a stake through the heart, followed by a quick decapitation. This isn't Bela Lugosi, but it also, thankfully, isn't Twilight.

The story skillfully uses flashbacks to give us the information we need to know why things are happening. It features some very intricate page layouts, but is surprisingly easy to follow. The artwork is realistic, but the coloring and harsh shading gives it a Expressionist lean, much like the films Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.  The book is a very interesting read, somewhat reminiscent of the original 30 Days of Night series. I'm not the biggest vampire fan, but the way this book has been re-imagined makes me want to keep reading it. So far, I can only say that of about a quarter of the "New 52" series.

I, Vampire #6 was a "prelude" to the crossover with Justice League Dark, and apparently will feature the Batman as well, since he was a guest star in the last two issues of this series. Considering Andrew Bennett met John Constantine a few issues earlier, I have to say that I'm looking forward to the "Rise of the Vampires" story line.

If you haven't already tried reading an issue of I, Vampire, I'd recommend giving it a try, especially if you are a modern horror or vampire fan. It might give you a little insight into the proper way vampires should be handled. Which is primarily sparkle-free.

Two of the best comic book titles of DC’s New 52 so far, and two of the most disappointing titles as well

About six months ago, you might have seen a vanguard of television commercials promoting DC Comics’ “New 52” line. The company that has published such icons as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman for nearly a century decided to completely remake their comic book series, to make them more accessible to new readers.  DC had attracted some of the best writers in comics, such as James Robinson, Geoff Johns and Grant Morrison to reboot their characters for the 21^st century in fifty-two separate comic book series. Since they’ve rebooted their comic book universes about six times in the past two decades, I was a tad skeptical that this would last. It does seem that there won’t be going back for DC Comics, but I have the feeling that quite a few of those 52 series won’t be here next year. There are a few true gems in this new DC universe, and a bunch of definite clunkers, but there are even more titles that just straddle the line and do nothing for me.

My favorite titles so far are:

Aquaman

I think I would have to say that Aquaman ranks as one of the best, or perhaps even the best, of the New 52 titles. Excellent artwork and some of the best scripting I’ve seen in a long while. Aquaman and Mera are trying to make their own lives in the surface world. The first story arc has the King of the Seas and his wife battling both ancient sea creatures and misapprehensions by landlubbers about who and what the two Atlanteans really are. There are plenty of hints given to both characters’ revitalized pasts, more than enough to pique the interests of even casual Aquafans. If they can keep up this sort of quality in the future, I think Aquaman finally has a future as a major DC character, even without a movie or cartoon push. I would definitely suggest readers get the trade paperback of the first story arc when it comes out.

Suicide Squad

For those who haven’t read many comics, the Suicide Squad is a group of government-sanctioned operatives that have been around since the early sixties. The initial team was a team of military operatives and adventurers, but former X-Men artist John Byrne created the current team dynamic in which the Squad is made up of super-villains, who get their sentences reduced or commuted if they successfully finish their missions … and, of course, if they manage to stay alive. One interesting thing about this group is that the members do in fact die, and die quite often. The New 52 incarnation features a team centered on long-time Squad member Deadshot, with the popular Harley Quinn as an added attraction. Other members include a rebooted and apparently reformed Black Spider, the monstrous King Shark, and a new version of the old DC western hero El Diablo, along with a lot of newer villains along for cannon fodder. The stories are intricately-plotted and interesting. The first issue follows the new Squad’s indoctrination and first mission, which was to kill everyone in a sealed football stadium. The artwork is very good, the action is quick, and the character well-voiced. The only bad thing about the New 52 Suicide Squad is the fact that Amanda Waller, the group’s behind-the-scenes leader, went from being a somewhat portly black woman into your standard near-super-model type. I think this takes a lot of force from the character’s personality and was a very poor decision. Not everyone in a comic book is a superhero and they don’t all have to have super-heroic physiques.

And the two titles that I currently think are pretty much crap so far are:

Justice League

I mentioned this title in a previous blog, and it has definitely lived up to my low expectations. So far, it’s just been a dark and gritty version of the Super Friends: Galactic Guardians cartoon. There really hasn’t been anything in this title that hasn’t been a cliché, and considering that it has been hailed as the line’s flagship title, that’s a shame. The only redeeming feature is that Aquaman, as in his own title, is now more bad-ass than he was in Grant Morrison’s JLA title in the early 2000’s. While the first six issues were bogged down with the retelling of this Justice League’s origin, the nineties-style artwork and the dark feel does nothing to make me feel that this is the Justice League. And while I’ve always liked Cyborg as a character, the token nature of his appearance here belittles the good characterization he had under the reigns of Marv Wolfman and George Perez in the original New Teen Titans title.

The next story arc is going to have to blow me out of my chair to keep me from just ignoring this book.

Hawk and Dove

I think by now everyone one should know that an important adage in comics is “Don’t let Rob Liefeld draw your comics! And for Raptor Jesus’ sake, don’t let him write it!” Perhaps fortunately, he’s only drawing this book, making it the most poorly drawn comic in the whole New 52 line. I will say that Liefeld has improved his artwork since his last company-wide attempt at revamping (Marvel’s regrettable year of “Heroes Reborn” back in the early nineties), as a good number of the humanoid figures in Hawk and Dove are actually recognizable as human beings.

The book does recognize the prior incarnations of the characters, which were created in the late sixties by legend Steve Ditko, and revamped in the late eighties into a male and female team (instead of brothers). Unfortunately, the last two Hawk and Dove revivals met with sad fates; the second was pretty much ignored, and the first fell prey to spiteful writers and editors who couldn’t handle the fact they had devised a crossover event with a plot more transparent than air. Armageddon 2001 featured the introduction of a powerful, time-bending character called Monarch, who was formerly a super-hero. The fans, fueled by the burgeoning influence of the internet, guessed right away that Monarch was originally intended to be Captain Atom. To show up everyone who guessed that, the writers decided suddenly to make Hawk into Monarch, and having the female Dove killed in the process.

Hawk and Dove are now the Avatars of War and Peace. (Previously, the team had served a God-like voice, and also were said to have been created by a Lord of Order and a Lord of Chaos who were in love.). There are a number of Avatars for both sides, which have apparently been in existence for several hundred years. We see the initial villains, Condor and Swan, kill an Avatar called the Osprey to get his power. Dove is in love with Deadman. Hawk is pretty much brain-dead and brutish, not bothering to think twice about picking a fight with Robin. I suppose he doesn’t know that Robin’s been trained by the League of Assassin and is Batman’s son, but when Batman is in the picture, even in the farthest corner, you don’t mess with him or his. There’s a clichéd subplot of a mad scientist with an army of “monsters of mass destruction” out to get Hawk and Dove for stopping him from bringing down the Washington monument, and a DC cop who is willing to work with the pair, but may or may not have an agenda of his own. Hawk’s father, a Washington judge, also plays a supporting role in the first few issues.

The book is just poorly done on all levels: Mediocre art, dull scripting, less-than-vibrant characterizations. This is one of those series I tried to like, since I’ve enjoyed two well-done versions of the duo, but this comic book can’t rise above the many faults in it. I might give it a second chance if the book gets a decent artist like most of the New 52 have managed to do, but I think issue #6 is the end of the New 52 Hawk and Dove for me.

See you folks later this week! I have no idea what my next topic will be, but I'm sure something will hit me.

DC Comics: The New 52 - Justice League #1

I have to say that I can’t recall seeing commercials on TV for comic books since the early eighties, when Marvel Comics did one for G. I. Joe: A Real American Hero #1. I didn’t see much point to that one, and I didn’t see much point to the current one for DC Comics’ “The New 52” line. And after reading Justice League #1, I can’t see much point to that whole idea, either.

It’s been very hard to be an old-school comic fan over the past decade. The few remaining writers that we could count on for quality stories have gone completely commercial and sold out. I suppose I can’t blame them, considering what a dying art form and hobby comic books and comic book collecting has become. But when I sit back and read fantastic tales stories in the pages of Starman or Doom Patrol or JSA or even New X-Men and see the kind of confusing, monotonous tripe that writers like James Robinson, Grant Morrison and Geoff Johns are putting out now, it saddens me.  I quit reading most Marvel Comics after the lingering “Civil War” crossover event, and stopped reading most DC books after the fiasco of “Final Crisis.”

The hobby is in a downward slide. For example, back in 1968, the first Doom Patrol series was cancelled for selling only 250,000 copies a month. The version of the series that was cancelled in 2002 was only selling around 15,000 copies. The best seller that month sold around 148,000 issues. Huge crossover events that are so convoluted you need a scorecard haven’t helped matters. Readers want solid stories of the characters they enjoy - they don’t want to buy a bunch of comics they’ve never read in order to follow the plotline of a single story. And since new comics are about as valuable as new baseball cards, there’s not even a speculator market anymore.

Let’s take a look at the first issue’s story, written by Geoff Johns and featuring art by Jim Lee, which is set five years before the current continuity. For some reason, Cyborg is set to be a major player in the Justice League this time around. I hadn’t realized that Victor Stone, who has gone through lord knows how many transformations over the years, was suddenly a major commercial star. But we’re going to be seeing his origin over the course of the next few issues. I’m betting some major accident involving some of the other soon-to-be JLA’ers. As for the “heroes” we also see in this issue, not a single one of them have any original qualities that make them endearing to me. The Batman is, well, the Batman - stuck-up and overbearing. Superman appears to be a jerk as well, and Green Lantern Hal Jordan is pretty much an idiot. Batman even pulls a stunt he did in All-Star Batman and Robin by stealing GL’s Power Ring. At least this time, Robin wasn’t around to nearly kill the “Emerald Gladiator”...

If this book is representative of the New 52 continuity reboot, I’m very scared for the future of DC Comics. It has the scent of the disastrous revamping that Marvel Comics tried in 1996, giving their flagship titles to Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld of the then-popular Image Comics to remold into something new. That was a creative fiasco, no matter how you look at it. Having Jim Lee as a player in any reimaging of any comic book is not something I’d call a move that inspires confidence in the whole. I’ve also read where they’re bringing in Liefeld, who is perhaps the single worst artist in the history of comic books, to do another of the New 52 titles (The Hawk and the Dove), so I’m having the distinctly ominous feeling that this is a venture that is doomed to failure.

There’s nothing in Justice League #1 that makes me want to pick up issue #2. Much like Marvel did, DC Comics is completely abandoning the remains of their hardcore, old-time fan base. I hope that they realize that in this economy, it’s a bad thing to lose steady readers for the sake of bringing in a few short-term sales on a bunch of #1 issues. And I also hope they realize that in this age, even those old-time fans can find plenty of other diversions to make them forget about new comics, and stick with the old ones they can rely on for solid entertainment.