Category: Blogathon

Judd Winick has had a remarkably long run on Outsiders.  Here are the two most recent TPBs released.

Outsiders: The Good Fight, Vol. 5 (DC) [collects #34-41]
w. Judd Winick; a. Various 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

This collection kicks off the “One Year Later” leap in this title. The Outsiders are thought dead, but are actually operating — for the first half-issue — underground.  Things get pretty fast-moving and nasty after that, as a genocidal regime and its pet metas are tackled by the team, followed by tackling the Brotherhood of Evil (or at least the creepy couple of Msr. Mallah and the Brain).  They survive — but with their cover blow, they all know it’s going to hit the fan really fast.  But … why are they believed dead?

Amidst all the action, we get plenty of character bits, hint-dropping about what happened in the missing year, a mystery (and an unexpected torrid romance) regarding Grace, and some good team interactions.  If the art weren’t such a mixed bag (most of it mediocre), it would be a lot more fun.

Outsiders: Pay As You Go, Vol. 6  (DC) [collects #42-46]
w. Judd Winick; a. Various

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Picking up after the last volume, the team is on the trail of Dr Sivana (of Captain Marvel fame).  But that’s brief — most of the trade consists of a “one year ago” flashback that explains why the heck the team is composed as it is, what happened to Shift, why certain members are hooked up with each other, why they were underground, etc.  In retrospect, it all makes a fair amount of sense, and it was a shame the whole “One Year Later” card had to be played as with all the DC titles to make the plot flow so convoluted.

The art this time is even a worse grab bag than previous.  At least there’s a synopsis page at the beginning to help new readers figure out what’s going on (somewhat foiled by the shortly-thereafter flashback).

(listening to: Original Broadway Cast, “A Little Fall of Rain” from Les Misérables (Broadway))
(listening to: A-Ha, “Take On Me” from Greatest Hits of the 80s)
(listening to: Birmingham Symphony, “St. Crispin’s Day – The Battle of Agincourt” from Henry V)

Nodwick Chronicles: Nodwick Goes Hollywood, Vol. VI (Do Gooder) [collects #31-36]
w/a. Aaron Williams

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Nodwick’s art has continued to improve, even as the story has gotten progressively more complex — and with this collection, Williams brings it all to a head with the (gah!) final issue of Nodwick.  Sadly, fantasy comics don’t sell well (esp. compared to his equally charming PS 238), and things will continue online, but …

At any rate, the Big Quest to defeat the Evil God that’s been foretold the Powers What Is draws to a fiery climax.  Will anyone survive?  More importantly, will they be killed only a point where Piffany can duct tape them back together? 

For something that still has a rep for being a gag strip, Williams has put together a plot as sophisticaed as 90% of the fantasy novels on the market, and has grown his art to match it.  There’s some really great stuff here, and anyone who’s enjoyed this book will definitely want to be in on the end.

Order of the Stick: Start of Darkness, Vol. -1 (Giant in the Playground)
w/a. Rich Burlew

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Burlew continues to build the backstory of his Order of the Stick online comic, this time with a Volume -1 (since Volume 0 was already published).  This odd tale charts the rise of Xykon the lich sorcerer and main antagonist of the series, and his assistant, the goblin cleric Redcloak.  He gives an accurate warning at the beginning that this is not a happy tale (though it remains morbidly amusing) — bad things happen to good people, good people to bad things to other people, and, ultimately evil triumphs — at least as a set-up to the later books. 

It makes for some odd dissonance as you find yourself chuckling over Xykon’s latest victims, even as you realize that the actually-not-a-bad-guy Redcloak is busy selling his soul on behalf of his people.  It’s equal parts chuckleworthy and poignant.

And, for the record — Burlew does it all with computer-generated stick figures.  And they show as much emotion and work in the story as well as something much more artistically complex.  It’s remarkable.

I wouldn’t buy this book in a vacuum — get the volumes 1-2 (then 0, then this) first, to learn the story ahead of the story told here. 

(listening to: Original Broadway Cast, “Cool, Cool, Considerate Men” from 1776)
(listening to: Toto, “Africa” from Billboard Top Hits – 1983)
(listening to: Hogwood & AAM, “Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion” from Messiah)
(listening to: Menken, Alan & Ashman & Rice, “Legend Of The Lamp” from Aladdin (Disney))
(listening to: Darin, Bobby, “Mack The Knife” from Mack the Knife – Best of Bobby Darin)

New Teen Titans Archives, Vol. 3 (DC) [collects #17-20, TotNTT #1-4]
w. Marv Wolfman; a. George Perez 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

I started collecting comics in earnest just as the New Teen Titans were getting going.  These 1982 issues were some of the ones I actually bought in college, and they still hold up incredibly well — a lot better, in fact, than a lot of other pieces of pop culture from 1982.

This volume has a handful of actual NTT issues, plus the entirety of the contemporaneous Tales of the New Teen Titans series (which basically fleshed out backstories for the new team members).  Perez’s art improved further with the years, but it’s excellent already at this point.  And if Wolfman leans a bit heavy on the exclamation point and the Stan Lee-style melodrama, it was still an era where that was done, and the underlying tales are rock-solid.  The Teen Titans were still on an upward trajectory here, and would rarely match this quality even in later years.

New Teen Titans: Terra Incognito (DC) [collects #26, 28-34, Annual #2]
w. Marv Wolfman; a. George Perez

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

The follow-up volume to this, encompassing the tale known as “The Judas Contract,” has been collect for years, but the earlier stories of how Terra came to join the Titans had not been pulled together.  Probably in response to the Teen Titans cartoon (which had its own variant on the Terra story), this book now picks things up from the beginning.  We see how Terra was encountered, and how, almost without thought (as many other distracting adventures ensue) she becomes a part of the team. 

It’s good stuff, classic years for a great comic. And it brings back some great memories.

(listening to: Barenaked Ladies, “Light Up My Room” from Stunt)
(listening to: Salonga, Lea , “Reflection” from Mulan)
(listening to: Menken, Alan & Ashman & Rice, “One Jump Ahead” from Aladdin (Disney))
(listening to: Beach Boys, “The Monster Mash” from Capitol Years, The)
(listening to: “LoM – Battle 1” from Lords of Magic)

Whew!  2 o’clock and all is (so far) well!

Manhunter: Trial by Fire, Vol. 2 (DC) [collects #6-14]
w. Marc Andreyko; a. Various

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

I really keep wanting to like Manhunter.  The costume is neat, and the concept of a prosecutor “liberating” some villain gadgets from the evidence room to go hunt down bad guys outside the system is not new but has some real possibilities.

Alas, it just keeps on not quite gelling.  There are some good bits here — how heroes get involved in the legal system, question of obsession and how far you go to pursue a moral imperative (regardless of the cost to  your family), good stuff like that.  There’s also some bits that tie in with other folks who’ve held the name “Manhunter” over the years in the DCU.  Unfortunately, things just keep wandering around chaotically, and we end up way too much OMAC action at the end. 

Regardless, I’ve read worse.  🙂  Just not something I can recommend all that highly.

Neverwhere (DC Vertigo) [collects #1-9]
w. Neil Gaiman, Mike Carey; a. Glenn Fabry 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

I really, really wanted to like this.  I love the novel, and I have a great fondness for the mini-series that inspired it (cheap production and all).  But Carey had an utterly thankless job to take a horribly rich tale and cram it back into a comic book, and while he has his fantasy comic creds, he tromps over Gaiman’s magical wonderment with army boots.  Folks go through the motions, with little sense of their motivation.

Fabry, in the meantime, tries to reinject some magic by making things much more … baroque and comic booky than need be.  He’s unsubtle in his visual bits — Carrabas’s skin is featureless black shadow, Door (and her family) have keyhole tattoos around their eyes … it just doesn’t fit with my mental imagery of things.  To my mind, while there is amazing magic in the London Below, it visually should remain grounded in the dank and ancient rot and sewers, and the homeless who make up the tribes there.  By going for too much odd detail, it becomes … a comic book.

I certainly can see rereading this for a quick Neverwhere fix — but I’m much rather read the books — or rewatch the DVD set.

(listening to: Korngold, Erich, “Coronation Procession” from Adventures of Robin Hood)
(listening to: Bach, “Prelude in C min, Bwv 999” from Best of Baroque)
(listening to: Shore, Howard, “The Bridge of Khazad Dum” from LOTR1: The Fellowship of the Ring)
(listening to: Copeland, Stewart, “Screaming Lord Cole and The Commanches” from Equalizer & Other Cliffhangers)
(listening to: Goldsmith, Jerry, “The Sarcophagus” from Mummy, The)
(listening to: Gold, Murray, “Opening Theme (Eccleston)” from Doctor Who)

Lucifer: Evensong, Vol. 11 (DC Vertigo) [collects #70-75]
w. Mike Carey; a. Peter Gross, et al.

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

The final volume of Carey’s opus on Lucifer Morningstar and what he wrought (and unwrought).  With the great war of Armageddon over, Lucifer plans to quit the world, and goes around tidying up bits of stray plot before he goes.  But the long-absent Father is going to put in a final appearance.  Will God make Lucifer an offer he can’t refuse?

A nicely fitting end to an amazing series that wandered far afield from the initial appearance back in 2001 (as inspired by Gaiman’s use of him in Sandman).  I need to go back and refill the TPB volumes I missed and read it from front to back.  About as much of an anti-hero as you could ask for, Lucifer’s story is a long, uplifting, angry and sad one.  Well done.

Lullaby: Wisdom Seeker, Vol. 1 (Alias) [collects #1-4]
w. Mike S. Miller, Ben Avery; a. Hector Sevilla 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Take Alice in Wonderland, Treasure Island, Red Riding Hood, and Pinocchio, mix in a large dose of manga and a few peyote buttons, and you get Lullaby, I wouildn’t dream of describing the story, except that little is at is seems, magic is high-powered, and it’s idiosyncratically just marvelous. 

Margie fell in love with this before I did — I had hard going getting past the first issue or so.  But it’s really good stuff.  Too dark for a children’s tale, it’s the Bros. Grimm on an acid trip to Japan.  Worth reading.

(listening to: Blondie, “Call Me” from Billboard Top Hits – 1980)
(listening to: Riepl, Kevin, “City Zone 12” from City of Villains)
(listening to: Shaiman, Marc (prod.), “Deck The Halls/Main Title” from Addams Family)
(listening to: O’Connor, Sinéad, “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” from Am I Not Your Girl?)
(listening to: Post, Mike, “Murder One” from www.mythemes.tv)
(listening to: Horner, James, “Resolution and Hyperspace” from Aliens)

Hulk Visionaries – Peter David, Vol. 4 (Marvel) [collects #355-363, MCP #26, 45]
w. Peter David; a. Jeff Purves, et al.

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Peter David’s run on The Incredible Hulk was … well, incredible, but this was probably at the low point of the series.  It’s the latter part of the Gray Hulk days, in 1989, when, presumed dead, a Hulk regressed to his initial cranky gray thug form served as a leg-breaker in Vegas. 

The stories here aren’t fabulous, as David struggled with a lot of second-string villains — and, worse, the clumsy-at-best, downright-ugly-at-worst art of Jeff Purves.  The saving grace is David’s sense of irony, and his ability to take an unlikable character like the Gray Hulk and actually let us accept him as the protagonist, even feel sorry for him as things fall apart (or are torn apart) around him.

Loveless: Thicker Than Blackwater, Vol. 2 (DC) [collects #6-12]
w. Brian Azzarello; a. Marcelo Frusin, Danijel Zezelj, Werther Dell’Edera

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Azzarello’s post-Civil War dark Western continues, as things in the burg of Blackwater continue to spiral downward, driven by cowardice, blood, vengeance and madness.  Anyone who’s big into the HBO series Deadwood will probably enjoy this title.

That said, it’s not without some problems, most of which center on the art.  It sets a nice mood, and is well-crafted for all of that.  But it’s uniformly dark and murky, and you get a bunch of guys dressed in similar outfits, and it starts to get tough to recognize (or remember) who’s who — especially when Azzarello throws in brief flashback after brief flashback, people change between uniforms and civies and disguises, and there’s lots of quick, sharp action.  Throw in changing artists on the title, and it gets more complicated.

I need to go back and reread this and the preceding volume back to back, to see if that helps. 

(listening to: Carroll, Pat, “Little Mermaid – Poor Unfortunate Souls” from Disney’s Greatest Vol. 3)
(listening to: Fitzgerald, Ella, “Bewitched” from Rodgers & Hart Songbooks, Vol 2 – My Funny Valentine)
(listening to: “Warlord Theme” from Unreal)
(listening to:  Bach “Air in D, BWV 1068,2” from Treasury of Baroque)
(listening to: Enya, “How Can I Keep from Singing?” from Shepherd Moons)

Green Lantern: Rebirth (DC) [collects #1-6]
w. Geoff Johns; a. Ethan Van Sciver 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

I missed this 2004 miniseries when it came out, rehabilitating Hal Jordan as Green Lantern — bringing him back, explaining the whole Parallax looneyness (I never thought it needed explaining, but too many HJ fanboys were offended by it all), and bringing him back in sync with the Justice League and GL Corps.  It’s all very comic-booky (in a good way, but there’s a cast of zillions hearkening back to decades of DC history).

A well done story as far as it goes, with plenty of plot hooks for the next couple of years of GL action.  A key comic if you’re a Lantern (or Hal Jordan) fan.

Invincible: Three’s Company, Vol. 7 (Image) [collects #31-35]
w. Robert Kirkman; a. Ryan Ottley

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Kirkman’s ongoing tale of a teen-aged Superman-style hero continues to add layers of complexity — both in relationships and in violence.  For example, we have a nice love triangle between Mark, his girlfriend Amber, and his fellow super Atom Eve.  That leads to an inadvertent enemy who captures Mark’s mom and step-brother and keep shifting Mark to different dimensions in an attempt to kill him.  After a bloody resolution to that (and a meeting with a future version of Atom Eve, who only adds to his love life comlexities), there’s a bit of relaxation for the supporting cast, until Mark learns his dad may have left secret clues on how to defeat ultra-powerful aliens who are out to conquer the Earth — his father’s own people.

Whew.

And yet, Kirkman juggles all of this seemingly without effort, and Ottley’s clean, expressive art only add to the apparent simplicity.  Mark’s not the deepest character, but he’s the most relatable-to hero since the classic days of the early Spider-Man.  Dealing with both romance, heritage, and his abilities, Mark is a great everyman who faces a lot of tough decisions … and doesn’t always choose correctly.

I’d recommend this title to practically anyone except for someone who has no interest in super-heroes.

(listening to: Nena, “99 Luftballoons (Eng.)” from Greatest Hits of the 80s)
(listening to: Gold, Murray, “The Doctor’s Theme” from Doctor Who – The New Series – Original Television Soundtrack)
(listening to: St Louis Jesuits, “Praise the Lord, My Soul” from Earthen Vessels)
(listening to: Wainwright III, Loudon, “Our Own War” from Little Ship)
(listening to: Newton, Juice, “Queen of Hearts” from Billboard Top Hits – 1981)
(listening to: Hogwood & AAM, “Comfort Ye My People” from Messiah)

Whilst I’m nibbling lunch, check out Steve and KPG, who are also doing comics-related themes this ‘Thon.  Good stuff.

Full Frontal Nerdity: Big Book of Epic Fail, Vol. 1 (Do Gooder Press)
w/a. Aaron Williams 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

 Williams’ FFN strip — available online and reprinted in various comics as a feature — finally makes it to a collected edition.  Excellent.  While Williams goes over the familiar dork/geek territory of gaming and media, he still does it with originality and cleverness.  Absolutely worth reading if you’re a gamer or listen to too many of their discussions.

There are some odd printing glitches in this volume — individual strips or whole pages duplicated — but aside from that, it’s great fun.

Girl Genius: Agatha Heterodyne and the Clockwork Princess, Vol. 5 (Airship)
w. Phil & Kaja Foglio; a. Phil Foglio 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Foglio’s Girl Genius series continues with a helpful synopsis on the beginning, as Agatha’s circus adventures take a turn for the melodramatically dangerous, and various parties begin to circle in on Agatha — or is that really Agatha talking?  This volume’s adventures get more complex and difficult to follow, as various plot and players greatly increase the number of items to track.  But the humor remains riotous, the imagination glorious, and the artwork faboo. 

You can (and I whole-heartely say  you should) catch up on the entire series online — though reading it that way once you’ve caught up is maddeningly slow.  The books are much easier and, thus, entertaining.   I’m eagerly waiting the next volume’s release …

(listening to: Baez, Joan, “The Death of Queen Jane (Child No. 170)” from 5)
(listening to: Hogwood & AAM, “For Unto us a Child is Born” from Messiah)
(listening to: Barry, John, “The Arrival of the Bomb and Count Down” from Goldfinger)

Fantastic Four Visionaries – John Byrne, Vol. 6 (Marvel) [collects #276-284, Thing #23, SW II #2)]
w/a. John Byrne 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

John Byrne’s run on FF was both one of the longest in the title’s history and one of the best.  Byrne’s art is a personal favorite of mine (and he’s at one of the tops of his form in this period); his writing always swings at the fence (with admittedly mixed results), while usually offering some sort of imaginative tie to the past. 

In this volume, we get the Mephisto, the Psycho-Man, the “end” of the “Invisible Girl,” lots of Franklin Richards scary-psi-power stuff, the controversial revisit of Dr Doom’s history, Johnny’s mullet, and the gorgeous She-Hulk standing in for a “Hey, you stole my girlfriend, Match Head” Thing.  Not the best of the Byrne era, but always a fun read.

Fantastic Four Visionaries – John Byrne, Vol. 7 (DC) [collects #285-286, Annual #19, Avenger #263, Annual #14, X-Factor #1]
w/a. John Byrne et al.

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

This is … an odd volume.

We get FF Annual #19, an odd historical homage and tie-in to the Avengers Annual #14 (to the point of sharing several pages of pencils) with a long-forgotten and annoying Skrull plotline.  FF 285 has the anticlimactic “Johnny quits because a fanboy burned himself” tale … and then we hop over to Avengers #263 (which has nothing to do with Byrne or the FF) that segues to FF #286 (which does) that seuges to X-Factor #1 (which doesn’t again).  Yes, that’s two whole issues (plus an Annual) of FF, and about half the book involving Byrne.

What was the title again?

Worst (or best, depending on your perspective), that whole final fandango involves the crazy “No, Jean Gray wasn’t the Phoenix and she’s back now at the bottom of Jamaica Bay” plot, which led to the insanity that was the original impetus behind X-Factor (“We’ll gather mutants to safety by pretending to be a mutant hunting and capture company”).  Both are chapters that I really wish had never happened in the MU … and now they’re reprinted for posterity.  Feh.

(listening to: Barry, John, “Murder at the Fair” from Living Daylights, The)
(listening to: Animaniacs, “The Presidents” from Variety Pack)
(listening to: Gold, Murray, “New Adventures” from Doctor Who – The New Series – Original Television Soundtrack)
(listening to: Elfman, Danny, “Dick Tracy” from Music for a Darkened Theatre)
(listening to: Bangles, “Be with You” from Everything)

Fables: Wolves, Vol. 8  (DC Vertigo) [collects #48-51]
w. Bill Willingham; a. Mark Buckingham, Shawn McManus 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Witty, imaginative, gripping — Fables is simply one of the best comics on the market.  Imagine if the fairy tales and fables of fiction — from Snow White to the Pinnochio to the Gingerbread House Witch — all existed, living undercover in our “mundane” world, having fled their native lands before the onslaught of the Adversary, who still seeks to conquer all things.  Willingham (whose work I’ve enjoyed for years, and I’m tickled he’s finally found his “niche”) has taken archetypes and fairy tale cut-outs and made them delightfully real.  Delightfully twisted, but not just for the sake of being provocative, Willingham blends politics with heroism with some interesting commentary on the role of myth in the world.This book, which has won seven Eisners, is always at the bottom (“save the best for last”) of my weekly stack.

This volume concludes Mowgli’s assignment to find where the Big Bad Wolf has gone, so that the latter can be sent on a commando mission to the Homelands to find out who the Adversary really is, and the source of his power.  Oh, and there’s a big wedding, too (the script for that issue, #50, is in the back of the book), and a diplomatic trip by a decidedly non-princess-like Cinderella to the giants who may control the key to taking the fight back to the Adversary..

Great, great stuff.  Highly recommended to pretty much anyone.

Fables: Sons of Empire (DC Vertigo) [collects #52-59]
w. Bill Willingham; a. Mark Buckingham, Mike Allred, et al. 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Two small story arcs — the Adversary plans his retribution against the Fables, while the Big Bad Wolf grudgingly takes his family to visit his father, the North Wind — interspersed with some charming one-shots and mini-tales (including a delightful “our readers ask” contest) — makes for a slightly complex change of pace.  There’s even a Christmas tale that both stands alone and launches another half-dozen storylines.  The art is uneven (I’m not fan of Allred’s), but it’s still all triffic fun. 

Essential Fantastic Four, Vol. 5 (DC) [collects #84-110]
w. Stan Lee; a. Jack Kirby, John Buscema, John Romita Sr. 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Essential Fantastic Four, Vol. 6 (DC) [collects #111-137]
w. Lee, Thomas, Goodwin, Conway; a. John Buscema 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Marvel’s Essential series has been fabulous for getting inexpensive reprints of some of the seminal comics of the Silver Age.  For $17 you get an inch-and-a-half tome, in black and white, containing literally hours of comics to plow through.

These two volumes mark the transition in FF from being Lee & Kirby to the next generation (Thomas and Buscema, mostly).  They are, at their best, incredibly imaginative, melodramatic, and fun, and serve as the foundation for much of what comics remains today. 

Don’t get me wrong — I think some of the best comics ever are being published now … but watching Lee and Kirby cranking out new characters and plots on a monthly basis, some of them duds but others of them still around in this modern era — is breathtaking.  Anyone who’s interested in comics history, or who just wants some fun times and a book that you don’t breeze through in five minutes, should consider picking up these or others in the series.

(listening to: Sinatra, Nancy & John Barry, “You Only Live Twice – Title Song” from You Only Live Twice)
(listening to: Eurythmics, “17 Again” from Peace)
(listening to: Battlefield Band, “Sauchiehall Street Salsa” from Anthem for the Common Man)
(listening to: Cannon, Freddy, “Palisades Park” from Billboard Top Rock ‘n’ Roll Hits – 1962)
(listening to: Franke, Christopher, “Chrysalis (3)” from Babylon 5)

Dr. Blink, Superhero Shrink: Id, Ego, Superego!, Vol. 1 (Dork Storm) [collects #0-3]
w. John Kovalic; a. Christopher Jones 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

The idea of a psychiatrist who treat super-heroes is rife with possibilities, and Kovalic manages to hit successfully on most of them here, usually using carefully modified surrogates for “actual” (i.e., copyrighted) heroes and villains.  But rather than just a gag book, Kovalic tried to also set up a functioning superhero world and a story line for Dr. Blink as well.   This muddles the results a bit, though providing more depth to the whole shebang.  A non-comics reader wouldn’t get a lot of the gags, but might enjoy the irreverence of the tone toward standard superhero tropes.

Jones art is simple and serviceable.  The book also has some interesting essays on the creation fo the book, and a mini-sourcebook for Mutants & Masterminds for the heroes it spotlights; true geeky joy.

I’m not sure whether sales were disappointing or if Kovalic got pulled off in other directions, but I wish there were more issues than just this.

Dork Tower: Dork Decade, Vol. 9  (Dork Storm)
w/a John Kovalic

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

This book is a decade-long retrospective of Dork Tower, including all the strips published in Shadis and Dragon magazines.  While many of these have been published before (yes, the “Hey, Marcia! Come and see the Satanist!” strip is here), everything is in color and the geek/gaming humor is still fresh and enjoyable.  Many of the strips also have reference notes in the back (I’d have preferred them on-page).

Great stuff.  I’d recommend any of the numerous DT trades out there, but this volume provides a light, strip-oriented introduction.

(listening to: Shore, Howard, “Foundations Of Stone” from LOTR2: Two Towers)
(listening to: Blondie, “Call Me” from Billboard Top Rock ‘n’ Roll Hits – 1980)
(listening to: Ma, Yo-Yo & Amsterdam Baroque Soloists, “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” from “No Music, No Life” Sampler 1999)
(listening to: “Hub 7” from Unreal)

Civil War (Marvel) [collects #1-7]
w. Mark Millar; a. Steve McNiven 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

The “Marvel Event” of the last year, I’ve written a lot about Civil War in the past, so I won’t rehash it.  For those unfamiliar with the premise, an accident during apprehension of some super-villains leads to hundreds of civilian casualties, leading in turn to a demand that all metahumans become registered with the government, and use of powers be regulated.  Some heroes buy in or lead this effort, others consider it a breach of their liberties and fight back …

Collecting all the associated TPBs for it would cost a zillion dollars — but this core book did a decent job of bridging the key plotlines. We see the initial incident, the lining up of the combatants (led by Iron Man on the pro-registration side, Captain America on the anti-registration side), the beginning skirmishes, plots within plots, and, finally, the climactic battle where … well, I still won’t spoil it here, but the ending seems contrived and clumsy, the biggest false note (polemics aside) to the series.

That said, Millar has a good grasp of character dialog and keeps folks guessing, and McNiven’s art is clean and picturesque.  This core book holds together pretty well despite all of its events being played out in many other titles, and should be considered by anyone who wants to examine this sea change in the Marvel Universe.  And even non-comics readers will find some of the underlying questions fascinating (Should Superman have to get a badge? Is vigilantism acceptable? If we register guns, shouldn’t we register lightning blasts?), even if they don’t get all the examination they should here.

Note that, in some ways, this book touches on the same themes — power and responsibility — that The Boys does.  Ennis is having a bit more of a lark than Millar, though.  Still, there’s a sort of zeitgeist in the air right now (current politics probably playing a role), and it’s interesting to see how different writers treat this critical topic

Desolation Jones: Made in England, Vol. 1 (Wildstorm) [collects #1-6]
w. Warren Ellis; a. J.H. williams III

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

A former British agent who was subjected to horrific experiments, Jones is now a private eye in Los Angeles — which happens to be the informal underground “Village”-like community for former spooks and enhanced people.

Ellis’ unpleasant tale is dark, not just in a noir way, full of bitter but unforgettable characters living in an awful world where the bad keep the worse in check.  The art is as ugly as the tale, though — trying to provide a bit of surreality, but often as not obscuring what’s actually happening.

 I don’t have any particular interest in reading more of Desolation Jones, but I’m glad I took a peek into his world. 

Action Philosophers: Giant Sized Thing #1 (Evil Twin) [collects #1-3]
w. Brian Van Lente; a. Ryan Dunlavey 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

Action Philosophers: Giant Sized Thing #2 (Evil Twin) [collects #4-6]
w. Brian Van Lente; a. Ryan Dunlavey

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

A faboo series idea — present the biographies, thoughts and philosophies of great thinkers over the ages in an irreverent comic book style format.  Van Lente does an excellent job of distilling down some nasty philosophical concepts into an easy to understand narrative, and Dunlavey’s art provides entertaining visual cues for the same.

The first volume works best — the thinkers chosen there (Plato, Nietzsche, Bodhidharma, Ayn Rand, Thomas Jefferson, St Augustine, Freud, Jung, Joseph Campbell) seemed to lend themselves more readily to the concept.  The second volume is still quite readable with the folks it talks about (Marx, Machiavelli, the Kabbala, Descartes, Sartre, Derrida, Wittgenstein, Aquinas, Kierkegaard), but feels a bit more forced (“running out of deep thinkers here, guys!”).  There’s a third (and final) volume coming out soon.

A nice intro to philosophy and philosophers, and something that non-comics readers won’t even notice is actually a comic book.

The Boys: The Name of the Game, Vol. 1 (Dynamite) [collects #1-6]
w. Garth Ennis; a. Darick Robertson 

Writing		New reader?
Art		Non-comics reader?

When the super-heroes start demonstrating that “absolute power corrupts absolutely” — the government calls in “the Boys,” an enhanced group of bruisers to sow them with great power comes great responsibility … or else.

This is Ennis, of course, so the “corruption” generally involves sex, drugs, more sex, and casually inflected “collateral damage.”  And teaching them a lesson generally means some brutal violence and wicked social commentary.  The tale is told mostly from the perspective of a new recruit, “Wee Hughie,” whose girlfriend is killed in passing by a super-hero pursuit; but there’s a nice parallel thread with a very nice young teen metahuman who finds herself promoted up to the top-tier team — and learns just what those folks are like when they’re not issuing press releases and saving the world.

Wickedly funny, brutal and abusive, it’s triffic fun, too.  Even non-comics readers will find it both outrageous enough to amuse and a great poke at the super-hero genre.