Welcome to the 5th installment of the new and improved Leave Your Spandex At the Door v.2.0! My column today will be closing up the (also) new and improved Nexus’ first week on the refined review system. I’m very happy to hear from so many of you that you are digging our revamped style!
This week I’m introducing a new column feature, the “Early Bird Reviews”. I will be reviewing the week’s titles in the canon capsule review system, on the same day the titles come out in the US, so you can read your reviews right before you head to your local retailer!
This week’s menu: Virgin lap dances, the end of the world, a nuclear meltdown, a jumbo-sized funeral, a familiar first and the sins of the son”¦ Read on!
American Virgin #1
DC / Vertigo
Writer: Steve Seagle
Artist: Becky Cloonan
Whether they are willing to admit it or not, American Virgin is Vertigo’s big hope for the future of the imprint. With Books of Magick failing miraculously to bring in readers, Swamp Thing getting a lukewarm reception from fans, Lucifer ending in 4 months and the announced ending of the flagship Y the Last Man title next year, Vertigo is in need of some fresh blood. But is American Virgin as hot as everyone is touting it out to be?
That’s actually the question Abbey, my friendly and bunny-cue retailer, asked me, peering over my head as I was going through (see: Byrne-stealing) the advance copy of the first issue. “Is it good?”
Yes, and no. And yes! The plot runs smoothly, we are introduced to the protagonist (hello, Adam! I hear you’re a 20-year old virgin! LOOSER! He he, snort), we learn about his cult-leader status promoting abstinence before marriage to American youth, we hear of his super-hot virgin (yuh-ha!) girlfriend off in a mission somewhere, and we see his problematic family in action.
“Ok so far, I say, it’s well written. But where’s the twist?” Turn the page and watch Adam get abducted by [SPOILERS DELETED] and forced to relinquish his virginity! >Yawn<, anticipated plot point, yet beautifully delivered by the creative team. And some non-gratuitous nudity will certainly please some.
“But still”, I tell Abbey: “where’s the twist that will get me hooked on this stuff?” and BAM: I get to the last page! I gasp loudly and everyone in the store turns to look at me! The last page does indeed deliver a shocking twist that sends waves through the tapestry of Adam’s life as established in this first issue. A tip of the hat to mr Seagle for pulling this off so eloquently, pacing the whole issue in such a way as to fortify the impact of that last page, and in such a masterful way that the reader (or at least, your humble reviewer) doesn’t see it coming.
Didn’t I forget something? Ah, yes: Becky Cloonan! Personally, I am a keen worshipper to the altar of Cloonan, but this issue took a fair while to win me over. The reason being, this is the first time I’ve seen Becky’s art colored by someone else (apart from the DEMO covers) and I’m still not convinced it’s a good choice. Becky is a true artistic chameleon, and here she has changed her inks to accommodate the use of coloring.
She has also tweaked her character design, with more sexually charged designs for the supporting characters to contrast Adam’s “virginal” classic look. Especially in the “seduction” scene, she is strongly channeling a Paul Pope sexual energy that impressed me.
So, back to Abbey’s question. “Is it good?”
“Yes! It’s so good, there should be a Commandment set against it”
Score: A
Tom Strong #36
DC
Writer: ALAN MOORE! (oops, caps)
Artist: Chris Sprouse & Karl Story
Colours: Jose Villarubia
“So, is this actually the end of the world, it’s not just another crossover?” – Smax
Alan Moore returns to the ABC universe to end it all with a big hurrah! The world is ending (literally, courtesy of Promethea. Say thank you to the nice lady Promethea, kids!) and everyone is here: the Family Strong, Smax and Toybox, Jack B. Quick, Cobweb, Splash Brannigan, Jonni Future and so on. Moore handles the end of the world with remarkable flair and humour. He skilfully juggles between profound concepts (how life and time really function the same way as a comic book) and laugh-out-loud dialogue moments. He utilises an old hat trick of the superhero medium to achieve closure and bring cohesion to this classic run (as if actually ending the world in the last issue wasn’t enough!), with an after-life reunion between Tom Strong and his arch-nemesis Paul Saveen and the reveal of a dark dark secret/twist that is deliberately trite and obvious! Let me give a special nod to Jose Villarubia who shines through this issue with his amazing rendering of the characters in the after (or “real” life) with vibrant wash colours. The final page will leave a smile to the reade’s face, as a clever nod to the work of John Byrne and Grant Morisson.
Score: A
New X-Men #24
Marvel comics
Writer: Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost
Artist: Mark Brooks
“So, Kyle and Yost, what do you do with dozens depowered mutant students you have no use for anymore?”
“Why, dear reader, we put them all in one bus and have it explode from a missile attack! And then we bury them.”
And damn if they don’t deliver the best funeral issue I’ve read in comics! The pacing and setting of this issue are very cinematic, constantly jumping back and forth from the funeral taking place now to the events following the explosion. And it all leads to a spine-chilling splash page that firmly solidifies the immense tragedy of what happened last issue and the gravity of the Decimation effect. It’s a pity some of these characters had to die, for me to finally care about them. Mark Brooks impresses me for the first time since I started reading his work with some scene settings and close-up panels in this issue, but his exaggerated vivid style still detracts from the dramatic tone of a story about coping with death. As sad as I was to see Weir and DeFillipis leave, I admit Kyle and Yost are taking the title into exciting new territory by introducing a whole new level of threat and drama into these young characters’ life, which is necessary to galvanise them into the new generation of x-men!
Grade: C
Son of M #4
Company Name: Marvel
Writer: David Hine
Artist: Roy Alan Martinez
As horrid as the whole House of M affair is, I can’t deny the quality of the mini-series that spawned from its aftermath! David Hine continues his recounting of Quicksilve’s deterioration into villainy. In this series, Quicksilver has gained new time travel powers from the abuse of the Terrigen mists and conspires with his future self to revisit his older failed scheme to give his daughter powers, the inhuman way. As of last issue, he has done just that and escaped with Luna to Genosha where he sets his sights on a more global scale solution to the Decimation problem. Thanks to the Genosha setting, we get to check up on some favourite depowered characters: Callisto and someone too obvious to spoil on here. Much like the work Jenkins is doing in Generation M, Hine uses Callisto to show how devastating the loss of their birthright power feels to a mutant. Hine has a knack for revealing hidden facets of established secondary characters, and inducing empathy from the reader. This guy could probably even make us care for Thundebird III!
Grade: B
Firestorm the Nuclear Man #23
DC
Writer: Stuart Moore
Artist: Jamal Igle and Keith Champagne
This is my first exposure to Firestorm. Seeing as how it’s the first OYL issue, I thought it’d be a great jumping-on point. The whole issue is an extended fight scene, with firestorm fighting against some guys I have already forgotten about and slowly building up to the big reveal of the OYL status quo. SPOILERS: The guy who is Firestorm needs to merge with someone else in order to use his powers. And that someone turns out to be DC’s Phoenix knock-off: Firehawk. That in itself isn’t very interesting. The potential for greatness lies in the little side-effect of the process that Firestorm will become the Nuclear Meltdown if he is separated for more than 1 mile from his partner. Moore has already hinted at the fun ramifications of this when the two heroes will want to hang heir masks and get on with their civilian lives but won’t be able to get away from each other, not even for personal outings. An overall average issue that sets up a potentially interesting new run.
Grade: D
Fantastic Four: First Family #1
Marvel
Writer: Joe Casey
Artist: Chris Weston
Joe Casey sets his sights on the First Family of superhero comics, in a project similar in vein to his Avengers mini series from last year, re-examining the events from the first issues of the run from a more personal angle. The story in this issue is told from the perspective of the army officers who take the FF into containment after their crash-land from the trip that gave them their powers. Military settings for comics stories make my eyes go nighty-night, so although I have high regard for Casey as a writer, 95% of the book’s appeal for me was Chris Weston’s art. The first time each of the fou’s powers are introduced in the book, the visual is breath-taking, be it the literally on-fire Human Torch, the textured look for the Thing or the image of Reed’s serpentine arms and legs piling up on the floor and filling a whole room like a can of worms! He has brought up the inherent weirdness and creepiness of these characters abilities by contrasting them to an utterly realistic and stale setting. The First Family looks and feels more alive than ever before!
Grade: C
INDY COMICS PRESS RELEASES:
AdHouse Books is again pleased to announce the publication of another fine comic book for 2006!
Skyscrapers of the Midwest #3
by Joshua W. Cotter
Once again, Joshua W. Cotter puts the “crap” in Skycrapers. This issue is about love and bloody noses, lost toys, broken toys, more giant robots, a chili supper, an elderly man and his dog and the fall of Nova Stealth. Find out why critics and the internet is a buzz about this comic series!
(I got a chance to see Jos’s thumbnail drawings for issue three at last yea’s SPX. They kick butt!)
Skyscrapers of the Midwest #3
56 one-color pages
6.685″ x 10.187″ saddle stitched
$5 US funds
Ship date: June, 2006
You can preorder this comic through Diamond’s April Previews catalog, which hits your local comic shop on 3/22/06.
www.adhousebooks.com
SWASHBUCKLING ADVENTURE AND MORE, ILLUSTRATED!
Eureka Productions is pleased to announce the publication of GRAPHIC
CLASSICS: RAFAEL SABATINI, the thirteenth volume in the GRAPHIC
CLASSICS
series of graphic novels.
The GRAPHIC CLASSICS series presents the works of great authors in
comics
adaptations and heavily-illustrated text. The adaptations are written
at an
adult level, and utilize as much of the authorΉs original language as
possible. Our goal is to create books that are enjoyable for adults,
yet
accessible to children ages twelve and up. This volume is a bit of a
departure in that it features the works of one of the lesser-known
authors
in the series. One of the goals of GRAPHIC CLASSICS is to present
adaptations of the works of worthy authors who may be unfamiliar to
todayΉs
readers.
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: RAFAEL SABATINI features the origin of Sabatini’s
famed
gentleman pirate “Captain Blood”, adapted by Rod Lott and Carlo
Vergara.
Also, a great selection of mysteries and adventure tales illustrated by
Stanley Shaw, Rich Tommaso, Roger Langridge, Jackie Smith, Milton
Knight,
Gerry Alanguilan and Hunt Emerson. With a comics bio of Sabatini by
Mort
Castle, and cover depiction of Captain Blood by Joel F. Naprstek.
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: RAFAEL SABATINI is available in bookstores, comics
shops,
or direct from the publisher at http://www.graphicclassics.com.
______________________
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: RAFAEL SABATINI
Edited by Tom Pomplun
Published February 2006, Eureka Productions
Distributed by Diamond Book Distributors
(ISBN13/978-0-9746648-6-6) (ISBN-10/0-9746648-6-3)
144 pgs, 7 x 10″, paperback, b&w, 4c cover, $11.95
______________________
The Graphic Classics series:
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: EDGAR ALLAN POE (ISBN 0-9712464-9-1)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE (ISBN 0-9746648-5-5)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: H.G. WELLS (ISBN 0-9746648-3-9)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: H.P. LOVECRAFT (ISBN 0-9712464-4-0)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: JACK LONDON (ISBN 0-9712464-5-9)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: AMBROSE BIERCE (ISBN 0-9712464-6-7)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: BRAM STOKER (ISBN 0-9712464-7-5)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: MARK TWAIN (ISBN 0-9712464-8-3)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON (ISBN 0-9746648-0-4)
HORROR CLASSICS: Graphic Classics Volume Ten (ISBN 0-9746648-1-2)
GRAPHIC CLASSICS: O. HENRY (ISBN 0-9746648-2-0)
ADVENTURE CLASSICS: Graphic Classics Volume Twelve (ISBN
0-9746648-4-7)
_________________
Highlights from Dark Horse for June 2006
DARK HORSE COMICS CELEBRATES 20 YEARS!
CONAN #29
Hellboy creator Mike Mignola joins the Conan team for a three part miniseries!
THE KUROSAGI CORPSE DELIVERY SERVICE VOLUME 1 TPB
From the writer of the notorious MPD Psycho and one of the hottest new young artists in Japan.
STAR WARS OMNIBUS: X-WING ROGUE SQUADRON VOL. 1 TPB
One of the most popular storylines in the Star Wars expanded universe starts here!
CHINESE HELLBOY AND ABE SAPIEN TOYS
Dark Horse Deluxe, Imprezzion, and Toy2R team up to bring these Chinese Hellboy and Abe toys to America!
Plus, don’t forget to check out the rest of our June 2006 line-up for more adventures from your favorite characters and products every collector will want to see.
That’s a wrap for this week! I’m awaiting for your comments and feedback through email to Manolis@gmail.com. If you self-publish your own comics or represent an indy comics company, add me to your press release list, and I will run your news in this space every week.
Manolis Vamvounis
a.k.a. Dr. Dooplove
