The Astounding Wolf-Man!

Brendan: Finally, a new chance to watch Robert Kirkman do what he does best: creator owned work. This new book seems to marry the two genres Kirkman does best, horror and superheroes. While his work for Marvel has been a mixed bag, his Invincible and Walking Dead series have stayed true to their initial concepts and are the obvious cornerstones to his career. Launching a new high profile series on Free Comic Book Day is a brilliant gamble, but does put a good deal of pressure on that issue to perform.

I wasn’t wowed. I loved the choice of Jason Howard, with his clean and simple line work, on art. I love the daring of risking the losses one takes on FCBD to kick-start a title. I was pumped for this book, but it didn’t deliver. We meet the family Hampton right after father Gary has been mauled by a “bear.” While this is a great moment to open on, showing exactly what the series will be about, the characters themselves all feel bland and unremarkable. This continues into the hospital scene, (perhaps a wink at the first issue of Walking Dead), and the lunar lunacy begins. The stakes just don’t feel very high, the characters lack charm, flavor, or voice, and the story feels pretty much like any werewolfism story. Howard’s action sequences do have a kinetic energy that gives the book a unique feel, but it needs more. Given Kirkman’s reputation and history of well developed characters, and a small saving grace at the book’s end, I’ll check out issue 2 next month, but I’d better be astounded…

Adan: It is not a secret that I rather dislike Walking Dead and much, much prefer Invincible (as well as Kirkman’s Marvel Team-Up before it was prematurely cancelled), so I know which direction I’d rather this book take, and it seems to be going that way. A superhero werewolf sounds awesome and I know Kirkman can write superheroes. Jason Howard’s art is great and was the one of the few redeeming qualities of The Pact mini. The FCBD premiere was a gamble, but I see it paying off pretty well. The Coach is just mad ’cause Walking Dead sucks and he can’t bear to admit it.

Countdown #51

Brendan: Aww man. DC couldn’t have had any more momentum. They spun the successful Infinite Crisis into the star performer 52, and now had the so called machine in place to make a weekly book run. 52 #52 had a huge reveal, and the multiverse was the jumping on point for the new book. Now there’s a new cast of characters you don’t yet care about, only without the curiosity of a year ago. The many monitors just have yet to interest me, although a possible renegade may change my mind. Every time I see Duela Dent I think of what a wasted character she is, and every time I see the Red Hood I think of how “Hush” should have ended. And I somehow feel they are both shoved down my throat.

We meet the cast in no particular order. In fact, there seems to be no logic at all. Darkseid talks like Darkseid, and apparently has some sort of elaborate plan. None of it does it for me. I like the art of Jesus Saiz, and had hope for Dini after his great Detective Comics and television work, but I really don’t feel any compulsion to follow this story further. It all underscores how difficult 52 really was, and how much talent it took to make it worthwhile. I’m sure it will get more interesting at some point later on, but I feel totally free to let others take the ride and tell me about it. And I’m a DC fan.

I will say this, if an entire hook of your series is that the Big Three will appear in the series, and if they are front and center of the cover, they should at least cameo in the book. In fact, only one character visible on the cover, Red Hood, is even in this comic. This is an old problem, but with a cast this big it seems like an egregious error. This book just lacked a central pathos, and on top of that it wasn’t even an interesting series of events.

Countdown! Where anything can happen! Even the Joker’s Daughter could die!

Adan: Firstly, three chracters visible on the cover are in this comic: Red Hood, Mary Marvel, and Pied Piper. Secondly, this book will be fifty-two issues long, so there is plenty of time for everybody to show up in this book. Thirdly, the “entire hook” of this book is not that the Big Three will appear in it, but that it will be the “spine of the DCU with every major event and nearly every character spinning in and out of the story.” This issue was set up, pure and simple. It wasn’t going to give you everything in the first issue, but it did give you some intro material. And while the Joker’s Daughter was the rumored “big death” even though she was only a C-list character at most, that’s not the important part. The important part was the manner of and the information around her death. In fact, the only thing you should be complaning about is why the Red Hood was talking to cops like they were fucking friends and the Red Hood hadn’t terrorized Gotham and Star City, and hadn’t run drugs and guns all over the Eastern seaboard. That’s what you should be complaining about. Patience, Grasshopper. All will be revealed in time.

Killer #4

Adan: Fuck, this is really, really good, and I wish I hadn’t started on the fourth issue. Who knew the French could make some damn fine comics?

The main character is as hard-boiled as Philip Marlowe and twice as philosophical, but he’s never obnoxious about it. The writer, who’s name is simply Matz, has a very good handle on how to make people care about this amoral tale of an amoral man. He’s a contract killer, but he’s still just this guy with problems and memories and questions, and everybody is that kind of guy. I think it also helped immensely that Matz translated his own work from French to English. The artist Luc Jacamon has this art style that’s kind of a mix between watercolors and traditional pencils, although, now that I think about it, that’s only traditional in the US. I have no fucking idea what’s traditional in France as far as drawing comics goes. Perhaps this is the norm in France and most US artists just suck. Thank you, Rob Leifelds of the American comic book industry, you’ve made me compliment the French.

Regardless, now, I have to go find the first three issues and hope they don’t cost me my first born.

Brendan: This comic is what people should see when they think comics are a limited medium. The singular voice of this book goes so far to stress the sheer paranoia of it all. The complexities of a man who kills for a living raise great questions, like is the Killer the most inhuman being there ever was, or is he imminently human in the most sterile and atrocious environment our world fosters? These are the pseudo-intellectual questions foreign comics will challenge us to ask.

The actions the unnamed killer takes work so well in contrast with his tortured monologue. We hear so little outside of the bubble in his head that we can’t help but feel the paranoia ourselves. The relationships he develops in this issue, and the consequences, perfectly illustrate how detached a murderer could become. Seriously, this is great comics.

I do wonder what takes so damn long, though. This book is a repackaged and translated version of a previously published French book, so why the delayed schedule? No new issue until August? Seriously, that sucks.

Marvel Zombies: Dead Days

Brendan: The most hyped Marvel mini (out of continuity) of all time pays homage to the best selling Marvel comic of all time with a sweet double gatefold wink to Jim Lee’s X-Men #1 cover. It goes uphill from there.

I will be the first to admit, I was loathe to embrace this zombie story. From the cash in feeling after the Ultimate FF storyline, the ludicrous number of printings on each issue, and the subsequent unavailability of the hardcover (Sorry guys! You can’t read the story because Marvel is running the book out of print every two months to put out a new and inferior cover), it just all rubbed me the wrong why. But the zombies, they won’t let me go. I loved the mini-series itself, and I am even begrudgingly loving the Army of Darkness crossover.

This was great. It really delivered. Sean Phillips just gets better and better with each assignment and even page as he hones his distinctive visual voice. The opening scene, which was made public months ago, serves as the perfect lead in to this story about the end of the Marvel Universe. Spider-man, the paradigm for the Marvel hero (and don’t forget it, you Spidey 3 haters!), shows that there is no escape this time, as the ultimate hero munches on the Romita-esque MJ. And that’s just the start.

The success of Kirkman in this, and the previous Zombies mini, isn’t just the fact that he tells a horror story. The reason it rings so true to fans is how convincingly he uses the voices amidst the Merry Marvel Manslaughter. It isn’t just that guys who look like Spider-man and Captain America succumb to this virus, it’s that they sound like them too. It doesn’t hurt that the cataclysm seems to occur at a mythical 90s era in Marvel continuity, with a tiara wearing Luke Cage, Darkhawk, Scarlet Spider, and War Machine, a favorite time for me. Of course, I must ask where is Thunderstrike?! Doesn’t anyone remember Thunderstrike!? Dammit!

Prequels are hard. Everyone knows the ending, but they still raise their expectations. This one delivers with great characterization, natural setup to the later series, and even a nice cyclical reveal on humanity’s last stand. I won’t condone the way Marvel has handled the success of this series, (but the Marvel zombies that buy all things Marvel Zombie is sort of ironic), but I will heartily recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t not like eating dead people or alive ones or what have you.

Adan: What started as a simple twist on a well-known phrase has grown into, seemingly, it’s own corporate empire. Their first appearance in the Ultimate-verse was surprising and unexpectd, their foray into their own mini-series was fun and actually pretty cool, and their Army of Darkness crossover is better than I originally thought, but this one-shot (which seems to actually spin out of the Army of Darkness crossover; a sixth part to this five-part mini, if you will) is probably the best thing so far (although Hudlin’s Black Panther will be visiting the Zombie-verse soon; will they find Ultimate Doctor Doom trapped within?) As the Coach says, everybody acts like they’re supposed to, even after they’ve been infected. The real gem is what the remaining survivors do once they realize most of the world is screwed (although I question their tactics and their aims). Even if you’ve never read a Marvel Zombies anything (but we all know you have), you should really check this out.

Mystery in Space #8

Adan: I was expecting a pretty big bang to end this book, but I got about three instead. Comet and the ELC tussle for control of Hardcore Station as the Werid switches sides more often than Elizabeth Taylor’s husbands. This entire series was a fun read since I enjoy Dcs cosmic characters, but it wasn’t fantastic or anything. There are still some unanswered questions here, but Jim Starlin and Ron Lim gave a pretty good last issue nonetheless. Comet is defintiely a lot more hardcore than those earthbound heroes, I can tell you that for sure.

Brendan: Did you notice my many Scarlet Spider references earlier? That’s right, I was prepping for the all-clone episode of BAAPPAS. Okay, well most of the clones are wiped out pretty quickly in this latest adventure of Capta… no wait, just Comet. But at least he’s a clone!

This wrap up of the space mysteries is a satisfying ending. This series did well to reinvent Comet, a throwaway character, into an intriguing hero. He has a cool costume, cool powers, a cool talking dog, and an attitude! Everything today is 90s fare! The Weird isn’t a character that I was really drawn to, but his story was interwoven with the lead, and it worked. I thought the result of using both Jim Starlin and Ron Lim throughout was a bit distracting, as Starlin’s work was more rounded than the angular look Lim continued from Shane Davis’ tone, and the outcome was uneven. Despite having both had long careers, Starlin’s penciling feels like a throwback where Lim seems to have reinvented himself.

But Starlin’s story holds up, with Comet and the gang feeling like faces we could see again soon. And is that Orion on the last page…?

Nova #2

Brendan: This was a satisfying story. I’ve always enjoyed Richard Rider, I’m pretty sure I was a big fan of his mullet and leather jacket faze. That was a great age of comics. In any case Nova has always been a classic character in Marvel’s Peter Parker mold, with a bonus cool bucket helmet. My interest never sustained, and while I sort of dug the New Warriors, unless there was a Scarlet Spider appearance, I would likely skip it. Recently, I didn’t really pay attention to Annihilation, as it just seemed like too big a story at a time where I already was already invested in too many big stories. I was happy to see a new Nova story, and a great costume, in the aftermath.

It was a remarkably consistent comic. I usually loathe the work of writing teams, as they often don’t read with clarity, but team LAbnetting deliver a solid story of a war hero returning to a world gone mad. This issue, which follows Nova as he becomes reacquainted with the corners of his life, highlights what an interesting place Civil War left the Marvel Universe. Okay sure, maybe the stakes were higher in scale in the galaxy-spawning Annihilation series, but Civil War obviously matters more. The pace worked remarkably, with the Rider parents’ hate is still shocking after all this time. We get the obligatory Tony Stark sequence, (look at the book INITIATE kids!), and the obligatory Justice pow-wow. It’s just a good comic story.

The art team delivers, as well. Of course, the ace of the team is cover artist Adi Granov, who establishes a cutting edge sci-fi feel on first sight. The Iron Man on the cover is a great reminder that he designed the costumes for the upcoming movie! Sean Chen’s pencils sell the story well, particularly on the facial expressions. Scott Hanna’s inks also shine, making this a winner as a whole.

Adan: My, you’re quite verbose today. But let’s get one thing straight: Civil War was a drop in the prverbial bucket compared to the torrential rain that was Annihilation. As Richard Rider himself says: “Galactic culture nearly collapsed. Billions died. The Skrull Empire’s gone. Xandar too, along with huge chunks of the Kree territories. Quasar died in front of my eyes. Even Thanos was killed… I sent a warning to Earth.” Iron Man’s response? “We were a little busy.” Are you fucking joking? This is why the rest of the world hates the US (in Marvel comics anyway; real life has its own sets of problems). The US thinks all its problems are monumentally more important than anything else that is going on in the world, or even the universe. Billions died in an intergalactic war against denizens of the Negative Zone and you didn’t notice because you were too busy imprisoning super heroes in a prison you built in Annihilus’ back yard!? Way to keep your eye on the ball, Tony. What kind of crap Futurist doesn’t take into account external variables?

But leaving all that aside, this is the second time we’ve reviewed Nova in as many months, and that’s because it’s really friggin’ good and everybody should be reading it. Drop all things Wolverine (since both of his series blow anyway) to save some money for DnA’s excellent series (their preferred nomenclature). Nova will soon be going back into space for another Annihilation mini-event, and you’ll be super sorry if you miss these issues and Conquest rocks half as much as the original series did.

Punisher War Journal #7

Adan: Well, this sucked. Ridiculous costume aside (and boy was it ridiculous), the whole thing felt like a somewhat bloody after-school special about immigration and hate groups. I’m sorry Fraction, but you lost me at “35.7 million immigrants in 2004.” It’s not that I don’t care, because I do; it’s that I’m not going to learn about this stuff in the same place that features a character called the Hate-Monger. I’m just not. Call me when you start up the second Casanova album.

Brendan: The thing I love about this iteration of Frank Castle is what I loved most about Ennis and Dillon’s first “Welcome Back, Frank” storyline: the pure hilarity of Punisher’s drive. The fact that he is so fucking nuts and so totally fine with it is the primary reason he’s such an overwhelming presence.

And that is a great thing about this book. Like issue four, where we pay so much attention to the legend of the Punisher that we fail to recognize him for the better part of the issue, or issue five where we become so involved with a bystander of Castle’s crusade, the supporting cast of this book continues to elevate the image of the Punisher. We are constantly reminded what a force of nature this man is. His dialogue even sounds like nature might sound, brutal and self evident. The story’s antagonist, an “All-New, All-Racist Hatemonger,” even looks like a dark reflection of Frank, as if to illustrate how that same heroic drive can be twisted if misled.

As if it were icing on the cake, perhaps in order to justify the cover banner, Frank gets “Initiated.” You’ll have to see it to believe it. Although, I do feel slighted since it reminds me of a joke I made not but moments ago. Fraction. Olivetti. Castle. Crazy rip off Captain America costumes. War Journal Eight. If you skip it, he’ll find you.

Secret History #2

Brendan: Archaia hits another home run with The Secret History. I’ve loathed the work of Igor Kordey before, his X-Men work left me cold, but he really nails this book. The story revolves around four siblings and their powerful and ancient runes, but spans the entire arc of human history. While the art is crisp and conveys the story effectively, the complex plot itself can be a bit hard to follow and takes the reader out of the experience. A lot happens in these pages, and getting lost is an easy way to stop caring. This book will be a great read for each of the ten issues, but once it is finished and collected it will truly stand out as a masterpiece.

Adan: This is a very interesting book. Four siblings who affect the entire history of humanity? I read a lot of myths and legends and try to find the similarities and connections between all of them. Jean-Pierre Pecau seems to be doing the same thing, but he’s intertwining history as well in a fictionalized account. Like I said, it’s a very interesting book, but McGuirk is right: we’re going to have to wait until it’s collected. It’s too much tt remember month to month. If I had the whole thing in front of me, I wouldn’t have to remember what happened last month. It’s a great book, but I’ll be waiting for the trade before I read any more (and if you want to see more great Igor Kordey art, pick up Smoke from IDW).

Extra! Extra!

Brendan: Tales of The Unexpected finishes on a high note. Eric Battle did a great job giving the Spectre-focused miniseries a great horrific tone, but the real gem of this book has been Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang’s Dr. 13 backups. Chiang’s solid line weight and stark posing reminds me of Mike Allred at his best, and Azzarello delivers a story with Animal Man-like tripped out meta adventure. Oh, so THAT is what happens when nerds rule the Earth. Friggin’ awesome.

Adan: I call shenanigans, Brendan! That Spectre was crap and you know it. The only reason to continue reading this mini was for Dr. Thirteen and his crazy band of Silver Age holdouts. I hope they make this into two separate trades so that people don’t have to suffer through that awful, awful Spectre story to get to the nougaty goodness that is Dr. Thirteen. What else was crap this week, the new art style in Betty & Veronica Double Digest. It wasn’t bad art, it just wasn’t Archie art. Archie and his pals have to look a certain way, otherwise they stop Archie and his pals.