Just trying to clear off some of the junk on the breakfast table. Really. So … graphic novel reviews in 40 words or less.
I’ve decided to change to a 5-to-1 scale, rather than a 3-to-1 (which was too coarse a granularity, I was finding).
Review code format: [writing (5-1, faboo to mediocre) / art (5-1) / suitability for jumping on as a new reader (5-1) / suitability for hooking a non-comics reader (5-1). ]
Supreme Power: Powers & Principalities (Marvel MAX) [4/5/3/3] (collects #7-12)
w. Joe Straczynski; a. Gary Frank
Hyperion takes on his government handlers and Doc Spectrum — and a very hot, very crazy Zarda. Plus, is there a meta serial killer out there? It’s all a lot better and twisted than it sounds. Not your father’s JLA rip-off.
JSA: Savage Times (DC) [4/4/2/1] (collects #39-45)
w. Geoff Johns, Derek Goyer; p. Leonard Kirk, Patrick Gleason
Mythic wars in ancient Egypt and plenty of long-running subplot development going on here, especially as some of the heroes begin to wonder what they need to do in order to fight for justice. The most solid team title around.
Real Life: The Complete Year One Collection (Starline) [3/3/5/3]
w/a. Greg Dean
First year of the webcomic. Geeky fun, cleanly designed and amusingly executed (and, here, lovingly annoted). And it’s all real — or least inspired by reality. He says.
Fables: March of the Wooden Soldiers (DC Vertigo) [5/4/3/4] (collects #19-21, 23-27, Fables: The Last Castle one-shot)
w. Bill Willingham; p. Mark Buckingham, P. Craig Russell, et al.
It’s war between the Adversary and the Fables of the Mundy world. Can the Big Bad Wolf and Snow White lead them to victory, or detect the conspiracy amongst them before it’s too late? Witty and delightfully modern myth-making.
Roomies: Year One (Cafe Press) [2/2/5/4]
w/a. David Willis
Another webcomic, from its college era roots. Not much you haven’t seen in other college strips, but it gets better later on (and evolves into It’s Walky, then back now to Roomies).
Sandman Mystery Theatre: The Face & The Brute (DC Vertigo) [4/2/3/3] (collects #5-12)
w. Matt Wagner; a. John Watkiss, R.G. Taylor
Long-overdue collections from 93-94’s noir title. Wretched art in these early issues, but bold, unsparing, psychotropic views of the underside of 30s New York, from racism in and around Chinatown to the lairs of the rich and bloodily ruthless.
General Protection Fault: Mating Call of the North American Computer Geek (Plan Nine) [3/2/5/3]
w/a. Jeffrey T. Darlington
Another webcomic, a bit more conventional in these beginning strips than UserFriendly but of the same mold. Off-beat programming jokes, leavened with other genre geekiness, and a hint of future drama as the strip matures.
Same Difference & Other Stories (Top Shelf) [4/4/5/5]
w/a. Derek Kirk Kim
Poignant, intelligent, and beautifuly crafted “twenty-something” short tales by this Korean-American artist. In turns hilariously witty and quietly touching, one of the “Best Books of 2003” (Publishers Weekly).