Kafka by David Zane Marowitz and Robert Crumb.
This book is a biography of Franz Kafka. Throughout the book we get summaries of Kafka's important works and we get to see Crumb's visual interpretation of these stories. That is the best part of the book for me. The biographical side is also very good, explaining a bit of why Kafka wrote like that.
While reading the book, I felt like it is hard to call most of it a comic book, because it has a lot of prose. The parts of the book where we get to see Crumb interpret Kafka's stories definitely feel like a comic book, but the biography section doesn't. However, I thinks this works very well in the book, it makes the stories more alive when the images tell more than just being a drawing.
I enjoyed the book, it is worth reading.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Godland: Hello Cosmic (Vol. 1)
Godland: Hello Cosmic (Vol. 1) by Joe Casey and Tom Scioli consists of issues 1 through 6 of Godland.
I had heard great things about this comic, how fun it is, how outrageous, etcetera. But when I was reading it, I wasn't into it. While the art is very good and the story is okay, I just thought that not much was going on.
Adam Archer is a nice hero, he has a sister that is jealous of his powers. There is a junkie villain which brings some nice comedy into the story and there are subplots which make it clear that there are plans for future issues. This is what makes me think of getting the second trade, but while reading the book, I just didn't feel the excitement I feel when reading other comic books.
I think the comic is well made, but it just isn't my kind of comic. Worth checking out.
I had heard great things about this comic, how fun it is, how outrageous, etcetera. But when I was reading it, I wasn't into it. While the art is very good and the story is okay, I just thought that not much was going on.
Adam Archer is a nice hero, he has a sister that is jealous of his powers. There is a junkie villain which brings some nice comedy into the story and there are subplots which make it clear that there are plans for future issues. This is what makes me think of getting the second trade, but while reading the book, I just didn't feel the excitement I feel when reading other comic books.
I think the comic is well made, but it just isn't my kind of comic. Worth checking out.
Birdhouse
Birdhouse by Vernon White.
Birdhouse is a comic about a princess that wants to leave her castle and leave near the ocean. The king is a tyrant and he doesn't let her do much. He also is not well liked in his country.
Not much happens in the comic and the story is not very interesting. However, I liked that the comic was able to move along with few words, making this a very visual experience. I think Vernon White does a great job with the artwork. I particularly liked how a scene from the same angle looked different when it was a memory and when it was real. In the memory, the scene looks more beautiful. The scene was subtle, but when I finished the book it made me look at the images again.
I think the comic is meant for a younger audience, and I think it is a good book for children or young teenagers. I don't think the comic was very good for older readers.
Birdhouse is a comic about a princess that wants to leave her castle and leave near the ocean. The king is a tyrant and he doesn't let her do much. He also is not well liked in his country.
Not much happens in the comic and the story is not very interesting. However, I liked that the comic was able to move along with few words, making this a very visual experience. I think Vernon White does a great job with the artwork. I particularly liked how a scene from the same angle looked different when it was a memory and when it was real. In the memory, the scene looks more beautiful. The scene was subtle, but when I finished the book it made me look at the images again.
I think the comic is meant for a younger audience, and I think it is a good book for children or young teenagers. I don't think the comic was very good for older readers.
Thunderbolts: Caged Angels
Thunderbolts: Caged Angels by Warren Ellis and Mike Deodato Jr. consists of issues 116 through 121 of Thunderbolts.
Since Warren Ellis gets a lot of praise, I've been trying to read more of his comics. I recently read Nextwave and another Thunderbolts storyline. I haven't loved them, but I have enjoyed them. This is another solid story. I think it is much better than the first storyline Ellis wrote for the Thunderbolts. Here we get to see a lot of interesting things. We get to witness the heroics of Songbird, the return of the Green Goblin, a lot of cool fights (Swordsman versus Venom, Swordsman versus Green Goblin, Moonstone versus Penance) and we get to see mind-controlling rogues almost destroy the Thunderbolts.
A lot of things happen in this comic and it was a fun ride. It got me interested in knowing more about Songbird and Penance. I think Ellis did a very good job of making this title more interesting. The art by Deodato Jr. is excellent, with a lot of detail and amazing fight scenes.
This comic is not only worth reading, but it made "Thunderbolts: Faith in Monsters" worth reading too.
Since Warren Ellis gets a lot of praise, I've been trying to read more of his comics. I recently read Nextwave and another Thunderbolts storyline. I haven't loved them, but I have enjoyed them. This is another solid story. I think it is much better than the first storyline Ellis wrote for the Thunderbolts. Here we get to see a lot of interesting things. We get to witness the heroics of Songbird, the return of the Green Goblin, a lot of cool fights (Swordsman versus Venom, Swordsman versus Green Goblin, Moonstone versus Penance) and we get to see mind-controlling rogues almost destroy the Thunderbolts.
A lot of things happen in this comic and it was a fun ride. It got me interested in knowing more about Songbird and Penance. I think Ellis did a very good job of making this title more interesting. The art by Deodato Jr. is excellent, with a lot of detail and amazing fight scenes.
This comic is not only worth reading, but it made "Thunderbolts: Faith in Monsters" worth reading too.
Flight Vol. 1
Flight is an anthology published by Image comics. The idea is to have young creators make short stories about flight. There are six volumes out there and this is the first one. I enjoyed reading it. The nice thing about anthologies is that if you don't like one story, the story is short enough to not matter and if you like one story, you can look for more things from that author online. This anthology has several good stories, I liked both stories written by Kibuishi, the editor of the comic. Both of them were funny. Near the end of the book there's another story I liked a lot, it is called "The Bowl". It is a nice story told without words, the art is very strong and the author, Clio Chang, was able to express complex things through her art. Other stories I liked include "Hugo Earhart" by Jake Parker, "Tug McTaggart, Circus Detective" by Phil Cravenand "The Maiden and the River Spirit" by Derek Kirk Kim.
A good comic, worth checking out.
A good comic, worth checking out.
Dark Knight Returns
Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller.
This is one of the first graphic novels I read. I read it in High School, about ten years ago. Today I read it for the first time since then. It was interesting seeing how much denser it is than most comics nowadays. It took me over three hours, which is about double what it would take to read the same number of Walking Dead pages. A lot of the pages are full of panels, there are very few splash pages, no double splashes and almost every panel has writing in it. I love to see narration during fighting sequences (something not done much since) and this book has great narration from Batman whenever he is fighting. It is so cool to see what he thinks and I also enjoy that the narration is sometimes repetitive, such as "Lucky old man". Being repetitive makes sense, because that is how we talk and think.
The first time I read this book I really enjoyed the fight between Batman and Superman. This time, I feel like I enjoyed many other things. I like how it uses news channels to give us the information about what shape the world is in. I like how crazy the Joker is, I like how each issue has a different menace, but it all seems natural, as part of a bigger story. I like how there is constant debate over whether Batman is a good thing.
The beginning of this comic is very strange, as the mutants are weird villains, however, by the second issue I got into the comic, once the new Robin was introduced and the subplots were starting to form.
This is a great comic, worthy of the praise it gets.
This is one of the first graphic novels I read. I read it in High School, about ten years ago. Today I read it for the first time since then. It was interesting seeing how much denser it is than most comics nowadays. It took me over three hours, which is about double what it would take to read the same number of Walking Dead pages. A lot of the pages are full of panels, there are very few splash pages, no double splashes and almost every panel has writing in it. I love to see narration during fighting sequences (something not done much since) and this book has great narration from Batman whenever he is fighting. It is so cool to see what he thinks and I also enjoy that the narration is sometimes repetitive, such as "Lucky old man". Being repetitive makes sense, because that is how we talk and think.
The first time I read this book I really enjoyed the fight between Batman and Superman. This time, I feel like I enjoyed many other things. I like how it uses news channels to give us the information about what shape the world is in. I like how crazy the Joker is, I like how each issue has a different menace, but it all seems natural, as part of a bigger story. I like how there is constant debate over whether Batman is a good thing.
The beginning of this comic is very strange, as the mutants are weird villains, however, by the second issue I got into the comic, once the new Robin was introduced and the subplots were starting to form.
This is a great comic, worthy of the praise it gets.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Various Single Issues
Shield #1 by Jonathan Hickman and Dustin Weaver.
The best single issue I've read in a long time. For almost a month, I hadn't read anything that made me excited about comics, but then I read this issue and my faith in comicdom was back. The comic is just a blast of fun. We get to meet Imhotep 2000 years ago defending us from aliens, we get to see a Chinese warrior fight an eternal, we get to see Galileo saving us from Galactus, Leonardo Da Vinci in a jetpack.
The premise is that S.H.I.E.L.D is an organization that has existed for a long time and it has protected the planet from danger and this leads us to all sorts of fun snippets from the past. The story is set in 1953 where Leonid is brought to the Immortal city (a city under Rome). Not much is revealed about him, but I am sure more will come in future issues.
I highly recommend this issue and I am looking forward to more from this series.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 #34 by Brad Meltzer and Georges Jeanty.
After a series of great Buffy issues we get this one which is above average. The issue is very sexualized and while Jeanty does a great job depicting sex and making the story flow nicely from panel to panel, the premise of this issue is not something I like too much. The story is becoming more and more magical, which has been a trend since Season 4 of Buffy, but what made Buffy great at first was the interpersonal relationships between the characters and I fear we are going to far away from that. In any case, I can't complain too much, because I love having Buffy and Angel together.
Solid issue. I think the issue will be controversial, given that Buffy is a popular brand and this issue is definitely in the border between pornographic and artistic. I think Jeanty did a fantastic job, but I could see parents complaining about their kids reading this.
Nemesis: The Impostors #2 by Ivan Brandon and Cliff Richards.
I really liked the first issue and all the questions it brought up, but I wasn't into this issue that much because I had forgot what questions were brought up earlier. I am starting to feel lost because I hadn't read the previous miniseries and it seems like I am losing out on the fun by not knowing much of the backstory.
Despite my lack of knowledge of this character, this particular issue works pretty great as a single issue. It has a cool fight against Batman, it has a nice escape and it makes one think about identities. Batman, is not Bruce Wayne anymore, he is Dick Grayson, so when Nemesis tells him "You're not Batman", he is actually right. I thought the artwork was great. I still don't know how this artist is the same artist that drew mediocre Buffy issues. Maybe this explains why inkers are important.
Chip #1 by Richard Moore.
This is a cute little story about a tiny gargoyle that wants to be scary. This is the first of two issues and I am looking forward to the next issue. A good read.
The best single issue I've read in a long time. For almost a month, I hadn't read anything that made me excited about comics, but then I read this issue and my faith in comicdom was back. The comic is just a blast of fun. We get to meet Imhotep 2000 years ago defending us from aliens, we get to see a Chinese warrior fight an eternal, we get to see Galileo saving us from Galactus, Leonardo Da Vinci in a jetpack.
The premise is that S.H.I.E.L.D is an organization that has existed for a long time and it has protected the planet from danger and this leads us to all sorts of fun snippets from the past. The story is set in 1953 where Leonid is brought to the Immortal city (a city under Rome). Not much is revealed about him, but I am sure more will come in future issues.
I highly recommend this issue and I am looking forward to more from this series.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 #34 by Brad Meltzer and Georges Jeanty.
After a series of great Buffy issues we get this one which is above average. The issue is very sexualized and while Jeanty does a great job depicting sex and making the story flow nicely from panel to panel, the premise of this issue is not something I like too much. The story is becoming more and more magical, which has been a trend since Season 4 of Buffy, but what made Buffy great at first was the interpersonal relationships between the characters and I fear we are going to far away from that. In any case, I can't complain too much, because I love having Buffy and Angel together.
Solid issue. I think the issue will be controversial, given that Buffy is a popular brand and this issue is definitely in the border between pornographic and artistic. I think Jeanty did a fantastic job, but I could see parents complaining about their kids reading this.
Nemesis: The Impostors #2 by Ivan Brandon and Cliff Richards.
I really liked the first issue and all the questions it brought up, but I wasn't into this issue that much because I had forgot what questions were brought up earlier. I am starting to feel lost because I hadn't read the previous miniseries and it seems like I am losing out on the fun by not knowing much of the backstory.
Despite my lack of knowledge of this character, this particular issue works pretty great as a single issue. It has a cool fight against Batman, it has a nice escape and it makes one think about identities. Batman, is not Bruce Wayne anymore, he is Dick Grayson, so when Nemesis tells him "You're not Batman", he is actually right. I thought the artwork was great. I still don't know how this artist is the same artist that drew mediocre Buffy issues. Maybe this explains why inkers are important.
Chip #1 by Richard Moore.
This is a cute little story about a tiny gargoyle that wants to be scary. This is the first of two issues and I am looking forward to the next issue. A good read.
Recent Spider-Man Issues
Amazing Spider-Man #622 by Greg Weisman, Luke Ross, Fred Van Lente and Joe Quinones.
I love the TV cartoon "Spectacular Spider-Man" written by Greg Weisman, I was happy to find that his TV writing translated well into a great story about Flash Thompson. In the last couple of years, there have been a couple of very good Flash stories in the Spider-Man comic and I am happy to have them. We get Spidey three times a month, so I don't mind this issue not having the presence of Spidey be important. However, for those that would get bothered by this, there is a nice back up issue written by Van Lente, a writer I love when it comes to Spider-Man.
I should also point out that the art by Luke Ross was very good. Luke Ross was a great penciller for Spider-Man in the early 90s and while his style has changed, he still draws a great Spidey.
Amazing Spider-Man #623 by Mark Waid and Paul Azaceta with a great Michael Lark cover.
The cover for this issue is wonderful. It is my favorite Spider-Man cover. The issue itself is pretty good. I don't like how Azaceta draws Spidey, but he draws good sequences and he does a great job drawing the Vulture. This issue is the first of a two-parter.
Amazing Spider-Man #624 by Mark Waid and Paul Azaceta.
This issue is the second part. We get to see how Spidey defeats the Vulture (mostly by convincing him to stop attacking him and J Jonah). The second half of the issue has Peter losing his job and his reputation after J Jonah denounces him for fraud in a picture that Peter PhotoShopped to save J Jonah's political situation. It was interesting to see an honest side to J Jonah, including how bad he felt over the aid that lost his life to protect him. However it was very sad to see Peter go down so low, over a small mistake.
I am looking forward to the next issue, however I didn't renew my subscription in time, so the next issue I will receive is supposed to be #627, I already got my comic book store to order #626, but #625 is out of print, so I'll have to find it somewhere.
Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #61 by Paul Tobin and Christian Nauck.
I have been enjoying this series very much up to the last couple of issues. This issue explains why Chat has been acting so weird and in doing so makes the rpevious issues a bit better. The comic is going from being $2.99 to $3.99 and for the jump they are going to renumber, which makes this the last issue of this series. The issue was pretty good, but it wasn't what one would expect of a final issue (the numbering is also weird in that respect). The next issue, which will be labeled #1, is meant to follow the story developing here, but they did manage to make it more accessible to new readers by having Peter no longer in a relationship.
I like how this comic dealt with Emma Frost and I really like the character of Chat. I am looking forward to more issues of this comic.
Web of Spider-Man #6 by Fred Van Lente, Jefte Palo, Ron Frenz, Tom DeFalco, Zeb Wells and Xurxo Penalta.
The first story is about the origin of the Lizard. I thought the story was pretty good, not great, but not bad. The art was very good and that made it worthwhile. The Spider-Girl story was average. I want to know more about Black Tarantula, he is an interesting guy. The third story was a prelude to a Lizard story to come in Amazing Spider-Man. The issue was average. Maybe I made a mistake by coming back to buying this series after I left it for two issues (I skipped issues 4 and 5).
Web of Spider-Man #7 by Fred Van Lente, Phillipe Briones, Tom DeFalco, Ron Frenz, Joe Casey and Jim Mahfood.
The first story is pretty good. I have high expectations for stories written by Van Lente as he has written some of my favorite Spidey stories this year and he wrote a cool origin story for Rhino. This Kraven story wasn't great.
The Spider-Girl story is actually good, with an interesting villain called "Wild Card". Wild Card seems like a cool guy and somehow I think it is Peter Parker trying to get his daughter out of the gang war. This issue really makes me consider buying Spider-Girl #1. In fact, I think I will.
I was excited to see that the last story would be about PaperDoll. While the paparazzi arc in the #560s of Amazing Spider-Man wasn't critically acclaimed, I really liked it. I loved the art, I thought the villain was interesting, and I loved seeing the ethical issues for Peter in working as a paparazzi. With all that in mind, I was looking forward to reading this story by Joe Casey. While the story wasn't bad, the art threw me out of the story often, as the art is very strange. One thing I liked about the art was the sound effects, specially the "Twip" for when Spidey is throwing webbing.
Overall, the issue wasn't great. I won't stop buying this comic, mainly because it is changing its style from #8 forward, by no longer telling origin stories and going more for new stories.
I love the TV cartoon "Spectacular Spider-Man" written by Greg Weisman, I was happy to find that his TV writing translated well into a great story about Flash Thompson. In the last couple of years, there have been a couple of very good Flash stories in the Spider-Man comic and I am happy to have them. We get Spidey three times a month, so I don't mind this issue not having the presence of Spidey be important. However, for those that would get bothered by this, there is a nice back up issue written by Van Lente, a writer I love when it comes to Spider-Man.
I should also point out that the art by Luke Ross was very good. Luke Ross was a great penciller for Spider-Man in the early 90s and while his style has changed, he still draws a great Spidey.
Amazing Spider-Man #623 by Mark Waid and Paul Azaceta with a great Michael Lark cover.
The cover for this issue is wonderful. It is my favorite Spider-Man cover. The issue itself is pretty good. I don't like how Azaceta draws Spidey, but he draws good sequences and he does a great job drawing the Vulture. This issue is the first of a two-parter.
Amazing Spider-Man #624 by Mark Waid and Paul Azaceta.
This issue is the second part. We get to see how Spidey defeats the Vulture (mostly by convincing him to stop attacking him and J Jonah). The second half of the issue has Peter losing his job and his reputation after J Jonah denounces him for fraud in a picture that Peter PhotoShopped to save J Jonah's political situation. It was interesting to see an honest side to J Jonah, including how bad he felt over the aid that lost his life to protect him. However it was very sad to see Peter go down so low, over a small mistake.
I am looking forward to the next issue, however I didn't renew my subscription in time, so the next issue I will receive is supposed to be #627, I already got my comic book store to order #626, but #625 is out of print, so I'll have to find it somewhere.
Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #61 by Paul Tobin and Christian Nauck.
I have been enjoying this series very much up to the last couple of issues. This issue explains why Chat has been acting so weird and in doing so makes the rpevious issues a bit better. The comic is going from being $2.99 to $3.99 and for the jump they are going to renumber, which makes this the last issue of this series. The issue was pretty good, but it wasn't what one would expect of a final issue (the numbering is also weird in that respect). The next issue, which will be labeled #1, is meant to follow the story developing here, but they did manage to make it more accessible to new readers by having Peter no longer in a relationship.
I like how this comic dealt with Emma Frost and I really like the character of Chat. I am looking forward to more issues of this comic.
Web of Spider-Man #6 by Fred Van Lente, Jefte Palo, Ron Frenz, Tom DeFalco, Zeb Wells and Xurxo Penalta.
The first story is about the origin of the Lizard. I thought the story was pretty good, not great, but not bad. The art was very good and that made it worthwhile. The Spider-Girl story was average. I want to know more about Black Tarantula, he is an interesting guy. The third story was a prelude to a Lizard story to come in Amazing Spider-Man. The issue was average. Maybe I made a mistake by coming back to buying this series after I left it for two issues (I skipped issues 4 and 5).
Web of Spider-Man #7 by Fred Van Lente, Phillipe Briones, Tom DeFalco, Ron Frenz, Joe Casey and Jim Mahfood.
The first story is pretty good. I have high expectations for stories written by Van Lente as he has written some of my favorite Spidey stories this year and he wrote a cool origin story for Rhino. This Kraven story wasn't great.
The Spider-Girl story is actually good, with an interesting villain called "Wild Card". Wild Card seems like a cool guy and somehow I think it is Peter Parker trying to get his daughter out of the gang war. This issue really makes me consider buying Spider-Girl #1. In fact, I think I will.
I was excited to see that the last story would be about PaperDoll. While the paparazzi arc in the #560s of Amazing Spider-Man wasn't critically acclaimed, I really liked it. I loved the art, I thought the villain was interesting, and I loved seeing the ethical issues for Peter in working as a paparazzi. With all that in mind, I was looking forward to reading this story by Joe Casey. While the story wasn't bad, the art threw me out of the story often, as the art is very strange. One thing I liked about the art was the sound effects, specially the "Twip" for when Spidey is throwing webbing.
Overall, the issue wasn't great. I won't stop buying this comic, mainly because it is changing its style from #8 forward, by no longer telling origin stories and going more for new stories.
Recent Single Issues from Image Comics
Haunt #6 by Robert Kirkman, Greg Capullo and Todd McFarlane.
I liked this issue. It takes a detour from the main story, by giving us background information on the woman introduced in the last issue. She was Kurt's lover. The issue is pretty good.
Turf #1 by Jonathan Ross and Tommy Lee Edwards.
This issue came out in a very strong week for new comics with Shield and Codebreakers coming out. I liked this more than Codebreakers but Shield was my favorite by far. This issue has a lot of potential, because I really liked Eddie and since it seems that Eddie will be the main character, it seems like I will enjoy this comic. I am not enthused about aliens, but I am digging the beautiful artwork, the noir feel and the vampires. It seems like aliens, detectives, vampires and 1930s won't mix that well, but since the first issue was so good, I have high expectations for the rest of the series. This is one of those stories that have to be told in comic book form.
Chew #10 by John Layman and Rob Guillory.
Chew is a hilarious comic book and I have been loving it. This issue wraps up the second story arc and the issue is strong, however it isn't as funny as usual. I have high hopes for the next arc because now we know more about the main villain.
It was interesting for me to find that the tiny governor had good intentions and wasn't bad as I thought he was. He was just trying to make his island wealthier.
Once more, I should point out that the artist is fantastic. Guillory is the perfect fit for this comic.
I liked this issue. It takes a detour from the main story, by giving us background information on the woman introduced in the last issue. She was Kurt's lover. The issue is pretty good.
Turf #1 by Jonathan Ross and Tommy Lee Edwards.
This issue came out in a very strong week for new comics with Shield and Codebreakers coming out. I liked this more than Codebreakers but Shield was my favorite by far. This issue has a lot of potential, because I really liked Eddie and since it seems that Eddie will be the main character, it seems like I will enjoy this comic. I am not enthused about aliens, but I am digging the beautiful artwork, the noir feel and the vampires. It seems like aliens, detectives, vampires and 1930s won't mix that well, but since the first issue was so good, I have high expectations for the rest of the series. This is one of those stories that have to be told in comic book form.
Chew #10 by John Layman and Rob Guillory.
Chew is a hilarious comic book and I have been loving it. This issue wraps up the second story arc and the issue is strong, however it isn't as funny as usual. I have high hopes for the next arc because now we know more about the main villain.
It was interesting for me to find that the tiny governor had good intentions and wasn't bad as I thought he was. He was just trying to make his island wealthier.
Once more, I should point out that the artist is fantastic. Guillory is the perfect fit for this comic.
Recent Single Issues from BOOM Studios
Irredeemable #12 by Mark Waid and Peter Krause.
This issue was quite good. Every time I have hope that Plutonian will be good again, I get to see him do something terrible. However, the comic is more about the Paradigm, then Plutonian and the Paradigm gets in deep trouble now that the US military is going against them. We find out there is a way to defeat the Plutonian (even though, Survivor already thinks he can do it himself) and that Bette knew all along. She feels guilty about not saying it before, having the weight of millions of deaths on her shoulders must be tough to overcome.
The comic continues to be great. I love it.
Codebreakers #1 by Carey Malloy and Scott Godlewski.
The issue is a strong first issue. There's good dialogue and the art is very good. The issue is about a group of FBI agents whose job is to crack codes. One of them killed himself in the middle of the issue and the boss doesn't think that makes sense, so he goes out to look for him, believing he was kidnapped. It was a very good first issue, but it came out in the same week as Turf and Shield, two comics that were even better.
Irredeemable: Special #1 by Mark Waid, Howard Chaykin, Paul Azaceta and Emma Rios.
This special issue contains three stories involving characters in the "Irredeemable Universe". The first story is about Hornet, which is kind of a Batman analogue in this world. In the first issue of Irredeemable he gets killed and we finally find out a little bit more about this character here. It was nice to get to know the character if only for eight pages.
The second story is about Kaidan. It was not great. It had the standard idea of self sacrifice being the key to defeat a villain. The third story was about Max Damage, the main character in the spinoff series "Incorruptible". Here we get to find out how Max and Jailbait got to meet each other. It was an okay story, but since I don't read Incorruptible it wasn't that important to me.
The issue is not worth checking out, in my opinion. The only story that enhances the story in the Irredeemable comic is the Hornet story, but I imagine that the key point in the story will be revealed in the main series anyway.
This issue was quite good. Every time I have hope that Plutonian will be good again, I get to see him do something terrible. However, the comic is more about the Paradigm, then Plutonian and the Paradigm gets in deep trouble now that the US military is going against them. We find out there is a way to defeat the Plutonian (even though, Survivor already thinks he can do it himself) and that Bette knew all along. She feels guilty about not saying it before, having the weight of millions of deaths on her shoulders must be tough to overcome.
The comic continues to be great. I love it.
Codebreakers #1 by Carey Malloy and Scott Godlewski.
The issue is a strong first issue. There's good dialogue and the art is very good. The issue is about a group of FBI agents whose job is to crack codes. One of them killed himself in the middle of the issue and the boss doesn't think that makes sense, so he goes out to look for him, believing he was kidnapped. It was a very good first issue, but it came out in the same week as Turf and Shield, two comics that were even better.
Irredeemable: Special #1 by Mark Waid, Howard Chaykin, Paul Azaceta and Emma Rios.
This special issue contains three stories involving characters in the "Irredeemable Universe". The first story is about Hornet, which is kind of a Batman analogue in this world. In the first issue of Irredeemable he gets killed and we finally find out a little bit more about this character here. It was nice to get to know the character if only for eight pages.
The second story is about Kaidan. It was not great. It had the standard idea of self sacrifice being the key to defeat a villain. The third story was about Max Damage, the main character in the spinoff series "Incorruptible". Here we get to find out how Max and Jailbait got to meet each other. It was an okay story, but since I don't read Incorruptible it wasn't that important to me.
The issue is not worth checking out, in my opinion. The only story that enhances the story in the Irredeemable comic is the Hornet story, but I imagine that the key point in the story will be revealed in the main series anyway.
Anthology Single Issues
These are single issue anthologies I read recently:
The Mystic Hands of Doctor Strange
These comic contains four stories. The first one is written by Kieron Gillen and Frazer Irving, it is called "The Cure" and it is pretty good. Doctor Strange has a difficult dilemma and his solution is interesting. The story is 22 pages long and works well as an issue. The second story, "Melancholia" is written by Peter Milligan and Frank Brunner. The story is a nice short story about helping oneself forgive past sins. The third story, "So this is how it feels..." by Ted McKeever was strange. I didn't get it. The fourth story was not a comic, but prose with a couple of illustrations. The prose was done by Mike Carey and it was a great story. The few illustrations were made by Marcos Martin and he did a great job.
Overall, a good comic. It contains four stories and 48 pages for the price of one story. I even like the black and white, I think it works well with Dr. Strange.
Breaking into Marvel Comics Parts I and II.
The idea of these comics was to showcase the talent that C.B. Cebulski found around the world. Each issue contains six stories and then in the back of the issue we get a few comments by Cebulski about what he looks for in artists and we also get very short interviews with some of the artists. These extras were good but not great, however since we got 12 stories I was happy with the price of the comic books.
Most of the stories were average, but there was one I liked a lot. That one was written by Bendis with art by Christian Nauck. It is called "Modern Love" and it is about a romance that Iron Fist had with Spider-Woman. It was funny and well done. Very good short story. I was surprised to find out that of all the stories in the first issue, I had read issues of the heroes (or villains) in them, Spider-Man, Bullseye, X-Men, Iron Fist, Runaways and Iron Man. I would like to say that I really liked the art by Damion Hendricks on the Spider-Man story. His art suits Spider-Man perfectly. The second issue had no memorable story for me, but at the time I enjoyed reading it.
The issues were worth reading but they didn't achieve greatness.
The Mystic Hands of Doctor Strange
These comic contains four stories. The first one is written by Kieron Gillen and Frazer Irving, it is called "The Cure" and it is pretty good. Doctor Strange has a difficult dilemma and his solution is interesting. The story is 22 pages long and works well as an issue. The second story, "Melancholia" is written by Peter Milligan and Frank Brunner. The story is a nice short story about helping oneself forgive past sins. The third story, "So this is how it feels..." by Ted McKeever was strange. I didn't get it. The fourth story was not a comic, but prose with a couple of illustrations. The prose was done by Mike Carey and it was a great story. The few illustrations were made by Marcos Martin and he did a great job.
Overall, a good comic. It contains four stories and 48 pages for the price of one story. I even like the black and white, I think it works well with Dr. Strange.
Breaking into Marvel Comics Parts I and II.
The idea of these comics was to showcase the talent that C.B. Cebulski found around the world. Each issue contains six stories and then in the back of the issue we get a few comments by Cebulski about what he looks for in artists and we also get very short interviews with some of the artists. These extras were good but not great, however since we got 12 stories I was happy with the price of the comic books.
Most of the stories were average, but there was one I liked a lot. That one was written by Bendis with art by Christian Nauck. It is called "Modern Love" and it is about a romance that Iron Fist had with Spider-Woman. It was funny and well done. Very good short story. I was surprised to find out that of all the stories in the first issue, I had read issues of the heroes (or villains) in them, Spider-Man, Bullseye, X-Men, Iron Fist, Runaways and Iron Man. I would like to say that I really liked the art by Damion Hendricks on the Spider-Man story. His art suits Spider-Man perfectly. The second issue had no memorable story for me, but at the time I enjoyed reading it.
The issues were worth reading but they didn't achieve greatness.
Exit Wounds
Exit Wounds by Rutu Modan.
Exit Wounds is the story of a young man who is just told by a young woman that his father might have died in a recent terrorist attack. The man and the woman try to find out whether the man died or not and in the process they start having feelings for each other.
The book is very good. I found it very interesting to see how the characters react to tragedy in the book. It was surprising to see how easy everyone talks about terrorist attacks, since it is part of everyday life in Israel, people don't seem scared or angry when they talk about the violence.
The comic focuses on these two characters and I feel like we get to know them very well. I thought Modan did a great job with the artwork and with the writing in this comic.
Exit Wounds is the story of a young man who is just told by a young woman that his father might have died in a recent terrorist attack. The man and the woman try to find out whether the man died or not and in the process they start having feelings for each other.
The book is very good. I found it very interesting to see how the characters react to tragedy in the book. It was surprising to see how easy everyone talks about terrorist attacks, since it is part of everyday life in Israel, people don't seem scared or angry when they talk about the violence.
The comic focuses on these two characters and I feel like we get to know them very well. I thought Modan did a great job with the artwork and with the writing in this comic.
Asterios Polyp
Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli.
This book is considered by many to be the best of 2009. Mazzucchelli does a fantastic job with all aspects of the artwork, making the story follow perfectly from panel to panel, making use of color to tell us different things and he also uses the lettering to give each character their own voice. The comic is full of wonderful parts where words aren't needed, showing why this comic had to be done as a comic and not prose. I particularly love a chapter near the beginning about how we perceive things in our own unique way and how we influence the perceptions of those around us. This is done brilliantly by drawing different characters in very different styles, having Asterios drawn in a clean geometric form (arms being cylinders), while having Hana (his wife)drawn with lots of red lines. The comic also has a great chapter, where it gives us another take of the Orpheus myth. It works great during the story and it is beautifully illustrated.
This book gets a lot of attention for its fantastic visual storytelling, but the writing is also very good. I thought the story was very strong (and memorable) and I enjoyed the dialogue. It had funny moments and it had interesting discussions about different things in life.
Asterios Polyp, the character, changes gradually during the course of the book and we get to see his path. I really enjoyed the journey of reading this book. I highly recommend this comic.
This book is considered by many to be the best of 2009. Mazzucchelli does a fantastic job with all aspects of the artwork, making the story follow perfectly from panel to panel, making use of color to tell us different things and he also uses the lettering to give each character their own voice. The comic is full of wonderful parts where words aren't needed, showing why this comic had to be done as a comic and not prose. I particularly love a chapter near the beginning about how we perceive things in our own unique way and how we influence the perceptions of those around us. This is done brilliantly by drawing different characters in very different styles, having Asterios drawn in a clean geometric form (arms being cylinders), while having Hana (his wife)drawn with lots of red lines. The comic also has a great chapter, where it gives us another take of the Orpheus myth. It works great during the story and it is beautifully illustrated.
This book gets a lot of attention for its fantastic visual storytelling, but the writing is also very good. I thought the story was very strong (and memorable) and I enjoyed the dialogue. It had funny moments and it had interesting discussions about different things in life.
Asterios Polyp, the character, changes gradually during the course of the book and we get to see his path. I really enjoyed the journey of reading this book. I highly recommend this comic.
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