DC News & Views 3.7.04

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(This is only the second column Tim has submitted since losing to my mother two years in a row in their epic three year rivalry in our Oscar pool. Let’s see whether or not he’s recovered…-B)

It’s Spring Break and I am off to warm, sunny, gorgeous…Philadelphia. For a weekend. Before I go right back to work. Man, being a grad student is nothing like being a college student was.
Anyway, here’s the fun. You get to see me do all sorts of fawning this time around, which, I assure you, is always a blast.

This is Going to Be Way Better than Cop Rock Season 2

To sum up the first twelve issues of SLEEPER by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips is to willingly watch a man sink deeper and deeper into hell. Hell-TV is back on the air starting in June, when SLEEPER Season Two starts, continuing the story of (now) former double agent Holden Carver.

And make no mistake – Carver is in deep – a post-human (he feels no physical sensation, his body quickly repairs any injuries be they life threatening or just a paper cut, and he transmits the pain he collects – that is, if he gets shot, he can pass on that physical sensation to the next person he touches, which is often enough to kill a human operative, he’s been working his way into the criminal organization established by the enigmatic artificial lifeform called Tao, short for Tactically Augmented Organism.

The crux of the series is that as far as the operation went, Holden wasn’t supposed to be alone. His handler, John Lynch was to have been there at a moment’s notice, ready to pull him out if things got too hot, but more importantly, keep the file on Carver active so that when Holden eventually did get out from undercover, he wouldn’t be looking at a lifetime behind bars – or worse, thanks to his post-human “condition.”

Go deep undercover for the inside information at Newsarama

I just finished reading Point Blank and the first arc of Sleeper in trade and man, that’s some good reading. A great blending of concepts that are familiar in their own sphere to create a unique comic. By borrowing from the superhero world of comics and the informant/crime fiction realm of storytelling, Brubaker delivers a story that is as seductive as it is chilling.
Wow…if that doesn’t get used on a trade paperback cover someday soon, color me mucho depressed.
Sound byte packaged or not, what I say is true. It may seem like little more than two clichés combining to deliver tired, stale entertainment to the masses on paper, but in the reading it is anything but. If you haven’t been reading it, color me stunned and a little ashamed for you. If you have, well, you know what I am talking about.
Easily the best part of this interview is Brubaker’s dissection of Tao and why he is the way he is. It is a nice spin on the idea of an artificial lifeform lashing out on humanity. A little later in the interview, Brubaker also does a nice job of discussing who is superior, Tao or Holden, and why.
Okay, so the whole thing is pretty good. Go read it already.


The Fastest Selling Man Alive

Just two days after racing into stores on February 25, THE FLASH #207 has sold out at DC Comics. This issue features the first chapter of “Flashback” by writer Geoff Johns (JSA, HAWKMAN) and the new art team of Howard Porter (JLA) & Livesay (Namor) and cover artist Michael Turner (Fathom).

“Geoff and I are having a blast on FLASH, and hearing that sales on #207 were so strong has energized us even more,” says Porter. “I can’t wait for people to see what we have in store for them – it just gets bigger and better! I’m so jazzed to be a part of some of the Flash’s best adventures. Now if I could only stop running around the house in my red and yellow underwear my wife would be much happier.”

Catch up with the Scarlet Speedster at Newsarama

Ahh, finally, one of my titles sells out. Well, not one of mine, personally. I do not write, draw, or edit, but then, I am sure you already knew that. No, by mine, I mean one of the titles I have been reading for months. I’m like the few Americans who knew about the Beatles before they landed on American shores. What? Well, I don’t care if you think that was an overstatement. Long story short, I was into Flash before Flash was cool. So there.
By the way, this is another great book. Get it. I heard Geoff Johns will fly to your house and thank you personally. Can’t corroborate that, it’s just what I heard.


Prepare to be BYRNE-D!!!

John Byrne is a very busy man in comics. One of his upcoming projects, a six-part arc of JLA entitled 10th Circle will begin this March. Joining Byrne on that project are Chris Claremont and Jerry Ordway. Although tight-lipped about a lot of the story details, Byrne did answer a handful of PULSE queries.

Dare the flames of the Man, the Myth, the Legend at The Pulse

Okay, so I have taken time out to discuss Byrne in this column in the past, and rare are the moments when it was in a complimentary manner. I hope I have never proclaimed his usefulness to comics as being nil, but it wouldn’t shock me if I did. However, I will give the man his due.
The JLA pages look really good. Best work I have seen from him since way back when. None of his Generations work or Spider-Man Chapter One stuff looked this good. Additionally, I am glad that he commented on the interviewers lack of sarcasm radar. I may sometimes look at Byrne’s work and think he is rushing without investing himself in the work, but even I knew he was joking. If the interviewer wanted to call him on being overly flippant, perhaps he’d have a case. But taking that remark about crapping out pages at face value. Well, that’s just plain silly.
I also like Mr. Byrne’s comments on making a storyline worth six issues and for trade release before one goes ahead and does it. If this storyline will in fact meet that criteria remains to be seen, but I like to read it as sort of a meta-commentary on the creative roulette that DC is currently dancing through. In other words, does DC really have the best interest of the title in mind with these insta-trade ready storylines being new creative teams each arc, or is style (or name) being placed above substance? I don’t know the answer yet, but I am intrigued. Of course, Byrne probably did not mean it that way, but that does not mean I can’t dream.
As for the storyline itself, I don’t know why, but I just can’t get excited. Even with Byrne’s art removing one of my concerns, I don’t see myself picking up this title. Maybe I’m just a jerk, I know not. Anyway, I don’t see me buying a JLA issue until this whole creative merry-go-round settles down. I am be being silly, but well, sometimes, I feel like I need to do that.


What, No Spoiler Warning?

Wizard # 150 has revealed the first female Robin in current DCU continuity will be none other than Stephanie Brown a.k.a. The Spoiler. Writer Bill Willingham told Wizard, “She breaks into the Batcave with her homemade Robin suit all sewn up – which actually looks pretty bad. While Tim showed up ready for the job, Stephanie has a lot to learn.”

Read the press release that you already know everything about at The Pulse

So Tim will be replaced by his girlfriend. Reminds me on when my ex-girlfriend got all of my friends, my toys, and my Kevlar lined body suit and cape. What, like that has never happened to you. (This is one of those bizarre share quirks that Tim and I bonded over back when we were school chums. Of course when he had me go with him to confront his ex-girlfriend, it turned out she was just a clay duplicate sent by Tim Sheridan wearing bandages and a trenchcoat…but that’s another story…-Ben)


You May Now Call Him King Hank

Hank Kanalz, formerly of Warner Bros. Consumer Products, has joined DC Comics as VP – General Manager, WildStorm Productions.

“I am thrilled to be part of such a creative and innovative company as WildStorm, especially since they are producing some of the most exciting comics in the market today. It’s an incredible opportunity to work with some of the best creators in the business,” says Kanalz. “I’ve enjoyed working with DC Comics these last few years through the theme park business, and I look forward to this new and thrilling ride with WildStorm. The things I’ve already seen in the pipeline will simply amaze readers… COUP D’ÉTAT is just the beginning!”

Welcome the new Veep at The Pulse

I tired of offering bland congratulations to people who most likely deserve a lot more. So instead, I will let Brandon Peterson offer up his congrats will I nod and smile in the corner: “Congrats, Hank! Wildstorm’s lucky to have him.”– Brandon Peterson.
That’s perfect.


Take a Chance on the Target

Christopher Chance, the Human Target. A man who, in order to hunt down assassins, impersonates their targets.

Hardly the nadir of comic book character creation – or is it?

While Chance first showed up in 1972, he was something of a product of his time – a pulpy-feeling morally ambiguous quasi spy. With a dash of gray at his temples, he had an air of sophistication, but…that modus operandi – to stand in the line of fire, willingly, in order to see who was at the other end of the gun barrel pointed his way.

Immerse yourself in another’s personality at Newsarama

It is like the week of great books or something. Here is another title (along with Flash and Sleeper) who’s praise I cannot possibly sing enough. The pacing and rhythm of both the ongoing and the previous miniseries and one shot do take some getting used to. You do have to read each issue closely to keep track of which one is Chance and which one is the real deal or if anyone there is really the target. For me, though, that is all part of the fun.
The premise that Chance has become so good at being a stand-in for those with a price on their head that he has lost all semblance of himself is a smart, psychologically deep one. The fact that I am pursuing my degree in psych perhaps only enhances the depth of my enjoyment, but it is definitely a title all can enjoy, regardless of prior interests.
With a resume that has (so far) included a black minister, his own former apprentice, a Hollywood producer, a baseball player, and an accountant who pretended to die in the 9/11 disasters, Chance is pulled in some many directions, it is small wonder he has lost himself. The constant change of role for him to play also allows Milligan a chance to embrace all sorts of lingo and manner that define the worlds Chance allows himself to be drawn into.
Long winded explanation now complete. Buy this, buy Flash, buy Sleeper. If not for me, then for the children.


Well, off to Philly I go. Any one from there have any recommendations for me to do while I am there? Any advice would be much obliged.

Love is fleeting. Un Gajje is forever.