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A little on a lot: New 52, Comic Book Men, and Spidey

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Walt

As I’ve not been blogging regularly lately, there are a number of things I’ve been thinking about, had thoughts about, and generally considered blogging about/retreading, but haven’t. I sat down Saturday morning for awhile and typed a lot more than I intended. So I’ve broken that into several posts (this is one of those posts).

NEW 52 IN GENERAL

justiceleague001I gave the “New 52” a much bigger chance than I’d intended to–I think I’d ultimately picked up 28-30 of the books. Dropped sharply for the #2s going down to only about a dozen, then I cut to Superman, Batman, Animal Man, and Swamp Thing; now I’ll be down to Animal Man and Swamp Thing…and even those are honestly on shaky ground with me. I don’t know if this “environment” of all these titles is anything like early post-Crisis on Infinite Earths DCU, but right now I’m not “sold” long-term for DC. I suppose I’m looking at the reboots of the entire Wildstorm line and wondering (still) if there’ll be another reboot, or a regression back to the “old” DCU (despite DC’s current protestations to the contrary). With the addition of the Earth-2 stuff, at the least there seems to be enough of a breakup of things that I don’t really “get” a feel of a “unified whole” for the current DCU…more a vehicle for various creators to tie in or not to stuff.

And frankly, rather than grudgingly purchase monthly titles and grouse that this isn’t “MY” DCU…since I’m so entrenched in the 1980s/90s/00s DCU, I may as well put my efforts toward tracking down runs of the Bat-books, and reading those instead.

I’m not actively opposed to the New 52/etc…but it seems to me DC should have gone “all the way” and fully relaunched even the Batman and Green Lantern books, such that the New 52 would be a truly full start. Because of the mixed bag of stuff, it creates a sense of half-assedness for me. I’m not actively opposed to giving parts of the New 52 a chance; the problem is that I am not all that actively INTERESTED in much of the New 52.

COMIC BOOK MEN

comicbookmenI watched Kevin Smith’s Comic Book Men last Sunday, and will probably watch again this week. I’m not all that enamored with it…but it’s tv involving an actual comic store with actual comics and such. As so many others have said…it’s like Pawn Stars meets Comic Shop. I’m not sure what I expected, but this wasn’t really it. Still, it’s on immediately following The Walking Dead which I’m going to be watching anyway…so CBM has a prime timeslot to retain me as part of its audience.

UNINTERESTING SPIDEY

newwaystodie01Two years after a friend loaned me a stack of comics (which I’ve been remiss in taking so long, but that’s another issue) I still can’t get myself truly interested in Spider-Man. It’s taken several spurts of self-forced reading to make any real headway into the “Brand New Day era” and even any positives I’m finding are pretty incidental. Initially I stayed away specifically because of Marvel doing away with the Peter/MJ marriage. But however solid the writing for the BND stuff may be, I’m just finding myself having a problem connecting with any of the characters; even if I don’t miss the marriage itself amidst the stories so far, this take on Spidey is just NOT INTERESTING to me.

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Facebook Meme: Perspectives

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Walt

I decided to participate in a Facebook meme going around lately. I’m sure I could make this better, but I’ve been at the computer too long already for not doing any actual (paid) work.

comiccollectormeme

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A little on a lot: 90s Bat-books, buying runs, pull-list pruning

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Walt

As I’ve not been blogging regularly lately, there are a number of things I’ve been thinking about, had thoughts about, and generally considered blogging about/retreading, but haven’t. I sat down Saturday morning for awhile and typed a lot more than I intended. So I’ve broken that into several posts (this is one of those posts).

BATMAN: FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS

batmanshadowofthebat001Though I’ve had it on my mind for a couple years now, I think this year may be my “Year of the Bat” in terms of back-issue focus. A few weeks back, I acquired a near-complete (missing 1 issue) run of Batman: Shadow of the Bat. This week I acquired near-complete runs of Batman: Gotham Knights and the ongoing (original) Birds of Prey. I already have (scattered through dozens of longboxes over the years) a complete run of Robin. With the acquisitions this year, that already puts me a long way toward the goal of having the complete ongoing series of Bat-books for the “From Crisis to Crisis” era, and I may just add a few years and aim for the “From Crisis to Flashpoint” era in general.

1990s DC COMPLETE SERIES

I’ve also acquired several other runs this year: 3 complete JSA minis from the 1990s, Blue Beetle (Post-Infinite Crisis) 1-20, a complete run of The Power of Shazam!, and a complete run of Hawkworld. Which means I have LOADS to read even before I’d even be in position to dig in on a lengthy Batman reading project.

PULL-LIST MAINTENANCE

I’ve been pruning my pull-list, and about to prune even further. I’m dropping Batman as of #6, though I’m interested enough I plan to pick up the Mr. Freeze Annual (Batman Annual #1). I’m just not buying into the hype over the Court of Owls. Had it been a single arc, it would’ve been good. But the fact that Batman #6 (spoiler alert! I’m about to spoil the end of #6!) ends with a kick-off into an “event” just REALLY turns me off. I imagine I’ll eventually read the story–whether grabbing issues later in the year from bargain bins or such, or a year from now whenever DC actually puts out a collected volume. I just don’t feel inclined to pay $2.99 (soon $3.99!) an issue for monthly installments, nor do I feel like buying multiple other series to get a COMPLETE story. (I’m not buying into the hype, and I’m not buying into reading only one title when this thing’s being pushed as an event rather than just characters showing up in other tiles).

I’m also dropping Superman after #6. I’ve given it an arc; but the whole new creative team makes for essentially a new title, and again, I’m just not interested in paying $2.99 for monthly installments of bigger stories right now. I loved the first issue, but I never read 3 & 4 until a couple weeks ago after #5 had come out, and that was a conscious decision to “force” myself to “catch up.” So, I’ll wait to catch up on even buying the issues when there are a few out I can get in one go, ideally from a bargain bin, or perhaps a collected volume next year.

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Catching up on comics reading

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Walt

Finally catching up on my comics reading, neglected these past weeks for reading the Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson, and George R. R. Martin‘s Game of Thrones.

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After Watchmen: Before Watchmen

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Walt

So…the long-rumored “Watchmen 2” is officially Before Watchmen, the collective heading for 7 mini-series and a one-shot. (Rorschach, Dr. Manhattan, Nite Owl, and Silk Spectre with 4 issues each; Minutemen, Comedian, and Ozymandias with 6 issues each, and Before Watchmen: Epilogue.

By my count, that’s 35 issues. Assuming all are $2.99 cover price, that’s $105. Whereas the original, complete story of Watchmen for the past quarter-century has been a single $20 volume. Not nearly as enticing for purposes of purchasing.

This project in one swoop makes the original a mere quarter of the whole. Though still a whole itself, it’ll now be PART OF a larger “universe.”

And DC does not have the greatest track record with me when it comes to collected volumes, and no comics company has any great record anymore with PRICING of collected volumes. (Collected volumes being my first thought, because I just cannot see spending 35 weeks trying to follow these in singles rather than a whole story for any given character). Heck, for the entirety of my awareness of comics (going back nearly 24 years), Watchmen has existed as a collected volume.

Yet despite any and all negative thoughts toward this…I have to admit…I cannot see avoiding these on any principle. I may avoid a FORMAT (singles), I may opt to get whatever collected volumes from the local library…but I’m fairly certain I’ll read these. And then I’ll go back to the original, and re-read that, and it’ll be in a new light. New details from the prequels to impact the emotional impact…worst-case, the original could be a palate-cleanser.

The official announcement of these minis came today, from DC‘s The Source blog. Interviews and cover images and such are scattered across media outlets…and the above constitutes my own initial thoughts/gut reactions to the basic announcement that these’ll exist. PLENTY of time yet for all the news and hubbub to “convert” me OR “sour” me on these. Time will tell.

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Dead Man’s Run #s 0 & 1 [Review]

Posted on January 21, 2012 by Walt

Full Circle; Man Down
Written by: Greg Pak
Illustrated by: Tony Parker
Colored by: Peter Steigerwald; David Curiel
Lettered by: Josh Reed
Covers 0C, 1A: Tony Parker, Peter Steigerwald
Published by: Aspen Comics

I came into Dead Man’s Run having no honest idea what it was about. The title itself suggested maybe someone dies and comes back, or has some fatal countdown looming and they have some mission to carry out despite knowing death is imminent.

Turns out there’s this prison, with guards and all that…and what they’re guarding is Hell. Like…THAT Hell. Their prisoners belong there, and they basically just make sure they stay put. There’s a warden who seems to be something more, and some plot seems to be in motion.

The zero issue sees the death of a guard who with his last breath as a live man requests another. In the premiere issue, we meet Sam–a doomed cartographer who finds himself stuck in Hell at the side of the deceased guard, who seems poised to show Sam a whole different world than he ever dreamed existed. Meanwhile, we get a hint at the nature of the warden, and some of Sam’s motivation (the car wreck that he died in and woke up in Hell also left his sister in Hell–something he’s not going to take lying down).

This #0 and #1 really feel like the pilot episode of a tv series, more than just the premiere of a new comic series. The story–what’s set up so far and where it seems it might go, and the execution–seem very cinematic in a tv sort of way. I’m not entirely thrilled with that, because I don’t know that I want to READ a tv series.

That said…the story’s got a couple interesting hooks that leave me curious for the next issue. The art is very solid and in general makes the story flow. Stylistically it doesn’t seem at all like a super-hero comic (which is good, because this most certainly is not of that genre) nor does it seem hyper-realistic. It just has a comfortable feel that carries things alone.

The writing is solid…I know next to nothing about these characters, but there’s enough there for the potential to shine. It’ll be interesting to find out more about Sam’s past and the relationship with his sister–and if there’s anything special about either of them that’ll play into things. The prison guard, too, has a glimmer of something more. The glimpses we get of the warden suggest a lot more to her as well, that COULD wind up being cliche, or could provide something that might make for an interesting (eventual) comparison to the Hell we find in Gaiman‘s The Sandman: Season of Mists.

I made the reference above about this being like a tv series. Using that comparison….this puts me in mind of the first season of Prison Break if the imprisoned brother arranged for the other to be jailed, but dealing with a prison of hellfire and brimstone rather than steel and concrete.

Aside from the story and art, there’s also the fact that this is backed by Gale Anne Hurd’s studio…so I’m inclined to give this a bit of time to take shape if someone who helped to get The Walking Dead from comic to tv endorses it.

I received these two issues free as review copies, so the only up front cost to me was the time taken to read these. I don’t see a price on the #0 issue, but #1 is listed as $3.50…which earns points from me for being $.49 cheaper than most Marvel comics. As something cheaper than a standard Marvel, I’m more apt to buy #2 than I am one of those $3.99 Marvels.

The story so far seems to be–as said–like a pilot episode, so I’m not entirely sold on the singles, but reading these has me definitely interested in either picking up the next issue when I notice it on the shelf, or at least checking back before too long for a graphic novel collection.

You could certainly do much worse than this book…and it’s not off to a bad start at all.

Story: 8/10
Art: 8/10
Overall: 8/10

Filed under: Dead Man's Run (Aspen), INDEPENDENT/SMALL-PRESS PUBLISHERS | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

What do you mean it’s almost February?!?

Posted on January 18, 2012 by Walt

After a long hiatus, I’m back for a fluff post, sharing some of the goodies I just snagged from a bargain bin. 63 comics for less than the price of 4 Marvels.

I’d read Green Arrow: The Wonder Year almost a decade ago for a comics class I took. That was in a collected-edition, though. And come to think of it, this MIGHT be the second time I’ve purchased this mini from a quarter-bin; I have most of the first 30ish issues of the ongoing Green Arrow series this led into.

greenarrowwonderyear

And I recognized this Cap mini-series from around that time, as well…I may have bought the first issue as a new issue back in the day…maybe the whole mini, but not being sure, and certainly to avoid the issue of rummaging through dozens of boxes, snagged all three issues:

capdeadmenrunning

Realized there was a full run of the 8-issue Green Lantern Corps Quarterly, and given the sheer size of the issues and being a run…right up my alley:

glcquarterly

While NOT QUITE a full run, Blue Beetle 1-20 were all present, and given this price for the singles, far FAR cheaper than trying to get the trades:

bluebeetle1to20

Then I noticed some Justice Society stuff. And sure enough, speaking of full runs…the 1991 JSA series:

jsa1991

And the 1992 series:

jsa1992

And of course the characters’ return in the 1999 “mini-event” or whatever it was:

jsa1999

…plus a handful of other random issues I neglected to put back. As it was, I put back probably another 40+ issues that I now regret: a lot of the “Secret Files and Origins” type specials from throughout the mid/late 90s and early 2000s for Batman, Flash, and JLA. But considering I walked away with such a significant run of Blue Beetle, and the three JSA series and whatnot…I’m a pretty happy camper.

‘course, I’m only vaguely aware that Batman #5 was part of my stack of new comics and Ghostbusters #5.

Wondering more and more what it might be like to just drop new comics altogether, and instead raid quarter bins and such. Far better value on the older stuff…especially from this comic shop!

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Microseries: Raphael

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Walt


Full review posted to cxPulp.com.

Story: 4/5
Art: 4/5
Overall: 4/5

Filed under: cxPulp.com, INDEPENDENT/SMALL-PRESS PUBLISHERS, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (IDW) | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #5 [Review]

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Walt

Quick Rating: Fantastic
Story Title: Book Five

The Legions come together as their foes are dealt with and the story winds down.

finalcrisislegionof3worlds005Writer: Geoff Johns
Pencils: George Perez
Inker: Scott Koblish
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letters: Nick Napolitano
Assoc. Editor: Adam Schlagman
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Cover Art: George Perez & Nei Ruffino
Publisher: DC Comics

In some ways, I hardly remember the last issue. It hasn’t been as long as it could have been…but long enough as we’re something like a half-year out from the ending of Final Crisis itself. Despite that…the wait seems to be worth it: this was a fantastic issue. I imagine I must’ve used phrasing like that before, but it fits here. There’s so much action and the pages are just filled with visual details on top of what we’re given overtly in words from the story.

The previous issue saw the return of OUR Superboy–Connor Kent. This series has also seen the return of Bart Allen (Kid Flash). Together with Superman and three different versions of the Legion, the characters work together to (would there be expectation otherwise?) overcome their foes.

We see a bit of personality from each version of the Legions (if not on an individual level in all cases). We have a satisfying conclusion to the story that makes sense. And we get set-up for a new ongoing series featuring these characters.

Johns’ writing is on a high level here, making use of story elements from the past few years–and going back through the history of these characters–and crafting what for now is THE Legion of Super-Heroes story to me. The story draws from elements seeded across numerous other books, and though this is a Legion-centric story, it borrows elements from throughout the DC universe as a whole.

Perez‘ art is top-notch as well with a level of detail that continues to impress me. His rendition of most of these characters comes off as iconic–and in many ways, this is the best I’ve seen many of the characters look.

I got a real kick out of seeing Superboy-Prime’s ultimate fate as the character comes full circle (though one should be careful what one wishes for), and there’s some interesting subtext to be taken from it as the character speaks right to the reader–or at least the comic-reading audience as a whole. Whether this is to drive home a purpose for the character and his unique position for executing this dynamic or is a way of Johns speaking to the audience…or both…it makes for a very satisfying conclusion.

I don’t feel like this story really justified its having the Final Crisis tag, as any tie it may have had to that story seemed to be covered in the actual Final Crisis series. This story ends without sending characters into Final Crisis (late or otherwise) but rather sends them toward adventure taking place after that event.

Despite severe lateness and showing no real justification for the Final Crisis tag, this concluding issue is not to be missed if you’ve at all enjoyed the story so far. If you’ve not read it at all…whether you’re a long-time Legion of Super-Heroes fan or have never touched an issue of any version of the Legion, I’d recommend considering the collected volume.

Ratings:

Story: 4.5/5
Art: 4.5/5
Overall: 4.5/5

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Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #4 [Review]

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Walt

Quick Rating: Fantastic
Story Title: Book Four

Members of the Legions of Super-Heroes battle Superboy Prime and the Legion of Supervillains, while Brainiac 5’s plans bear further fruit, and the Time Trapper stands revealed.

finalcrisislegionof3worlds004Writer: Geoff Johns
Pencils: George Perez
Inker: Scott Koblish
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letters: Nick Napolitano
Assoc. Editor: Adam Schlagman
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Cover Art: (Reg) George Perez & Tom Smith, (Sliver) George Perez & Hi-Fi
Publisher: DC Comics

I’m no fan of variant covers, and any kind of marketing ploy to con people into buying the same content multiple times. Thankfully (despite dual covers), this issue is not that. But this issue cements this Legion story for me as one that I absolutely want to get in hardcover. And given the trend with DC’s books…I will be shocked if this series does NOT get the hard-cover treatment out of the gate.

The battle between the Legions rages on, as they combat their enemies in the Legion of Villains. As the brawls unfold, we see the Time Trapper step into things in-person, no longer simply manipulating…and while he has planned things, we see Brainiac 5 pull stuff together as seeds he’s planted through time come to fruition at long last–including a major element that has taken 1,000 years to come to this very moment…though things look like they might not quite work out as he planned. Superboy Prime faces off with the just-returned/resurrected Kid Flash (Bart Allen), and sees that his ‘nightmare’ is just beginning. Issue’s end sets up stuff for next issue’s conclusion, and goes a long way toward making me interested in Superboy Prime and the Time Trapper.

The story in this issue feels like it flies along. Where earlier issues in the series felt really long, this one actually felt short…and yet, there’s still quite a lot unfolding, as we se so many characters doing so much in these pages. The foundation Johns put down in the earlier issues and pulling from prior continuity bear major fruit here, and the payoff more than offsets the long wait between issues (and at this point, I think of this story simply as Legion of 3 Worlds, and forget the Final Crisis tag as best I’m able). Johns certainly has a grasp on these characters–or at least, for a reader such as myself, he sure seems to have that grasp on ’em…without someone more steeped in Legion history pointing out individual flaws to me, I have no problem with the way characters are depicted here.

The art for the issue is fantastic as well…aside from the overt visual style, there’s something to the overall imagery (the art, the inking, the colors) that subtley remind me of past comics. The depiction of the Time Trapper really puts me in mind of his depiction in Zero Hour (the last I recall seeing much of the character), which to me marks an incredible consistency that just adds to the appeal of this issue. Yeah, it’s been forever between issues–and I normally would have let a series go by now in protest of the delay–but this is one series that really is too good to give up on.

I don’t know how things will play out for the final issue–nor how characters pulled into this story will work afterwards in terms of interaction throughout the DCU…but just the fact of their presence here makes me one happy camper, and gives me new appreciation for and interest in the Legion as a whole.

Obviously, the 4th issue of 5 isn’t a great jump-on point…but if you’ve considered skipping this and the final issue for delays, I’d encourage you to forego that and just pick it up if you enjoyed the earlier issues. And if you’ve not picked any of these up and have the chance to snag the whole story so far, it’s well worth it.

Highly recommended!

Ratings:

Story: 4.5/5
Art: 4.5/5
Overall: 4.5/5

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