I'm Just Sayin'…#23

Columns, Top Story

Okay, first things first – many thanks to Jeff Ritter for putting us all onto BADASSOFTHEWEEK.COM – ever since he told me about that site last week, I have been just been going down the list; I simply cannot get enough of this site right now. I hope more comic book characters are coming, because really…the Punisher, but no Shadow? Batman? Zorro? Surely there’s room for them too…ah well. All in due time, I suppose.

Tell you this much, though – the entry on Race Bannon? That’s a nice big helping of badass, right there. Now I feel compelled to go find the DVD and hope they didn’t clean it up for today’s kids…

NEWSARAMA has a nice little Point/Counterpoint up, to mark the seventh month since Marvel’s ballsiest move since shoving LSD down Harry Osborn’s throat – SPIDER-MAN: BRAND NEW DAY. The respective Op-Ed’s are courtesy of Mike San Giacomo and Mike Avila; It won’t take a lot of guesswork to figure out which one I agree with, of course but read’em for yourself and see which argument best illustrates your own take on it all.

By the way, Manolis – I have a counter-challenge for you, my brother. Read this, and then this. I don’t expect you to change your mind after you do, nor would I want you to; you’re enjoying BRAND NEW DAY so I’m not about to spoil that – but when it comes to what we had to lose in exchange for the current Spider-quo, I think they articulate that far better than I have in my little corner of the Nexus…

And this will just blow your mind – elsewhere on NEWSARAMA, there is an incredibly intriguing article entitled SUPERMAN’S HIDDEN HISTORY – RUSSELL KEATON, SUPERMAN’S FIFTH BEATLE – if you click on some of the embedded links, you can actually read Jerry Siegel’s pitch letter to comic strip artist Russell Keaton, and a few sample strips that would’ve likely been part of their pitch package, had Keaton decided to become Siegel’s co-collaborator. Very mind-blowing stuff when you think about what could’ve been…especially when you read Siegel’s original origin for the world’s most famous superhero…

Okay, on to stuff I’ve read since our last go-round!

Last week we were treated to Part 3 of Geoff Johns’ “Brainiac” storyline with ACTION COMICS #868, which not only offers up such fun little subplots as our latest installment of Adventures in Over-Compensation with Catherine Grant…

…and The Delicate Art of Literary Foreshadowing – a new bestselling text on subtlety written by Marvin the Martian…

The real treat is the debut of the one for whom this storyline is named: the one, true Braniac!

Part of me wishes he weren’t bigger than Superman. In fact, I think it would fit Supergirl’s description of him in the previous issue of “everything that’s bad about aliens” if he were precisely the same size as Superman. But that’s really a minor nitpick compared to how beautifully he’s portrayed in his introductory meeting with our hero. The best part about it…

…and this could be Gary Frank’s work, it could be in Geoff’s script, I have no idea…

…but the best part about this Brainiac is his unchanging, inexpressive face. There’s no hand-wringing, no maniacal laughter, no psychotic ranting – the blatant disconnect between his demeanor and his self-appointed task of travelling the galaxies, collecting a sample of the lifeforms at each planet he encounters, and then destroying the planet makes for a very chilling new-yet-old archfoe for Superman. This is Kara Zor-El’s bogeyman, alright. Especially when you get the implication of his role in Krypton’s destruction…

He may as well be a robot. But much like the Norse God(dess) Loki, as reimagined by J. Michael Straczynski over in THOR (Vol. 3), knowing that he’s not makes his presence in his scenes with Superman all the more powerful. Geoff Johns has given us a Brainiac that needs no further reinvention, and one that I hope Bryan Singer makes ample use of in any potentially upcoming sequels. Put it on your checklist, dude – Make the ‘S’ bigger, and USE THIS BRAINIAC!

Absolutely amazing from the Johns/Frank camp. It’s almost enough to forgive’em for that whole uncomfortable-resemblance-to-Christopher-Reeve thing.

And because I forgot to mention it last week, here’s ONE MORE THING I DIG, and that would be the truly inspired efforts on both HULK #5 and THE AMAZING SPIDER-GIRL #23, for some really fun PREVIOUSLY… pages:

If I weren’t already reading both comics, I’d have bought each of them just on the power of these two pages alone. Excellent work from all parties involved, it really is; this is how you make comics fun in the 21st Century – it’s always the little things, I tell ya…

And with my latest doling of props to J. Michael Straczynski for his work on THOR, there’s the scene where Loki, apparently taking on the role of Goddess of Truth, tells Balder the story of his true lineage to the throne of Asgard…specifically, how his father met his mother.

Normally, I hate scenes like this in my comic books. And it’s because usually, there are two things missing – context and restraint. There’s no mistaking that the requisite homework has been done in portraying the Asgardian Gods as beings who do literally everything with gusto, so a scene like this is expected. Context. And then to balance it out, we get a modest use of shadow and well-chosen language that lays just enough out there for you to get the point, and stay in the story. Restraint. I hope people are taking notes – Judd, I’m looking in your direction…

And I love the subplot with Bill the diner chef, who has fallen hard for the Asgardian maiden Kelda. Interesting bit of dialogue from “Kyle,” whose comparison of Asgard to Vegas seems very telling of what the average human must think of beings among them who have the audacity to claim themselves gods…

…but to bring this column full-circle, you can’t have a point without a counterpoint, now can you?

If I may quote the God of Comedy himself…”I’d like to repeat that because it sounds vaguely important:”

Never let it be said that you can’t learn something from a comic book.

Just sayin’, is all…