I LOVE COMICS 3000, Part Nineteen

 I’ve been numbering my entries, picking up where I left off with the 2,021 COMIC BOOK QUARANTINE ODYSSEY.  I’m curious to see how long it takes me to read that many comics. I want the results to be realistic so I’m not going to binge read unless I happen to be in the mood.  There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t end up reading some comics, so we’ll see how long this takes. The journey began with the 1,000 Comics Challenge on approximately March 15, 2020.

 

#411  THE LOW LOW WOODS #6 of 6  (DC/Hill House, August 2020) 

I was a little disappointed by how this ended. There is not a satisfying resolution, just some answers. However, neither the script nor the images spell out what exactly is happening - - so readers are going to have to work to figure things out. Teenagers El and Vee have always seemed to be the only couple (except for the hermit-like witch) in Shudder-To-Think to notice the strange skinless creatures and deer people lurking in the woods.  Bad things have happened at Heaven, a bankrupt and closed resort now a teenage hang-out. The two friends go there to rescue Jessica, and have a confrontation with some evil-minded boys and later fight the woods creatures. Magic mushrooms. Magic water. Turns out the women of the town all suffer from suppressed memories. The girls’ discovery offers them a new direction — they can choose to remember or choose to forget. THREE STARS.

#412  PLUNGE #4 of 6  (DC/Hill House, August 2020) What began as a simple story (40 year old ship dredged up with crew still living, but very strange) just got complicated with this issue. I’m not going to spoil it for anyone who’s reading this title. I was stunned by the reveals. The Lovecraft/Cthulu mythos influence comes to the surface more, with a dash of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. The art team does its’ best to exploit the creepiness, and succeeds. I’d be a bit more disturbed or anxious if I could relate to some of the characters, but there really hasn’t been any time to develop them. That’s the one thing this title suffers from. FOUR STARS.

#413  OUTER DARKNESS / CHEW  #3 of 3 (Image, June 2020) I wasn’t sure how this crossover of two popular John Layman properties would end, but I certainly didn’t expect this. Again, I”m biting my tongue to avoid spoilers. Almost the entire cast of characters from the long-running CHEW infiltrate the confines of the spaceship Charon. Even Poyo the atomic chicken meets the demonic God-engine. As ship captain Joshua Rigg puts it: “All hands. I repeat: an infernal got into the Colosseum coding — the program that brought those Chew comic book characters back - - and now we got a bunch of demonically-possessed holo-constructs running amok on Levels Six and Seven.”  FOUR STARS.

#414  OLD HAUNTS #2 of 5 (AWA/Upshot, July 2020) I love the art in this crime comic (with supernatural overtones) and its’ rotoscopic look. The lighting and shading are cinema quality. The story is still holding back, as readers can’t be exactly sure what’s happening as things play out. A quartet of old school mobsters return to the scene of their crimes and kills for an apparent wrap-up/changing of the guard. They’re shadowed by ghost of their past (in the form of vultures with coins for eyes) and are now being influenced by voices in their ears, persuading them to do things that are really messing up their chances to resolve this, all while the FBI is closing in on a decades long pursuit. Compelling, as long as you’re willing to wait for all the answers. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.

#415  THE GODDAMNED: THE VIRGIN BRIDES #1  (Image, July 2020) “And the earth was filled with violence.” GENESIS 6:11 . . . . In THE GODDAMNED (2017) writer Jason Aaron took that biblical passage and built a world and story around it filled with prehistoric monsters and stone-age raiders where murder and destruction ruled the day. Now, he does it again, branching off from this passage:  “The Sons of God came in unto the daughters of men. And they bare children to them . . . GENESIS 6:4.

The art by R. M. Guera, who previously teamed up with Aaron on THE GODDAMNED and the classic SCALPED series, is the stuff of dreams. So expressive, so detailed, so visually dynamic. That panorama on the opening pages is breathtaking. The all-female great warriors of the mountain enter the village of females to transport the virgin (young girls are watched closely for their first vaginal bleeding) to the summit where her betrothed awaits. Not all of the young girls of the village are excited for this to happen for them, as Jael notes “ . . . the ladies of the mountain sure won’t give a damn. Those bitches are so cold they shit icicles.”  She and her friend Sharri decide to sneak out and climb the mountain to find out what it’s all about. What they find is horrifying. FIVE STARS.

#416  FIRE POWER #1 FREE COMIC BOOK DAY (Image, May 2020) This came out almost simultaneously with the FIRE POWER VOLUME 1: PRELUDE trade paperback. The upcoming series begins with this FCBD issue, taking place 15 years after main character Owen is back in the U.S. raising a family, living a normal life, until he gets a reminder of his past from a former associate. (Which will remind many of the old STREET FIGHTER video game, especially that fire-ball-from-the-hands release). The same thing that makes FIRE POWER worth following and made WALKING DEAD last so many issues is here: Kirkman’s masterful character portraits. Samnee’s art style is well-suited to this title. What I especially appreciate is that he did not exaggerate the features of Owen as is normally done when portraying Asian or mixed-race characters. You really can’t discern that from looking at the panels, only after reading the text piece in the back. And then subtle traits can be detected. Which is the way it should be - - because the race of the character is not what this story is about. This is a thoughtful family drama with hard decisions to make about responsibility and purpose. FOUR STARS.

#417  EMPYRE #1  (Marvel, September 2020) I know that continuity-busting goes on all the time in DC and Marvel books, but an old-school reader like me still gets disturbed by it. There’s a couple things about Empyre that bother me — here’s hoping the sacrifice is not in vain and we get a good story (like the Kree/Skrull War - the first one, or Secret Invasion). 

   Here’s the lowdown/background you need to know before immersing yourself in this epic (I’m quoting right from the credits page): “After years of conflict the Kree and Skrull empires suddenly united under the leadership of Emperor Dorrek VIII, the Young Avenger and Kree/Skrull hybrid known as Hulking. His first act as Emperor was to order all their combined forces to earth to defeat their mutual enemy, the plant-like race known as the Cotati.”

   Continuity Bust #1) It’s hard for anyone who’s read all the brutal battles between Kree and Skrull to imagine them working together. The foe most likely to unite them would be Earth - - they both have deep grudges. But the peace-loving Cotati?  Sure, the Kree are pissed because they lost a contest to them. But, what’s the Skrull grievance against the Cotati? They’ve never been any part of their plans before. (This does get explained better as the issue goes on, and I won’t spoil it, but that reason bothers me even further).  

  The introduction continues:  “Meanwhile, the remaining Cotati, after being nearly wiped out of existence by the Kree, have been revegetating the Blue Area of Earth’s Moon.  Leading the Cotati’s efforts are Quoi, the prophesied Celestial Messiah, and his father, the Swordsman.  Facing annihilation, they summoned their former allies, the Avengers, to the Moon. . . . . . Meanwhile, the Fantastic Four were heading home from a mission in space when they came across the Kree/Skruill armada en route to Earth . . .”

   The odds seem stacked against the Avengers. And the FF can’t stand with them, as they’re still aboard the Emperor’s ship trying to negotiate a truce/cease fire. What ensues is a captivating battle with a lot of talking going on during the fighting about who’s on the right side and who’s on the wrong side. But the Avengers have a sly move up their sleeve which halts the conflict before there are any serious injuries. 

     However, there’s another twist/surprise so unexpected that it infuriates me, leading to Continuity Bust #2) Not just one person acting completely out of 50+ years of character, but an entire group of characters. Could they not leave well enough alone? 

    End of rant. On a more positive note, there is good story-telling here and engaging art with plenty of action. I’ll hang around for a bit longer. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS because I won’t rate something higher that violates some comics mythos this way.

Betcha thought I was done with Empyre. 

     This particular item of annoyance I don't call a Continuity-Buster, more like a Trust-Buster. Imagine some thoughtful person pre-ordering and asking for a variant cover, and not being specific about it, because what comic store is going to bring them all in-- there's so many (ha!) Just get me a variant, any variant, please?

     Imagine that same thoughtful person then receiving this particular variant - - WTF???? Worthless. At least a blank variant has space for a sketch. Nothing doing here.

     I'm not referring to the comic store as the Trust-Buster. It's the publisher - Marvel - that took advantage.

     I guess I can assume the reason why they did this. DC, as part of their new distribution deal, now brings out their new title every Tuesday. So, this cover is just Marvel's way of sniping back at them.

Seems kind of petty and unprofessional to me, don't ya think?