Welcome back to the 87th installment of the new Leave Your Spandex @t the Door!
Starting with apologies for this week’s delay and last week’s absence of a column. I’m not falling into all habits and next week’s column will be extra-sized to compensate for my tardiness as of late. Thanks to everyone who has communicated in the last weeks about our Sticky interview. There will more similarly-themed features coming soon from us, so keep your eyes peeled!
In other news, LYS@D now has its own MySpace at www.myspace.com/lysad , so be sure to drop by and add me to your friends list!
Panel(s) of the week:
“I’m the GODdamn Batgirl!”
honorary runner-up (Goon Noir):
Wallpaper of the week
I wanted to start a new feature just in honour of one Dwight L. Albatross, editor of Goon Noir this week, who also graced us with this centerfold photo of him (currently my wallpaper):
(used with permission ;) )
THE CROSS BRONX #2
Image Comics
story by MICHAEL AVON OEMING & IVAN BRANDON
art & cover by MICHAEL AVON OEMING
variant cover by DAVE JOHNSON
After a mysterious series of slayings, Detective Aponte is lead into darker and stranger paths of the supernatural as the ghostly killer strikes again in the heart of the Bronx.
THIS ISSUE FEATURES A CHASE, A CURSE, A GUN AND LOTS OF BLOOD. PLUS 30% MORE STORY AT THE SAME PRICE!
32 pg – FC – $2.99
RETAILER WARNING: MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES
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ELEPHANTMEN #3
Image Comics
written by RICHARD STARKINGS
art by FLINT HENRY & TOM SCIOLI
cover LADRÖNN
variant cover BRIAN BOLLAND
27 PAGES OF STORY!
As Hip Flask recovers from his battle with Elijah Delaney, Miki gets A GOOD LOOK at him as they wait for medical help… Meanwhile, Ebony Hide may need help himself after a run-in with gang baron Serengheti in THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM – a special story drawn by GØDLAND’s TOM SCIOLI!
32 pg – FC – $2.99
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FEAR AGENT #8
Image Comics
written by RICK REMENDER
art by JEROME OPENA
cover by TONY MOORE
Heath must face the ghosts of many painful and forgotten memories buried within his subconscious as he returns to the one place he never expected to be again: home. Upon learning the ugly truths of Heath¹s history Mara decides to make her exit.
32 pg – FC – $2.99
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PvP #28
Image Comics
written by SCOTT KURTZ
art & cover by SCOTT KURTZ
July 19 o 24 pg o BW o $2.99
Is Jade Pregnant with Brent’s baby? This is the issue you don’t want to miss!
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STRANGE GIRL #11
Image Comics
written by RICK REMENDER
art & cover by NICK STAKAL
Bethany is forced to take a slight detour… to hell.
32 pg – BW – $2.99
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This week:
X-Men #191
Marvel
Writer: Mike Carey
Artists: Clay Henry
Review Content: After 3 amazing issues of laying out his clues and manipulating his cast into place, Mike Carey finally gathers his new roster in one room and unveils the mysterious origin of the Children of the Vault! Unfortunately this coincides with the familiar fill-in issue by Clayton Henry which takes away from the enjoyment of the issue.
Serafina of the Children of the Vault has invaded the Institute hunting for Sabretooth. After the X-Men took down her brainwashed Canadian pawns (Northstar and Aurora), she has retreated to the Mansion’s infirmary. There, by hacking into the comatose Lady Mastermind, she is using the latte’s illusionary powers to trap Cannonball into an imaginary life. Meanwhile, Sabretooth finally cracks under Cable’s pressure and reveals the origin story of the Children of the Vault to the X-Men, along with his implication in their release.
Contrasting the last all-slugfest issue, this story is almost entirely made up of exposition. The idea of an illusionist creating a false set of memories for her victim isn’t a new idea (going as far back as the infamous Dark Phoenix Saga), but it is something that has been cropping up with increased frequency lately; in fact it’s the focal point of both this X-Men issue and last week’s Astonishing X-Men! But while Cassandra Nova was manipulating Kitty’s memory for a purpose, Serafina here seems to have no immediate purpose to indulge in distracting Cannonball when there’s a school full of X-Men just outside the door. It’s still an enjoyable segment, which (if nothing else) serves to paint a clearer picture of just how ruthless and powerful Serafina is. Out of all the Children she is the only one who immediately stood out and has received the lion’s share of the spotlight in this arc.
When the Children first appeared, with their talk of a ‘secret society’, a ‘new third species’, ‘evolved humans’ and so on, most fans couldn’t help but draw parallels to the uber-botched Neo storyline from Claremont’s X-Men 2000 revamp attempt. Sabretooth’s recounting of their origins dispells such base fears as the children are indeed an original concept in the Marvel Universe; the Children are interesting enough and pack enough power to become a recurring threat for the X-Men and an addition to the X-Mythos (something that hasn’t happened since Morrison’s run). Carey even manages to link them to the dreadful M-Day event which still lingers around the X-verse, but without coming trough as another forced editorial tie-in, instead giving credence to ‘November 2nd’.
As noted on the opening paragraph of this review, not everything about the issue is rose petals. Much like last month’s Uncanny X-Men, Clay(ton) Henry’s fill-in art job cripples the issue. In UXM Henry’s craft was of a high standard but it didn’t fit the feel of the story. Again, this week his art is a major departure from the style Bachalo has established for both this saga; Bachalo has a kanck for creating his signature world within his art, making the characters follow the rules he sets out for them; in this world, it’s entirely normal and aesthetically pleasing to have the main villain dressed in a leather top, arm shackles, a ballarina mini-skirt and disco striped stockings. When someone outside that art school attempts to pull off this design on page, it simply looks ridiculous as it clashes with normal comicbook world perspectives.
For all these reasons, I was glad to hear of Humberto Ramos’ signing up as the new fill-in artist for the following run as he follows a similarly out-of-bounds style that will work well with Bachalo’s designs as the preview cover shows. Meanwhile, I hope Henry is kept well away from the core books and given his own title to play with that will match his style. Alpha Flight v 3 was such a match, but none of his recent assignments (no matter how high profile) have done him justice. Much like Igor Kordey during Morrison’s run, he wastes his opportunity to create a following by delivering insufficient results. Here, the dynamic and easy-to-follow layouts he provides are a step up from Bachalo’s sometimes confusing storytelling, but there’s no effort to colour the characters’ emotions. Every character in every panel has the same face with the large forehead, average Joe nose and squinty eyes, while all women sport the same androgynous build with no hint of feeling in their faces. I can only imagine by reading between the lines of the dialogue that i.e. Rogue is p****d off at Cable assuming command of the team at the end of Sabretooth’s interrogation; indeed, we’re given a close-up panel with just the two of them as he barks commands, but Rogue simply looks bored and expressionless.
At least the cover is still pretty!
Grade: C
Briefly:
Civil War: Young Avengers & Runaways #3
Marvel
Writer: Zeb Wells
Artists: Stefano Caselli
Review Content: A Runaways lays dead (suuure) and a Young Avenger loses a limb as Morrison’s Marvel Boy runs rampant through both teams. Well and Caselli have a stroke of brilliance in the opening sequence, depicting Marvel Boy’s thought process during the battle; the battle is ‘foreshadowed’ by showing Marvel Boy alone in a white-out planning the exact battle moves he will execute two pages later, as the two pages completely overlap in shadow-box mode! The full effect of this is diluted because of the unplanned inclusion of an ad where the second page should have been. Civil War loyalties and politics are set aside for a fast-paced classic Marvel action brawl with emphasis on the good old ultra-violence. I would have expected a more believable reation to a lover’s death than this.
Grade: B
American Virgin #7
Vertigo
Writer: Steve Seagle
Artists: Becky Cloonan and Ryan Kelly
Review Content: Things start to get silly, as American Virgin Adam continues to be pushed into more and more preposterous sexual situations in his quest to track down his girlfriend’s decapitator. Adam follows a lead to an underground gay leather fetish club. He of course gets to dress up in full body sub boy leather gear to attract the attention of the burly leather daddy murderer. The theme for the Melbourne arc (or ‘Going Down’) is sexual identity, and Adam is faced not only with the obvious challenge, but also finding out his sister’s sexuality and being confronted by the over-the-camp transvestite from last issue whom he was trying to proseletize.
The projected theme of the series i the short-termed quest for vengeane, but it is only a ruse Seagle uses to put Adam through his own Sex Odyssey to discover sexuality and test his strict moral code. Seagle has made Adam a believable character by maintaining both viewpoints with the same resolve and leading the character into real life situations and temptations that can either make or break his resolve.
Becky Cloonan is joined in his issue by new regular inker Ryan Kelly (Lucifer, Local) who compliments her linework flawlessly and makes this the best looking book in Vertigo’s line! Honorable mention to the month’s cover by Joshua Middleton which apparently has the straight fans in a hormonal rage! Naughty naughty Vertigo!
Grade: A
Heroes for Hire #2
Marvel
Writer: Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti
Artists: Bill Tucci
Review Content: It’s ironic how a quality title can gain so many new readers once it makes a compromise on its quality!
Wait, that sounded harsh. Let’s look closer.
Daughters of the Dragon is a tie-in for my favourite mini-series this year; it combined stylistically choreographed action, smart quips, great chemistry between the two leading ladies and knock-out art by newcomer Khari Evans. It barely sold in the top 150, with about 10k sales. One quick relaunch, a name change and a fat Civil War mark on the cover and the sales jump to 75k, with the title in the top 30! It’s still a good read, but the magic’s not here anymore.
In its transition from a buddy comic to a team book, the main roster has gone up to eight members with the addition of Black Cat, Paladin, Shang-Chi (why?), former supporting cast Orka and Humbug, and a new Tarantula. Despite the advertised team focus, there simply isn’t enough caption space in the book for all these heroes, so the majority of the book is about Misty Knight, with the rest of the cast featuring as supporting characters/guest stars.
The first storyline is cemented deep in the core of Civil War, with the mercenary team being sent after Captain America. The writers smartly cover all recent developments in the various Civil War titles, like Goliath’s death, to the dissolution of the FF, the prison camp, the new Thunderbolts and the Thor clone! They also take some time off from referencing other titles to provide an alien organ transplant ring interlude which is then linked to Morrison’s New X-Men and his amazingly obscure Skrull Kill Crew mini!
How they even find time to debate Civil War policy with Iron-Man, consult a tracking japanese demon with no asshole, fight Cap and Cage, and get betrayed by one of their own is beyond me! There is too much stuff happening in this issue (the first time I’ve voiced this complaint about a comic), with an effort by the writers to catch the characters up to 5 months of Civil War in a single issue and cover Misty’s viewpoint on all current matters.
Bill Tucci is of course a talented and accomplished artist and a major coup from Marvel, but he hasn’t warmed over to superheroes and the super-male physique yet, telling from the super-bulky Cap rendition who looks ready to pop even though he changes size in every other panel, the dorky leathered up Humbug and the often hastily drawn Paladin. More time to spend on the ladies…
Gray and Palmiotti recently announced their new exclusive with DC which means they will be off this title after issue 7-8, but I may jump off even earlier. H4H is still a good read and the one book that tries to make sense of the pro-reg side’s strategies; it’s just not a book I would heartily recommend to anyone I met anymore.
Grade: C
Secret Six #4
DC
Writer: Gail Simone
Artists: Brad Walker
Review Content: While the newly-revealed Mastermind Vandal Savage wines and dines Dr Psycho and Cheshire (on an old teammate of all things), the Doom Patrol is attacking the Six. Simone and Walker provide a trully violent showdown between the two groups who appear evenly matched until the Mad Hatter tilts the balance in a surprisingly spooky sequence; a tip of the hat to all involved in making this lamest of Batman’s villains into a trully teriifying and formidable villain!
This is the post-IC mini-series I’m most rooting for to see continue as an ongoing after its originally planned 6 issue run. With the extra baggage of the IC crossover out of the way, Simone focuses on her reduced cast and humanizes these villains and scoundrels to the reader by showing their weaknesses, their fears and temptations and even their naughty little bedroom laundry!
An unfotunate coincidence this week will probably be spotlighted on monday’s Lying in the Gutters’s swipe file, but I can always brag I spotted it first as both this week’s Secret Six and 52 feature the same iconic cover motif. Can anyone tell me who was the first cover artist who used this concept?
Grade: A
Supergirl #10
DC
Writer: Joe Kelly
Artists: Ian Churchill
Review Content:SuperGirl goes to High School! She dons a brown wig, glasses and her nerdiest attire to join the humans of her age group! Joe Kelly plays with all the trappings of the teen high-school drama genre and builds an instant classroom supporting cast around ‘Claire’, as she desperately tries to make sense of teenage society rules, not unlike an alien Lindsay Lohan. Joe Kelly uses constant flashbacks to Kara’s former life on Krypton to strike the point home of the enormous effort she puts to fit in, but in the end diverges from the expected and wraps up this teen adventure with excess style!
Supergirl may have launched from an unfortunate Superman/Batman storyline and had a confusing start in her solo series, but Joe Kelly has a very clear vision to make her a trully interesting and relatable character, while not losing the revamped characters new 21st century Paris aloofness. The new supporting cast/friends list of Captain Boomerang jr and Wonder-Girl has played an important part is this of course, as Kara is now relating to other teen heroes instead of being lectured by DC’s heroic archetypes. I’m fondly waiting the upcoming introduction of a new love interest in the form of the new Power Boy!
Ian Churchill has settled in on a bulky style that’s closer to his older Cable/X-Force days instead of the ultra-angular character designs of the first issues, and it complments the girls in the title more. Supergirl used to be a guilty pleasure read, but as of the last issue it’s now firmly on my proud must-read list every month.
Grade: A
CURRENTLY
listening to:
in the cinemas
on tv
reading
Aaaaand that’s a wrap for this week! I’m waiting 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
