COMICS READING FOR MAY: “Free comics? Yay!”

* NOW WITH STAR RATINGS (ala Wrestling Observer Newsletter PPV reports) *

HOW I RATE THE COMICS VIA THE ALAN MOORE SCALE

*****   Watchmen, Marvelman, V For Vendetta
****     From Hell, Supreme, Swamp Thing, Whatever Happened To The Man Of Tomorrow?
***        League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the first two series), Axel Pressbutton, Tom Strong
**           Promethea
*             LoEG: Century: 1969
DUD  (or lower)     anything he’s written for Avatar or any of the non-comics drivel he shits out on a regular basis

1.-4. Fatale #1-4 (Image, 2012) ****

Writer: Ed Brubaker/Artist: Sean Phillips
The usual noir greatness, this time with a HP Lovecraft horror twist.
5.-6. Grace Randolph’s Supurbia (Boom, 2012) ***½
Writer: Grace Randolph/Artist: Russell Dauterman
I’ve heard it described as the JLA meets Desperate Housewives. Seems accurate. A promising start.
7. The Secret Service #1 (Icon, 2012) ***¼
Writer: Mark Millar/Artist: Dave Gibbons
Too early to tell where this  will go, but it’s a solid start to the series.
8.-9. Hell Yeah #1-2 (Image, 2012) ***¼
Writer: Joe Keatinge/Artist: Andre Szymanowicz
Everyone’s doing superheroes-in-the-real-world type tales this year, it seems. This title seems to have a strong mysterious premise – slacker superhero discovers alternate versions of himself are being murdered (last-page reveal...by his superhero mother!)  and has to man up to save his life. And why did superheroes suddenly appear 20 years ago? Are they evil aliens (my theory). I’m intrigued enough to stick with it for another issue or so.
10.-11. Super Crooks #1-2 (Icon, 2012) ****½
Writer: Mark Millar/Artist: Leinil Yu
Supervillains travel to Spain to avoid an America chockers with superheroes. And they plan to rob the world’s greatest supervillain in the process? This looks like violent fun, with shades of The Italian Job and Ocean’s 11 thrown in for good measure. Great stuff!
12. America’s Got Powers #1 (Image, 2012) ****
Writer: Jonathan Ross/Artist: Bryan Hitch
A very English take on the reality TV genre. Fantastic art by Hitch (as always), but Ross’s tale is a bit “seen it all before”. Still, his dialogue is fun and I’m interested to check out the next issue.
13. Secret #1 (Image, 2012) ***½
Writer: Jonathan Hickman/Artist: Ryan Bodenheim
14. Heart #4 (Image, 2012) ***¼
Writer: Blair Butler/Artist: Kevin Mellon
A surprisingly downbeat ending to this reasonably entertaining MMA-themed miniseries.
15.-16. Ragemoor #1-2 (Dark Horse, 2012) ***¾
Writer: Jan Strnad/Artist: Richard Corben
Corben!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
17. Annihilators: Earthfall #4 (Marvel, 2012) ***
Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning/Artist: Tan Eng Huat
A flat ending to a series that I was enjoying to this point. The Rocket Racooon back-up was also less than fabulous.
18. Supreme #63 (Image, 2012) ****
Writer: Alan Moore/Artists: Erik Larsen & Cory Hamscher
Supreme is back! And I’m kinda intrigued to see where Erik’s gonna take this Superman-pastiche series now that he’s running with the ball handed to him by this old Alan Moore script (who wrote it back in the late 90s before Awesome went belly-up and it was never published). Could be fun to see how Supreme handles having his world overrun by a legion of evil Darius Daxes. 

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY

19. My Favorite Martian (Hermes Press, 2012) **¾
Writers/artists: Dan Spiegle & ???
Reprints from the early 60s. The big question is, “Why?”
20. Barnaby And Mr O’Malley (Fantagraphics Books, 2012) **
Writer/artist: Crockett Johnson
21. Yo Gabba Gabba! (Oni Press, 2012) **
Writers/artists: various
22. Mouse Guard, Labyrinth And Other Stories (Archaia Entertainment, 2012) *****
Writers/artists: various
23. Burt Ward: Boy Wonder/Wrath Of The Titans Classic (Bluewater Comics, 2012) DUD
Writers: Darren Garnick & Burt Ward (Burt Ward); CW Cooke (Titans)/Artist: Ramon Salas
24. The Incredible Rockhead/Zinc Alloy (Capstone, 2012) ***
Writers: Scott Nickel (Rockhead); Donald Lemke (Zinc Alloy)/Artists: CS Jennings (Rockhead); Doug Holgate (Zinc Alloy)
25. Buffy The Vampire Slayer/Alabaster/The Guild (Dark Horse, 2012) ****
Writers: Andrew Chambliss (Buffy); Caitlín R. Kiernan (Alabaster); Felicia Day (The Guild)/Artists: Georges Jeanty, Dexter Vines & Michelle Madsen (Buffy); Steve Lieber (Alabaster); Jonathan Case, Adam Rex (The Guild)
26. Top Shelf Kids Club (Top Shelf, 2012) ***
Writers/artists: various
27. Overstreet’s Comic Book Marketplace (Gemstone, 2012) *½
28. World’s Most Dangerous Animals (Animal Planet, 2012) ½*
Writers/artists: various
29. Spider-Man: Season One (Marvel, 2012) **¾
Writer: Cullen Bunn/Artists: Neil Edwards & Karl Kesel
30. Image 20 (Image, 2012) ***¼
Writers/artists: various
31. Zombie Kid (Antarctic Press, 2012) ***½
Writer: Fred Perry/Artists: Brian Denham, Fred Perry (cover)
32. Peanuts/Adventure Time With Finn & Jake (Kaboom!, 2012) **¾ 
Writers/artists: various
33. Donald Duck Family Comics (Fantagraphics, 2012) ***¼
Writer/artist: Carl Barks
34. Voltron: Shelter From The Storm (Viedia, 2012) DUD
Writer: Brian Smith/Artist: Jacob Chabot
Utter shit.
35. The Stuff Of Legend/Finding Gossamyr (Th3rd World Studios, 2012) **** (Legend)/** (Gossamyr)
Writers: Mike Raicht & Brian Smith (Legend),  David A. Rodriguez (Gossamyr)/Artists: Charles Paul Wilson III (Legend), Sarah Ellerton (Gossamyr)
The latest sneak peek of The Stuff of Legend – about children’s toys searching for a missing child – is beautifully illustrated and written. Finding Gossamyr might have some promise, but it didn’t really grab me. The sub-Harry Potter plot kinda left me cold.
36. Moomin Valley Turns Jungle/Anna & Froga (Drawn & Quarterly, 2012) **
Writer/artist: Tove & Lars Jansson (Moomin), Anouk Ricard (Anna & Froga)
Just plain weird. And not really something that kids would dig, I imagine.
37. Graphic Elvis (Liquid Comics, 2012) **½
Writers/artists: various
38. Valiant 2012 (Valiant, 2012) **
Writers/artists: various
39. Superman: Family Adventures/Green Lantern/Young Justice (DC, 2012) **
Writers/artists: various
Kinda yawns-ville.
40. The New 52! (DC, 2012) **½
Writers/artists: various
Terra’s alive? Fuck this shit!
41. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron 0.1 (Marvel, 2012) ***
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis/Artists: Bryan Hitch & Paul Neary
Looks nice, but I won’t get drawn into another Bendis-helmed brainfuck that goes nowhere and signifies nothing.

STUFF THAT WASN’T FREE COMIC BOOK DAY COMIX, BUT I SCORED FREE ON THE DAY

42. Countdown #16 (DC, 2008) **½
Writers/artists: various
Completely irrelevant now, which explains why it was free.
43. Gen 13: Ordinary Heroes #1 (Image, 1996) ***½
Writer: Adam Hughes/Artists: Adam Hughes & Mark Farmer
I’ve never read Gen 13 before but...c’mooooooon! It’s Adam fuckin’ Hughes! Big-breasted women! This comic is sweet! And I’ve already ordered the second ish of this two-parter to see how it ends.
44.-45. Army Of Darkness: Shop Till You Drop Dead #2, #4 (Dynamite, 2005) **
Writer: James Kuhoric/Artist: Nick Bradshaw
46. Avengers Sampler #1 (Marvel, 2012) ***
- originally published in The Avengers #1 (Marvel, 2010)
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis/Artists: John Romita Jr & Klaus Janson
47. Ultimate Spider-Man Premiere Comic #1 (Marvel, 2012) **
Writers: Chris Eliopoulis & Paul Dini/Artists: Rich Ginter & Jeff Suter
More a storyboard of an animated episode than a real comic. Underwhelming and pointless.
48. Daredevil #66 (Marvel, 2004) ****
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis/Artist: Alex Maleev
49. Freshmen #1 (Image/Top Cow, 2006) *½
Writer: Hugh Sterbakov/Artists: Lenoard Kirk & Andrew Pepoy
Considering Sterbakov co-created this “superheroes-in-college” miniseries with Seth Green, I expected more. But it was pretty meh.

MINI-COMIX MADNESS FROM POOPSHEET SALE

50. Fork Frenzy (self-published, ??) **
Writer/artist: Levon Jihanian
Bizarro mundane superheroics (with added bloody murder) plus robot/monster mayhem. Disturbing.
51. Nuts! #2 (Bantam Books, 1985) **
Writer/artists: Harvey Kurtzman, etc.
52. Legion Of Super-Heroes Sketchbook (self-published, 2004) ***½
Writer/artist: David King
This was pretty cool. Glad I scored this.
53. Rattletrap #1 (self-published, 2000) ***
Writer/artist: Jerry Smith
Classic Miracle Force fun and action. I loved this superhero team and I wish Jerry would produce more issues.
54. Eight Pages Until I Die (self-published, 2005) ***½
Writer/Artist: Dan Lauer
55. The League Of Mikes (self-published, 1983) ***
Writer/artist: Matt Howarth
56. Star Jaws by Will Eisner (Scholastic, 1978) **½
Bad Star Wars and Jaws-related gags. But, hey, it’s Eisner!
57. U-Comix #146 (??, 1992) unrated
It’s all German to me. But, hey, some nice Euro-art in it and there’s also Tank Girl (also in German).
58. One Thursday (self-published, ??) **½
Writer/artist: Lara Miller
59. The Plot Thickens (Armchair Comics, 1997) **¾
Writer: Gavin Burrows/Artist: Adrian Stapleton, Simon Gane & Pete Doree
60. Monkey Squad One #7 (self-published, ??) **½
Writer/artist: Doug Michel
61. Pater Contrarius (Robot Publishing Co., 1999) ****
Writer/artist: Cathy Malkasian
62. Va Va Va Voom!! (Schwing !comix, 1994) **¼
Artists : various
63. Estrogen #5 (self-published, 2006) **½
Artist: Tom Brinkmann
64. Da Soopa Tooth ‘N’ Flossie #1 (self-published, 1988) *
Writer/artist: Scooter

AND PROVIDED FREE WITH MY PACKAGE OF VINTAGE MINICOMIX, RICKO GAVE ME—

65. The Ren & Stimpy Show #23 (Marvel, 1994) **½
Writers: Barry Dutter & Scott Benson/Artists: Ken Mitchroney & Buz McKim
The “wrestling” issue. I actually have the Aussie reprint published by Trielle Comix, but this is the original. Nice stuff.
66. Transvestic (Sorceror Studios, 2012) ***
Writer/artist: RastaWayneo
Famous trannies of our time.

MORE STUFF

67. The Guild: Fawkes (Dark Horse, 2012) ***¼
Writers: Felcia Day & Wil Wheaton/Artist: Jamie McKelvie
68.-74. Red Rocket 7 (Image, 2008) ***¼
- originally published in Red Rocket 7 #1-7 (Dark Horse, 1997)
Writer/artist: Michael Allred
75. Victorian Secret: Girls Of Steampunk (Antarctic Press, 2011) **¾
Artists: Brian Denham, Rod Espinosa, David Hutchison, Ben Dunn and Kelsey Shannon
Despite my best efforts, I was unable to orgasm while looking at this collection of girly pin-ups.
76. Sidekick #7 (Future Publishing, 2012) ***½
Writers/artists: various
Free with Comic Heroes #11, this sampler comic is the best one yet, featuring some classic Anderson Psi Division by Alan Grant and Romero, Hellraisers (featuring Oliver Reed) and more.
77. Batman Incorporated #1 (DC, 2012) ****¼  
Writer: Grant Morrison MBE/Artist: Chris Burnham
Yes, as good as everyone says it is. And, yes, Burnham’s art looks impressively similar to Frank Quitely. And, yes, it DOES make me wanna buy the original series in TPB. Fantastic!
78.-80. Seaguy TPB (Vertigo, 2005) ***¼
- originally published in Seaguy #1-3 (Vertigo, 2004)
Writer: Grant Morrison MBE/Artist: Cameron Stewart
Not as bad as I’d been led to believe, but somewhat confusing at the end. I guess it can be explained away as this is really just the first volume in a trilogy. I’m intrigued to read more.
81. Mind MGMT (Dark Horse, 2012) ****
Writer/artist: Matt Kindt
82.-87. Red Hulk: Scorched Earth TPB (Marvel, 2011) ***¾
- originally published in Hulk #25-30 (Marvel, 2011)
Writer: Jeff Parker/Artists: Gabriel Hardman, Ed McGuinness & Dexter Vines, Mark Robinson, Ben Oliver, etc
88.-91. Green Arrow #12-15 (DC, 2002) ***½
Writer: Kevin Smith/Artists: Phil Hester & Ande Parks  
The first appearance of Onomatopoeia. “Snap.”
92.-94. Stormwatch #10-11 & WildC.A.T.S./Aliens #1 (Image, 1998) ***
Writer: Warren Ellis/Artists: Bryan Hitch & Paul Neary, Michael Ryan & Luke Rizzo (S); Chris Sprouse & Kevin Nowlan (W/A)
The death of Stormwatch and the birth of The Authority. Of historical interest only.
95.-99. The Iron Age Alpha, The Iron Age #1-3, The Iron Age Omega (Marvel, 2011) ***
Writers/artists: various
Iron Man travels back to the 70s and 80s-style Marvel era. A fun idea but it lacked something in the execution.
100. The Hidden by Richard Sala (Fantagraphics Books, 2011) ***½
Very nasty horror tale about a mad Frankenstein-like scientist creates a monster-fuelled Armageddon.

COMICS READING FOR APRIL: “Over the Rainbow (but I didn't make 50 issues for the month)”

* NOW WITH STAR RATINGS (ala Wrestling Observer Newsletter PPV reports) *

HOW I RATE THE COMICS VIA THE ALAN MOORE SCALE

*****   Watchmen, Marvelman, V For Vendetta
****     From Hell, Supreme, Swamp Thing, Whatever Happened To The Man Of Tomorrow?
***        League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the first two series), Axel Pressbutton, Tom Strong
**           Promethea
*             LoEG: Century: 1969
DUD  (or lower)     anything he’s written for Avatar or any of the non-comics drivel he shits out on a regular basis

1. Axa 5 (Ken Pierce, Inc, 1984) **½
Writer: Donne Avenell/Artist: Enrique Romero
This collection of newspaper strips starring the sexy – often nude – future warrior woman Axa wandering Earth following an age-old catastrophe brought back fond memories for me reading her weekly adventures in The Melbourne Truth during the early 80s. The strip was written by Englishman Avenell, but was the creation of Spanish artist Romero. It ran for years in The Sun in England. This collection is a rollicking read – as most daily adventure strips have to be – and Romero’s art (generally) is a stand-out. He sure knows how to draw naked women.
2. Gun Nut Funnies (self-published, 2011) DUD
Writer/artist: Karno
A truly disturbing, paranoia-filled, pro-gun rant masquerading as a self-help manual. Yep, if you spend your life walking round a’feared that you may have to shoot someone dead one day, then deal with “the corrupt system” afterwards…well, this comic’s for you. Befriending lawyers on gun ranges, carrying a video camera pen on your person, life’s just a bed of roses for this idiot. I don’t know what happened to “Karno” in the past, but it’s totally fucked up his outlook on life – I would NOT want to live inside his head. For contact details, email author Kjartan Arnorsson at kjartana@comcast.net.
3. Showman? The Bret Braddock Adventures, Vol. 2: Overtime Approved (self-published, 2012) ****
Writer/artist: David Blumenstein
The probably true story of hideous “entrepreneur” Bret Braddock continues in David’s biting, absurd look at the making of a children’s animated TV series. Bret is an arrogant idiot and he surrounds himself with highly paid sycophantic idiots. But the biggest idiots are the nice folk who work long hours for little pay to make Bret’s stupid TV show, The Magic Kofta, come to life. If it wasn’t so funny, it’d be pathetic. There’s a happy ending…of sorts. To order your copy, write to Nakedfella Productions, PO Box 361, Flinders Lane, Vic, 8009, AUSTRALIA, email office@docklandsentertainment.com,or head to www.nakedfella.com.
4. Hilly Rose’s Space Adventures #1 (Astro Comics, 1995) **
Writer/artist: BC Boyer
Nice Eisner-style art by the guy behind Eclipse’s The Masked Man, but it’s ruined by pedestrian scripts and lame humour. Meh.
5. Kill The Face #3 (ACE Comics, 1987) DUD
Writer: Joe Gill/Art: Steve Ditko & Rick Altergott
The nice Alex Toth cover saves this from negative stars, but this terrible comic single-handedly destroyed any interest I have in Ditko’s post-Spidey work. I gather he had a heavy hand in these scripts and it shows: ineptly written, heavy-handed and nonsensical in parts. This by-the-numbers superhero vs drug dealers shite was clearly written by dudes who’ve never touched the stuff. Cocaine users are depicted as the worst kind of heroin junkies. And clearly Gill and Ditko don’t know how police procedure works either. Godawful on every level. Even Ditko’s pencils are rudimentary and inker Altergott sucks arse. The back-up strip Who Dunnit (anonymous writer/art by Fred Guardineer) is nicely rendered, even if the murder mystery storyline is boring. Not sure if it’s a reprint or not. ACE Comics was clearly an ambitious line that promised way more than it could deliver. The Face (a public domain superhero from the 1940s) now resides in the Dynamite universe.
6. OMAC #1 (DC, 1991) **½
Writer/artist: John Byrne
Pleasant B&W art, but I can’t think of a single reason why I’d buy any further issues of this prestige-format four-issue series.
7. Nexus: The Origin (Rude Dude Productions, 2007) ***
Writer: Mike Baron/Artist: Steve Rude
I think I’ve already read this before. The Dude’s art is nice as always and Baron does a good job recapping the origin of the superhero with a tragic destiny. Of course, whenever I see Rude’s work I think to myself, “Oh how the mighty have fallen.” Arrogance will only take you so far, arsehole.
8.-9. Loose Ends #1-2 (12-Gauge, 2011) ****½
Writer: Jason Latour/Artist: Chris Brunner
I fucking love this southern noir tale of desperate drug runners and fallen women in dead-end towns. Hell, I drove through a few of those when I travelled round the States. Love this comic. Brunner’s art is sensational. Word is the fourth and final issue will be published soon. Bloody hope so!

TIME OUT FOR...

A quick whinge. Colourists are just dudes with fancy crayons who colour in between the lines. They don’t deserve their only credit on the fucking cover of a comic book. Jesus!

10. Red Rocket 7 #1 (Dark Horse, 1997) ****¼

Writer/artist: Mike Allred
Fucking sensational comic about an alien and his experience living through the birth and growth of rock’n’roll in America. It’s a sci-fi epic and rock history tour spun into one trippy tale by Allred. I cna’t wait to read the rest of this series.
11.-33. Marvel Essential Captain America Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2010) ***¾
- originally published in Tales Of Suspense #59-99, Captain America #100-102 (Marvel, 1964-68)
Writer: Stan Lee/Artists: Jack Kirby, Gil Kane and friends
I fucking love Kirby’s artwork, but too much Stan Lee bombast in one sitting did my head in. Repetition was the key to Stan’s writing. And while this is fine in monthly 10-page doses, it wears thin when you read four years’ worth of material in one sitting. Still, Kirby’s art is brilliant as always and this collection features some classic moments: the introduction of Batroc The Leaper, The Red Skull, Agent Sharon Carter and so much more. There’s also a hidden gem in the heart of this massive volume: Gil Kane’s delightful run from #88-91, relating a Red Skull encounter in fine style. 
34. Stieg Larsson’s The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo: Free Special Edition Preview (Vertigo, 2012) **¾
Writer: Denise Mina/Artists: Leonardo Manco & Andrea Mutti
You’ve read the books, you’ve watched the original Swedish films, you’ve seen the inferior American version. Now, read the comic! Actually, it’s not too shabby and, as I’ve not had anything to do with the books and films, caught my interest. I may get this title.
35. Gearhearts Steam-Punk Glamor Revue #1 (Antarctic Press, 2011) **
What the world needs – steampunk porn. What the world DOESN’T need – softcock steampunk “glamma”. Get your tits out, ladies! I hate any softcore porn mag where the articles are more interesting than the pictorials.
36.-38 WE3 (Vertigo, 2005) ****¼
- originally published in WE3 #1-3 (Vertigo, 2004)
Writer: Grant Morrison/Artist: Frank Quitely
A quick read (I read the graphic novel twice in a half-hour train trip), but insanely good. And weirdly moving (especially if you own a pet dog, cat or rabbit).

39. Legends Of Arzach: Gallery Four: The Rock Of Everlasting Despair (Tundra, 1992) ****

Not really a comic, but I read it in honour of the late, great Moebius. This set of portfolio prints features full-colour pin-ups by the likes of Richard Corben and John Buscema. Plus there are B&W illos by Moebius himself in a prose section that chronicles theongoing adventures of his iconic sci-fi hero. Good stuff.
40. Lady Mechanica #3 (Aspen, 2012) **½
Writer/artist: Joe Benitez
I buy this comic for the steampunk imagery and the good-girl pin-ups of the title character. I don’t buy it for the plot, especially when it degenerates into page after page of long-winded, repetitive dialogue that leads nowhere. Benitez is no writer, that’s for sure.

41. The Rainbow Orchid Vol. 1 (Egmont, 2009) ****¼
Writer/artist: Garen Ewing
I’ve hear about this Tintin-like pastiche adventure yarn forever, and loosely followed Ewing’s trials and tribulations in getting it published. Well, Volume 1 came out quietly and I stumbled across it in Adelaide at a remaindered bookstore. Picked it up, read it and bloody loved it. Tintin fans would approve, but me? I can’t stand Tintin and I STILL loved it. Anyway, after reading the first volume I was moved to buy the next two volumes off Amazon.co.uk. Can’t wait to read them.  

Kirby Your Enthusiasm, ep. 20: The "On The Road" edition

IN WHICH I'm joined by my wife Helen during a roadtrip across country New South Wales and we discuss Derf Backderf's stunning new graphic novel MY FRIEND DAHMER (which got a rare five-star rating from me last month).
It's 24 minutes of interesting discourse accompanied by the background noise of our 1999 Subaru Impreza pinging along the highway at 110kmh.

The link is here.

And buy MY FRIEND DAHMER - it really is one of the best graphic novels to have been published this century. Compelling, terrifying, shocking and...ultimately...very, very sad.

COMICS READING FOR MARCH: “Jeffrey Dahmer and Kevin Smith”

* NOW WITH STAR RATINGS (ala Wrestling Observer Newsletter PPV reports) *

HOW I RATE THE COMICS VIA THE ALAN MOORE SCALE

*****   Watchmen, Marvelman, V For Vendetta
****     From Hell, Supreme, Swamp Thing, Whatever Happened To The Man Of Tomorrow?
***        League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the first two series), Axel Pressbutton, Tom Strong
**           Promethea
*             LoEG: Century: 1969
DUD  (or lower)     anything he’s written for Avatar or any of the non-comics drivel he shits out on a regular basis

1. Fearless Dawn: The Secret Of The Swamp (Asylum Press, 2012) ***

Writer/artist: Steve Mannion
2. King! #1 (Blacklist Studios, 2007) ***½
Writer: Thomas Hall/Artist: Daniel Bradford
3. Thought Bubbles #1 (Image, 2011) ***½
Writers/artists: various
4. Mondo #1 (Image, 2012) ***¾
Writer/artist: Ted McKeever
5.-7. Batman: Cacophony (DC, 2009) ***¼
- originally published in Batman: Cacophony #1-3 (DC, 2009)
Writer: Kevin Smith/Artists: Walt Flanagan; Adam Kubert, Bill Sienkiewicz (covers)
8. Handball Heaven (Milkshadow Books. 2011) ****
Writer/artist Ben Hutchings
Hutcho wordlessly depicts the most awesome handball game ever! What starts out as a simple game between two teenagers quickly escalates to Matrix-like levels, where every part of their bodies is used to keep the ball in play. Eventuallty, these modern-day gods ascend to the sky to finish the match. Who will be victorious? Beautifully drawn stuff.
9. Walking To Japan (Milkshadow Books. 2011) ****
Writer/artist Ben Hutchings
Hutcho decides to walk from Australia to Japan, expanding to Godzilla size to do so. The tabloid-sized pages really get across the majesty of Hutcho’s adventure as ocean liners and whales get tossed about as he wades through the sea. His journey ends when he shrinks down to meet friends in a Tokyo bar – a surprisingly warm, intimate ending to such an epic tale.
10. Strip Show (Milkshadow Books. 2011) ***
Writer/artist Bruce Mutard
He’s a serious graphic novelist now (The Bunker, The Silence, etc), but there was a time when Aussie writer/artist Bruce was a dirty-minded cartoonist doing scatological toons featuring big-breasted women. I miss those days. This is a collection of Bruce’s earliest works from the 1990s and early 2000s and, as expected, is a mixed bag. He draws hawt women, though.
11. Zombolette (Milkshadow Books. 2011) ***
Writer/artist Scarlette Baccini
Baccini’s politically incorrect cartoon stars a zombie chick who’s more into being antisocial than eating brains, who lives with her oversized hamster housemate/friend Cameron. And a walrus. If you’re easily offended, don’t check it out. If you like cheap laffs and gross-out moments, then there’s plenty to recommend this collection of B&W strips.
12.-25. The Compleat Terminal City (Dark Horse, 2012) ***½
- originally published in Terminal City (Vertigo, 1996-97) & Terminal City: Aerial Graffiti (Vertigo, 1998)
Writer: Dean Motter/Artists: Michael Lark, Mark Chiarello (covers)
I really wanted to like this collection way more than I did. Motter’s half-arsed plotting let me down in the end. The artwork is stunning though.
26. Thorgal: The Invisible Fortress (9^th Cinebook, 2011) **½
Writer: Jean Van Hamme/Artist: Grzegorz Rosiński 
Beautiful-looking art, nothing storyline. Typical Euro-stuff in that 70s tradition, even though it was first published in 1993.
27. Space Warped #2 (Kaboom!, 2011) *
Writer: Hervé Bourhis/Artist: Rudy Spiesert
I picked up this damaged copy from Kings Comics for a buck, mistakenly thinking it was the first issue of Roger Langridge’s Snarked! (I was actually looking at the back cover ad by mistake). Instead, I got some Euro-humour mag based loosely on Star Wars. It was kinda puerile and sucked...maybe it lost something in the translation.
28. DC’s Greatest Imaginary Stories (DC, 2005) ***½
Writers/artists: various
Classic imaginary tales of the 1940s, 50s and 60s starring Superman, Batman, Lois Lane, The Flash and more. Deliriously stupid – and waaaaaay more enjoyable now than when I first read them as a kid.
29. Victorian Secret: Girls Of Steampunk Summer Catalog (Antarctic Press, 2011) **½
Someone at AP was masturbating furiously as they compiled this collection of pin-ups. The pick of the artists is Brian Denham.
30. Uzumaki Vol. 1 (Viz, 2001) ****¼
Writer/artist: Junji Ito
I hate manga but this creepy, spiral-obsessed horror comic is superb, and better than the unsettling movie that followed it.
31. My Friend Dahmer (Abrams Comicsart, 2012) *****
Writer/artist: Derf Backderf
One of the best graphic novels I’ve ever read. Period. Full review in ROGUE #2.
32. By The Slice (self-published, 2011?) ***
Writer:  Giulie Speziani /Artist: Cecilia Latella
A slice-of-life tale about a uni graduate getting a job at a pizza parlour and dealing with the bigoted, mean-spirited, petty-minded owner. Speziani appears to be writing from personal experience. The art by Latella is straightforward but perfect for the down-to-earth nature of the comic. I liked it a lot. For contact details, email giuliespeziani@gmail.com or go to gingerrabbitstudio.blogspot.com.

Kirby Your Enthusiasm, ep. 19: Got Milkshadow?

IN WHICH I review several books and comics sent to me by Aussie publishing house Milkshadow Books (www.milkshadowbooks.com or milkshadow.wordpress.com.

Running time: 18 min.
http://kirbyyourenthusiasm.libsyn.com/webpage/kirby-your-enthusiasm-ep-19-got-milkshadow-

Thanks to James Andre for sending me the books. :)

KYE ep. 18: Daytripping

WHERE I talk about my indy read-fest from last month. Maus, Daytripper, lots of Jason Lutes and Adrian Tomine...and more.

Oh...and I forgot to mention Mr Wonderful by Dan Clowes. That was also an excellent read. :)

Running time: approx. 25 minutes
http://kirbyyourenthusiasm.libsyn.com/webpage/kye-ep-18-daytripping

COMICS READING FOR FEBRUARY: “It’s an indy kinda summer”

* NOW WITH STAR RATINGS (ala Wrestling Observer Newsletter PPV reports) *

HOW I RATE THE COMICS VIA THE ALAN MOORE SCALE

*****   Watchmen, Marvelman, V For Vendetta

****     From Hell, Supreme, Swamp Thing, Whatever Happened To The Man Of Tomorrow?

***        League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the first two series), Axel Pressbutton, Tom Strong

**           Promethea

*             LoEG: Century: 1969

DUD  (or lower)     anything he’s written for Avatar or any of the non-comics drivel he shits out on a regular basis

1. Jar Of Fools  by Jason Lutes (Faber & Faber, 2008) ****¼  

2.-9. Berlin Book One: City Of Stones by Jason Lutes (Drawn & Quarterly, 2001) ****½

- originally published in Berlin #1-8

10.-17. Berlin Book Two: City Of Smoke by Jason Lutes (Drawn & Quarterly, 2009) ****½

- originally published in Berlin #9-16

18. Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine (Faber & Faber, 2007) ****

19. Scrapbook: Uncollected Work: 1990-2004 by Adrian Tomine (Drawn & Quarterly, 2005) ****

20. Mister Wonderful by Daniel Clowes (Pantheon Books, 2011) ****

21. Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman (Penguin Books, 1986) *****

22. Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began (Pantheon, 1991) *****

23. Breakdowns: Portrait Of The Artist As A Young %@?*! (Viking, 2008) ***

- originally published as Breakdowns (Belier Press, 1977)

24.-33 Daytripper by Fábio Moon & Gabriel Bá (Vertigo, 2011) ****¼

- originally published in Daytripper #1-10 (Vertigo, 2010)

34. De:TALES by Fábio Moon & Gabriel Bá (Dark Horse, 2010) ***

35. Salem Brownstone: All Along The Watchtowers by John Hattis Dunning & Nikhil Singh (Walker Books, 2009) **