2005-02-23
Capsule Comic Reviews - 2/23
By: Harold Bloomfield
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Writer: J. Michael Straczynski | ||
Three issues in and this arc is mired in mediocrity. I’ll give Straczynski points for trying to get away from repeating the same villains over and over and bringing a new nemesis into the mix. He’s done this with limited success in his time on this series but it is an effort that most long time series sorely need. Other than that there is little to recommend here. The flashbacks have been done to death and add no new insight into Charlie Weiderman’s character. Marvel must think that since younger readers are more familiar with a manga influenced art style that the part of the story dealing with teenagers should be done in that fashion, hence Mark Brooks on the flashbacks. Straczynski, however, gives Mike Deodato, Jr. some chores outside of his strengths. Deodato undermines the attempt at humor in the fairy godmother scene as he lacks the lighter touch such a scene requires. There’s also the requisite lets get Mary Jane in her underwear scene that due to its frequency is bordering on exploitive. Straczynski, who began his tenure on this book by reintroducing Spider-Man’s scientific know how, makes Spidey as dumb as dirt by having him confront Weiderman on a busy street. Finally the cliffhanger is notable only because it’s shocking for someone like Straczynski who has tried to infuse so many new elements into this book to rely on such an old and tired chestnut.
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Writer: Judd Winick | ||
I’m not ready to declare the Bat-slump totally over but it’s at least half over. This book and ‘Tec seem in fine hands while “Legends” is in the middle of a muddled arc and I’m not sold with what A.J. Lieberman’s been doing over on “Gotham Knights.” However, Judd Winick has returned this book to the niche it filled in the line, namely a more super hero like portrayal of Batman. The fight with Batman and Nightwing taking on Amazo is a classic illustration of Batman’s techniques and a joy to behold. Doug Mahnke does a great job on the art and seems like a good fit on this book. The focus moves a little too much off of the Red Hood mystery but it’s still a very enjoyable read, much better than Winnick’s previous Scarecrow/Penguin story and well above most of “War Games.”
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Writer: Kurt Busiek | ||
Speaking of slumps, this book has clearly recovered from the two issue downer of “God in a Bowl” to rebound with a rip snorting sword and sorcery yarn placing Conan in the middle of a battle between two sorcerers. Conan has joined Kalanthes, a priest who seems on the side of good, on a sort of “Lord of the Rings” like journey to the one place they can destroy a gem needed by the evil sorcerer, Toth-amon. Last issue one of their men was poisoned with Toth-amon’s black magic by a snake and now poses a threat to their quest. Along the way, in between battles, Kurt Busiek gives Conan a chance to unintentionally wax philosophical with Kalanthes and then Janissa, Kalanthes’ female body guard, in conversations that reveal something about all three of them. Toth-amon strikes at the convoy mainly through his manipulation of insects which presents a problem for Cary Nord and results in the art letting the story down for probably the first time on this series. Hordes of insects are just something that don’t lend themselves to great detail in art and so we get a lot of black cloud like things. This lessens the impact of some of the battle scenes and the climax which requires more than one reading to get the connection between the “shadows” mentioned in the dialogue and what’s happening. Especially with the last two pages I think Busiek inadvertently set Nord up for failure by creating a situation inherently difficult to depict clearly.
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Writer: Mark Waid | ||
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This one issue encapsulates the strengths and weakness of the Waid Wieringo run on this series. The concept is large in scope, imaginative and intertwines with key points in the FF mythos. However, Waid can’t help himself from going for the cheap joke (especially in the opening) and Mike Wieringo’s cartoony art undermines the story. That said Waid rebounds from the clumsy beginning where he makes Galen (Galactus in his pre-origin form) look like a clown to deliver a fine story that echoes the Lee Kirby classic, “This Man This Monster,” one of the greatest FF, and therefore super hero comic stories ever. I’m not saying this comes close to that level but it does pack some unexpected emotional resonance. Still Wieringo was never the artist for this type of book and much of this story needs a gritty and more realistic rendering of New York City and the characters. For good measure Waid has set up a doozy of a situation for this creative team’s finale next issue.
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Writer: Grant Morrison | ||
Hold on to your hats because if this prologue is any indication this project is going to be one wild and bumpy ride. In this one issue Morrison has genres colliding and mixing while he seemingly pays tribute to them and deconstructs them at the same time. The opening is pure Stephen King which soon gives way to something out of “The Twilight Zone” which then leads to an old fashion Fifties type super hero yarn with a thoroughly modern mood and attitude. Morrison succeeds in part because although he’s obviously challenging some basic concepts his affection for the source material shines through. The heart of the story revolves around The Whip, a woman who has donned the crime fighting identity of her grandfather and who wants to improve upon her second rate status in the world of super heroes. To do this she feels she has to join a team of heroes and heads west to help an over the hill time traveling cowboy hero fight off a menace he thought he had dispatched over a hundred years ago. To help him he tries to recreate his old team, the Seven Soldiers. Morrison has a field day with this as the team is mixture of parodies, tributes and updates of heroes and even fanboys. It all makes for a delightful mix complete with an ending I, for one, didn’t see coming at all. J.H. Williams handles everything Morrison throws at him from the ambience of the dark swamp opening to the S & M aspects of the Whip’s costume to the Old West setting to the wildly diverse designs of each of the Seven Soldiers. Let’s hope we as readers can handle what Morrison will be serving up as well as Williams has because based on this issue it’s going to take some effort on our part but figures to be very well worth it.
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Writer: Warren Ellis | ||
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Well, well, well, so Warren Ellis did have quite a story up his sleeve after all. The final issue of this limited series is definitely the best as it features a whale of a fight between Captain America and his Soviet counterpart, the complete embarrassing of the X-Men and the introduction of a major element of the Marvel Universe into the Ultimate line. Through out this series Ellis has shown he is much more comfortable with the Ultimates than the X-Men, especially the more human elements of Nick Fury’s costumed team. I would even go as far to say that he has shown an affinity for them. So much so that he has the least powerful of the Ultimates totally humble Colossus, Wolverine and Jean Grey without breaking a sweat. Still the key here is the center of the source of the mysterious transmission that drew both teams to an underground complex deep in the old Soviet Union. The answer is definitely unexpected and packs a wallop. It’s also in keeping with the concept of the Ultimate line as Ellis brings in an old standby from the Marvel Universe but promises a unique reimagining. This is the best work I’ve ever seen from Trevor Hairsine as the lines are clean and sharp, the action crisp and the rendering of the source of the transmission impressive. If only he could come up with a way to draw distinct women as the Black Widow and Jean Grey look like identical twins. I still don’t think there were five issues of story here but this concluding chapter certainly ends things on a high note and makes Ellis’ upcoming “Ultimate Secret” look much more appealing.
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