I’ve been numbering my entries, picking up where I left off with the I LOVE COMICS 3000 CHALLENGE as one of the participants on the Captain Blue Hen Facebook page. This started as a challenge from friendly comic shops in Ohio and Texas, originally as the 1,000 Comics Challenge, then the 2021 Comic Book Quarantine Odyssey, and then I Love Comics 3000 - - all goals met by the group of Captain Blue Hen customer participants. I’m curious to see how long it takes me to read that many comics. My journey began with the 1,000 Comics Challenge on approximately March 15, 2020.
#690 DETECTIVE COMICS #1028 (DC, December 2020) “New Blood”. Nicola Scott provides some noir-looking art for this stand-alone story. A mounted policeman, son of a disgraced cop who was set up by his corrupt partners (murdered and drugs planted on the body), seeks revenge wearing a pale mask with his father’s features. Until Batman steps in, of course.
I enjoyed both art and Peter Tomasi’s script, although it’s so similar to other stories that it doesn’t seem that original. However, the charm is in the story-telling. Non-essential but still worthwhile. THREE STARS.
#691 DETECTIVE COMICS #1029 (DC, December 2020) “Who Are You?” Kenneth Rocafort is back on art here, and I really enjoy his use of smaller panels (some widescreen) and when he decides to use them. This is the beginning of a story arc with a new character and new challenges.
There’s a new vigilante in town, calling himself The Mirror. He claims to be the champion of the citizenry who are tired of “the bats and cats and clowns who leap around our city as if the law doesn’t apply to them.” He’s picked up on former police officer Nakano’s buzzword, who’s running for mayor on a platform of “unmask”, and espouses a mission to hunt the masked protectors of Gotham and expose them. He wears a reflective suit and mask.
Bruce Wayne, following the events of the Joker War, has to move out of Wayne Manor and has some neat reflective moments. Bruce attends a cruise ship fund-raiser for Nakano that gets crashed by pirates. Nightwing comes to the rescue, but gets no thanks from Nakano or the crowd, who chant “unmask”. Indeed. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.
#692 BATMAN #102 (DC, early January 2021) “Ghost Stories, Part 1”. There’s a new crime-fighter in Gotham, who calls himself Ghost-Maker.
He’s shaking down some minor criminals and alleged dirty cops in an
effort to find and stop Clownhunter. Why is not revealed. (Don’t hurt this kid, Tynion! I like him.)
Ghost-Maker carries two swords and has some cool moves. His costume looks like a modern version of the Knights Templar. It reminds me a lot of Matt Wagner’s Grendel.
Looks like Harley Quinn is moving to set up shop in Gotham, and may continue to play a part in the storylines.
Ghost-Maker and Bruce Wayne/Batman have a past. They were former rivals. This looks promising. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.
This issue marks a turning point for Dr. Doom, in a reflective mood as he considers everything that’s happened since Issue #1. He plans to “transform”, and “it’s just a matter of when to tell the world of our imminent mutual salvation.”
The story is told is a series of flashbacks as Victor Von Doom writes in his journal. That would be pretty boring since I read the previous issues if not for two important factors:
1) Every page features one and sometimes double-page images by Salvador Larroca. If you’ve ever admired his work, this issue serves as a real showcase.
2) Some of the incomplete plot threads and side stories throughout the first seven issues are summarized here and a resolution offered. It’s a bold move by writer Christopher Cantwell, as many of these could have provided content for several issues alone.
Guess this book really is moving in a new direction, no lie. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.
Issue #1 featured a unique premise (harvesting the dead bodies of gigantic gods floating in space) and experimental art that seemed influenced by cubism. By Issue #2 I was enjoying the story but not falling in love with the art and colors (I couldn’t detect a logical theme for panel size or color choices, and it bugged me). I determined that Issue #3 needed to provide a payoff for me, or I was going to drop it.
Well, the payoff came. There’s a reason the autopsy ship Vihaan II broke through the barriers in search of something, and it looks like they have found it. In pursuit is the escort ship piloted by Paula Richter, an armed police presence with a 30 year grudge against Captain Malik. A little flashback to the incident that created such animosity is revealed and provides more good story fodder.
The dialogue guides the reader through what’s happening in Issue #3, as the art succeeds in confusing and vague images.
The space chase, evasive maneuvers, and tricks are as good as current military science fiction in print provides, and the surprise at the end of this issue is the payoff for me. I’m going to keep reading, in spite of the art and colors (which I still do not like). THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.
If you’re looking for more post-apocalyptic settings for your reading pleasure, you may want to check out this mini-series. I think it has a lot of promise, although I wasn’t engaged enough by the end of Issue #1 to keep going. However, I will await the advent of the eventual trade paperback, check out the reviews of the full series, and then . . who knows?
Issue #1 introduces the presumed main characters and the setting but raises a ton of questions, all unanswered. I found the story to be mostly vague and a bit cryptic. But, if you like mystery, symbolism, uncovering the meaning behind phrases . . . then, this is for you.
In a flashback scene, a woman wandering through a devastated city overgrown with vegetation finds a dead baby, takes the corpse back to “home” (a museum) and resurrects it inside a microwave. (Actually, it might be a 3-D printer but the script doesn’t explain anything). The baby is David and his “past is your future.” In the present, he is older (18?) and the woman (Chloe) has to protect his presence from the “network” with assistance from one other robed and respirator-wearing guardian (Clif).
This is the second post-apocalypse comic I’ve recently read that employs cheerful colors rather than the drab hues we’re used to seeing in works of this nature. (The other example being the remarkable WE LIVE.)
The color palette is quite vivid, with impressive watercolor-like backgrounds.
On a side note, I’ve noticed a broader use of the color palette in several Boom! titles this month. In addition to this one, vivid colors are present in WE ONLY FIND THEM WHEN THEY’RE DEAD (for sure!), SEVEN SECRETS, and ONCE AND FUTURE. I’m wondering if that’s a Boom! house style.
I actually learned more about the story behind ORIGINS from reading the publisher’s synopsis and a few critical reviews. That answers the questions about who David really is, why he’s important, and what he’s been brought back to life to help with. Not all of the characters are human.
I’m not going to spoil it by revealing any more here, in case you are thinking of exploring this title. However, the synopsis is more interesting to me than what’s revealed in Issue #1. If the writer had thought to incorporate just a little more of that into the introductory story, I might have been engaged. Nope, you blew your chance to hook me, bud. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.
#696 - #697 BILLIONAIRE ISLAND #5, #6 (Ahoy, 2020) Mark Russell and Steve Pugh wrap up their amusing satire on the elite billionaire class. Freedom Unlimited is an exclusive artificial island resort, well outside of diplomatic waters where anything goes . . . if you can afford it. Funded by a corrupt agricultural mega-corporation with a sadistic plot to sterilize the poor classes, head honcho Rick Canto’s about to suffer some severe backlash.
In Issue #5 justice is served and our motley crew of protagonists make their escape. Issue #6 is the wrap-up covering what happens after the island crashes, and it is the most entertaining and satisfying of the group. Rather than crashing on the stock market after the death of Aggrocorp majority owner Canto, the board members conspire to pump up the share prices by manipulating the various financial experts and
stockmarket talk-show experts. “Stock brokers, hedge fund managers, investors . . they don’t know what they’re doing! They’re a school of fish . . . everyone following everyone else. Just get enough money swimming in the opposite direction . .. and they’ll follow.”
The mock-up by Russell and Pugh of money experts like the Mad Money tv host and various pod-casters is hilarious. Sadly, the bad guys come out on top, but this is very pointed satire and very funny - - so I’ll laugh through my tears.
The editor’s notes at the back of the issue says it all: “So, on behalf of the entire BILLIONAIRE ISLAND team, we apologize for any inconvenience the similarities to reality our book has brought you. We know you read comics for escapism. Just call us Cassandra.” FIVE STARS.
#698 ONCE & FUTURE #12 (Boom!, October 2020) “Old English”. All ye who expect this fantasy to conform to Arthurian legend please abandon your expectations at the door. Kieron Gillen takes those, as well as the Anglo-Saxon, British, Celtic (and maybe a little Welsh) lore of England and bends them all to suit the design of his story. Now, he’s going to blend in some of the Beowulf legend for good measure.
The mother of all monsters. A resurrected King Arthur. Percival and Galahad. Merlin. Nimue. The lady in the lake. Excalibur. Battleground? . . . . . a nursing home. Granny with a chainsaw. Vivid art and eye-popping colors. I really need to read this one story arc at a time. FOUR STARS.
#699 NORSE MYTHOLOGY #1 (Dark Horse, October 2020) Neil Gaiman took the ancient legends and adapted them in his humorous, whimsical fashion in NORSE MYTHOLOGY. I read the book, and even though I was familiar with these stories, I was highly entertained. Gaiman made it seem new and fresh. I also listened to the audio book version, narrated by Gaiman, during a long car trip two years ago. Gaiman’s voice, his inflections, tone, and emphasis on particular words and phrases made it even better.
The debut issue contains three short tales. “Yggdrasil And The Nine Worlds” serves as a placemat for the series. It’s mostly an explanation of the setting for these stories, illustrated by Russell. His art is as good as ever, and reminds me of the illustrated books of mythology and fairy tales I read during my elementary school days.
“Mimir’s Head And Odin’s Eye”, with art by Mike Mignola has a little more flavor to it, revealing how Odin lost his eye. Fair exchange.
But it wasn’t until the last story, “The Treasures Of The Gods” with gorgeous art by Jerry Ordway, that I sensed that same kind of mirth as I enjoyed in the original book. Loki plays a trick and steals the golden hair of Sif. An enraged Thor threatens to break all his bones unless he reverses the damage. Loki has to connive some crafty dwarves into fashioning new hair for Sif to wear. The story concludes in Issue #2.
I’m expecting things to pick up quite a bit now that the set-up is out of the way. I look forward to reading more. FOUR STARS.
No comments:
Post a Comment