Shotgun Reviews - Week of 9/25/13

Here are my gut reactions to this week's stack of comics:

Metallo #1 - The action scenes have really nice wide shots but more close-ups would have nice so we could get a better sense of each character's emotions.
Parasite #1 - Some fun moments here but I wanted to see him stretch his bad guy legs more.
Doomsday #1 - I am a fan of this creative team but this issue makes absolutely no sense. It is supposed to be about Doomsday but WHERE IS DOOMSDAY?
Man-Bat #1 - Scot Eaton's art is gorgeous and Frank Tieri's story is so strong it makes you wish there was a second issue.
Bane #1 - Solid story but the art feels kind of weird. The backgrounds are very simple and the foreground seem too busy.
Killer Croc #1 - Tim Seeley does a great job balancing the narrative between the origin story and the Arkham War story.
Joker's Daughter #1 - This was an interesting concept but the execution here is mediocre.
Secret Society #1 - Another solid story but Szymon Kudranski's inking is a little too heavy to understand what is going on.
Black Adam #1 - There is some great world building and it is awesome to see this character (one of my favorites) step up and kick ass again.
First Born #1 - This has to be one of the strongest origin stories in Villain's Month with a fun framing device and a unique narration style.
Ocean Master #1 - I loved the non-verbal ways Ocean Master's character development is shown.
Sinestro #1 - The Art is beautiful but the story is very wordy and this is ultimately just a rehash of everything we already know about this character.
The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror #19 - The first half of this short anthology was cute but the story by Len Wein and Dan Brereton was both funny and really creepy at the same time.
Rat Queens #1 - This is a blend of raunchy humor and classic fantasy but it is really refreshing that this is just about four girlfriends hanging out with each other.
Sex Criminals #1 - Strange concept... Really different idea... Brilliant execution.

Nostalgia - "I Have the POOOWWERRRRRR!"

Way back in the day when I was knee-high to a motorcycle I lived across the street from Palmer Video. Every week I found myself in there renting and re-renting VHS classics like Adventures of Captain Marvel, Super Powers, and of course He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Palmer Video had a handful of episodes from the '80s cartoon and the characters looked nothing like the action figures I was getting from KB Toys in the Staten Island Mall (I found out later the toys were from the early '90s reboot).

Recently I was fumbling around on Netflix and found the old show and the crossover special He-Man and She-Ra: Secret of the Sword. I remember renting this about twenty years ago and realized that this was probably one of the first times I was introduced to the idea of expanded continuity. He-Man travels to a parallel universe and discovers he has a sister who also has powers. This was also cool because even though this is a kid show, it is played straight. There is not much tongue-and-cheek humor and the characters never talk down to the audience.

Even now, watching Prince Adam transform into He-Man gives me goosebumps. The music really swells up and something about it just feels awe-inspiring. It is kind of funny how they used the exact same sequence each and every time he transformed. Plus, it is weird to think that Prince Adam was worried about keeping a secret identity even though his face and body looked exactly the same. Somehow changing your clothes in Eternia completely throws off everyone. Go figure. Either way this cartoon played a huge part in my childhood and it was fun to look back at it now and see that it still held up pretty well.

Shotgun Reviews - 9/18/13

Here are some more gut reactions to the to the books I picked up this week. We are in the third week of Villains Month and Image threw out an incredible new #1. Check it out:

Lex Luthor #1 - This is a strong Forever Evil tie-in but it feels very one note emotionally.
H'el #1 - Dan Jurgens does a strong job on art but it is hard to see it because of the way Scott Lobdell massively overwrites this story.
Scarecrow #1 - You get loads of exposition for the upcoming Arkham Wars but not much else.
Penguin #1 - Here we get some good old-fashioned fun (If you think of murder and blackmail as old-fashioned).
Ra's al Ghul and the League of Assassins #1 - Like the Lex Luthor book this has a good story lack a strong emotional hook.
Clayface #1 - A clever and funny look at Forever Evil from a low-level supervillains point of view.
Dial E #1 - I have no idea what's going on here but the art is amazing.
Shadow Thief #1 - This reminds of the best issues of Stormwatch at the beginning of the New 52.
Cheetah #1 - We get the best of both worlds here. This is cool origin story and provides an intense new direction for this character to go in.
The Rogues #1 - For fun characters in bright colors, these guys do a lot of brooding and sulking.
Black Hand #1 - A really cool and different use of horror elements. This is probably my favorite use of this character since Blackest Night.
Eclipso #1 - If you ignore the idea that UPS randomly delivers rare, mystical gems to your doorstep, you will notice Billy Tan's creepy use of shadow and lighting.
Arcane #1 - This character is just as frightening as he has always been. It is also really cool to see Abigail Arcane in action as the Avatar of the Rot.
Deathstroke #1 - The story here is decent and the art is '90sriffic!
Zero #1 - Michael Walsh's style beautifully compliments this smart covert ops tale. I am definitely picking this up in trade.

Shotgun Reviews - Week of 9/11/13

Here ya go. These are some more reviews from the hip from the second week of DC's Villains Month.

Zod #1 - This was an interesting retelling of the Kryptonian General's origin but I would have liked to know more about Zod's current whereabouts.
Brainiac #1 - This guy is a real bastard. Still, I feel like I have already read this story.
Harley Quinn #1 - Neil Googe has a very fun style that adds a new dimension to Harley's sick an twisted perspective.
Riddler #1 - This is a great character study that is done by showing and not telling.
Court of Owls #1 - Not knowing their real identities makes the Court really creepy.
Mr. Freeze #1 - This is a solid story but artist Jason Masters's body forms look awkward.
Lobo #1 - I wish DC would publish  great space stories like this. It is a nice setup for the character but Lobo just does not look like a badass anymore.
Killer Frost #1 - Definitely the best opening page of the week but ultimately this story is just another rehash.
Solomon Grundy #1 - Writer Matt Kindt does an amazing job getting out of artist Aaron Lopresti's way to show this character's emotional pain.
Black Manta #1 - A bold new direction for this character. I cannot wait to see how his storyline plays out.
Reverse-Flash #1 - The art is inconsistent and the character development is clunky.
Mongul #1 - The time spent on the character's origin could have been scaled back but either way this guy means business.
Trigon #1 - This character's M.O. is very similar to Brainiac and Mongul but Marv Wolfman and Cafu's take feels very unique.

Review - Transmetropolitan: Back on the Street

Last week I found myself at Comic Book Jones hanging around looking for something to read so I picked up the first volume of Transmetropolitan by Warren Ellis and Darick Robertson, and sat down on the reading couch. I have always seen copies of the series around the shop but I have rarely heard people mention it. When I dove into it I was pleasantly surprised.

Transmetropolitan: Back on the Street takes place a few hundred years in the future and tells the story of gonzo journalist Spider Jerusalem, who returns to a non-descript dystopian city after five years seclusion in a mountain cabin.  When we first meet Spider he is the spitting image of Alan Moore, complete with long scraggly hair and a beard that would make Jesus proud.  After he returns to his city apartment and takes one of the most intense showers imaginable, Spider becomes a dead ringer for Grant Morrison with a spider tattoo on his head and distinctive glasses. These glasses are supposed to provide him with constant information and news updates but we do not get to see a visual representation of this. 

The best aspect of Spider Jerusalem is that he is a bastard. Like any great modern anti-hero, he does not care what anyone thinks of him. He is not concerned with ethics or the correct moral course of action. He is a journalist and he reports the truth exactly as he sees it and if anyone does not like it they can screw themselves. Ellis does an exceptional job keeping this character accessible. He may not be a nice person but it is very easy to understand the way he reacts to the world around him.  There is also plenty of humor in the book. My favorite section was in issue five when Spider decides to spend an entire day alone in his apartment watching television and ends up having a mental breakdown. 

Darick Robertson’s art perfectly complements the mood of Ellis’s writing.  The backgrounds and landscapes of The City are oversaturated with advertisements for everything from fast food to sex toys and yet it still keeps the gritty and dangerous feel of 1970s Manhattan. Think the future world of Idiocracy without any charm or sarcasm (for the record this story was first published about a decade before Idiocracy). All in all, the art establishes a very dark comedic feel and leaves the frightening impression that a future such as this is somewhat plausible.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys science fiction, political commentary, and stories about guys you love to hate that are always smarter than everyone else in the room.  There are ten trades in this series and I cannot wait to read more.

Shotgun Reviews for 9/4/2013

Villains Month for DC started last Wednesday. Here is a list of all the issues I read that day plus my gut reaction to the book in one or two sentences. Just for reference I tend to read all of the New 52 plus any

Image or Vertigo #1s. If I like a #1 I will usually pick it up in trade. Alright, here it goes:

Cyborg Superman #1 - You kind of need to be reading Supergirl to understand this issue's plot structure and there could have been a stronger emotional payoff for this character.
Bizarro #1 - Ed want less Bizarro! (If you know Bizarro-Speak, you know what I'm saying)
Poison Ivy #1 - Very cool mix of art styles.
Joker #1 - This is why pet gorillas are a bad idea. Andy Kubert is a solid writer.
Two Face #1 - This is an awesome character study and exactly the kind of story I was hoping to get from Villain's Month.
Ventriloquist #1 - There are many creepy things going on here but I am still confused about whether or not Ferdie is a sentient puppet or if Shauna is controlling him somehow.
Darkseid #1 - The art provides a beautiful aesthetic and this is a moving origin story for the character.
Deadshot #1 - I can't wait to see how the events of this issue play out in Suicide Squad.
Desaad #1 - This character still feels like just another Darkseid minion.
Grodd #1 - This is an even bigger reason why pet gorillas are a bad idea. It's fun to see the culture clash between humans and gorillas.
Count Vertigo #1 - This is a fresh and eerie update of a classic villain.
Relic #1 - If someone sat Relic down and explained that the people he's pissed at have been dead for a few billion years, he would probably calm down. Somehow I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon.
Creeper #1 - The art in here was kind of busy and I found the story very boring.
Forever Evil #1 (of 7) - There is a lot going one here but Geoff Johns does a solid job of keeping everything easy to follow.
And here's an Image book for good measure:
Reality Check #1 - A cute story with a cool reflexive look at the comic book industry. I'm 50/50 on whether or not I will read more.

A Lament: Williams and Blackman Leave Batwoman

The comic book world got some sad news a few days ago when J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman announced that they would no longer be working together on Batwoman after issue #26 in December. This kind of announcement happens all the time in comics and would be easy to swallow if it was not for the fact that the reason Williams and Blackman cited for leaving the book was “editorial decisions.”  Translation: DC approved the story they wanted to tell and then completely changed their minds. You can read their full farewell to fans on Blackman’s website.

This run was special. All great stories, no matter how complex they may seem, can be broken down into one simple idea. Animal Man may be the Avatar of the Red battling threats from the Rot and fighting for animal rights, but when you break it down his story is just about a man struggling to reconcile his family life with his chosen profession. All of the action and conflict derives itself from that concept. Breaking Bad is about a man striving to prove his significance. Macbeth is the ultimate mid-life crisis. The mission statement of Batwoman says “Kate Kane survived a brutal kidnapping by terrorists that left her mother dead and her twin sister lost. Following in her father’s footsteps, she vowed to serve her country and attended West Point until she was expelled under ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’ Now she is many things: estranged daughter, grieving sister, proud lesbian, brave soldier, determined hero. She is Batwoman.”  This idea can be broken down into an even simpler form: A vulnerable woman bounces back to prove her strength.

That’s what Batwoman did: kick ass.  She battled the supernatural, worked with Wonder Woman, took down Killer Croc, and fell in love. The fact that they were lesbians was the least important part of Kate Kane’s relationship with Detective Maggie Sawyer. It was a classic love story and the moment Kate proposed to Maggie was one of the most emotionally gratifying moments of the series. Now we are hearing that the straw that broke the camel’s back for Williams and Blackman was DC Comics decision not to let them write Kate and Maggie’s wedding. 

The coolest part of the series was the artwork of J.H. Williams III. There have been very adequate fill-in artists like Amy Reeder, Trevor McCarthy, and Francesco Francavilla but none of them can lay out a page quite like Williams. His panels almost flow into each other and create a truly unique storytelling experience. He was also constantly changing his art style to fit the mood of each scene.

The sad truth is that while these two men may have poured their hearts and souls into Batwoman, the character did not ultimately “belong” to them. That is the trade-off that comes with creating mainstream comics. Batwoman is just one of many toys in the DC sandbox. Being in a shared universe, the events of one title can have effects and consequences that can be seen across dozens of other titles. Most of the time that idea is really cool, but other times not so much.  You can be sure that DC will put another creative team on Batwoman. In fact, over the next 50 years, plenty of different writers and artists will take on the character and many of them will probably do her justice. All of them will be developing and building off of the incredible foundation that J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman have laid down together. It is just unfortunate that they will not be able to end their run on their own terms. 

Welcome

Hello and welcome to my new blog. I intend on using this page for short (and sometimes long) reviews of random comics, movies, or TV episodes I happen to read or watch, and any other random musings I feel compelled to write about. I will try to write something at least once a week. My first post will be soon and I promise it will be upbeat and positive. In the mean time you can check out my work hosting WCBJ: The Comic Book Jones Podcast.