Best Comic of the Week:
Wonder Woman #28 – 
Once again, Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang (with some assistance from Goran Sudzuka) provide an excellent issue of Wonder Woman. Diana is working with Artemis and Hermes to try to find Zola, while Cassandra’s forces are closing in on her as well. The First Born gets into it with Apollo on Mount Olympus, and the story edges ever closer to a conclusion (I assume). I don’t remember the last time I read a story that has been as long-running and cohesive as this one in a Big Two superhero comic, and I really hope that this run gets recognized one day for being as remarkable as it is.
Quick Takes:
Alex + Ada #4 – Having found himself to be unhappy with his beautiful and expensive new artificial companion, Alex has found a PrimeWave (think VR internet) forum where he can unlock her higher consciousness, which is highly illegal. It’s been interesting to watch Alex grow over the course of the series, from being someone who was completely self-absorbed, to risking everything because of the discomfort he feels around the robotics industry. Jonathan Luna and co-writer Sarah Vaughn are telling a very interesting story in this series.
Amazing X-Men #4 – As much as I like the endless string of scenes where long-time X-Men are reunited with Nightcrawler (I’m a bit of a sucker for that kind of thing), the rest of this story arc has been very disappointing. We learn in this issue that the Bamfs (who looked completely different when Chris Bachalo was drawing them) are sort of Nightcrawler’s brothers, cementing the Draco storyline, otherwise known as the worst X-Men story ever, into current continuity. Beyond that, the threat posed by Azazel doesn’t feel very serious, and the balance between serious and funny scenes feels off. I wish that the Jason Aaron who writes X-Men comics could be the same Jason Aaron that wrote Scalped…
Animal Man #28 – As Jeff Lemire is ending his time on this title, which will coincide with the end of this title, we get the big finish to the fight with Brother Blood. My interest in this book has been waning pretty heavily lately, and it surprises me that a book written by Lemire and drawn by Rafael Albuquerque would come off feeling kind of mundane; both of these creators are usually much, much better. Everything just feels very predictable here, and like something I’ve read before.
Avengers World #3 – I guess that it’s going to be a while before we see where the three different storylines that Jonathan Hickman launched in the first issue of this series are going to go, as it appears that he’s giving each new issue over to an individual Avenger to deal with their part of the larger tapestry. This entire issue is made up of a fight between Shang-Chi and the Gorgon, and it really gives artist Stefano Caselli a lot of space to show off his skills. I like both of these characters, and so even though it was a very quick read, I enjoyed this book. I wouldn’t want to see every issue be this slight, but it worked here.
Bloodshot and HARD Corps #19 – It’s rare that my opinion of a comic changes so much over the course of a single issue. The beginning of this book, that has Bloodshot and the HARD Corps fighting their former boss to save their current one in Africa, is pretty tiresome, and feels like it’s been written by two guys (Christos Gage and Joshua Dysart, both very talented writers) just going through the motions, but as the comic progresses, it becomes a lot better. I liked learning about Vagabond’s past, as the character stopped being so one-note (wasted hobo with super powers) and showed real empathy for an antagonist. I also like the way they are building the relationship between Granite and Kozol, who everyone else sees as pretty evil. The biggest issue with this comic is Bart Sear’s art. I haven’t enjoyed his work since Justice League Europe, and most of his pages look pretty rough. The contrast to Chriscross’s flashback pages is shocking. This book is heading into a crossover with Archer & Armstrong, so I’m going to stay with it for that long at least, but it really needs to establish itself as a viable ongoing series. I’d like to see Dysart and Gage make it be about more than just Project Rising Spirit’s problems.
BPRD Hell on Earth #116 – The second issue of ‘The Reign of the Black Flame’ takes us deeper into Manhattan, and shows us how the Zinco Corporation is treating the people who live under its rule. I am finding this book completely thrilling lately, as two different teams are trying to find out what’s going on in Manhattan, and as Mike Mignola and John Arcudi are finding lots of opportunities to give characters that they’ve been developing for years the chance to really shine and come into their own. James Harren is doing some pretty great work on the art with this arc – balancing strong characters with some pretty chilling moments.
Captain America #17 – Rick Remender is known for building large sweeping stories that move across many smaller arcs, and that’s why I was happy to jump on to Captain America after John Romita Jr. left the title. I didn’t anticipate, however, that one of the main villains in the series would be a new character, Dr. Mindbender. This guy, dressed in ruffled sleeves and a bowtie, has a pipe sticking out of his forehead that keeps up a constant flow of bubbles, and he carries a large candy cane prop. We know he’s been in captivity for fifty years, but he seems to have pretty good knowledge of the modern day. The character just feels off to me, but I do like the way he deals with New Nick Fury. Too often, the New Nick is treated as if he’s an experienced SHIELD agent, while Dr. Mindbender openly discusses his insecurities surrounding his role as a legacy character. Another thing I liked about this issue is that it’s drawn by Nic Klein, who is a very talented and versatile artist. He plays things in a pretty straight manner, but if things start to get psychedelic, he’s the guy I want drawing this book.
Conan the Barbarian #25 – Brian Wood’s two year run with Conan ends this issue, and I’m sorry to see him go. I’d never read anything Conan related before this series launched (except for the Kulan Gath issues of Uncanny X-Men back in the day), and had never been interested in the character. What I was interested in was Wood’s writing, and the stable of artists that worked on this book, starting with the incomparable Becky Cloonan. Wood’s Conan is a very young man who is completely in love with a powerful woman, the Pirate Queen Bêlit. This series has chronicled their love affair, and with this last issue, looks at the aftermath of its end. Conan is in a dark place, and has washed up in a bar in the Black Kingdoms, where he fights any and all comers for beer money. As I don’t know the character well, I’m not sure how different Wood’s portrayal is from Robert Howard’s, or the other writers who have brought him to life in comics, but I like the introspective character that Wood showed us. Leandro Fernandez is the artist for this issue, and his art fits the story very nicely. I’ve always seen this book as being as much a Vertigo comic as a Dark Horse one, because of the people who have drawn it, so having Fernandez, an artist I always associate with that imprint finish off the series just seems right. I’m not sure if I’m going to start picking up the next volume, which is being written by Fred Van Lente, when it begins, but I’ll definitely give it a look.
Daredevil #36 – While I think it’s ridiculous that Marvel is choosing to end this series and relaunch it with the same creative just because Matt Murdock is moving to the West Coast (and of course, not as an excuse to raise the price on the book), I really liked this issue. Murdock outs himself as Daredevil as a way of stopping the Sons of the Serpent from blackmailing him, along the way exposing a good chunk of their leadership. Javier Rodriguez handles the art on this issue, and things look as great as they always do when he comes on-board; you would almost have to read the credits to realize that it isn’t Chris Samnee drawing things. This was a great run on the book, and I have high expectations for where Mark Waid and Samnee are taking things next.
Deadpool #23 – This comic came out last week, but when I saw it on the stands, I just assumed that it was one of the many Deadpool mini-series that are always running, because Mark Brooks’s Aliens homage cover was so hideously ugly and inappropriate to the content and tone of this series. Anyway, Deadpool is on a helicarrier owned by Ultimatum, my favourite of the Marvel terrorist organizations (I’ve always loved their costumes), and he’s on a rampage. I’ve really liked this series, although as we get ready to remove Agent Preston’s personality from Deadpool’s head, my enthusiasm for the title is waning.
Ghosted #7 – For this second arc, Jackson is in Mexico working to rescue a possessed girl for his greatest enemies. Jackson has a hard time keeping friends, but it seems that one of the characters from the first story arc is with him in an unexpected way. I feel like this book is struggling a little to find its place as an ongoing, but I see a lot of potential for good storytelling, so I’m happy to stick with it.
The Midas Flesh #3 – Ryan North’s science fiction epic is a really great read. In this issue, our heroes, who are trying to figure out how to weaponize King Midas’s body, are stopped by Federation fighters. At first, I wondered how this series would be likely to fill an eight-issue run, but I can see that North is starting to spread his story out some, making it more and more interesting and fully-realized. I cannot recommend this series from Boom! enough.
Morning Glories #37 – I saw this week that there is going to be a Chew/Revival cross-over soon, which seems like an odd choice, but then I read this comic, and realized that in a lot of ways, it’s a Morning Glories/Mind the Gap mash-up, as we visit Akiko, who is in a coma. She is our guide throughout the issue, as she revisits various moments in her past, a few in her future, and also checks in on some of her friends. I’m feeling increasingly lost in terms of the plot of this series, but I still like the character work that Nick Spencer does in each issue to keep coming back. I’m hoping that one day I’ll understand what’s going on again.
Uncanny X-Men #17 – Scott Summers dumps his students off in the weird future-bubble that appeared in Montana during Kieron Gillen’s run, as a ‘training exercise’ that doesn’t seem to have any defined point. The have some problems, and then due to the actions of one of the students, run in to SHIELD and a few Avengers. Because of this, the guy is kicked off the team, mainly for revealing his power set to the enemy, despite the fact that a few issues ago, another character was celebrated for using his powers to infiltrate and pull a prank on SHIELD. This issue leaves us with a lot of questions, such as wondering what will stop SHIELD from getting all sorts out of information out of this guy, and just how Summers and crew were monitoring everything going on in Montana. Chris Bachalo’s art does a lot to save this issue, but ultimately, as with much of Brian Michael Bendis’s run, if you spend more than a moment thinking about things, it all falls apart.
Undertow #1 – This was a total impulse buy on my part, but as is usually the case with a new title from Image, I was impressed with what I found. The book began in a confusing manner, but in due time, I figured out that what looked like a science fiction series set on another planet is really set on Earth in the distant past. Civilization has only developed under the ocean, but the Atlantean regime is a fascistic and controlling one, which has led some folk to gather under the banner of Redum Anshargal, who is trying to fight a war of resistance, and figure out ways for his followers to live in the surface world, away from Atlantean control. It’s an interesting concept, and it is wonderfully illustrated by Artyom Trakhanov, whose work reminds me of people like Nathan Fox, Simon Roy (who provided the variant cover I bought), and James Harren. I feel like I need to read this issue again to really appreciate it, and I do know that I will definitely be buying the next issue.
Unity #4 – Four issues in, I feel like Unity has finally figured out what it wants to be as a team book. Gilad, Ninjak and Livewire have decided that Toyo Harada shouldn’t get to keep the X-O Manowar armor they helped him steal from Aric, it’s usual owner, so they infiltrate his base to get it back. Livewire is far and away the most interesting character in this comic; she was one of Harada’s closest acolytes, but now she knows too much about his questionable decisions, and is out to stop him. Matt Kindt is writing her character very well, and she is the one who does the most to bring the team together as an ongoing concern. I’m always happy to see Doug Braithwaite’s art, although it looks like he’s off the title for the next arc. My hope is that it’s because he’s off to work on more Storm Dogs with David Hine…
The White Suits #1 – I liked the White Suits stories that I read a ways back in Dark Horse Presents, but I was on the fence about buying this mini-series, until I learned that it was going to be drawn by Toby Cypress, which then made it a slam dunk. I’ve liked Cypress’s rough pencils since I first saw them, and I really like the way he’s coloured this comic, leaving it mostly in black, white and red, but not adverse to adding other hues in scenes of action and violence. The story is kind of confusing at this point; we know that the White Suits were a group to be feared in Soviet Russia, but now it seems they are killing crime bosses in an unnamed American city. There is a young woman who is either tracking them or working for them, and there is one crime boss who is attempting to bring together all organizations under his control to respond to them. Writer Frank J. Barbiere is more interested in using this issue to establish tone than plot, but I expect more answers to come as the book progresses. If you like original visuals in your comics, this is a good book to check out.
X-Men #11 – I’m not too sure what’s going on with this title. Brian Wood is a writer I respect a great deal, and when he started writing the X-Men in this title’s last incarnation, I thought he had a really good handle on these characters. Now, though, he has Monet and Rachel Grey sniping at each other for reasons I can’t understand, and he’s got characters showing up in two places at once (unless the back-up stories in this issue and the last take place after the main story in both issues, which is just confusing). The threat of Arkea continues to grow, as she goes about resurrecting Selene to aid in her cause, and as the X-characters flop around trying to figure out what her next move is and how to stop her. I especially like the way young Ana Cortes, the current host to Lady Deathstrike is written; I just wish more of the X-Men felt like the characters I know so well. At the same time, Wood is the only current X-writer using the full breadth and depth of the characters associated with the team (to the point where I had to Google the character Cipher, who I’d never heard of before), and that is pretty cool. Kris Anka and back-up artist Clay Mann are doing good work on this title; I just would like to see a little more character consistency.
Comics I Would Have Bought if They Weren’t $4 (or More):
A + X #17
Iron Man Annual #1
Kings Watch #4
Marvel Knights Hulk #3
New Warriors #1
Nova #13.NOW
Punisher #2
Red Sonja #7
Savage Wolverine #15
Superior Spider-Man Team-Up #10
Unwritten: Apocalypse #2
Bargain Comics:
Batwoman #25&26 – I protest-dropped Batwoman when JH Williams and W. Haden Blackman were yanked off the title over their refusal to avoid Batwoman’s marriage to Maggie Sawyer. I waffled a little though, as I’ve long been a fan of replacement writer Mark Andreyko, who I’ve discovered has done a good job of continuing the series. Issue 25 is a Zero Year tie-in, and therefore not a great metre stick to judge by, but issue 26 starts his first real arc, and has Kate and her cousin going up against a costumed art thief. Jeremy Haun is drawing the book now, and that’s a good thing, as I’ve liked his work since he did Battle Hymn with B. Clay Moore a ways back. Andreyko has a good sense of these characters, and while it’s frustrating to see that Williams and Blackman’s story barely gets a mention here (apparently it will be finished in an annual in April), the characters are in good hands. I might think about picking this book up again…
The Bounce #7&8 – I’ve really wanted to get into this Joe Casey series, but it’s still just not working for me. I like the main character, but whenever he’s not on the page, I find the book gets very disjointed and uninteresting. It’s very different from his other series, Sex, which I find fascinating (I thought about headlining this week’s column: Reviewer Prefers Sex to Bouncing, but decided it was gratuitous).
Burn the Orphanage: Born to Lose #2 – Sina Grace and Daniel Freedman’s homage to fighting video games is fun, but about as filling.
Cataclysm: The Ultimates’ Last Stand #3&4 – The first of these two issues is a great Miles Morales-centred comic where he and Ultimate Reed Richards travel to the 616 to figure out how to stop Galactus. The second issue is more of a disaster film, as the Ultimates, and the Ultimate X-Men try to cobble together a plan to stop the destruction of the Earth that involves making Kitty Pryde really big. A large body count is hinted at by the end of the issue, but none of the deaths are confirmed. I think I might pick up the last issue of the mini-series, as Brian Michael Bendis is really making this work.
Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven and the Red Death – Richard Corben tackles the two biggies in Poe’s oeuvre with this one-shot, and it is of course gorgeous. At the same time, perhaps because I’m more familiar with these particular pieces, I feel like the short space given to each adaptation takes away from my overall enjoyment.
Fantastic Four #15&16 – This latest volume of the Fantastic Four ends much like the rest of Matt Fraction’s run – it’s acceptable, but not terribly impressive. I hope that James Robinson has more luck with the team in his series starting next week, but the truth is, Marvel’s ‘first family’ is incredibly difficult to make work. John Byrne managed, as did Jonathan Hickman, but those are the only runs I’ve ever felt the desire to revisit (I missed out on Mark Waid’s run completely; maybe it’s just as good).
Kings Watch #1&2 – I don’t normally pay any attention to the licensed comics that Dynamite puts out (except for Gail Simone’s Red Sonja), but I really like Jeff Parker’s writing, and his ability to make editorially-driven ideas work. This series mashes together Flash Gordon, Mandrake the Magician, and the Phantom (the old King Syndicate properties, which explains the title) into a single story, where a strange portal is opening up on Earth, causing everyone to experience bad dreams, and letting lizard creatures loose in the jungles of Tanzania. The first issue is a little rocky, but by the second, Parker has things well in hand, and is building a plausible adventure story. Marc Laming’s art is nice; I enjoyed his Planet of the Apes work, so it’s good to see him again here.
Red Sonja #5 – Gail Simone’s storyline is good, as Sonja works towards a confrontation with her opposite figure, Annisia, amid plague and fish-men.
Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi – Force War #1 – I find it odd that John Ostrander spent the first two ‘Dawn’ mini-series building up a lot of animosity between groups of characters, only to have them appear here as allies in a new war. While I’ve always been a huge fan of Ostrander’s writing, and have always appreciated the work of Jan Duursema, his artist collaborator, I felt that the info-dumps in this corner of the Star Wars universe really hurt my enjoyment of the story. Now, a lot of the things that they worked towards are paying off, but I find myself less invested in the story than I would have expected.
The Week in Graphic Novels:
The Grave Doug Freshley
Art by mpMann
I’d always meant to pick upThe Grave Doug Freshley back before Archaia comics imploded for a while, and ended up cancelling the mini-series. By the time it came out in hardcover, I’d kind of forgotten it, until I saw it in a comics store a little while ago.
The main reason why I’d wanted this comic was for the art of mpMann, whose other comics (The Lone And Level Sands, Inanna’s Tears, and Some New Kind of Slaughter) were all pretty impressive. His minimalist cartoony style works very well for comics set in different time periods, and reminds me a little of Darwyn Cooke’s work.
The story of The Grave Doug Freshley can be summed up as “Lone Wolf and Cub set in the Old West, if the Lone Wolf were dead”. A vicious gang of cattle thieves, the Delanceys, have been making life difficult for folk, killing everyone on a ranch before running off with their cattle. They attack the McNally family, killing everyone there except for their young son Bat. Doug Freshley, an old friend of Bat’s father and Bat’s tutor, is also killed, although he gets up shortly after taking a bullet to the head. He rescues Bat from the fire the Delanceys set, and the odd pair head off looking for justice.
The story is a pretty familiar one, although the fact that Doug is dead does add a little twist to things, as does the fact that the Grim Reaper is hunting him. This is a lighthearted and enjoyable comic, and like all Archaia hardcovers, it’s built quite beautifully.
