Comic book reviews for the week of March 9th in six sentences (or less)

Best of the Week

Ultimate Spider-man #155
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Penciller: Chris Samnee

Peter Parker needs a job and J. Jonah Jameson wants to give him one. The only problem is Jameson knows that Peter is actually Spider-man. So begins one of the best Ultimate comics I have ever read.

This, this issue is what the ultimate universe is/was supposed to be all about. Rebooting familiar characters, freeing them from the shackles of continuity and adding depth to characters who are too often dismissed as two dimensional stereotypes.

Long dismissed as a running gag in the Marvel 616 Jameson was reduced to being an over animated punchline, who’s only real value was to provide comic relief whenever Spider-man acted out. But in this issue Bendis has completed the rehabilitation of the character in a poignant way without ever betraying his core beliefs. Although Jameson feels compelled to help because of the heroism he witnessed during Ultimatum and being saved by Peter from the Chameleon twins, he still has lingering doubts from his time as the leader of the anti Spider-man lobby.

What follows is a traditional Bendisesque heavy dialogue piece that instantly managed to portray an unsympathetic character in a completely different light. Suddenly Jameson wasn’t a joke, he was a fully realized character whose motivations and behaviour made a lot of sense. He wasn’t a foil to be laughed at, he was a fully realized person.

I know the great Ultimate experiment seems to slowly coming to an end. Long past its heyday Ultimate Spider-man is the only title to exhibit any real staying power. And its issues like this that demonstrate just why that is. After 155 issues Ultimate Spider-man is far from stale, its a comic book clinic that shows off how the tights and fights genre can transcend its more self destructive aspects and still be entertaining and engaging.

Batman and Robin #21
Writer: Peter J. Tomasi
Penciller: Patrick Gleason

Someone is killing the relatives of Arkham Asylum inmates. Dubbed the White Knight this misguided soul is drugging his victims and dressing them up as angels in the misguided hope that in death he can absolve them of their dark familial connections.

Tomasi has absolutely nailed the affectionate, biting humour of this Batman and Robin. Although very much a second tier Bat-book, freed, for now, from the overarching meta-continuity imposed by DC uber-writer Grant Morrison this is Batman (and Robin) done right. The book strips the B&R mythology down to its roots, solving crimes, kicking ass, hanging out with Alfred and friendly verbal sparring. It’s everything you want in a Batman, minus the constant whinging emo-angst of losing ones parents.

Walking Dead #82
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Penciller: Charlie Adlard

Rick’s band of merry men is in danger of being overrun by a herd of zombies who are pouring through a gap in the compound wall. Fighting a running battle, the group retreats into the deserted houses, powerless to stop the horde.

As much as I love this series, the formulaic nature of its ups and downs is starting to become increasingly unsatisfying. It’s like having the same great meal every day, eventually endless repetition will turn the juiciest steak into sawdust.

The problem is that the central narrative of THE WALKING DEAD has never achieved a stable status quo. Which is good, because a comic book that’s only fighting to maintain the status quo is one that’s apeing the worst qualities of the mainstream superhero set. On the other hand, this series has fallen into a predictable story arc whose tropes are becoming increasingly well worn.

Find shelter. Introduce new characters. Conflict. Zombies. Group splits up. And repeat.

In a world where the writer is trying to create a realistic vision of the zombie apocalypse, WD is increasingly bumping up against the restrictions of its medium. Every time the protagonists achieve some measure of safety Kirkman knocks over the table and starts the whole cycle over again. It’s a problem with any series that’s been around for as long as this one has. It becomes harder to keep things fresh as continuity starts to pile up on you.

Wonder Woman #608
Writer: Phil Hester
Penciller: Geraldo Borges

The Amazonian remnants continue to fight off the bloodthirsty minions of The Morrigan. Diana’s cohorts are slowly being picked off and the Amazon Princess is forced to fight for her life against dark incarnations of her former sisters.

The more I read this the more I like where this is going. This reboot-Diana embodies the best of the Wonder Woman mythology with the added bonus of getting to redefine the essentials of what the character is about. My only complaint is how this storyline comes complete with a magical get out of jail card. Hester is telegraphing a return to ‘normal’ so much that I’m hoping this whole thing is giant red herring and DC will show the cojones to see this reboot go a little longer. After all, if they can play around Batman, the company’s number one money maker, then surely they can take a flyer on Wondie. Are there really a horde of fans clamouring for the old Wonder Woman? Do they just fear change that much or can they only enjoy their superheroines when they’re scantily clad?

(As a completely selfish aside, I wish Hester was drawing this title instead of just writing it. After all, if Finch can write and draw his own Batman title then surely there’s room to let a fantastic artist like Hester have complete control of the book.)

Comic book reviews for the week of January 12th in six sentences (or less)

SUPERMAN #707
Writer: Chris Roberson (by way of J. Michael Straczynski)
Penciller: Allan Goldman

The problem with Superman is that he’s just too powerful. This is hardly a shocking revelation. Superman has two basic methods for getting out of a scrape. Punching something really hard, or using another of his many powers in a unique and inventive way, usually to help him circumvent some elaborate deathtrap. In far too many aspects the Superman of today is the Superman of 10, 20 or 30 years ago. His supporting characters are mostly the same, his powerset is the same. His origin? The same. I think out of all the big name comic book characters being published today his is a story whose basic elements have hardly changed at all. Which means, after nearly 80 years, his adventures carry a certain repetitiveness and staleness to them.

Compare Superman to someone like Batman who has seen so many incarnations he never seems to grow old. Over the years we’ve seen Batman portrayed as a light hearted crimefighter, a dark and brooding vigilante, a crack detective, a billionaire playboy and a focused martial artist. And nearly every re-interpretation of the Batman mythology manages to work for its time.

And that’s the key phrase there, ‘for its time.’ In comic books it seems that a constant cycle of renewal and rebirth is necessary in order to reframe characters within the context of the present day. How else could you explain the resurgence of Hal Jordan and Barry Allen within the DCU? (Ok the short answer is there Geoff Johns, but a longer explanation would show that these characters have newfound relevance because, although their core traits remain the same, the world they function in has been reshaped to provide the perfect dramatic counterpoint to their personalities and abilities.)Their characters and lives are no longer frozen in amber, in a era that most contemporary comic book readers never even lived through.

Superman gets no such character revamp. Oh, occasionally he’ll turn blue, grow his hair long or even work at a television station. But even his death in the 90s didn’t significantly alter the world he was living in. After he was done fighting crime for the day he still went home to Kansas to stop in on Ma before meeting up with Lois and filing tomorrow’s headline for Perry. No major overhaul of Superman’s existence has ever stuck. Which is why we constantly feel like we’ve seen it all before.

It’s a shame that DC is so frightened of destroying the bankability of their most recognizable character that they will allow him to atrophy and wither away into irrelevance, rather than take a chance at re-examining his makeup.

Now you could make the argument that a great storyteller will always find new and interesting stories. But the problem is, after 80 years, new and interesting stories are a lot harder to come by. And in the meantime, hundreds of other writers, some of lesser ability, have played in the Superman sandbox and had their own uninspired crack at new and interesting.

In fact, Superman’s world actively resists reinvention. Readers have become so ingrained to seeing Superman look and behave a certain way that we get uncomfortable seeing him step outside of his little prefabricated box. We’re like the old time convicts in THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, too acclimatized to the way of doing things to ever really feel comfortable out in the real world. Oh sure, we can read and love our ALL-STAR SUPERMAN and our Elseworlds stories, but those are temporary and impermanent, a refreshing look at what could be and never a serious threat to the Super status quo.

Which is why the ‘Grounded’ storyline currently running in the Superman titles is so grating. Instead of seeing Superman going around being, well super, we’re treated to the incredibly ho-hum sight of seeing him try to reconnect with humanity. And that’s not his job. That’s Clark Kent’s job. The whole reason Superman persists in keeping up a secret identity is so that he can walk amongst the rest of us without being recognized for who he really is.

Its completely disingenuous for Superman to be hanging around in his cape and tights pretending to be one of the guys. Its a bit like going drinking with your boss. He might be funny and great to hang around with, but you never really forget he’s your boss. So you drink and laugh at his jokes and you have a good time, but you secretly wish he’d move along so you can just relax and be yourself. Having Superman just walking around as Superman is exactly like that. It’s almost as if he wants to be recognized for his ‘sacrifice’ of being regular. But no one’s buying it. We all know what regular people look like, because that’s who we are. We look to Superman for greatness, to be more than regular - because that’s who we want to be.

‘Grounded’ can’t end too soon.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #19
Writer: Paul Cornell
Penciller: Scott McDaniel

The first of two offerings from Paul Cornell this week. Batman and Robin conclude their struggle against the new Bat-villian, The Absence. It’s always a treat to see Scott McDaniel working on a Batman related title. And although sometimes his pencils can seem a bit rushed I find that most times their energy and dynamism really adds another level to whatever project he’s working on.

And another solid effort from Paul Cornell as well, who’s been playing a bit of a shell game with both Batman and Robin as well as the reader, seemingly telling the story of the Absence’s obsession with getting revenge on Bruce Wayne. In reality, the Absence has much more easily obtained goals in mind and delaying Batman and Robin will only help to further her cause.

Can I just say how nice it is to see an honest to goodness olde tyme death trap in comic books again? Without making it seem hackneyed or clichéd Cornell creates a tight scene between our heroes and the villainess, which reveals a heck of a lot of characterization by all the players involved while still moving the plot forward. Loved it. What a great way to play with the tropes of the genre without falling victim to their weaknesses.

GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD WARRIORS #6
Writer: Peter J. Tomasi
Penciller: Fernando Pasarin

Have you heard the news that DC is developing an ongoing RED LANTERN series? Apparently three ongoing GL titles aren’t enough to satiate the hunger of the hundreds of slavering Green Lantern fans. Out of all the possible series to emerge from the newly minted post-Blackest Night Rainbow Warriors a Red Lantern series comes at the absolutely end of my list. A corps built around rage, violence and a tendency to vomit up blood? It sounds like a rejected high concept 90s Image title. I’d much rather see a Larfleeze or even a Sinestro ongoing before I skim over the adventures of Mr. Ouchies and the gang.

Abandoned by Kilowog and Arisia for keeping them in the dark about the true nature of his mission in the Unknown Sector Guy Gardner is forced to take Bleez with him to confront the unknown force that is slowly draining the power from the Green Lantern rings. If you’ve read the first five titles of this series you know exactly what you’re getting into here. Dynamic penciling, snappy writing and a ripping good tale. Of all the GL stories currently being told, Warrior easily stands out from the rest of the pack.

KNIGHT AND SQUIRE #4
Writer: Paul Cornell

Ever heard an embittered comic book blogger to tell you to vote with your dollars? Or that bad comic books continue to be made because fans who don’t any better continue to throw good money after bad when it comes to questionable titles? Well, with KNIGHT AND SQUIRE I’m happy to be proven wrong. Initially I found the title uninteresting and its very Britishness detrimental to my enjoyment of the read. However, after time, its grown on me like a fungus and all the things that used to detract from its readability have now become its greatest strengths. I’m so glad that I stuck with this title as Paul Cornell has really managed to define the essence of this British Batman and Robin and define them in their own right, rather than portray them as cheap knockoffs of DCs biggest money maker.

In this issue Knight’s mechanized costume becomes possessed by a corrupt memory engram of Knight, causing the suit to believe that he is the real deal. Only the memory engram seems to be masochistically focused on reliving Knight’s greatest failures and mistakes. Cornell does a great job presenting us with a different take on what makes a superhero. So many heroes seem to be defined by the need to fight crime because of some injustice in their past. While the Knight is a legacy character who manages to overcome his own doubt and failures and be a hero in spite of his fears. Rather than giving into an emo, woe is me take on the character Cornell presents him almost as a recovering alcoholic (which in a way he is), cheerfully optimistic and determined to take each challenge one day at a time. A great read.

Comic book reviews for the week of December 15th in six sentences (or less)

Best of the Week

Green Lantern #60

In contrast to last issue’s talky-talky vibe writer Geoff Johns has come back with a heavy fighty-fighty one. The mysterious bandaged figure, who’s been kidnapping the various colour spectrum entities, turns out to be Krona. And, as near as I can remember, the last time we saw Krona was in the pages of TRINITY where he was forced back into the Cosmic Egg from JLA\Avengers. There’s no explanation offered for his return, or why he‘s interested in the spectrum entities. So expect a Johns-style continuity patch in the next issue or so.

GREEN LANTERN often straddles the line between ludicrous and awesomeness, but the more I read it the more I’m convinced I’m privy to an institutionally sanctioned fan-fic adventure. It always seems like Johns is trying to create fantasy versions of established characters. “What if Batman was in the Sinestro Corp?” or “What if the Flash was taken over by Parallax?” If I’m being pessimistic I’d say its a cheap way to create new action figures based on a couple panels of story.

With Johns and artist Doug Mahnke continuing to rock out this title every month, GREEN LANTERN is easily one of the most consistent titles put out by DC. With a GL movie hitting the screens in 2011, anyone with a casual interest in the franchise should be looking to pick up this title to get a feel for the character and his extended universe.

Batman and Robin #18

Featuring the origins of Batman’s (and Bruce Wayne’s) newest enemy, The Absence. This issue is mostly explanatory back story. The Absence is born when rich socialite Una Nemo is shot in the head and dumped into the Gotham River. Through a combination of river pollution (really, are we still using pollution as a viable method of creating villains?) and Dandy Walker Syndrome, which are fluid filled spaces in the human brain, Nemo survives her experience to become The Absence. Scarred and traumatized as a result of her near death experience Nemo develops an obsession with capturing the attention of Bruce Wayne with whom she had a brief romantic fling before she was shot.

Paul Cornell serves up a perfectly serviceable, if a bit slow, origin story. And if wasn’t for the fact that DC put two artists on this thing in order to push this issue out in time I think we’d be looking at a better than average Bat-issue. But, in reality, the whole thing feels a bit rushed and I’ve come to expect something more than ‘perfectly serviceable’ from the writer of ACTION COMICS and KNIGHT AND SQUIRE. Better luck next time.

Brightest Day #16

Hey, it’s the untold origin of Aqualad y’all. Turns out he’s the son of Black Manta and an Atlantean prisoner from the inaccessible undersea prison colony of Xebel. (Don’t you just love comics?) Ivan Reis draws pretty pictures and writers Geoff Johns and Peter J. Tomasi do a good job in creating an intriguing backstory for Aqualad. Interspersed throughout are brief snippets of the Firestorm plot, which is a shame because the Firestorm story is the weakest ongoing in BRIGHTEST DAY. Barring that unfortunate misstep this series is a great example of what bi-weekly storytelling can do when you put top drawer talent behind the wheel.

Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #5

Guy Gardner and co. continue their exploration of the unknown sector when they’re waylaid by a squadron of rogue green lanterns who seem to think our heroes are Sinestro Corps soldiers. Of course that means we’re about to be treated to some lantern on lantern violence and writer Peter J. Tomasi succeeds in delivering the goods. Artist Fernando Pasarin continues to rock this title as well displaying an incredible range of action. From shoot em up battle segments to lower key emotional interactions Pasarin manages to capture the nuances of each scene perfectly.

A couple points to quibble with. Looks like there’s some broken telephone at play amongst the GL titles. First of all, over in GREEN LANTERN #60, we’re told that its been six weeks since the events of BLACKEST NIGHT, but EMERALD WARRIORS states that the events within its pages are taking place almost twice that amount of time later. Furthermore, in GL #60, Sinestro goes running when he’s told that his daughter’s life is in danger. This is a direct contradiction to what’s happening in GREEN LANTERN CORPS where Kyle Rayner pleaded unsuccessfully with Sinestro for help using the exact same argument.

When you try to run three separate titles in the same shared story space these kinds of things are going to happen. It’s minor irritant but it says something to the level of quality of the story telling when I’m reduced to complaining about these kind of minutiae.

Superman #706

So, with the departure of uber-writer it JMS it turns out that last month’s fill-in issue wasn’t really a fill in after all, but a declaration of the new status quo. Picking up the reins of the title are writer G.Willow Wilson and artist Amilcar Pinna. Sadly, the results are fairly uninspiring. This issue takes us away from the Grounded storyline to check in with Perry White and the staff of the Daily Planet. Apparently without Superman stories to print the planet has fallen on hard times and has come under attack from a local journo-blog. This issue grates on my nerves. A financially strapped Daily Planet is clichéd Superman plot line #42. I can’t begin to count the number of times this hackneyed story has been trotted out.

I’m convinced that Willow hasn’t actually checked in with a major print publication in the last ten years. He tries to portray the Planet like an out of touch dinosaur, unable to keep up with the changes in technology. Perry White doesn’t know what a blog is, he doesn’t know how it works and he sure as hell doesn’t want one near his newspaper. In reality, newspapers today have been forced to embrace new media a long time ago, employing bloggers and a vibrant web presence in order to retain readers. When a writer clearly doesn’t understand what it is he’s talking about it destroys any interest I have in the story, especially when he uses it as central plank of the whole story.

Oh, and one more thing. Perry White doesn’t smoke. He developed cancer a few years ago, almost died and he f@cking gave up cigars as a result. Do me a favour and stop trying to put a cigar back in his mouth, because when you do that what you’re telling me is that cancer scare was pointless.

Comic book reviews for the week of November 24th in six sentences (or less)

Best of the Week

Walking Dead #79
Maybe this is the Best of the Week because I’m still riding the high I get from watching this series come to life on my television. Whatever the reason, it was the first thing I popped open when I got back from Ye Olde LCS and I don’t regret it for a second. In this issue the community is still putting trying to put their lives back together after a pathetically failed invasion attempt by another group of survivors. The gunplay from the run-in has attracted a herd of zombies who, unbeknownst to the group, are slowly converging on the neighbourhood. Robert Kirkman mixes up the normally mono-track story telling with a little split screen parallel plotting. It’s a nice change of pace and not normally something we see in this book. Charlie Adlard continues to kill when it comes to pencils. And that’s all she wrote.

Action Comics #895
The first of two entries for writer Paul Cornell this week. Vandal Savage has built an entire city overtop of two Black Lantern energy remnants from THE BLACKEST NIGHT in order to protect them from Lex Luthor. Of course, being Vandal Savage, he has the opportunity to do this hundreds of years before Lex is born and before he knows who he even is. This title continues to be an interesting character examination of one of DC’s premiere super-villains. The character is Lex hardly two dimensional, but after decades of stories on the man I thought there were very few takes on him that hadn’t been previously explored. I’m really enjoying Cornell’s exploration of Lex. He’s muted some of Lex’s cartoony, traditional Super-foil aspects and instead given depth and nuance to a character who is usually immune to both.

Batman and Robin #17
Say what you will about Scott McDaniel, but the guy manages to draw a dynamic, energetic story on a deadline and he makes it look good. I’m convinced that McDaniel doesn’t get the respect he deserves and too often he seems to be the go-to fill artist whenever DC needs to turn something around quickly. Paul Cornell takes the opportunity to do a little world building in the lives of Dick-bats and Robin, putting them on their first proper case unrelated to the events of RIP, FINAL CRISIS and THE RETURN OF BRUCE WAYNE. In this story Dick and Damien are tasked with solving the murder of a casual ex-girlfriend of Bruce. While tracking the killer, why seems to suffer from a very Batman villain like compulsion to leave revealing clues, they stumble across a wedding gone horribly awry. It’s a fun, light read and a good counterpoint to the perpetual Bats-event comic we’ve all been reading for the past 5 years.

Batman: Odyssey #5
Another inscrutable Neal Adams Batman story. At the behest of Deadman Batman begins to investigate sinister goings on at Arkham Asylum. And that’s the best that I can do at crafting a one sentence summary for this title.

I’m still not convinced that there weren’t pages missing from this comic. Seriously, a reader shouldn’t have to work this hard to follow the basic narrative of this story. I had to reread several section of this issue and I’m not 100% sure I know what going on. The storytelling is sloppy and unfocused. And the art, while pretty, sometimes fails to illustrate crucial aspects of what’s happening in a scene. There was one section involving a conversation between Batman and a Deadman-possessed Joker that still has me scratching my head. When your artist and your writer are the same person there’s no excuse for crafting a tale this impenetrable.

Green Arrow #6
There’s something happening in this title that I can’t recall ever happening in a modern Green Arrow story, world building. I’m not just talking about creating new characters and fleshing out someone’s stable of villains. I’m talking about simple things, like creating easily defined visual geographic landmarks, like the unoriginally named Sherwood Forest or the iconic Queen Industries office tower (which is treated by the inhabitants of Star City like its been around YEARS, but I’ve sure as shit never seen it before). Even something simple like giving a GA a typical superhero symbol, a stylized ‘G’ belt buckle in the shape of an arrowhead. It’s all superhero world building 101 and some of DC’s most prominent characters have used it to great effect, sporting landscapes that are nearly as recognizable as they are. More importantly, GA has never, if ever, had these tools in his arsenal. Green is not a trademark, it’s a colour scheme and while it may help to inform his identity visually it lacks the simplistic touchstones we as audience need when identifying the good guys.

They only problem is that seminal characters like Superman and Batman have had years to build up these trademarks. Green Arrow titles seem to get re-booted on a semi-annual basis and each new direction is perpendicular to the one that preceded it.

Ultimate Spider-man #150
With this issue Spider-man goes back to his new/old title and numbering. It’s a fairly standard anniversary style issue, complete with the requisite new direction for the character that is often touted during these kinds of milestones. Various characters ruminate on their first meeting with Spider-man and reflect on his nature and character. Peter reflects on the true nature of what it means to be a hero. It’s all pretty standard stuff, but it’s well done so I’m not going to complain. It was nice to see a couple pages from Mark Bagley in this issue, especially considering I thought he was still exclusive to DC. For the longest time Bags take on Ultimate Spidey was so synonymous with the character it was hard to imagine anyone else drawing him and I thought it was really classy of DC to let him do these pages. (If in fact he’s still exclusive)

I’m also not going to get into the changes the Ultimate Universe has been through lately. I’ve seen that analysed in greater depth and with more intelligence then I can offer. Bottom line, in recent years the bloom has definitely come off the rose. The Ultimate line used to be synonymous with fresh takes on classic Marvel characters, unencumbered by the stifling shackles of continuity. Only after ten years it’s inevitable that the Ultimate Universe’s own continuity and publishing mis-steps have robbed the imprint of a lot of its vitality. Only Spider-man seems to have bucked this trend. Given the drop off in numbers for the Ultimate titles I have to wonder how long Marvel will choose to keep this imprint going. I think, if anything, the Ultimate Universe was a victim of its own success, with its greatest ideas and triumphs co-opted by the regular Marvel 616. Either way, whatever its fate, it was an interesting undertaking and one that I think helped revitalize the Marvel U.

Comic book reviews for the week of November 3rd in six sentences (or less)

Presenting Greater Toronto’s most unbalanced comic reviews. Absurdly light haul today which means I should be done this review in time to catch MODERN FAMILY (fingers crossed).

BEST OF THE WEEK

Batman and Robin #16

Bruce is back baby. Even though he has yet to technically return, due to the delayed shipping of RETURN OF BRUCE WAYNE #6, this issue marks the official appearance of Bruce back in the 21st century. And, of course, the first thing he does is start putting his house in order again, mostly by driving his first through other people’s soft palettes. Look, if you’re coming late to the whole Grant Morrison meta-epic, do yourself a favour and catch up on annotations from previous issues. It is the only way that you’ll have even the foggiest idea of what is going on. Honestly, this is not the kind of series that you pick up halfway through. Yer either a reader right from the start, or you're not reading it at all.

This is a fun issue, which is suprising given some of the subject matter, and I’m happy to see Morrison working with some of his strongest creative partners, including Cameron Stewart and Frazer Irving. Although, seeing a Frank Quitely cover on the front of this title every month just makes me wish he was doing the interiors as well. Anyway, it looks like Morrison is stealing a page from his stint on NEW X-MEN and taking the Batman franchise public. I’m looking forward to the new direction.

Brightest Day #13

Featuring the adventures of Hawkman and Hawkwoman...in SPAAAAAAACE! You know, its kind of disappointing how quickly Carter was able to forget about Kendra after she was killed during BLACKEST NIGHT and replaced with the classic Hawkwoman, Shiera. I guess the lesson here is that Hawkman will always love his Hawk-partner as long as he doesn’t have to work very hard to win her affection. Or maybe the lesson is the Geoff Johns will continue to tinker with these characters and their origin story until he has it just right. Anyway, in this issue Hawkman fights the Manhawks of Hawkworld (say that ten times fast) in order to get save Hawkgirl. There’s also a little bit of pointless exposition thrown in to break up the fight scenes and some obligatory pontificating by the resident baddie.

BRIGHTEST DAY, still not COUNTDOWN and that’s all we care about.

Invincible #75

Invincible and the Coalition of Planets task force take the battle to the Viltrumite’s home planet in the final apocalyptic battle of the Viltrumite War. Once upon a time INVINCIBLE was a fun and cheerful four colour comic that occasionally strayed into gory depictions of how a real superhero battle might go down. As a reader, the rarity of the violence only helped to increase its effectiveness. Nowadays it feels like the title border on torture porn with the creative ways Ryan Ottley disembowels, dismembers and otherwise rends characters limb from limb. Speaking of Ottley, he is the number one reason why you should pick up the title this week. The man has been unleashed on the pages within, turning out breathtaking (and horrific) splash pages that are inspiring in their scope and detail. The cover price was unnecessarily steep and I could have easily done without someone of the backup material if it meant dropping the cost a little. But otherwise, a fitting milestone for a title that continues to entertain.

Comic book reviews for the week of October 20th in six sentences (or less)

Apparently its Love your artists week here at Iceberg Ink. Because, with one notable exception, I’ve been raving enthusiastically about every artist to put pencil to paper this week. They’re just that friggin’ good.

Best of the Week

Walking Dead #78

You know what makes this series so great? The fact that its an ongoing tale of the zombie apocalypse and the zombies are probably the least interesting thing about the story. Seriously, the characters, the pacing, the dialogue all mesh seamlessly with the art to create a near flawless experience. The story is fresh, interesting and month in and month out it’s always at the top of my pull list. In this issue a shootout at the compound draws the attention of a herd of nearby zombies, neatly setting up a story arc that writer Robert Kirkman has been building too since Rick and the gang escaped from the prison complex. If you haven’t seen it already, be sure to check out the premiere of the WALKING DEAD television series next Sunday. My only complaint is that I’ve read the comic so many times that there won’t be (m)any surprises for me. But I’m looking forward to seeing what Frank Darabont does with the source material.

Batman and Robin #15

Sniff. Grant Morrison’s ultimate Batman story is almost over. If you haven’t picked up a Morrison bat-title in the last few years, well, you’d better save yourself some time and skip to the next review; because there’s nothing for you here. Dick gets shot in the back of the head, Damien teams up with the Joker, an ancient Wayne ancestor is masquerading as Bruce Wayne’s deceased father and BW himself shows back up again after traveling thousands of years through time. Throw in some beautiful looking Frazer Irving art and you’ve got a damn good reason to read comic books.

Brightest Day #12

A Martian Manhunter-centric issue with just a dash of Firestorm thrown in for seasoning. J’onn J’onzz is one of those character who I don’t know all that well. I know his basic backstory and I’m familiar with his personality traits from his time on the JLA. But for a guy who’s managed to float his own ongoing series on a couple of occasions I know hardly anything about his past. Which is why an issue like this is a helpful info dump and provides some useful character context. Apparently D’Kay, our mystery Green Martian (yes, another one,) is an unscrupulous scientist who undertook immoral experiments on her own people and then tried to purge any who’s thoughts couldn’t be read by telepathy. It’s a good, solid issue with some gorgeous art by Patrick Gleason. Bonus points though to any reader with the eagle eyes who can spot the art slip up on page 7.

DC Universe: Legacies

It’s like reading a Wikipedia entry on comic book plots you already know. Years worth of stories condensed into 22 pages, only with really pretty pictures. Kudos to Len Wein for trying to keep it interesting by framing the whole thing through the eyes of an ordinary man. But that’s a trope that’s been overused in comics for years. Unfortunately the story doesn’t really add anything new to the DCU, then again, it was never meant to. The backup story, featuring the umpteenth retelling of Clark’s first visit by the Legion, is good for a chuckle though.

Green Lantern Corps #53

Chapter One of the new story arc, The Weaponer. One of Sinestro’s former Qwardian allies comes to Korugar, which looks suspiciously like Earth, in search of the former Green Lantern’s daughter. The Weaponer plans to take his revenge through Sora for some crime that never seems to be explained. Unable to find her, he decides to throw down with Kyle Raynerin an obligatory fight scene. This was a fair issue although it certainly had its low points. The artist, Tyler Kirkham, chose to portray the clothing and architecture of an alien world an awful lot like Earth, right down to the baseball caps and hoodies. Kyle spends a lot of time boasting about his credentials as a galactic warrior and then gets taken out in six pages. For a man who’s defeated every A-list baddie in the DCU he goes down quickly and quietly. If you’re a rabid fan of the Green Lantern world, this issue will hardly turn you off. For a fan just passing through it’s a bit like listening to the elevator music version of one of your favourite tunes.

Hellblazer #272

Britain’s favourite street magician is going through some hard times. John Constantine is one of the few character’s in comic books who actually ages with the years. Lately he’s gone mad, hacked off a thumb, nearly sliced off his arm, lost one girlfriend (dead), lost a second girlfriend (abandoned in the past) and now’s he the target of some very bad people who reside in a very tropical hot spot. It all sort of feels like it’s building to something doesn’t it? After 272 issues Constantine’s life has gone through some drastic changes, but in the end he’s still the same cynical (and lonely) mage he’s always been. Thank god Brian Buccellato is around make even a grizzled old fart like Constantine seem rugged and fabulous.

Justice League of America #50

I love Mark Bagley. Getting to watch him draw the hell out of the JLA-lite for 50 pages is a treat for me. This issue is all big dust up. The Crime Syndicate of Amerika is trying to take over the world and the JLA is naturally duty bound to stop them; with their fists. There’s a sub plot here with Dr. Impossible and some dark version of the New Gods that I know nothing about. Presumably it came during the time I temporarily abandoned the title.

Ultimate Comics: New Ultimates #4

For a line that was supposed to eschew restrictive continuity, line wide reboots and unnecessary character revisions the Ultimate Universe has proven its not immune to these overused plot devices after all. In this issue Jeph Loeb continues to tinker with the Ulti Uni by reimagining Ultimate Thor more along the lines of his 616 version. Gone is the peace loving hippie and in his place is the rage filled warrior. Perhaps there will be an interesting and compelling reason for the change. More likely, brawny Nordic warriors with squinity-yelly faces and a propensity to start brawls are considered to be more interesting than one who chooses to use his powers for unconventional means. I suggest reading this comic just because you like to watch Frank Cho draw the hell out of things. I mean, that’s a pretty good reason right there, isn’t it?