Madame Xanadu, vol. 1, “Disenchanted” (Vertigo) [collects #1-10]
w. Matt Wagner; a. Amy Reeder Hadley, Richard Friend
| Writing |  | New reader? | |
| Art | | Non-comics reader? |  |
Taking a character who started off as a mysterious tarot card reader and horror book introducer and telling her story to make her a compelling character is no easy task. Wagner accomplishes it with polish, taking Nuada from among the Fae in Arthurian England, to Khanate China, to Revolutionary France to 1930s New York, each time locked in frustrating opposition to the mysterious Phantom Stranger, her own attempts at intervening at impending tragedy often making things worse.
Good stuff, and a good setup for a character who can doubtless play more than a color role in future DC spookiness.
Manhunter, Vol. 3, “Origins” (DC) [collects #15-23]
w. Marc Andreyco; a. Javier Pina, Fernando Blanco
| Writing | | New reader? |  |
| Art | | Non-comics reader? | |
Manhunter is one of those series I wanted to like, to the entent of following it along in three TPBs. The idea of a vigilante DA is not new (see: “Vigilante”), but arming yourself with super-villain gear from the evidence room was clever, and seeing how Kate Spencer could try (and fail) to keep it all in balance should have been fascinating.
Alas, no, even though there’s all sorts of personal and equipment origins tied into in this new volume. Just didn’t click for me (though there are two more TPBs out there, so obviously someone has liked it). Oh, well.
Mighty Avengers, Vol. 1, “The Ultron Initiative” (Marvel) [collects #1-6]
Mighty Avengers, Vol. 2, “Venom Bomb” (Marvel) [collects #7-12]
Mighty Avengers, Vol. 3, “Secret Invasion, Part 1” (Marvel) [collects #13-18]
w. Brian Bendis; a. Frank Cho, Michael Bagley, Ivan Reis, Alex Maleev (et al.)
| Writing |  | New reader? | |
| Art | | Non-comics reader? | |
Post-Civil War, Tony Stark reconstitutes the Avengers as perhaps the most powerful iteration of that team (which is saying something): himself, Sentry, Wonder Man, Ares, Ms Marvel, and with Wasp and Black Widow to round out the pack. Over these 18 issues, they fight Ultron (who’s taken over Tony’s body and armor and, it appears, a StarkTek infested world), a city full of Venoms, Doctor Doom on his home turf, and thus into the paranoia of the whole Secret War / Skrull invasion series.
Bendis is always a delight to read, between his imagination, sense of humor, and gift for dialog. He also brings back the thought balloon to comics, mostly for characters to give snide comments to what they’re saying. On one level, it’s irreverent to the glory of Avengers past, but it also works very well.
The artwork is also pretty darned fine — Cho (one of the things he’s been doing instead of Liberty Meadows) is clean (and bodacious), Begley (workmanlike), and Maleev (perfect for the gritty spy flick of the Secret War, moreso than the other artists in that volume).
Good series, the heart of Marvel, and worth my picking up the collections.
Listening to: Serra, Eric, “The Severnaya Suite (Among the Dead / Out of Hell / The Husky Tribe)” (Goldeneye))