With this edition of…
…I’d like to kick us off with a Christmas haiku. *AHEM*
Christmas has arrived,
And with it, that famous phrase:
“YOU’LL SHOOT YOUR EYE OUT.”
Oh yes – it’s that time, my friends. I don’t know why any other network besides TBS even bothers airing anything else, frankly. Oh hey, here’s a question – has anyone else ever dozed off in the middle of the marathon, and then when you woke up again, the movie was at the exact point that you dozed off? How WILD is that?!
So I hope the holiday finds you all doing well comic book heads, you’re feeling the spirit, you’re in a good place and surrounded by good company. With that said, let’s get to it!
Ooh, here’s something good for a laugh…check out these Leaked Marvel Solicits for 2009. I gotta say, there’s some tough choices right there but if I had to pick two titles I’m really looking forward to, I’d say it’s a toss-up between NEW DARK AVENGERS and DARK DARK AVENGERS. But you never know – Fred Van Lente’s a talent and MARVEL ADVENTURES THE PUNISHER could very well be the one that grabs an Eisner…
UNCANNY X-MEN #505 came out last week with Matt Fraction taking over full-time, and with the way he handles various subplots in almost Claremontian fashion, this title really does feel like the central hub of Marvel’s mutant goings-on.
Greg McElhatton reviews: The more you think about it, the more impressive it is that Fraction is able to keep all of this [MESSIAH COMPLEX, Joss Whedon’s ASTONISHING X-MEN, CABLE, X-FORCE and SECRET INVASION/DARK REIGN] in mind and still make a coherent comic dealing with each of these points. Doing so is slightly at the expense of Fraction’s other storylines that began in #500 (like the Sisterhood of Evil Mutants, or just what the High Evolutionary was doing with the Dreaming Celestial in Golden Gate Park), but I have to give him full credit for not ignoring other comics and stories simply because they might be inconvenient.
This is true; I know I’d be tempted to ignore at least one of those things mentioned above. Instead, Fraction went one better and gave us a very well-crafted segue into DARK REIGN – at this rate, I can easily see Fraction becoming one of the chief architects of major company-wide events in just a few years’ time…
Back to the review: Having Terry and Rachel Dodson as the artists for this story arc certainly helps matters, too. The Dodsons are a great art team, their combined work looking slick and glamorous as always. It’s a fine line to tread to make all of these characters look both like ordinary people and super-heroes at the same time, but I think the Dodsons really comprehend that in a way that few others do. I know the Dodsons are supposed to alternate with Greg Land on art duties, but I’d be pleased as punch if the Dodsons were around for every issue.
You won’t get any argument from me on that front; the Dodsons are a huge improvement over Greg Land. But I do have the following open challenge for Rachel and Terry for 2009…
How about diversifying a bit? And by “diversifying,” I don’t mean first draw a cute Welsh girl showing midriff, then an attractive Canadian girl-clone showing midriff, then an attractive British woman showing midriff, followed by an attractive Kenyan woman showing midriff. I’m talking about taking a stab at drawing a female cast member in a big floppy t-shirt every so often – you know, just to shake things up a smidge. Or if you really want to put yourself out there, maybe hit us with some man-navel. You’re artists, people – take a step out of your comfort zone!
I’m just sayin’ – a man can’t live on cheesecake alone…
THE WATCHMEN notwithstanding, FRANK MILLER’S WILL EISNER’S THE SPIRIT has to be one of the most hotly anticipated movies debuting over this holiday week, although personally, they lost me when they didn’t keep the Spirit’s outfit blue.
Now, admittedly my real introduction to the world of The Spirit came from Darwyn Cooke’s loving revival of the property, and even then I could feel that there was something integral to the Spirit’s appearance. Something that shouldn’t be tinkered with; so much so, that I don’t know who I’m looking at here…
I feel like there’s just something missing. And judging by this review as well as this one, this one cosmetic change may just be the tip of the proverbial iceberg, and if their reviews are the norm for the majority of moviegoers this week, that’ll make two whiffs between this one and PUNISHER: WAR ZONE. Which makes me wonder…what are we seeing here? Have we gone over the hump in the bell curve of this second generation of superhero movies that began with BLADE precisely ten years ago? Or is it too soon to tell?
Maybe Marvel’s big, overall AVENGERS plans will decide it all, but it feels like we’re getting very close to the end of this generation of superhero movies, and you know…I think I’m alright with that. It’s been a very entertaining crop – I got to see Superman again, Spider-Man was great two times out of three, same for X-Men, Batman ruled and Iron Man ruled even harder – but with so many different films in development – just go to SUPERHEROHYPE.com and click on any given link – I’m starting to feel like I’m ready to give it all a rest, you know? I feel like with the comic book genre, it’s key to get in, make some great movies, and get out before its Hollywood welcome wears out. Does that make any sense?
I dunno – I think this articulates it better than I can right now.
But that’s it from me this week and for 2008, comic book heads. I’m going to take myself a little break and come back the week after next, ready to do up the new year with more comic book related commentary, reviews and snark. Have a Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy holiday season and I’ll see you all in the Twenty Aught Nine…
…with this guy. ;-)
Take’er easy, folks!
