- Now COMPLETELY SKRULL FREE!
I don’t know if it’s the 16 oz. can of RockStar I just chugged or the wave of relief that came over me when my gf called to tell me that her achilles tendon surgery went off without a hitch, but I’m feeling pretty good right now and I hope you are too! I do want to drop a quick note once again to my New York readers – if you’re in the mood for some Lower East Side comedy, on Friday, December 5th – next Friday – I will once again be performing at the LAUGH LOUNGE as a part of…
Show starts at 7pm, but the doors open at 6:30. More information can be found by clicking on the flyer. If you’re already going to be in the area, odds are you’re out to get good and debauched – so why not start your night with some cheap beer and free laughs?
I know the last coupla columns I’ve been throwing out gift ideas for that fanboy/girl in your life – I don’t really have one for ya this time, but if you’re wondering what to get your humble columnist…
Pretty please? I’ve been ever so good this year…
I don’t believe in variant covers as a personal rule, but with the release of this variant cover art for THOR #600, I’m gonna draw open the curtains to KNEE-JERK REACTION THEATRE real quick this week, in the form of a question…
MY KNEE-JERK REACTION: Why’s this one the variant?
I also see that there’s buzz about a potential film version of X-MEN: FIRST CLASS…
According to the article, GOSSIP GIRL creator Josh Schwartz is writing a treatment for 20th Century Fox…which I suppose is all well and nice, but I hope someone thinks about giving Jeff Parker a call – after all, it’s not like his style and wit wasn’t a big part of making that title so much fun to read!
Now, I wanna get into FANTASTIC FOUR #561, which was released yesterday – and a glance around the web seems to indicate some pretty positive reviews: Like this one from CBR.com…
Between “Kick-Ass,” “Marvel 1985,” “Wolverine: Old Man Logan,” and this “Fantastic Four” series, Mark Millar is producing some of the best work of his career. Critics have complained that his recent stuff is too-high concept, too pandering, or too much flash and not enough substance. But I think that’s when Millar is at his best. He’s not going to be the one to write the subtle, touching story full of thematic ambiguity. He’s going to give you the summer blockbuster in the pages of a comic book, but with his own slightly-skewed twist. And though his “Fantastic Four” run started off with some rocky, tonally uneven moments, this “New Defenders” (Or “Nu Defenders”) arc has been quite good, and this issue is probably the best yet.
This issue contains none of the lascivious panels of Johnny Storm getting his hormones on, and though it’s full of double-page widescreen-style layouts, it’s less gaudy-looking than some of Bryan Hitch’s previous issues. Here, in a story short on dialogue, Hitch provides some spectacular establishing shots and wide-angle fight scenes, and spends less time showing the characters posing for the “camera.” This is knock-down drag-out Fantastic Four action of…if not the Jack Kirby kind, then at least the John Byrne days. It’s blunt, effective, hard-edged superhero spectacle, and who better to do that sort of thing than Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch?
And then there’s this review from this week’s edition of NEWSARAMA.com’s BEST SHOTS…
There are some honest surprises in this issue. Millar manages to stay a step ahead of the readers, diverting attention with the title “The Death of The Invisible Woman.” Yes, she dies, and yes, it will likely stick, but the best part of this book is the organic way that the storylines of this run dovetail so satisfyingly. Alternate future characters are the sort of fun that is uniquely suited to the shared worlds of comics, and the New Defenders are a fun new toy for the Marvel Universe with just enough potential to be seen again, but little enough pressure that they won’t be shoved down reader’s throats.
A few weeks ago, I said that what we as columnists and commentators offer when it comes to this comic or that graphic novel in our little blippy corners of the web, it all comes down to opinion and perspective. So with that in mind, I almost want to ask…with the utmost of due respect…did we read the same comic?
Personally, I was so underwhelmed by the conclusion of THE DEATH OF THE INVISIBLE WOMAN that if I hadn’t already stopped buying this comic in the middle of WORLD’S GREATEST, I would’ve probably had to quit this column out of shame. You’ve noticed I’ve had very little to say about Bryan Hitch’s end of things, right? Because don’t get me wrong, here – he put together some lovely spreads, but…where’s the story behind them? The reveal of the NuDefenders’ secret headquarters is all well and lovely, but what more is there beyond the visual? If they’ve got this swanky headquarters that they most likely brought with them from the future…what was Psionics doing robbing banks? To pay for food? To get the Torch’s attention? Weren’t there easier, more subtle ways to do this? Or did we need a way, any way, no matter how contrived, to make that whole Check-out-the-Torch-hooking-up-with-a-criminal subplot float?
And shouldn’t we be worried about the sight of a dead Galactus? I mean…this is Marvel.com’s own profile of the character: “intimately tied to the nature of the universe.” I’ve even heard that if Galactus dies, the whole universe implodes. So, once again…gripping visual…no substance.
Here’s the thing about Mark Millar that bothers me to no end: when he writes anything that’s supposed to be part of a larger continuity, he doesn’t bother to do his homework. When I read this, I don’t get the sense of any of their history behind each character – and if you’re reading THE FANTASTIC FOUR, you should. It’s as if he writes them as though it were a TV series; like everyone knows who the characters are already, but Millar plugs in any old voice he wants to without regard for what came before…and well, there’s a lot of us who aren’t really used to people DOING THINGS THAT WAY in Marvel land!
If this run of his were some kind of “Ultimate” Fantastic Four that I described several columns ago, that were completely out of continuity and stood on its own, I wouldn’t have a thing to say about it. But if you’re going to be working on this specific title? THE FANTASTIC FOUR? The one Stan Lee and Jack Kirby gave us? Well then, you damn well better bring it. And by “bring it,” I don’t mean “throw together whatever crap you think will look ‘badass.'” To wit:
I have the distinct feeling that the “Oh, COME ON!” award’s going to Old Man Logan this year…
Maybe I’ve been spoiled, you know? Not to imply that I’m the only person here whose read Lee/Kirby, Simonson, Waid, Byrne, and even McDuffie…but compare the work of these guys to Mark Millar, and it’s the difference between a home-cooked meal and junk food. It’s the difference between Zeppelin and Zepagin. It’s the difference between a committed relationship and a booty call. And in my opinion, the FF deserves a whole lot better than this hollow roll in the hay.
For God’s sake, bring it!
Happy Thanksgiving, comic book heads. I’m Greg Manuel, and I’m just sayin’, is all.
