John Buys Comics: Stone Age Edition

Okay, not quite Stone Age, but my Internet connection has become something akin to dialup. So: no fancy images on this post, kiddies, as I kind of want to go to bed tonight.  

Batman and Robin No. 11 

There’s an incredibly high chance that Oberon “Gravedigger” Sexton is a red herring, right? He’s just such an obvious candidate that he simply can’t be Bruce Wayne, back from caveman days and living in disguise. Or has Grant Morrison double-guessed me and brought him back in the most obvious way possible, just to fake me out for a month? Oh, this game of cat and mouse that we have, what chaos it leaves in its wake. Frankly, I kind of hope that he’s not – the DC Universe could use more guys who dress like Victorian hearse drivers and hit people with shovels, and Sexton does so with aplomb.

 

It’s probably not to be, though. If Oberon Sexton isn’t Bruce Wayne then he’s likely either some tertiary character extracted from the Bat-past for new duty (the head of the Batmaniacs, one of the Gotham Mystery Analysts, Batman Jones) or a brand-new character written as though he were of ancient provenance. Either way, I’ll put my money on him being motivated by some sort of instructions or clues that time-traveling Batman has left behind. I’ll also bank on the next few issues of this comic being totally awesome.

 

Man, I really hope it’s Batman Jones.

 

Re: the cover:  that’s a really nice shovel.

 

Red Robin No. 11

 

I’m really enjoying both Red Robin and Batman and Robin, but it’s getting pretty weird to read them both in the same week. Two stories in which two different members of the al Ghul family use what are presumably two different branches of the League of Assassins to try to kill Batman and Robin? It’s not like they’re at all alike in any but the superficial ways that I just pointed out, but it’s still enough to give one déjà vu. I wonder which of these is happening first, official continuity-wise? Which Batman should be rolling his eyes and going “Oh nertz, not again.” before socking some noggin? I guess it’s all contingent on whether “the Return of Bruce Wayne” means the end of Dick Grayson as Batman, doesn’t it?

 

Superman: Secret Origin No 5 (of 6)

 

I’ve been enjoying this series. It might not be strictly necessary, but I understand the need to realign the origin of a character as integral to the DCU as Superman is once in a while, as the Legion of Super-Heroes or Final Crisis or what have you alter how things have happened in general, so too do they alter how things have happened in Superman’s past. Heck, just the fact that Superman was Superboy again works well enough for me.

 

And this series has done a lot of things that I really liked: young Clark Kent finding his first peer group in the Legion worked just as well here as in the LSH cartoon, for example. Or the fact that Metropolis was a hellhole before Superman appeared, say. Plus, this is the best depiction of mild-mannered Clark Kent as a distinct, not-exactly-like-Superman person since All-Star Superman.

 

That said, have I mentioned how bored I am with the current General Sam Lane v. Superman plotline that has now evidently been incorporated into this origin story? I have? Well, let me reiterate: Mistrustful Secret Government or Military Group Targets Super-humans And Tries to Turn the Public Against Them is so damn played out that reading a comic book in which that is the main story element is like… it’s like when you were a kid and some terrible show is on television but there’s something that you really want to see on afterward and you have no concept of time being precious yet, so you just sit and watch the terrible show that you’ve already seen before at least twice. The world goes gray around the edges and you are so bored that it’s palpable. THAT IS WHAT THIS TYPE OF STORY FEELS LIKE TO ME.

 

At least the next issue is going to have the bit where everything looks really bad but then Metropolis embraces Superman and there’s an inspirational splash page.

 

Sparta USA No. 2

 

I think that I can safely bump up the RECAP on this book without violating my personal values and spoiling anything.

 

Sparta is a small town that believes itself to be a part of the United States. All Spartans are a) obsessed with football, b) dedicated to their family and its public image and c) capable of doing anything up to and including murdering one another in order to advance their agendas regarding a) and b).

 

The people of Sparta answer to the Maestro, a blue man visits town sporadically and who claims to speak for the President and dictates who gets married to who, who is allowed to have children – children that he brings with him from somewhere outside of town. No Spartan, by the way, is allowed to leave Sparta, and believes the outside world to be virtually uninhabitable.

 

Enter Godfrey McLaine, legendary former quarterback and the only person to have ever left town. He’s come back huge and red and looking to free the people of Sparta from the influence of the Maestro. Based on what he’s said and what we’ve seen through his eyes, Sparta is nowhere in the US, but rather in the midst of some sort of fantastical wonderland full of yeti and hags and fairy-types and the like. I am intensely interested in finding out what the deal is with this town.

 

Invincible Returns No. 1 – Okay, wait. The story picks up directly from Invincible No. 69 and the letters page text treats this like No. 70 but the cover and indicia disagree. I’m so confused, not least by why I’m spending this much mental energy on trying to figure things out (yet not, say, looking it up on Images website). Eh. What’s certain is that the yellow costume is much more visibly interesting than the all-blue was and it’s good to have it back.

 

King City No. 7 – I tell you what: I’m glad that I got into King City the second time around. This marks the first all-new issue of the book since early 2007 and I reckon that I’d have spent the past three years pining away if I’d been reading it back then. For all of you poor fools who’ve been doing just that, this issue features brain-theft, a look at the farm that Joe learned cat mastery at and a backup by James “Orc Stain” Stokoe! Hot damn!

 

Sweet Tooth No. 8 – Good gravy. It is almost physically hard to read parts of this book. Jeppard’s collapse is so complete in this issue that it’s painful. RECAP next issue.

 

Doom Patrol No. 9 – I have a good feeling about this thing where Giffen brings back Doom Patrol characters that I never thought I’d see again in a million years. Granted, Crazy Jane and Danny the Street Brick haven’t really had the facetime necessary for a full nerdnalysis, but my Cautious Optimism Sense is tingling. Of course, one must then wonder: who’s next? Coagula? Imaginary Robotman? Beard Hunter? Beard Hunter, please.

 

Speaking of characters that haven’t been around in a while, is Oberon’s bi-coloured hair freaking anyone else out? 

Shameless Self-Promotion: SLAM-A-RAMA!

 Sometimes our postings on Living Between Wednesdays are a bit, well, sporadic. Other stuff is always popping up to keep us from posting new reviews and articles regularly, like Rachelle’s new baby or Tiina’s new job. The only one who seems immune to this particular phenomenon is Johnathan, who I’m beginning to suspect has no need for sleep or sustenance. My biggest excuse—other than just the usual divide between my full-time job and the need for social activity and general day-off lazening—is the completion of my online comic, Slam-A-Rama. At this point, you may be thinking, “Hey, wait a minute! This guy drew me into what I thought was an apologetic post about his lack of blog contributions, but now it’s morphing into a plug for his comic!”. If that is indeed what you are thinking…congratulations, that’s exactly correct.  Sorry ‘bout that, but I’ve been working super hard on it and I really want people to check it out, and this seemed like a good way to introduce the comic to a bunch of new readers. Plus, LBW founder Rachelle urged me to do it, and who am I to argue?

 

Slam-A-Rama is a (projected) 120-page story that takes place on one night, during a superstar Pro Wrestling extravaganza in 1987. Over the course of this evening, a variety of dramas play out, both in the ring and backstage, amongst a diverse group of characters at various stages in their careers. Some of the protagonists, like Terry “The Tarantula” Purvis, Kreegah the Jungle Lord, or Jack Jordan, AKA the U.S. Male, are at the top of their game, and others, like Andy Reddick or the Crockett-and-Tubbs-inspired tag team Miami Heat, are on their last legs. The business end of the Unlimited Wrestling Federation is in turmoil as well, the victim of a bitter power struggle between UWF owner and founder Burt MacKinley and his ambitious son and heir apparent, Val. The marketing revenue brought in by promotional tie-ins like wrestling-themed record albums and Saturday morning cartoons promise to make millionaires out of some performers, while drug abuse and health issues threaten the livelihood of others.

 

This comic was inspired by my own love of ridiculous WWF extravaganzas like Wrestlemania III during the height of Reagan-era excess when I was a kid, so I wanted to play with the stereotypes of the time while peeling back the curtain to examine what forces might have driven people prone to wearing unitards and subjecting themselves to crazy gimmicks and codenames. Just as importantly, however, I was inspired by Robert Altman’s 1975 film Nashville—if you haven’t seen it, I strongly urge you to check it our right away. It follows a group of country music performers, utilizing an ensemble cast of about 24 main characters, to examine a country still struggling with the disillusionment of Vietnam and Watergate. The rambling, 2 and ½ hour story alternates between dramatic interludes and terrific musical performances (mostly written and performed by the actors themselves—Keith Carradine’s Oscar-winning ballad I’m Easy is a show-stopper). Although I’m not a country music fan, I loved the idea of mixing the dramatic elements with the performance elements, and that more than anything inspired me to combine character drama with (hopefully) action-packed wrestling matches in Slam-A-Rama, while using a very specific entertainment medium to examine a period in American history the way Nashville does. So hopefully, even if you don’t like wrestling, you’ll find something to appreciate in Slam-A-Rama, just like I, a non-country music fan, did with Nashville.

 

All right, enough of that. If any of this interests you, please check out Slam-A-Rama here, where you’ll find the first 25 pages and some bonus artwork, as well as new pages being added every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. We now return you to your regularly scheduled blog.

ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzz.....

 

Vacation! Five day weekend! Just thinking about it has evidently made me very tired!

Happy Easter, one and all!

John Buys Comics, Fights His Way Back From Alternate Timeline, Defeats Evil Self

I’m… I’m going to put my Blackest Night review at the end, okay? Just read the first part if you got enough of that last week.

Mysterius the Unfathomable 

Yep, this trade totally came out last week, but I got it yesterday. I don't know if I missed it or it was on a slow comic delivery boat or what. Maybe I'm just a terrible person.

Mysterius the Unfathomable is simply a delightful comic. It's full of fun characters and crazy monsters, big-bellied men and hippy women (and women who are hippies), and a plot that worked well when it was told in individual issues and even better as a unified whole. Every event in the story ties back into the main plot, but not obviously, not insultingly, and even better: in a way that is explained early on in issue 1. 

So, yeah, this is an amazing comic. It looks incredible, rewards careful rereading, features a main character who is a Bastard With a Deeply-Buried Heart of Gold (one of my favourite archetypes) and has a sidekick/conscience who isn't just a horrible whining guilt-tripper (also good). Plus, Seuss-analogue-as-demonologist Dr Gaust and his cadre of Hellmoggin are the most entertaining antagonists that I've encountered in a very long time.

It's just pure good times, is what it is. 

Astro City: The Dark Age Book 4 No. 3 – Holy moley. The Dark Age is over as of next month. While I am completely sure that the world is divided up into people who have read the whole thing and people who couldn’t give a dang, I’ll probably write a lot about the whole thing next issue. For now I just have to say that the payoff on being an Astro City fan is enormous. The Pale Horseman was mentioned in “Confession", what? Twelve years ago? Just one line from one angry old hippy way back when and now he’s on a cover, and I’m dang certain that Busiek had at least part of this planned out when he was writing that hippy’s dialogue. If you’re a continuity junkie but are disenchanted with Marvel and DC: here’s the book for you.

Adventure Comics No. 9 – Man, the retro cover design that this book has been rocking doesn’t really work with every art style, does it? Especially with that child-frighteningly hideous Superman in the middle of things. Bright and clean folks, bright and clean. As for the inside of the book: meh. It looks okay and reads okay, but it’s partially the Legion in the 31^st Century, partially Superboy and the Legion Espionage Squad on New Krypton in the 21^st Century and partially Project 7734 bullplop. I’ll be interested to see what’s done with this comic once the Superman Family books calm down, but until then it’s necessarily going to be tepid, as only a book that has been shoehorned into an event but has no actual stake in the event can be.

Blackest Night No. 8

Look, I’m going to spoil this, okay? I’m already breaking last week’s promise not to do this any more, so why not go whole hog?

So, Blackest Night happened. A big ol’ crossover, yup. And man, was it terrible.

Not that the ideas behind it didn’t have merit: why do people keep coming back to life? (wasn’t it because Kid Eternity was jammed in the door to the afterlife?) What are the consequences of all of those people coming back to life, other than Kid Eternity being uncomfortable? Why can’t we set up a page where we make a huge unintentional joke about how most of the DCU super-heroes are Caucasian?

Heck, a lot of the thing looked really pretty, and the weird aliens were suitably weird (although there was no panel that featured the just-a-big-head guys from the Red and Green Lantern Corps standing next to each other, and that made me sad) and I like the possibilities inherent in the various Lantern Corps. 

But this was interminable and about two-thirds of it was full of gut-wrenchingly, melodramatically awful writing - Green Lantern Corps was fun throughout. It may have been due to the fact that whatever Johns had worked out ahead of time and meticulously set up was smeared across the entire DCU instead of being confined to three series, but looking back on the whole sad shebang the overwhelming impression is of forced improvisation, like he had a starting point and an endpoint and was just filling pages until the requisite number of issues were scripted: an issue of characters figuring things out, one of gathering up Deputy Lanterns (and how supremely helpful they were!), tiny victory, huge setback, tiny victory, huge setback etcetera etcetera etcetera ad nauseam barf.

Actually, I was going to say something about how it was like the end of Crisis on Infinite Earths in that regard, but on further reflection I realized that this series was actually opposite of that one: the universe is now much more complicated, some super-heroes have come back to life and the Anti-Monitor is on the loose. Sadly, it lacked the two elements that made Crisis worth reading: Perez art and novelty. Oh, and necessity, or at least perceived necessity. Even the caveat at the end about how people won’t be coming back to life any more essentially means nothing, because the very fact that people were brought back provides a reason for every dead character ever to no longer be so: they were White Lanterned. Ralph and Sue Dibny won’t be coming back and that’s it.

And there were just too many stupid moments: the Black Lanterns’ dialogue. The Deputy Lanterns, (except for Scarecrow, but exactly how necessary was he?). Having most of the event happen on Earth. Bringing back characters (Martian Manhunter, Captain Boomerang) in idealized, not-at-all-what-they-looked-like-when-they-died form. Bringing back Reverse-Flash at all, since that a) undoes the end of just-finished, written-by-the-same-guy Flash: Rebirth and b) Implies that Flash actually killed him at the end. Or maybe c) this takes place before that series and Barry Allen is going straight from this incredibly life-affirming moment to a period of awful, whiny angst.

But of course the stupidest thing is the entire concept of the White Light of Life and the White Lantern Corps. People have been making jokes about White Lanterns for about two years because it’s the most dumb, obvious end to this story imaginable. Especially because the second most obvious end, which is Hal Jordan putting on all seven rings and using them to generate white light and smash Nekron, would actually be kind of cool. Heck, it would at least justify the Hal Jordan lust amongst the various Corps.

*looks at cover* Oh, hey, Sinestro wears his ring on his left hand. Clever!

Johnathan and Blackest Night No. 8: BEST FRIENDS

I'm shelving the rest of my reviews this week and retracting all of my earlier bitching, because Blackest Night No. 8 is a perfect comic.

We are now BEST FRIENDS. (sorry Jimmy Olsen No. 72)

We're also forming a crime-fighting duo!

Our CLOSE FRIENDSHIP will see us through the ups and downs of investigating the seedy comic book underbelly of my house.

Yes, we truly are BFF.

Who's Who: Mitchell Lee Reid, aka Commander Mercykill

Name: Mitchell Lee Reid

Height: Some inches (no one actually told me)

Weight: 6lbs, 11oz

First appearance: March 25, 2010 at 4:05am, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Known relatives: Rachelle Goguen (mother), Matt Reid (father)

Base of operations: Bedford, Nova Scotia

Group Affiliation: the family Goguen-Reid

Origin Story:

Mitchell arrived on the scene two weeks before his due date, ready for action. Not content to wait around for a normal birth, which would take, like, a thousand hours, Mitchell decided to straight up punch his way out of the womb. He attempted to come out hand first, which resulted in a c-section operation for mom. This made mom more vulnerable to an attack by Magneto, as she had 16 staples across her abdomen, but they have since been removed.

Despite the impatient nature of Mitchell's birth, he is a pretty mellow and quiet baby. His favourite activities include sleeping and trying to rid himself of his sworn enemy, jaundice.