IN WHICH Dann talks about the best and worst comics he read last year (my podcast titles NEVER lie).
PODCAST HERE.
LINKS FROM THIS PODCAST:
Kings Comics
Elizabeth's Bookshop
Adhouse Books
Totentanz by Marcel Ruijters
Sticky Monsters by John Ken Mortensen
(I mistakenly refer to it as "Sticky Nonsense" on the podcast, but it's actually titled Sticky Monsters.)
Lone Star Comics
COMICS
READ in 2013: 807
COMICS
READ IN 2014: 1179
--------------------------------------------------
COMICS
READ IN 2015:
JAN.
82
FEB.
106
MAR.
92
APR.
69
MAY
102
JUN.
75
JUL.
210
AUG.
101
SEP.
80
OCT.
108
NOV.
96
DEC.
101
Total
comics and GNs read in 2015: 1222
BEST of
2015:
Stray
Bullets: Sunshine And Roses #1-6 (Image, 2015) *****
Writer/artist:
David Lapham
The
perfect comic.
Savage
Sword of Criminal (Image, 2015) *****
Writer:
Ed Brubaker/Artist: Sean Phillips
This
loving homage to Marvel’s B&W magazine line in the 1970s is glorious.
Phillips slips in and out of his usual Criminal art style (which is the main
story set in the 70s) to the more psychedelic, Spanish/Filipino-styled
barbarian artwork we saw in Conan and even the Warren B&W titles. Phillips
even apes a Joe Jusko-style cover. This is a fucking masterpiece.
Herbie
Archives Vols. 1-3 (Dark Horse, 2008-09) *****
-
originally published in Forbidden Worlds
#73, 94, 110, 114, 116; Unknown Worlds
#20; Herbie #1-23 (American Comics
Group, 1958-1967)
Writer:
Shane O’Shea/Artist: Ogden Whitney
Quite
possibly the most extraordinary, bizarre, sad, desperate, loveable, strange
comic I’ve ever read. An obese autistic child, who is bullied by his
overbearing father and kids at school, fantasises that he is an omnipotent
superhero who can travel anywhere in the universe, have amazing unreal
adventures and is friends with everyone from the US President to the Queen and
historical figures, who he visits whenever he travels back in time. Herbie uses
the power of lollipops to achieve his fantastical aims as he loses himself deep
in a fantasy world where he is loved and respected, unlike the real world.
Well, that’s MY interpretation of this crazy comic and I’m sticking to it!
Minimum
Wage: So Many Bad Decisions #1-6 (Image, 2015) *****
Writer/artist:
Bob Fingerman
It’s
back and I am sooooooooooooooooo happy! Even if I DIDN’T win that damn
competition Bob was running.
The
Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #4-8 (Marvel, 2015) *****
Writer:
Ryan North/Artist: Erica Henderson
The
unexpected best comic Marvel is producing this year.
Solo
#5 (DC, 2005) *****
Writer/artist:
Darwyn Cooke
I can’t
get enough of Cooke’s retro art. And he’s not a bad writer either. So this
special devoted to Cooke was a joy to read. Maybe he should try his hand at
some Marvel characters one day.
FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2015 (listen to my
podcast about it HERE)
2000AD
(Rebellion) *****
Writers/artists:
various
And
Then Emily Was Gone #0 (Comix Tribe) *****
Emily writer: John Lees/Artists: Iain Laurie
(interior); Ryan Stegman (cover)
Oxymoron writer: Tyler James/Artist: Alex
Cormack
Hard
Time: 50 To Life & Hard Time:
Sixteen (DC, 2004, 2012) *****
-
originally published in Hard Time
#1-12 (DC, 2004-05)
Writers:
Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes (uncredited)/Artist: Brian Hurtt
This
certainly wasn’t the last series Steve Gerber wrote before his untimely death
in 2008, but it’s arguably his finest work (Howard The Duck, notwithstanding).
Ethan,
15, is sentenced to 50 years’ jail for a high school prank gone horribly wrong.
He quickly makes plenty of enemies, including the Aryan Brotherhood and an
insane fundamentalist Christian inmate. But Ethan has a secret – a powerful
entity that lives within him that comes alive at night to do his violent
bidding. This intense cross between TV’s Oz
and DC’s own Johnny Thunder works incredibly well, mainly due to Gerber’s
funny, powerful dialogue. Thankfully, he doesn’t write in that exhausting
purple prose he used at Marvel in the 1970s. The writing here is more subtle,
nuanced and, dare I say it, realistic. Hurtt’s artwork is great (as always).
This is a hidden gem of a series that deserves more consideration from fans and
critics. It’s tragic that Gerber was still peaking as a writer before he passed
away. He deserves to be remembered for more than just a talking duck.
Sticky Monsters (Square Peg, 2012) *****
Writer/Artist:
John Ken Mortensen
Post-it
notes seem so innocent, but not in the hands of this Danish artist, who creates
tiny horrific images torn from the nightmares of Maurice Sendak and HP
Lovecraft.
Delusional
(AdHouse Books, 2013) *****
Writer/Artist:
Farel Dalrymple
Assorted
bibs and bobs from my favourite alternative artist. Delightfully unsettling.
Totentanz
(self-published, 2012-15) *****
Writer/artist:
Marcel Ruijters
Wytches
Vol. 1 (Image, 2015) *****
-
originally published in Wytches #1-6
(Image, 2015)
Writer:
Scott Snyder/Artist: Jock
Freaks
#1-2 (Monster Comics, 1992) *****
Writer:
Jim Woodring/Artist: F. Solano Lopez
A
pitch-perfect adaptation of Tod Browning’s classic horror film. Beautifully
illustrated by Lopez. Just about perfect.
Starve
#1-3 (Image, 2015) *****
Writer:
Brian Wood/Artist ;Danijel Zezelj
Cooking
and comics – what a tasty fucking combination.
Airboy
#1-4 (Image, 2015) *****
Writer:
James Robinson/Artist: Greg Hinkle
The
greatest comic revival EVER. The greatest meta comic ever. This is arguably the
best comic of the decade!
The
Sixth Gun Vol. 8: Hell And High Water
(Oni Press, 2015) *****
-
originally published in The Sixth Gun
#42-47 (Oni Press, 2015)
Writer:
Cullen Bunn/Artist: Brian Hurtt
Dark
Corridor #1-3 (Image, 2015) *****
Writer/Artist:
Rich Tommaso
Fucking
brilliant film noir-style comics from the creator of The Horror Of Collier County. I’m so glad I picked up this title.
The
Twilight Children #1 (Vertigo, 2015) *****
Writer:
Gilbert Hernandez/Artist: Darwyn Cooke
$4.99
for the first issue? Fuck me! Good thing this is just about the best new comic
I’ve read in 2015. Gilbert rises above his usual overrated, mediocre self to
deliver a strong script and Darwyn is fucking ON SONG. But damn! $4.99 an
issue? Yeah...you guessed it, I’ll wait for the trade.
The
Fade Out #9-10 (Image, 2015) *****
Writer:
Ed Brubaker/Artist: Sean Phillips
Now
things are getting good.
Astro
City #28 (Vertigo, 2015) *****
Writer:
Kurt Busiek/Artists: Gary Chaloner & Wade Von Grawbdger (interior); Alex
Ross (cover)
Chaloner
rules!
Pope
Hats #3-4 by Ethan Rilly (AdHouse Books, 2012-15) *****
Mort
Grim by Doug Fraser (AdHouse Books, 2005) *****
UR
by Eric Haven (AdHouse Books, 2014) *****
Saga
Vol. 5 (Image, 2015) *****
Writer:
Brian K. Vaughan/Artist: Fiona Staples
New
MGMT #1/Mind MGMT #36 (Dark
Horse, 2015) *****
Writer/Artist:
Matt Kindt
Very
sad to see this great series come to an end. Also, this ends my hard-copy
single issue relationship with Dark Horse. Mind
MGMT was the only comic I still bought from this company (the rest I get
free from the company as digital copies).
Fear
& Loathing In Las Vegas (Top Shelf, 2015 ) *****
Writers:
Hunter S. Thompson (novel); Troy Little (adaptation)/Artist: Troy Little
The
Bus by Paul Kirchner (Futura, 1987) *****
I loved
this strip when I first read it in Heavy
Metal in the early 80s. Earlier this year, I bought the latest Heavy Metal and found they were
reprinting The Bus again. Not
surprisingly, it’s easily the best thing in the mag. Kirchner’s surrealist take
on the everyman experience enduring the daily bus commute was always
entertaining. This strip collection is hard to find (as is the more recent
reprinting). I’d given up on finding a copy till a friend randomly sent me a
link to a website filled with The Bus
strips. Inspired, I went straight to eBay and found this original edition of
the book for only $13. Score!
WORST:
The
Collector #21 (Bill G. Wilson, 1970) -**
Writers/artists:
various
I
bought a bunch of comics fanzines from the 1970s/early 80s for a buck each at
Elizabeth’s in January. I’ve slowly worked my way through all of them and I
will write my bloggy thoughts on them down the road.
But I
do want to list a few here, because some zines ACTUALLY featured comic strips
and I think that makes them count as comics.
The
Collector’s
editor and publisher Bill G. Wilson wrote and drew Hyperman, a sub-standard,
three-pager featuring his hero posing against black backdrops, confronting a
generic bald villain and knocking him out. I don’t know how, but Wilson managed
to “write” and “draw” an eight-panel strip where every single panel bears no
logical relationship to the panel that precedes it. What’s even more
incredible, he somehow managed to get industry veteran Don Newton to ink this
abortion. Maybe ‘cos Newton started out as a contributor to RBCC in the 60s, he
felt a sense of obligation to a new generation, perhaps.
Reagan’s
Raiders #2 (Solson Publications, 1986) -**
Writer:
Monroe Arnold, David George & Rich Buckler/Artists: Keith royster, Rich
Buckler & Scott Gladfelter
Godawful
political superhero “satire”.
-------------------------------------------------------------
COLLECTED WORKS:
Showcase
Presents All-Star Comics (DC, 2014) ****
-
originally published in All-Star
#58-74, DC Special #29, Adventure Comics #461-466 (DC, 1976-79)
Writers:
Paul Levitz & friends/Artists: Joe Staton, Wallace Wood & friends
My New
Year’s Resolution was to read a DC
Showcase or Marvel Essentials
book a month and I kicked off with this Showcase
volume.
I loved
this Justice Society of America series when I was a kid – when I first saw it,
Joe Staton was drawing the series and I dug his artwork a lot. Years later, I
tracked down earlier issues and marvelled at some of Wally Wood’s finest mainstream
work. Even though I have most of the original colour comics, I bought this
cheap trade to collect the JSA’s final stories after All-Star folded and they were relegated to Adventure Comics. Those issues are now prohibitively priced (I have
no idea why), so this was a very cheap way of completing my collection. As is
the case with all 1970s DC and Marvel comics, the writing is overblown and full
of clichés (e.g. Power Girl is an aggressive, unpleasant feminist while Wildcat
is an out-of-touch, ageing male chauvinist pig). But I love that Superman (who
is the original 1940s Superman of Earth Two and, therefore, the FIRST
superhero) is regarded as the father of all superheroes – a man who can arrive
at a site filled with warring costumed do-gooders and stop them fighting just
by his presence alone. It’s fantastic imagery that got me hooked on the JSA for
life. If nothing else, pick up this volume to appreciate Wood’s input. He was
the inker on All-Star #58-62, then he
main artist on All-Star #63-65 (he even
co-wrote #65 with Paul Levitz). His final two issues on the series see the JSA
take on Vandal Savage in the era of King Arthur, and they’re magnificent.
Marvel
Masterworks: The Fantastic Four Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2009) & Marvel
Essential: The Fantastic FourVol. 1 (Marvel, 2008) *****
-
originally published in The Fantastic Four #1-20 & Annual#1
(Marvel, 1961-63)
Writer:
Stan Lee/Artists: Jack Kirby & friends
This is
kinda weird. Without a doubt, this is a classic superhero comic told by the
industry’s two biggest legends. But there’s no doubt that re-reading them 54
years later does reveal some...shortcomings to the title. Lee focuses so much
on dumb intra-quartet bickering that it wears thin pretty quick. Invisible Girl
is depicted as truly feeble and worthless. The team’s origin is just so fucking
dumb. Did NO-ONE notice that a scientist, his girlfriend and her 16yo brother
were stealing a space ship to ‘beat the Commies” to outer space. Isn’t that a
criminal offence?
Surprisingly,
Kirby’s art comes across as quite primitive (compared to what he went on to
produce in the mid-to-late 60s), not helped by some shoddy inking by the likes
of Dick Ayers and Sol Brodsky (the one exception comes in FF #13 when the
inking is handled by Steve Ditko, who does a “Wally Wood” and stamps his own
inimitable style to Kirby’s pencils).
And
while I should appreciate the relative diversity of super-villains on display
in these first 21 issues (as opposed to, say, Fawcett’s Captain Marvel, which
featured Dr Sivana practically every issue), there’s still waaaaaay too much
Sub-Mariner and Doctor Doom in these early issues.
That
said, I KNOW that these were revolutionary stories back in 1961, so I need to
look at them from that perspective rather than my jaded 2015 perspective.
And
y’know, if I do that, these stories fucking rock.
Herbie
Archives Vols. 1-3 (Dark Horse, 2008-09) *****
-
originally published in Forbidden Worlds
#73, 94, 110, 114, 116; Unknown Worlds
#20; Herbie #1-23 (American Comics
Group, 1958-1967)
Writer:
Shane O’Shea/Artist: Ogden Whitney
Quite
possibly the most extraordinary, bizarre, sad, desperate, loveable, strange
comic I’ve ever read. An obese autistic child, who is bullied by his
overbearing father and kids at school, fantasises that he is an omnipotent
superhero who can travel anywhere in the universe, have amazing unreal
adventures and is friends with everyone from the US President to the Queen and
historical figures, who he visits whenever he travels back in time. Herbie uses
the power of lollipops to achieve his fantastical aims as he loses himself deep
in a fantasy world where he is loved and respected, unlike the real world.
Well, that’s MY interpretation of this crazy comic and I’m sticking to it!
Vampirella
Crimson Chronicles Maximum Vol. 1 (Harris, 2008) **½
-
originally published in Vampirella
#1-2, 8-9, 11-37 (Warren, 1969-74)
Writers/artists:
various (interior); Jim Silke (cover)
I’m not
sure why I bought this B&W collection...probably ’cos it was selling cheap
on Lone Star. I went into reading this book with some trepidation as I always
considered Vampirella a badly written T&A horror series. It certainly kicks
off that way with the goofy introduction stories written by Forrest J.
Ackerman. But once Archie Goodwin comes on board, the storyline kicks into gear
and the quality of writing improves dramatically with the alien bloodsucker
Vampi battling the evil Cult Of Chaos, whose members worship a demonic bible
known as the Crimson Chronicles.
Vampi is aided by a drunken magician called Pendragon and is pursued by
relentless vampire killers Conrad and Adam Van Helsing. Goodwin’s strong
scripts are brought to life by Jose Gonzalez’ exquisite artwork. His splash
panels of our scantily clad heroine each issue are beautiful and he gives the
supporting cast real character. Goodwin ties in Vampi with the Dracula
mythology, then turns it on its head by having a newly-brought-back-to-life
Drac repent for his past sins and try to be good. It’s an interesting journey
as he tries to mend his evil ways, but keeps failing. Goodwin’s departure from
the strip sees the quality of storytelling plummet, particularly the run of
Flaxman Loew, who dumps the Van Helsings and reduces Pendragon to a drunken bum
cracking bad puns. Even Vampirella’s ongoing struggle not to kill people for
their blood – which gave her a noble, tragic quality – is summarily dismissed
by Loew, who has Vampi killing bad guys willy-nilly. It’s a complete
destruction of Goodwin’s carefully laid foundations and helps leave a sour note
as this collection comes to an end. Only the artwork of Gonzales (and later
Jose Ortiz) salvages something from the godawful scripts. Goodwin’s return to
the helm in the final few pages gives hope that Vampirella was set to return to its former glory. But as it’s
unlikely I’ll never pick up Volume 2, I guess that will have to remain a
mystery to me.
Seven
Soldiers Of Victory Vols. 1&2 (DC, 2011) ****¼
-
originally published in Seven Soldiers Of
Victory #0-1, Seven Soldiers: Shining
Knight #1-4, Seven Soldiers: Guardian
#1-4, Seven Soldiers: Zatanna #1-4, Seven Soldiers: Klarion The Witch Boy
#1-4, Seven Soldiers: Mister Miracle
#1-4, Seven Soldiers: Bulleteer #1-4,
Seven Soldiers: Frankenstein #1-4
(DC, 2005-06)
Writer:
Grant Morrison/Artists: various
After
the clusterfuck that was The Multiversity,
I’d lost faith in the magician. But reading this earlier, sweeping series
starring a bunch of C-listers and reimagined B-listers made me a Morrison
believer again. Sure, the tale is convoluted, confusing in parts and resolved
in a way that I didn’t quite understand (with too many rabbits pulled out of
too many arses for my liking), but damn! I enjoyed the ride.
Some of
the miniseries were fantastic in their own right, particularly Klarion (creepily illustrated by Frazer
Irving) and Frankenstein (strong,
visceral artwork by Doug Mahnke). Other series didn’t do quite so well, but
only the unnecessary reimagining of Mister Miracle failed to impress me.
All in
all, a fine effort by Mr Morrison and friends, showing he can juggle multiple
characters and complicated story arcs without disappearing up his own
sphincter.
Hard
Time: 50 To Life & Hard Time:
Sixteen (DC, 2004, 2012) *****
-
originally published in Hard Time
#1-12 (DC, 2004-05)
Writers:
Steve Gerber & Mary Skrenes (uncredited)/Artist: Brian Hurtt
This
certainly wasn’t the last series Steve Gerber wrote before his untimely death
in 2008, but it’s arguably his finest work (Howard The Duck, notwithstanding).
Ethan,
15, is sentenced to 50 years’ jail for a high school prank gone horribly wrong.
He quickly makes plenty of enemies, including the Aryan Brotherhood and an
insane fundamentalist Christian inmate. But Ethan has a secret – a powerful
entity that lives within him that comes alive at night to do his violent
bidding. This intense cross between TV’s Oz
and DC’s own Johnny Thunder works incredibly well, mainly due to Gerber’s
funny, powerful dialogue. Thankfully, he doesn’t write in that exhausting
purple prose he used at Marvel in the 1970s. The writing here is more subtle,
nuanced and, dare I say it, realistic. Hurtt’s artwork is great (as always).
This is a hidden gem of a series that deserves more consideration from fans and
critics. It’s tragic that Gerber was still peaking as a writer before he passed
away. He deserves to be remembered for more than just a talking duck.
Irredeemable
Vols. 3-10 (BOOM!, 2009-12) ****¾
-
originally published in Irredeemable
#9-37, Irredeemable Special #1, Incorruptible #25-26 (BOOM!, 2009-12)
Writer:
Mark Waid/Artists: Diego Barreto, Peter Krause & friends
Murder
Me Dead hardcover (El Capitan, 2002) ****¾
-
originally published in Murder Me Dead
#1-9 (El Capitan, 2000-01)
Writer/artist:
David Lapham
Avengers/Invaders
#1-12 (Marvel/Dynamite, 2008-09) ***¼
Writers:
Alex Ross & Jim Kruger/Artists: Steve Sadowski & friends
(interiors)/Alex Ross (covers)
Beautiful
covers are the major highlight of this quirky series that sees a displaced
Invaders visit the modern Marvel Universe post-Civil War. There’s everyone here
from the Red Skull to Ultron to evil SHIELD LMDs to modern Sub-Mariner duking
it out with junior Sub-Mariner. Ultimately, it leads to nothing except the
unnecessary revival of Toro, but at least it’s fun and pretty to look at.
Doom
Patrol #1-22 (DC, 2009-11) ***¼
Doom Patrol: Writer: Keith Giffen/Artists:
Matthew Clark & friends
Metal Men: Writers: Keith Giffen &
JMDeMatteis/Artist: Kevin Maguire
Giffen’s
attempt to repair the damage from John Byrne’s previous incarnation partially
succeeds. It takes a while but this series was coming together...until The New
52 initiative killed it.
Much
more fun was the Metal Men back-up feature in #1-7. The old Justice League (of
80s fame) team seem to be really enjoying their reunion.
JLA/JSA
Secret Files & Origins #1 (DC, 2003) ***½
100.-120. JSA
#41-58 (DC, 2002-04); Hawkman #23-25
(DC, 2004) ****
Writers:
David Goyer & Geoff Johns/Artists: Leonard Kirk & friends
This is
the oldest comics I had in my collection in the sense that I’d never got around
to reading them. I mean, 13 years is a long time. Not sure how I drifted away
from JSA. I think I got sidetracked
with life and the issues started piling up. After a while I had 20+ comics
sitting there and I’d lost interest in the series. When a personal crisis hit
in late 2003/early 2004 I made a decision at that time to cut waaaaay back on
my standing order at Kings Comics. JSA was an easy cut at that point. Four
years later, the JSA got rebooted, then a few years after they were retconned
out of existence by the New 52. These decade-old comics gathering dust in my
spare room seemed even less relevant than before.
However,
in my attempt to reach my 200-comics goal, I decided to tackle them...and I’m
glad I did. This was always a fun series with characters I really liked (I was
a sucker for JSA in the 70s, Infinity Inc. and All-Star Squadron back in the 80s, too). The culmination of this
run is the Black Reign storyline in
both JSA and Hawkman, which leads to a big showdown between the JSA (and
Hawkman) against Black Adam and his team of reformed super-villains and
conflicted superheroes (including Atom Smasher) after they’ve violently
liberated the African nation of Kahndaq (which is Black Adam’s homeland).
Should heroes kill if it serves the greater need? The assassination of Kobra is
an effective shock moment. This is a pretty powerful question and Johns (who
was handling both books solo at this stage) is pretty much at his peak as a
writer. Great stuff.
The Goon #30-39 (Dark Horse,
2008-12) ****
Writer/Artist:
Eric Powell (except #35 where the writer is Evan Dorkin)
I’m not
sure why I gave up on this series – it’s really very good. Funny, dark, violent
and brilliantly drawn by Powell. Maybe it’s because the guy took FOUR YEARS to
put out 10 issues. Yeah, maybe that’s it. Ya lazy fuck, Powell!
Powers
Bureau #1-12 (Icon, 2013-14) ****½
Powers
#1-5 (Icon, 2015- ) ****
Writer:
Brian Michael Bendis/Artist: Mike Avon Oeming
Pretty
cool catching up on five years of Powers in one hit. If you don’t read Bendis’
back matter, then you can rip through an issue pretty quick. The feeling I got
by the end of these issues is that not only being a copy the WORST JOB in
Chicago. But being a cop alongside powers detectives Pilgrim, Sunshine and
Walker is the WORST JOB in the world. You are almost guaranteed of getting
bitchily insulted by Pilgrim or Sunshine or winding up as dead collateral
damage when some super-powered guy attacks Walker. Sucks to be a cop in Bendis’
world.
Also
the three main protagonists have all spied, betrayed and lied to each other in
the 25 issues I’ve read, so I can’t work out why they’re all still friends.
Maybe Powers isn’t meant to be read in one massive 25-issue hit ’cos the plot
flaws become too obvious.
That
said, this is easily one of the best cop/crime/superhero series on the racks
right now – and it has been for at least five years.
Essential
Godzilla Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2006) ***
-
originally published in Godzilla
#1-24 (Marvel, 1977-79)
Writer:
Doug Moench/Artists: Herb Trimpe & friends
Listen
to podcast HERE.
Toho
Productions’ gave Marvel a two-year run with Godzilla and it was bizarre.
Godzilla
emerges from an iceberg in Alaska and goes on a rampage. He’s evil for the
first three issues, attacking Seattle and San Francisco. But that quickly grows
boring, so they make him a sorta good guy (like the Hulk).
Even
though he kills thousands of people (even in Marvel’s PG world, there’s no way
he couldn’t have wiped out oodles of folk in those cities he destroyed.
Dr
Takiguchi, his niece Tamara and annoying grandson Rob create a giant Shogun
Warrior-style robot to fight Godzilla.
After
that, Godzilla fights alien monsters, battles rustlers, gets shrunk and fights
New York sewer rats, then is sent back in time to fight dinosaurs.
Along
the way, Godzilla tangles with SHIELD, The Champions, The FF, The Avengers and
Devil Dinosaur. It’s weirdly stupid, kinda boring and ends with Godzilla
getting written out of Marvel continuity.
At
least it means there’s no more Rob, because he’s truly annoying.
Satellite
Sam #1-15 & Satellite Sam Tijuana
Bible (Image, 2013-15) ****
Writer:
Matt Fraction/Artist: Howard Chaykin
An odd
topic for Mr Fraction to tackle: the early days of TV. Still, this debauched
crime noir tale builds to a satisfying climax after a slow start in the first
three issues. Chaykin has the time of his life drawing near-naked women in sexy
early 1950s lingerie. Really, the series is a cross between Mad Men and Chaykin’s own Black Kiss. Perversely entertaining.
The
Rocketeer: Cargo Of Doom #1-4 (IDW, 2012) ***½
Writer:
Mark Waid/Artist: Chris Samnee
The
Rocketeer: Hollywood Horror #1-4 (IDW, 2013) ***
Writer:
Roger Langridge/Artists: J. Bone (interior); Roger Langridge (#1 subscription
cover); Walter Simonson (#2-4 regular cover)
The
Rocketeer & The Spirit: Pulp Friction #1-4 (IDW/DC, 2013) ***
Writer:
Mark Waid/Artists: Paul Smith (#1 interior); Loston Wallace & Bob Wiacek
(#2 interior); J. Bone (#3-4 interior); Paul Smith (#1-2 cover); J. Bone (#3-4
cover)
I love
The Rocketeer but these miniseries are only fair-to-middling – the first series
is the best and the team-up with The Spirit is the least satisfying.
Invincible
Vol. 1: Family Matters (Image, 2003) ***½
Invincible
Vol. 2: Eight Is Enough (Image, 2004) ***½
Invincible
Vol. 3: Perfect Strangers (Image, 2004) ***
Invincible
Vol. 4: Head Of The Class (Image, 2005) ***½
-
originally published in Invincible
#1-19 & Image Summer Special #1
(Image, 2003-04)
Writer:
Robert Kirkman/Artists: Cory Walker (#1-7), Ryan Ottley (#8-19) + friends
DO YOU
KNOW HOW MUCH THE ORIGINAL COMICS OF THIS SERIES ARE WORTH?!!! Issue one alone
is $1500 MINT! I had Invincible #1-25 and I sold the lot in 2005 for THIRTY
DOLLARS on eBay!!! AAAAARRRRRGHHHHHH!
I
stopped buying Invincible and sold my collection at the same time that I quit
The Walking Dead (and yes, I sold the first 25 issues of TWD on eBay for a
pittance, too). I’d had enough of the torture porn that Kirkman had turned both
titles into – while I could sorta understand why he did in a zombie comic, I
just couldn’t appreciate him taking the torture porn route in what was,
essentially, a light-hearted superhero tale. To be honest, I started going off
Invincible around #8 when Invincible’s dad Omni-Man was revealed to be a
mass-murdering psycho from another planet. It wasn’t hard to quit the series
when I did the same with TWD. Having just read the Wikipedia entry on
Invincible, I’m glad I did, because Kirkman has taken the series into some
truly dark territory. Still...a few years back i saw the first four volumes of
Invincible for sale cheap on eBay. On a whim I bought them (along with the
first two volumes of TWD...don’t ask). I didn’t know what to expect when I
reread the first 19 issues. I will say that I still hate the dark road that
Kirkman took the series in #8 when Omni-Man slaughters the Guardians Of The
Globe. But much of the comic is endearing and Invincible is such a likeable
teenager...well, he is at this stage anyway.
I won’t
buy any further volumes, but I’m glad I reread it – Invincible was once a very
enjoyable comic book.
And how did I forget to include the epic Teen Titans arc that I read in September? I even did a podcast about it. :P
