As of for blabbering this week- not much to say, just coasting as I wait for weather to get nice for more than 35 minutes and the next “whimventure®”
This week was a good mix of comics and I’m sure I’ll do a review of the Indiana “Comic” Con happening this weekend. I do hope I’m wrong, but from what I can tell, I know Indiana can do better when it comes to hosting an actual comic con and not a celebrity photo/autograph fest, but is that what people here want? Is it just me?
This Week’s Comics:
Man’s Best #1 – We were introduced to Athos, Porthos, and Lovey in the intro issue #0 now we get to relive that issue, but also find out what happens next to get the story started. We still don’t know the origin of the “Klangers” who they have been training to fight. or what’s up with a vanishing planet, but I’m sure it will all come in due time.
Spider-Boy #5 – The hunt for Bailey continues (and I don’t mean my cat… he’s chirping at some birds by the window). Also some backstory on Madame Monstrosity and her work and lost love I find it interesting how Bailey has avoided detection and has been able to survive… clever kid.
Star Trek #18 – Glass and Bone Part 6 Does Benjamin Sisko and the crew of the Theseus stop an intergalacticic war? What about what Dr. Crusher and Mr. Scott’s discover at the core of Tzenketh? Will this change things dramatically? (melodramatically?).
The Displaced #2 – In issue one we were introduced to our cast of characters- people from Oshawa who were out of town when the place vanished and now are forgotten. No one remembers them. We get a few of the rules in this universe- like they need to stay together or they might disappear. So they head off to a secluded cabin to figure things out… hmm…
Justice Society of America #9 – The search goes on… Helena Wayne (Huntress) is still woking on putting together her team of misfits . Sons and daughters of villains seeking redemption. This, of course, leads to some nice fights as sometimes words alone cannot sway people. Remember this is in combination to all the unknown sidekicks from the original JSA were rescued and are trying to find their place in this future. Quiz Kid (Mr. Terrific’s sidekick), has some ideas and then there’s the appearance of the Legionnaire… my oh my… what next? (Oh, the Tony Harris variant cover is what is in the photo- I know, I know I complain about variants, but every so often there is one I want.)
Superman # 12 – So with Bizarro having taken over the world through magic the only person Superman can trust is… the Joker?!?! Wait, that’s Action Comics, not Superman. In this issue of Superman the Lex Luthor Revenge Squad® is poisoning Metropolis (with Kryptonite laced gas) and it takes the combined resources of Super Corp. to try and save everyone and catch the bad guys. What happens next? ummm… Like with Batman and Detective Comics I’ve been waffling to decide if I’m going to follow both titles: Action Comics and Superman. DC has decided to do a crossover story that will be in both! It looks like I’m still reading both for at least a while.
U & I #2 of 6 – In this universe where some people have powers and others don’t we have “U” who seems to be living in his own world who was saved by Isabelle (“I”). Now U with Isabelle’s help has decided his mission, who is the enemy he must fight. Sometimes comics get a bit real…
Of course he sees it a bit differently, but he now has a an idea how to help everyone… so he starts to stir things up… with Straczynski there is no way to tell where is will end up, or if it will be a happy ending.
Blue Book #2 – 1947 More strange things happening with flying saucers and the introducation of the concept of the “Men in Black” as we follow Kenneth Arnold. Of course next up is a little place in New Mexico.
Midlife #6 – Most stories in comics run in 6 issue arcs, this makes creating trade paperbacks easier. We discover the secrets of Ruben’s dad’s powers (shhhh… family secrets are uncovered) and while not all the loose ends are tied up it does come to a nice conclusion with hints of what’s to come.
Titans #9 – So the Titans help out and actually clean up after themselves (Teen Titans would never do that… heck, they would just shove all their dirty clothes into the closet and close the door). Of course we are building up to something bad happening in the next three issues (six issue arcs remember?) Amanda Waller has been brought in to create some future chaos after making a deal with the devil… or at least a close facsimile.
Wish me luck as I head into the Indiana “Comic” Con and The VEX Robotics State Championship. I’ll be working one and ignoring the other one…
Oh the joys of being out of town… it means you have twice the comics to read when you come back!
I’m not sure which comics are from which week so I’m not even going to try to figure that out, but there were some awesome comics released!
While on my trip I happened to stumble into a comic shop in Odense that was pretty amazing, it had a bit of everything, but it made me realize just how lost I am when it comes to European comics. This hole in my knowledge base I intend to fix, but it will take time. First place to start, there’s TinTin. I’ve read some of Hergé’s masterpiece and even sat through the film. Our first geocache, before Sue took over the ProfessorZoom caching name was “TinTin & Snowy” at a nearby dog park. It was archived at the beginning of 2024.
Faraos Cigarer as seen from my hotel room in Odense.They weren’t open, but were running a game night so we snuck in here are cars from TinTin.The LARP/Cosplay section of this amazing store… I just need a bigger suitcase (or two)
While I’d love to blabber on about my lack of knowledge when it comes to European comics Nothing Special Volume One – Through the Elder Woods the book came out while I was a away and I’d love to take a moment to blabber on about this amazing comic and all three volumes that hopefully will be coming out in paper form more sooner than later. First of all Katie Cook is amazing (amazingly amazing). Her style is cartoony (which I like) and she has been a standard at conventions for years. I have a cartoon of Hemi (bestest cat in the world) done by her and I own a few of her drawings and strips. Due to personal stuff she vanished for a couple years (starting around COVID and things piled on after that) and is now coming back. I found her at C2E2 years ago and started reading Gronk, her Webcomic at the time. When Webtoon started up they gave her the opportunity to tell another story in their format which is like having an infinite scroll. Nothing Special is the story of a teenage girl, Callie, who lives between worlds. Her father spends most of his time in a fairyland with magic and cools stuff, while she is in our world. It’s senior year and she stumbles upon DeClan who has carried a torch for her since kindergarten. They actually connect (over dead plants- it makes sense… really it does) and when her father goes missing on her birthday Callie heads out to find him with DeClan a perfectly “normal human boy” coming along to help. I don’t want to give too much away, but it is one of the stories from Webtoon that I followed religiously until towards the end of the third season, life got complicated for Katie and it took a hiatus. Having taken a hiatus (or two or three, myself I can’t complain). Nothing Special is especially funny, clever, and just a great read. If you don’t like it… we might need to discuss our friendship.
This Week’s Comics Minus Nothing Special (see above):
Ultimate X-Men #1 – As the Ultimate Comics relaunches after the issues of the Maker in Ultimate Invasion & the stuff that followed it’s time to figure out what happened to the X-Men. We have Ultimate Spider-Man, which I enjoy. Ultimate Black Panther, which I don’t follow… I know I really should. Now Ultimate X-Men, which having not really followed and X-men comic since the last Ultimate X-Men and before that John Byrne and Chris Claremont were the creative team. I’m trying to piece it all together and it looks like this might take some time. The artwork is beautiful, and the story pasted with emotion, but I need to give it s few issues to figure out what is going on.
Love Everlasting #13 – We now get to see the first time the Cowboy had to deal with Joan… and it seems like its all part of a organized effort focused on Joan…but why?
Batman # 145 – Batman, Batman, Batman… Can you stop trying to confuse me? after that brief intermission, we are back dealing with Zur-En-Arrh the Batman personality that now is running Failsafe, the Batman robot Batman built for that moment when he might do something wrong, like kill. So mBatman is locked up with a joker who is physically incapacitated and Zur is going around cleaning up the city, and being a better Batman than Batman… When will Bat-Mite come back and save the day?!? What does Ace, the Bathound, think of all this?
Action Comics #1063 – Superman teams up with Bizarro Joker to solve the whole Bizarro problem… but at what cost? Can Superman trust the Joker? I can say, a “sane” joker is almost scarier than the crazy one.
Speed Force # 5 – Am I just getting old? Maybe it’s jet lag. Maybe it’s my lack on knowledge or interest in music… It looks like Wallace and Avery are figuring out what needs to be done to save the world of teenagers addicted to an app just as congress tries to outlaw TikTok (life imitates art?). SO how is the Speedforce, and Magic being used to create this (insert modern slang for crisis)? Can they stop it in time?
Wesley Dodds Sandman #6 – The conclusion of this adventure, will the Sandman be able to recover his notebook filled with formulas that in the wrong hands (the military) could create havoc across the world? Didn’t this guys learn anything from watching Oppenheimer? Ultimate weapons just lead to ultimater weapons that lead to ultimatest weapons, that lead to… you get the idea. Well, I guess if you are a weapon manufacturer all that matters is profits.
Spectacular Spider-Men #1 – SO Peter Parker and Miles Morales decide to take some time and just chill. every Wednesday meet at a coffee shop and talk over life as your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. What could go wrong? If you’ve ever read a Spider-Man comic, you know the answer. Humberto Ramos is doing the art, so I had to buy it. I’m just hoping that I won’t get confused since I’m already reading a handful of Spider-Man titles that just got out of Gang War.
Captain America #7 – Has Captain America now become the Patriotic Sorcerer Supreme? int eh last arc he was fighting a demon that tried to cause problems in pre-WWII New York and now present day. So issue seven we get to deal with the repercussions of actions… by visiting The Front Door, a theater macabre or is that theatre… Spell check says they are both correct. then again is it macabre?
The Amazing Spider-Man #45 – So Gang War is over? Finally? What happens now? This is what could be called a “filler Issue” in which we set ourselves up for whatever comes next while tying up some loose ends fhat may have been forgotten over the past issues. Can we get MJ’s Aunt out of the asylum? What is going on with airplane mode around a ginormous green brain (did the Leader have a full lobotomy and no one told me?) And what about those not quite so mysterious fellows on the last page? I’m sure they are planning something nefarious like hijacking a truck load of Girl Scout cookies! Oh the horror! Oh the Thin Mints!
Batman First Knight Book One – Detective Comics #27 started things off for the Bat-Man. Bill Finger and Bob Kane created this character and comics at that time had multiple stories that were pretty quick reads, only a few pages. This takes us back to those simpler times, but expands the story with more details, and some stunning artwork. Missing is Alfred since he wasn’t in those early comics. The mystery- who is going around killing corrupt politicians (Oh, like our generation invented the concept of corrupt politicians- go watch Mr. Smith Goes to Washington). Then again there is something strange about the killers…
Dark Ride #11 – So we’ve established that We have an amusement park of horror run by a guy who made a deal with the devil. He’s done everything he can to not let the devil collect his soul… His son was last seen running into a ride to rescue his daughter. Now after much mayhem, there is a family ruin, I mean reunion, as a new ride is unveiled, a giant kaiju sized animatronic devil, who will be sacrificed? When will Mickey and a gang of lawyers come and save the day?
I Hate Fairyland #12 – A retelling of the Tale of the Billy Goats Gruff as only Scottie Young & Gert can do it…
Adventureman Ghost Lights #2 of 2 – Will Adventure get rescued and save the day? Will the ghosts win? What will the effects of the Super-serum be on Adventureman’s friends? Frankly, this is one of those series that you almost need to read the entire arc in one sitting. So much going on, but all of it amazing.
Sons of Star Trek #1 – Those of us old enough to remember there was a time when we were trying to figure out life, the universe, everything. We tried to decide our path and wouldn’t listen to any advice. As I look back on it and look at how my life worked out I can’t say I made a bad decision, although I’m sure I made a bunch. The thing is I like who I am, if I learned anything from ingesting decades of science fiction and loving time travel stories it’s that one change, no matter how minor could change things in a drastic way. (Watch It’s a Wonderful Life for an example. Gosh, I’m just full of Frank Capra references today) Here we have three sons of major Star Trek characters – Jake Sisko (Son of Captain Benjamin Sisko), Nog (Son of Grand Nagus Rom), and Alexander Rozhenko (Son of Worf, son of Mogh, House of Martok, son of Sergei, House of Rozhenko, Bane to the Duras Family, slayer of Gowron. maker of chamomile tea.) All are at a turning point. So who comes along to help them out but… Q or as he calls himself son of Q or QJ (for Q Jr.). Now these three are in an alternate universe where things are… different. Morn is in a Star Feet Uniform, Tuvix is still around as is Jadzia Dax… It looks like Mariner, and Shaw are also on the crew of this ship… I’m sure I’m missing others. I’m also very curious as to what series of events happened to create this alternate timeline. This is going to be either a train wreck or a wonderfully wild ride… I’m hoping for the latter.
No/One #8 – The plot thickens… and I need to go back and reread all the past issues. The gun used in the current string of murders has been tied to a past killing that was controversial… Gee a militant white supremacy social club (we wouldn’t want to call them a gang) has decided to take matters in their own hands… and No/One… <spoilers>
Fishflies #5 – It looks like we are getting to a conclusion, but, I could be wrong. Francis and bug have met a couple of nice old folks who are not shocked or surprised by seeing a giant bug with a little girl… shouldn’t this send up some red flags? Some research is being done at the library (why you should always support your local library- who knows when you might be researching similarities between events in the past). And our helpful police man who has been removed from duty decides to do the right thing… will he be too late?
This week’s witty banter has something to do with style, art and mental blocks. You see I have been drawing or “doing art” since I was very young. It has (like comics) been my way to escape. I’ve taken classes but a lot of what I do is self taught & that can be a problem. Over the years there have been times when I draw something and I know it is “good” basically because after I look at it I try to figure out who drew it. A lot of times I try too hard and it ends up just wrong. I have a picture in my head of what I want it to look like… many times it just doesn’t match. I’ve had many people ask me if I ever considered being a serious artist… what is that?!? Van Gogh? Monet? Warhol? Pollock? Lichtenstein? Calder? We all have our muses and mine happens to be a short, pudgy guy named Earl who has a big nose.
I’m currently doing some work for Comic Carnival, my LCS, and I’ve hit that stumbling block with my style… the female form. You see I was teased anytime I attempted to draw the female form so I have a bit of an anxiety about it. It’s something, as an adult I should be able to get over, but it will take practice. Walking around with a sketchbook full of sketches of women just makes me nervous. I’ve taken life drawing classes, I’m just concerned with the reaction when I open my sketchbook of “What kind of a pervert does drawings like this?” It’s something I have to get over. The funny thing is, as an artist and a teacher I tend to look at women in two ways- 1. As subject matter… like a still life. A bowl of fruit, a group of shapes. 2. As a teacher- it goes back to having taught for 35 + years and an old court case which defined a teacher in Indiana as having moral conduct “in all respects exemplary and beyond reproach.”(Crawfordsville vs. Abbie Hayes – 1873) I think of most young women (especially those that many Con attendees drool over aka cosplayers or the ones at booths used to draw in people) as former students… she could have been one of my third graders. Like any teacher with morals beyond reproach would want to get intimate with a student- that’s just yucky. I’m going to start working on drawing from life and then warping it into my style… whatever that is, but I think for now I’ll stick with whatever Earl comes up with. Side Note: Earl was sick the day they filmed the “I’m Alive” scene in Xanadu where the muses all danced… he’s still a little mad about that- he had a great tap dance/clogging bit choreographed.
This week, the issue with the most variants is: Edge of Spider-Verse, Vol. 4 #1, with 17 variants! After last week it looks like they’re slacking off.
This Week’s Comics:
Edge of the Spider-Verse #1 (for the record I have cover 1A) – An anthology comic with a number of stories from a variety of creative teams. The first story deals with “Weapon VIII” taking its lead from the program that in Marvel comics created Wolverine (Weapon X). It looks like it is all going to end up (if given the chance) in a “Into the Spider-Verse” kind of organization- fighting bad guys, but what if the good guys, aren’t all that good?
U & I #1 – This month I got hit with three comics written by some of my favorites: Kirkman (Fire Power), Busiek (Arrowsmith) and Stracyzynski (U & I). Stracyzynski created a universe in which the world is hit with a plague (right around when COVID hit). This plague was similar to the one that happened in George R.R. Martin’s Wild Card stories. People got super powers, got a burst of super powers- then died, died (These people are called Moths), or had nothing happen. The comics deal with the world’s reaction to this event. I highly recommend them and will not spoil the stories here. in U & I we are just starting to learn about these characters… We start off discovering the first person we meet has powers, basically a super healing factor. He’s also a bit delusional. Our second character is a bit more of a mystery and all we know is that her name is Isabelle and was kicked out by her uncle’s family who has control of her money. She’s living on the streets and, while surviving, on the run from not so nice people. So what happens when these two meet up? We’ll find out next issue.
Batman #144 Joker Year 1 Part 3 – This looks like it was a simple three issue arc. Telling the origin of the joker intwined with a modern story dealing with the Joker basically turning everyone crazy using harmonics… As part of the origin timeline we also get to learn more about Jim Gordon dealing with the corruption in the GCPD as he started out and how the Joker manipulated so much even early on.
Superman #11 – With Superman and Action Comics (Bizarro storyline), things like this get confusing… Lex Luthor is in prison. He gave Lex Corp to Superman to do good in the world. Bad guys who hate Lex are trying to kill him and destroy everything he has created. They’ve done a bunch of stuff (like send Superman into the wild west of 1800’s) now we find out who all the players are and which team they actually are on. We also find out about all the rainbow of fruit flavors that kryptonite can come in (I swear after “Crisis on Infinite Earth” kryptonite only came in green- but I must not have been absent or just not paying attention at some point there have been a lot of “multiverse shattering” events over the last few decades). How will this end up? Will Lex die? Will Superman kill him? Will the entire population of the Earth die? Am I being overly dramatic?
Titans #8 – I did not read the Beast Wars crossover event… I’m too old to do that. From what I can tell people turned into animals, other people died, and the world has issues with Beast Boy. So after that kind of thing what would you do? Bring in one of the original big bad guys from Titans’ history… and plan for a double cross. Oh my…
Mech Cadets #6 – I’m guessing final issue in this arc… Can the Mech Cadets save the world from the Shard invasion being lead by one of their own? Will they continue working for the evil general who doesn’t like them (not one little bit). How does the military control giant robots that have bonded to their pilots if their pilots won’t follow orders?
Man’s Best #1 (Ashcan) – Spaceship, heading to another planet to colonize. A scientist has her two dogs and a cat with her (emotional support animals?) who have been augmented and can operate various machines. This is only part of issue one which will be released in a couple weeks. It’s an interesting story being told not only through the eyes of the humans, but also through the animals. I’m looking forward to reading more.
For those confused- “Ashcan” was a term used to describe a prerelease comic usually printed cheaply and given out to hook readers to a new title or concept.
Fire Power #30 (Final Issue) – For the last 30 issues we’ve followed Owen Johnson as he comes to grips with a bunch of stuff. Now he’s finally pulling together everyone (still alive) and saving the world. One thing I like about Robert Kirkman is his stories seem to have an end to them. The Walking Dead, Invincible, and now Fire Power. Some, like The Walking Dead I didn’t last through… others like Invincible the last few issues were a great way to celebrate the character and end the story in a nice way so those who read it can sleep knowing that sometimes, characters do get their happily ever afters. It’s also nice to see a series end without a ? and the possibility of continuation. Yes, there could be more… but there doesn’t have to be. We don’t need it.
Star Trek #17 – Oh boy, Dinosaurs, Romulans, possible intergalactic war, and undercover shenanigans (get your mind out of the gutter didn’t you read my intro?). It does look like things will be coming to an end, but is it the end of the Theseus and her crew? (non-Ensign) Harry Kim, Sisko, Scotty, and Data all have threads weaving together to hopefully bring this all to a world shattering (or not) conclusion.
Midlife #5 – So our hero does some saving and introspection while trying to figure out what to do next. After, of course talking with the kidnapped special agent responsible for dealing with fire demons. He learns about his past and his father… but not enough for us to know too much and we will need to tune in next month to find out more.
Spider-Boy #4 – The story of Bailey unfolds even more as he tries to find out his place in the world. Unfortunately his creator (the “They called me ‘MAD’ at the University) scientist creates another version of him (Boy-Spider) to draw him out, and give him a more problems. He’s also wrestling (like most kids) with strong emotions and these play a part in how Boy-Spider acts.
Ultimate Spider-Man #2 – Peter Parker, what have you done now?!? Imagine a world where most of the marvel heroes never existed. Then somehow they are given the choice to gain their powers. Peter Parker who has: married MJ, had two kids (Richard & May) now has powers and is trying to figure them out. He’s also learning just how trusting he is… which can lead to some issues. I’m enjoying this take on Spider-man almost as much as I did when the first (and second) versions of ultimate Spider-Man came out. It’s nice to see old heroes being taken in a different direction.
Arrowsmith – So Smart in Their Fine Uniforms Trade paperback vol. 1 – Imagine another world… there are many great writers who reimagine the world or a time period to meet the needs of their narrative. Kurt Busiek has done this a few times masterfully. In Astro City he focused on character driven storytelling in a super hero inhabited world. Many stories focused on the ordinary people, but the world was filled with twists and turns and Easter eggs galore. In Arrowsmith, he goes back in time to World War 1, but the twist is- magic and magical folk are real. Things like airplanes have not needed to be invented, because men can use dragonets (small dragons) and magic to fly. Here we find a young man Fletcher Arrowsmith from what we would call the Midwest, it’s part of the United States of Columbia, Fletcher joins up to help in the war effort in Europe prior to the U.S. joining in. This is his story. This first volume goes through his early days and his discovery that “War is Hell.” I highly recommend it especially if you are into “what if” or alternate history type stories. There are only two volumes in this series due to the untimely death of one of the creators.
It seems that with the popularity of comic based media anything and every gathering that crosses over into comics is a “Comic Con.” I remember as a kid in high school going to various Cons and most took place in a ballroom of a hotel and featured a dealer room which consisted of a bunch of guys with long boxes on folding tables. There might be some programming, which was someone talking to the crowd the history of a certain character. Big Cons had artists and writers. Bigger Cons might have an actor or two from a comic book based movie or TV show. Even in Los Angeles there was maybe one Con that had studios come in to talk about upcoming movies. I recall hearing about Buckaroo Banzai and The Last Starfighter at this convention. But they were short presentation showing maybe a trailer and giving away some promo material. My blindfold when I was a pledge in college was my Team Banzai headband.
Now it seems that almost every pop culture convention goes by the name “Comic Con”. I love that the most important announcements from these cons seem to be which actor will be there for photo ops and autographs. I’ve been trying to figure out which cons I want to attend and I can’t see which artists and creators will be there, who will be in artist alley… only that this actor will be there – aren’t you excited!?!?
I’d be more excited to know that one of favorite artist would be there and how to get on their commission list. Some cons are a little more than a month out and they still haven’t posted who will be in Artist Alley… Then again some don’t even have a listing for anyone in comics- just TV & Film (36 actors and voice actors so far) and Panelists (Panelists: being TikTok “stars”, Cosplayers, and Bloggers) no comic book people… yet it is called a “comic con.” Wha? Huh? and you want me, a comic book guy, to buy a badge?
So what should we call these “Comic Cons” that only tangentially connect to comics? Pop Culture Cons (Pop Con does exist- it seems to focus on YouTubers and Influencers with a dabbling into Cosplay & other geeky pursuits) Geekfests? There are a lot on conventions that focus on specific shows or media/genre which is awesome! I do understand that this is an income stream for many actors… I wouldn’t want them to lose out, but… How about they just put something in from of it and “con” afterwards – “Photo-Op & Autograph Con.”
I guess, for me I should be happy that unlike when I was growing up bullies are now wearing comic book characters on their t-shirts so those of us who actually know something about the character aren’t getting teased as much anymore. I should also be happy that girls are now more openly supportive of the geek culture, which freaks out a lot of geeks, kinda like Taylor Swift going to football games freaks out some football fans.
I just wish that the comic creators would get as much praise, recognition, and attention as the actors who play their creations. San Diego Comic really started this whole thing… I recall being their one year and having a great time (no one was in line for days to see the people I wanted to see) but I kept getting texts from people I knew asking if I’d seen this or that celebrity. If I was in Hall H or Ballroom 20 for this sneak peak. No, I was listening to this Eisner award winning artist talk about character design, or listening to this writer talk about the future of one of my favorite characters. It’s not that I don’t want actors or celebrities at a con, I just wish they weren’t the big draw. My first year there it wasn’t as big of a deal and I did go to Ballroom 20 to hear about a Superman movie (Which didn’t do well in the theaters), and listen to Kevin Smith (who was Kevin Smith). No lines back then either… Nostalgia, ain’t it great?
For the record I have been to a few Cons over the years- not in any order (many more than once):
Creation Convention Los Angeles
Wizard World Chicago
Comic Book and Science Fiction Convention Los Angeles
Cincinnati Comic Expo
Indiana Comic Con
WonderCon
C2E2 (Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo)
New York Comic Con
San Diego Comic Con
AwesomeCon (Indianapolis)
PopCon Indy
Gen Con (not Comics- Games)
Galaxy Con Columbus
CXC (Cartoon Crossroads Columbus)
Power Con (Not Comics – Toys/Action Figures)
With all that said “Comic Cons” are still a place where I can find my people. They are still places where If I look, there are people there who understand what I say, and sometimes make me feel far less of a geek than I do when surrounded by people who only care about sports scores and… well sports scores. That’s what makes these places sacred, You can be yourself without worrying about people thinking you are strange. Even with all the celebrities. I won’t stop going and maybe someday I’ll cosplay. I’m still a bit leery about cosplay, I have it on my bucket list (#62 to be precise), but I’m concerned about getting that personal… it’s the introvert in me.
According to CLZ our winners with most variant covers this week are: Vampirella, Vol. 6 #666, with 16 variants, and Penthouse Comics #1 with 16 variants. I’m guessing both are not all ages. . Then again nothings says “I Love You” or “Happy Valentine’s Day” as much as a scantily clad female vampire and an all adult comic.
This Week’s Comics:
Amazing Spider-Man #43 – Gang War ‘nuff said… only one more issue of Amazing Spider-Man until we get a whole bunch of “Gang War: The Aftermath” comics! Woo Hoo!
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #16 – Gang War ‘nuff said
I Hate Fairyland #11 – How does Queen Cloudia fare in the “Real World”? <Major Spoiler> Yes, it is an entire issue devoted to making light of death in comics, and a fart joke, so all is good.
Wesley Dodds The Sandman #5 – The Sandman continues to look for the evil behind stealing his notebooks… but is that evil too close for him to notice?
The Ministry of Compliance #3 – C’mon it had a cover with people in monkey masks wielding katanas… of course I was going to buy it. Who is going to save the world from the alien menace that has been secretly ruling for… and who gave katanas to monkeys? Would you trust someone in a monkey mask with a katana?
Blue Book #1 1947 – Flying Saucers? No, this is not the comic adaptation of a bad Netflix documentary or something that was on the History Channel after dark… or is it? Ancient Astronaut Theorists say… <redacted>
The Displaced #1 – As a first issue it sets the stage for the actual story, that will answer the question: If a small city in Canada vanished… would anyone notice? Would anyone care?
Action Comics # 1062 – So magic has changed everyone into a Bizarro version of themselves… We discover why… but also find out who might be the only person who can save the world (hopefully before Superman loses it).
Batman #143 – Joker Year One Part 2, We learn more about how the Joker became the joker, with a little help from someone from Bruce Wayne’s past. Does every comic DC makes have to have something to do with multiple personalities? The trope is wearing thin.
Speed Force #4 – After four issues, I’m finally starting to figure out this whole thing… while it might be that this issue was mostly told from the POV of the villains who seem to be more Gen X or Z so in a dialect that I understand. Monologuing without actually monologuing. Although I will say- After this and Batman, I’m thinking I need to just wear earplugs 24/7.
Brick Journal #84 – Yes, I do get a LEGO Fan magazine. Mostly so that I can keep up with things but also so I can look at what I create out of LEGO bricks and groan at how bad my stuff is. This issue we have articles about cool cars (1/22 scale), and a massive cyberpunk collaborative build (Minifig scale). A bit on customizing mini figures. Along with short articles on a Pandora build (LEGO does make Avatar sets now, but this is bigger and more complex than the LEGO sets) and Echo Base from Star Wars. I’m still working on my town and Batcave… which will be finished about the time I need to sell all of the LEGO, sets and pieces.
I had a piece ready to go all about comics and collecting and then this week’s comics came in and I decided to jump ahead and just talk about one as my intro- Art Club by Rasha Doucet. Yes, there is a lot of commentary and not much about this awesome book, that kids and adults should read… sorry, but giving kids a chance to create visually, is a big thing with me, and always has been even when I was a teacher being told to do things with “Fidelity” and “Intentionality” to improve test scores just like the high paid consultants promised. “Remember: if it doesn’t work- you as the teacher must have done something wrong.” – any Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop consultant
When I was a teacher one thing I prided myself on was my classroom graphic novel library (Multi-Modal Literacy Space – when the consultants came in.). When I retired, I opened the library up to the teachers at the school. “Take what ever you want.” I was disappointed when very few took me up on the offer. Most who actually took things did it for their own children, and not for their classrooms. Then again, Books are being banned, teachers are being threatened with jail time if a parent doesn’t approve of the books in their classroom library. Which was also why when asked if I would set up a library in my name at the school, I turned down the offer… I was willing to stand up for any book in my library, I couldn’t see someone being as careful at a school level. “It’s Batman! Of course it’s appropriate!” Page One: Batman raids a topless bar looking for information about a crime… true story.
When my school switched from a Science and Technology Magnet School to a STEM school (the difference? the district received a grant.) In the process my school lost Art class, because the “highly intelligent” administrators at central office felt that STEM did not need art, and instead needed robotics or some other “sexy” class to make it stand out. I can’t complain too much since I ended my career as the “Robotics & Design” teacher. I had requested that “Design” be put in the title since without any art, how do you design anything. The result over the years of “no art” ended up with kids who can’t hold a pencil, draw a straight line, cut with scissors… basic skills that were either taught or reinforced in Art Class. Couldn’t change all that while trying to teach engineering and computer programming in the little time I had. Special Classes end up with around 32 days each year, total. Teachers, were busy making sure kids would pass all the various mandatory assessments required by the district, none had anything to do with cutting, pasting, or drawing. I spent a lot of time trying convince the school and district admin that we needed Art… When I left they had a “STEAM” class which was basically “Art” under a different name and that made me happy.
Art Club by Rashad Doucet – is a graphic novel about a student who loves art in a school that doesn’t have an art class. This one student makes it their mission to bring it back and prove to the adults that art is important and should be a part of everyone’s education. After an impassioned speech to the Assistant Principal (that get’s him thrown into the principal’s office) the Principal explains why they no longer have Art at his middle school. I appreciate the reality of the “produce students who excel on standardized tests” line- which is the standard go to for any school especially in this day and age of school letter grades and funding going to schools with the best test scores. In my experience most tests actually are really good at seeing which schools have families with the highest income…
I’m embarrassed to admit that one of the arguments the Assistant Principal uses “Art is just a hobby” I used in college when confronted by the University Art Department. I was an Education Major. I had taken Studio Art AP in High School and had my mediocre score sent to DePauw. During orientation they asked me to get my portfolio out so they could go over it. Being across the country in a time before FedEx, my parents overnighted it ($$$) and at the end of the week, they basically told me, “No.” I would still have to take all the required classes. I started with Studio Art 101, which was a review of everything I had already taken in High School. As a sophomore I took Art Teaching Methods or Elementary School Teachers in which I was told numerous times that I was not allowed to answer questions because I already knew the answers (You don’t want the class to rely on one student). I saw my fellow education majors in tears over this class, which was stupid. It should have gotten them excited about the possibilities and how to integrate art, not that art was some kind of magic that they would never really ever understand. This was when I went in for my “Sophomore Crit.” Remember, I’m an Education Major, not an Art Major. The same teacher who would not let me answer questions, went over my drawings and basically said what many cartoonists art teachers have said to them- “You’d be pretty good, if we could just get these creatures out of your head.” Outlined the courses I needed to take in the next year (which would have been most of my course schedule). Then asked me what I saw myself doing in 5 years… I said teaching 3rd grade. When asked “What about art?” I replied… “Art is a hobby.” After that I never took another art class at DePauw. A friend of mine switched to an art major, and ended up having to switch to something else at the last minute, because they decided after everything, he just wasn’t good enough… as a Senior after taking and passing all of their required classes for graduation, he wasn’t good enough to graduate.
When I go back and consider events I like to think what could have happened to change the outcome? In this case a couple things. First, I would have felt a lot better and more positive towards the art department if they had honored my previous work and said- we’ll let you skip Studio Art 101. That would have been a start. Secondly, if instead of focusing on “fine art” they had some idea about cartooning and graphic novels. If during, the Crit, they had emphasized the importance of life drawing in cartooning & animation instead of berating what I had done, I may have double majored, but I didn’t. Later in life I took a portraiture class, the instructor had us draw in a style that was comfortable for us one evening… after looking at my work he, said- “I now get it… you’re a cartoonist!” The model actually asked if he could keep my drawing. The instructor changed the way he approached my instruction to better deal with how a cartoonist interprets things. I can’t complain about the path I’ve taken, but it just takes some small changes- and maybe this will help some other art department professor trying to increase the number of people majoring in art.
Still Art Club reminds me of how the visual arts of all the “arts” tends to take a back seat. Performing Arts have shows and entertain, parents get involved in a wide variety of ways. Visual Art is a deeply personal thing, most visual artists do their thing by themselves without an audience, some people need that alone time and we as a society, just don’t seem to care enough to support it, especially in schools. I’d give my copy to a school, but I’m not sure anyone would want it… it isn’t on the test.
Back to reality and off the soapbox… As for variants this week- The big winner according to CLZ is Thundercats #1 with (drumroll please)… 69 variants! Yes! Sixty-nine different covers! I have no idea why… Prices ranging from $4.99 to $29.99 each. If they all were just cover price it cost someone over $350 (including tax) to purchase all of them. Whatever makes you happy. I guess I should think of it as 69 different artists got paid to do a Thundercats cover and that is great!
This Week’s Comics:
Batman #142 – So I’ve either missed something, (probably) or whatever. In this issue we start a new arc dealing with the Joker. DC has done a lot with the character altering it with every film adaptation. So Joker Year One-Part One I think is trying to tie things together and make a cohesive background story about one of the most chaotic characters ever. We shall see how they do it. There have already been some call backs to other origin stories like The Killing Joke. Who knows? I might keep reading Batman.
First appearance of the Joker… no dramatic scars creating a smile… just a guy, a psychotic sociopathic guy who is pretty good at mixing chemicals.
Captain America #6 – Everything ties together as we end this arc and start another. Steve is still bouncing between memories of the 1940’s and fighting Nazi demons trying to take over the world. It actually adds a bit to the origin of Captain America with a tie back at the end, which is nice.
Star Trek Defiant #11 – A Piece of the Action and Gorns? Worf and the crew of the Defiant try to complete their latest mission and stay within the boundaries of Star Fleet morals. Can they?
The Space Between #4 – Each issue of this series seems to end up with a few people making the ultimate sacrifice or at least having to make the hard decision that their elected officials won’t make for the good of everyone. IN this last issue the question becomes do they settle on the planet they’ve spent generations getting to, or do they continue to live on the space ship, adapting to the changes that occur due to dismissing resources? Robert Heinlein wrote a book called “Orphans of the Sky” which was my introduction to him as a writer. Many thanks to my dear friend and sometimes older brother Eric for requiring me to read it. Similar as to caste system and just the crazy stuff that can happen on a generation ship after generations… No muties in this comic and civilization seems to stay together.
Midlife #4 – Again, I may have ended up skipping one, I need to check… but our midlife crisis superhero is still balancing his real life and being a superhero while dealing with a government agency concerned about what terror he may bring… C’mon the guy only wants to help people.
Rogue Sun #18 – Here’s the final boss battle with everyone joining in to save the world. We’ve got Vampire Werewolves, and evil demonic creatures and a good guy, along with a doppelgänger bad guy. Did I mention zombies? Of course there are zombies. Will good triumph over evil? Will the comic return in May (like they advertised)? Nice character development and I’ll be interested to see how things play out in the future.
Love Everlasting #12 – We follow the cowboy as he searches for Joan (his true love) on his way to Rochester. In the end we learn why for the past 11 issues, through time and space the cowboy has been stalking Joan as she moves through life and love…
Batman & Robin #3 & #4 – Catching up on missed issues. The story makes a bit more sense now that I have read the missing portion. Think of reading a novel and skipping two chapters. You can follow it along but there would be some holes that need filling.
I thought a couple weeks ago was a short week… I’m guessing I must have missed a few on my pull list, and I know there are a few comics I thought of picking up, but after a morning of curling and broom stacking over lunch, I obviously forgot. I’ll pick them up next week, or miss out on them entirely.
I was surprised and honored that one of the pieces I’d been working on has become a sticker for my LCS, Comic Carnival. I’m working on some other ideas to help celebrate their 50th anniversary. What would a carnival be without some monkeys? If you want a sticker, stop by Comic Carnival and buy one! Yes, that is a shameless plug. You should also buy some comics, too. For the record, there are subtle differences between CeeCee (the Comic Carnival monkey) and Cecil (the evil geocaching monkey).
The winner for most variants according the CLZ this week: Lily & Stitch #1 with 25 different covers! I ended up with none of them, because… I really could care less about it.
This Week:
Spider-Boy #3 – Bailey tries to succeed at being a hero even though he has some monstrous aspects to his personality… physiology? (Did you see the cover?!?) He ends up actually doing good and maybe, just maybe, starts changing public perception about him- Hey, Thor even thinks he did an OK job. What does this have to do with “Gang War” the story taking over all the other Spider-Books? Nothing, which is refreshing.
Alan Scott Green Lantern #4 – It’s time to learn about the secret origin of Alan Scott’s lost love and Red Lantern. Yes, it’s time to bring in the Soviets! Personally, I’m enjoying this take on the early years of the Golden Age Green Lantern and how it addresses some of the social issues of that time period, which sadly, are still hanging around. Oh no! Woke stuff in comic books! The world is about to end! Why can’t comics just cover family friendly kid stuff like…
Dark Ride #10 – What if Walt Disney had actually made a deal with devil? I know that’s just conspiracy theory #347 currently being thrown out into social media by conservatives everywhere, but that’s the basic premise behind Dark Ride. In Dark Ride a Disney-like character wants to build a theme park based on Horror. Well what do you know… after some contract signing it happens, and it is magically successful! Now as he has gotten older things aren’t going to Hell… or are they? As we come to issue 10 his son, Sam (Samhain), has kind of figured things out and is now frantically searching for his daughter, who is lost in the park after being escorted around by… cute furry park mascots (who happen to be cute furry demons). Sam’s sister, Halloween, unfortunately seems to be fine with the status quo and we have drama, and blood, and gore (along with cute furry demons). Did I mention this isn’t a comic for kids?
Plot Holes #5 – This happens more times than not… I start a series a at some point during the run either it is late, or after a month, I just forget that I was reading it. I guess this is why some people now devote themselves to buying trade paperbacks. The problem I have with that is there are some great series that never make it into a trade. I have spoken with a number of creators who are now just working on doing things in a long form. Telling the entire story because individual issues aren’t as marketable. Enough- let’s talk about the final issue of Plot Holes. The premise is characters from books go around through unpublished works, editing them to make the stories work. Basically, they are physically removing characters or plot points that just don’t work. These are, of course unsuccessful characters in their own right. One of their group has decided to destroy everything… the rest of the group needs to stop him. Tragic loss, and lots of tropes get stomped on.
So this week was a bit lean when it came to titles but all in all some good things. I was actually able to spend part of yesterday catching up on some work in the Pit the Despair. Bagged and boarded a couple hundred back issues so I might be able to go back and read them in a decade or so. Mostly Justice Society and Golden Age heroes most people don’t care about. It was nice to catch up on some organization work. As always a bit of commentary then the reviews.
When I first started reading comics it was pretty much art first, story second. I liked to look at the pictures. I followed artists, not writers. I’d stop reading a comic when the artist switched. This was in the time of Frank Miller- Daredevil, John Byrne- X-Men and Fantastic Four, George Perez – Teen Titans, Walt Simonson – Thor, Bill Sienkiewicz – Moon Knight… you get the idea. I took a break from comics during the whole 90’s and when I returned (as a way to escape the stresses of grad school) I started focusing on art and story, in some cases story was more important than art. Maybe I had grown as an artist, maybe I’d matured as a reader, I don’t know. Now if you can’t tell I read a rather eclectic mix some with amazing art, some with amazing stories, most with a good mix of both. For this I thank the folks at my LCS (Local Comic Shop). I started stopping into Comic Carnival when it was on the way to my grad school classes which met on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I learned about the pull list when I kept missing some issues since new comics came out on Wednesdays. Over the next 30+ years things started to just show up in my stack. For those who don’t understand, most comic shops have a pull list for regular customers. the customer comes in is given a list of comics and basically, a couple months before the comic comes out orders it. When that issue comes out it is pulled. As the customer, I have already paid for it, but then after a while they get to know you and start pulling other things for you. I’d also get pulled aside and asked about things I didn’t mark on my list. “Bruce, you’ve always pulled Captain America, you didn’t this month…” I’d say I wasn’t interested in the way the story was going… then I’d be told, I had missed out on a super key issue that they’d sold out of and they’d try to get me a second printing… or it might be “OK, just checking.” The moral of this story… get to know your local shop, support them, they’re great people and they will take care of you.
Variant winner this week according to the CLZ Newsletter- Red Sonja #7 with 17 variants… although in the next line the mention Femme Force : Taylor Swift #1 had 18 variants… Ummm… why do you need that many? I didn’t need 25 Princess Diana purple Beanie Babies. Then again Quested had 9, Defiant and Power Pack each had 3. I received the “A” versions of each which means the one that everyone gets.
This Week’s Comics:
Star Trek Defiant Annual #1 – So what is an Annual? You’ve seen a few of these show up in my list. For the most part these are bigger issues. They can either start or finish a story line, or could be a one off story. In the case of Defiant this is a background story of Sela- you know Tasha Yar’s daughter who has played a villain over the course of a few Star Trek story lines. Here we get to see her come to grips with her mommy issues. It is basically starting off a new twist for the crew of the Defiant when they finally meet up.
Ministry of Compliance #2 – Issue number 1 was pulled for me, and I frankly kept meaning to pull issue number 2 but being me, forgot. This week I remembered. So the world is secretly being run by aliens (who look just like us) with various ministries in charge of various aspects. The Ministry of Compliance is the ministry in charge of keeping everyone in line. Right now, everything has fallen apart and there is a scramble to figure out what they should do next… I rarely will pull something from a comic, but I felt these three panels say a lot about the world we live in… Yes, comics do offer social commentary, and not just spandex.
Mech Cadets #5 – I was reading this back when it was Mech Cadet Yu and before Netflix turned it into a cartoon. The Earth has been attacked by aliens, we were rescued by giant robots that bond with their pilots. The Military Industrial complex doesn’t like being dependent of aliens so they build their own… Now aliens are back and those in power giving the orders aren’t listening to the people who know better. You think their hearts might be in the right place, but… so they are abandoning a unauthorized rescue attempt which could save the planet… gotta love egos.
Detective Comics #1081 – Is it real? Is it a fever dream? What are they putting Batman through this time, because it is so much fun to torture Batman. Last entry I said, I’m seriously thinking about dropping one of my Superman and Batman titles… In Batman, Bruce Wayne is getting beaten up by his own subconscious in the form of Zur-En-Arrh. In Detective he’s been hung and now is finding himself in some weird dreamscape… Where’s the giant penny? Where’s the giant typewriter? You know chum, this is getting to be a bit much for me.
Power Pack Into the Storm #1 – in an attempt to create an all ages comic decades ago Marvel created “Power Pack” a group of siblings who each got powers and saved the World from aliens. It was a cool comic, Louise Simonson did an amazing job. They’ve brought the team back and mixed them in with Franklin Richards of the Fantastic Four. This is a flashback to an early adventure and with it being issue #1 it is just setting up the pack trying to save an alien princess and their friend from evil aliens…
Quested Season 2 #1 – Fun D&D adventure… I won’t go into it, because the intro at the beginning of the issue goes over Season 1 better than I could. Let’s just say the band has broken apart, but they will get back together at some point…
The Flash #5 – Wally West the original Kid Flash, who took the Flash mantle when Barry Allen was “killed” during Crisis on Infinite Earths. Wally has been put through the wringer during all the various Crisis that DC comics decided they needed. He is back, with his wife and kids finally and trying to figure it all out. Last month he was wandering around a garden filled with statues trying to determine the meaning of life (42). This time around we are following his son Jai. Now as we know super powers are fickle, sometime heroes pass them along, sometimes, they don’t. In this case Jai’s sister got the super speed power and Jai… well he got a mixed bag, that includes things like super strength and some other weird things. In this issue Jai comes to grips with his powers, but also his destiny. Remember when you were a kid? I know for me at some point I had to let my parents down and let them know their idea (or what I thought their dream for me) wasn’t what I wanted. For me it was getting into a super elite private school and after the first week being asked if I was happy. I was honest (for probably the first time didn’t just say what I thought they wanted to hear) and said “No.” Like any kid, I figure I’d let them down, and I probably did, but they said “OK” and on Monday I was back at my old public school, with my friends. FYI- my old public school was one of the top schools in California, so I really wasn’t losing anything education wise, just I didn’t have to deal with ultra snobby kids. So Jai, after all this and thinking he’s going to let his dad down, tells him that he really isn’t into the whole superhero thing and then has to deal with the consequences. Basically one of those comics that focused more on character growth than action… which is OK.
Next week- same Bat-time. Same Bat-channel. Unless Bruce Wayne is dead (again) which means we’ll have to wait 3-8 months for him to return.
So I was sick… I know you heard about that already so I won’t go into details. I dropped by Comic Carnival on Monday to pick up last week’s pull list to catch up… looking at what’s coming in this week, maybe I should have waited, it looks like it might be a light week.
Some comic collecting commentary then on with the show… You might notice I avoid certain titles. I do this mostly because, while they are popular, they are also a tangled web. I’m noticing that more and more often publishing companies try to tangle up stories in order to get you to read… everything. When I started out collecting comics most heroes appeared in one solo book. The exceptions were Superman (Superman & Action Comics) and Batman (Batman & Detective Comics). There were limited other runs, and of course the Team books or Team-Up books, but again, unless the hero was amazingly popular it was in just one book. Every once in a while there would be a crossover, but for the most part… one comic per hero or group. I used to read The Uncanny X-Men, I stopped when I couldn’t keep up with the continuity or which comic I should read. Wait?!? Wasn’t Phoenix dead? So Wolverine is now an Avenger, and an X-Man and a member of Power Pack? That’s when I started looking outside the big two (DC & Marvel). I always recommend talking to your Local Comic Shop. Tell them what you like, even though the kid behind the counter might not look old enough to drive, they know their comics and may have some suggestions. Worst thing? You read something and come back saying – “it wasn’t for me.” I’ve been shopping at the exact same store continuously for almost 40 years. I trust everyone there, even the new kids. I’ve stumbled upon some great writers, artists and characters by just trying something new. You may have noticed as you look at my pull list…there is a mix- variety is the spice of life.
Speaking of variety the winner for number of variants last week was “Avengers Twilight #1” with a shabby 13 variants. Running a close second was “Cobra Commander #1” with 12.
This Week’s Comics:
Jay Garrick: The Flash #4 – I’ve always been a fan of the Flash- Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, Kevlar Age, Linoleum Age, pick an element and put age after it and I’d probably still be a fan. So we’ve recently (Stargirl: The Lost Children Written by Geoff Johns, Art by Todd Nauck) introduced Judy- the Flash’s hitherto unknown daughter and as we find out a bit of history we find out the diabolical schemes that made the Flash, the Flash. Let’s just say – it wasn’t an accident. Now what will Jay and Judy do about it? I’m concerned that I may lose my favorite new edition to the Flash Family in the process, but I really hope not.
Superman #10 – aka Back to the Future 3? I’m starting to think I need to stick with one Batman and one Superman title. While each title has their own flavor, I think I just need to pick a story… it’s getting too confusing. Superman is back in time fighting to return aided by a ghost of a hero from that time period. The bad guy? A future cowboy who I recall first appeared in the 1970s…
Titans #7 – while the Titans have a massive event going on with Beast World which I am not following I seem to have been able to catch the end of it by just reading the main title. Yes, I’ve missed out on some important details, but like many crossover/special events I can’t say I’m having issues (pun intended) about it. So we find out who the evil aliens are, and many of the infected heroes are saved. When Titans restarted it was hinted at that this was going to no longer be the “Jr. Justice League” but would actually replace the JLA… well they have dealt with an intergalactic bad guy, so… let’s see what happens next. I’ve been reading the Teen Titans since the 1970’s they, like the Flash I have weathered through good times and bad… only time will tell.
Amazing Spider-Man #42 – Gang War ‘nuff said.
Jackpot #1 – Gang War ‘nuff said. Who is Jackpot? MJ Watson granted super powers at some point after breaking up with Peter Parker… it’s as confusing as it sounds – Peter Parker, like Bruce Wayne can’t seem to have anything nice happen. Although Bruce Wayne at least had money, until they took that away from him… kind of.
The Enfield Gang Massacre #6 – I’ve never, really never been one for westerns. While I started reading this series because it connected to “That Texas Blood” a fictional true crime like series, I stuck around. One thing it had was a fascinating prose portion. Reminding me of the “Shade’s Journal” in Starman. Telling a bit more of the detail and backstory for those willing to take the time… spoiler- the all live happily ever after, maybe, if you look at it from a certain point of view.
Unnatural Order #2 – you’ve heard about it..: drug dealers give you a “free sample” to get you hooked. Well that’s kind of what happened here. Issue one was free with purchase. Like I explained to my students when encountering a new book… the first few chapters set up the rules for the world the writer has created. They also introduce the characters… not all the details, but enough to get you to either care, or not. If after a few chapters you decide it isn’t for you, you should be able to explain your reasoning. Comics work the same way, in the “old days” the set up was done in panels. By the end of the first page… you had everything you needed. Now, it can take issues. We’ve got mad science, and soldiers and magic and universe changing, you might even throw in some time travel- hard to say after one quick reading. After this issue (which I had to pay for) I’m curious as to how our intrepid band of adventurers will defeat the evil Druid and his minions.
Phantom Road #8 – you know how I mentioned that Jeff Lemire just writes some weird stuff? Well, this is another one, but like everything else it’s weird, yet good.
Star Trek #16 – Harry Kim is no longer an Ensign! Dinosaurs! Geology! Saving worlds! Did I mention Harry finally got pips?
Black Hammer The End #5 – yes, Jeff Lemire rears his weirdness into my pull list again this week. A little back story on the whole Black Hammer universe for those unaware. These stories take place in an alternate universe in which a different set of heroes battle evil… the ultimate evil being the “Anti-God”. When the series first started a group had been transferred to another dimension in order to save their world. Memories erased and trying to just lead ordinary lives. There have been crossovers with the Justice League, some amazing characters like Sherlock Frankenstein and Cthu-Louise. I felt it was like (but not like) Astro-City. So now we reach “The End” and I’m not going to say B anything except that it is a unique take on dealing with the “great power…” bit and family responsibility.
What else am I reading?
I’ve been bouncing between some prose books using the *gasp* library… I’ve read Legends & Lattes but started with the prequel Bookshops & Bonedust. The story by Travis Baldree of a 1/2 orc mercenary looking at other career options. Owning a coffee shop, in a fantasy land that really had never heard of coffee seemed like a good move. overall I’ve been a big fan of “Comic Fantasy” a subgenre that makes fun of high fantasy and the overly serious nature of elves & the like. This fits right in and was a lite escape.
On the other hand I’ve always been a fan of Science Fiction aka Speculative Fiction. I tend to avoid books that require a glossary to understand what is going on. I recall in High School missing out on getting bumped into Honors English when my Freshman english teacher suggested I read Dune and I returned it after one chapter because it was just too hard to get through having to bounce between the glossary and the story. Then again I took Science Fiction in High School (Thank you Mr. Calkins for offering it) and didn’t have to take the final because my GPA in the class was so high. I instead sat during the final, reading the book that the class was being tested on, giggling at all the references Mr. Calkins had dropped throughout class the week before. I also took Science Fiction Advanced Projects and as my Senior Art project painted a mural on his door. That said I’ve been reading the Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells on the recommendation of my mother in-law and throughly enjoying it. I really can sympathize with Murderbot and his feeling towards humanity.
While sick (System Efficiency Down to 62%) I fell back to one of my old favorites- Dream Park by Larry Niven & Steven Barnes. I read the sequels, but nothing really equalled the first book and the unique premise- murder mystery, in the middle of a Live Action Role Playing Game in a completely immersive environment in a massive amusement park. Basically two story lines running simultaneously. The dates are off, but I’m still waiting for tech to catch up with what was envisioned. Then again it was written in the 80’s.
Well, it has been a week… Mostly a feeling like “carp” week. I guess it doesn’t take that long for 35 years of antibodies to stop working efficiently and for me to get whatever crud was going around. In this case it was a sinus infection that waylaid me for a couple days until I finally decided to see a doctor and get antibiotics. What did this experience prove to me? I’m old. Also that I am amazed at how much I just pushed through as a teacher because of adrenaline and the need to be there “for the kids.” You see unlike many jobs a teacher doesn’t just “call in sick” they need to call in sick, then have full subplans ready with all materials run off and prepared. Even in today’s digital age this takes a couple hours- all while you are feeling like death warmed over. So early in my career I learned that it was better to just push through. I recall one year getting sick during the statewide standardized test… I came in and gave the test (to first graders) laying on the couch in my room with a quart of OJ, a box of saltines, and a box of tissues on a milk crate next to me. All so the kids could get their all important score, since no one else was allowed to administer the test. Those were the days!
The variable winner this week: Ultimate Spider-Man #1 with 25 (yes, TWENTY-FIVE) variant covers! umm… really?
This week’s comics including the Tony Harris’ variant for Justice Society #8. I know, I know, I rant about variants, but I will purchase those done by artists I really like, for titles I normally buy. I will not buy 25 copies of the same comic and speculate which will be the better investment after they have been slabbed. I bought this one after I purchased #8 because my LCS (Local Comic Shop) had run out before I could get there. I should have picked up the print at the Cincinnati Comic Expo, but didn’t, because I’m stupid.
This Week’s Comics:
Elles – 3. Elle Together – This trilogy of YA/All Ages graphic novels tells the story of Elle, a teenage girl who has ended up splitting her various personalities (the athlete, the bookworm, the adventurous, etc…) apart and hiding them away, each one mysteriously (magically) changes her hair color when they take control. There’s a lot more to it but *spoilers* This is the conclusion to the story, so there is a final battle in hopes to free the lost part of her and maybe regain some control. It’s a great story for kids trying to figure out how their feeling can control them and make them do stupid things. Probably already banned by Mom’s for Liberty and the State of Florida. Giant-Size Spider-Man #1 – This is where things really get confusing when dealing with a multiverse which Marvel didn’t used to deal with as much (What If? was created just to be able to say- “cool idea, but not really part of our world), but now is their bread & butter. When does this take place? what universe? How does it tie into the current story line? I’m lost especially since there are some pretty dramatic things happening in this issue and I thought I had been keeping up on Miles and his exploits (currently Gang War ’nuff said). Adventureman Ghost Lights #1 – To explain this completely is a long post in itself… Let’s just say reincarnation of a classic pulp hero wonderful storytelling, beautiful artwork and win-win as someone who was brought up reading Alex Raymond’s Flash Gordon. While a number one it is a continuation of a previous series. This happened with the Rocketeer when they’d switch publishers, so I’m used to it. All I can say is if you can find the back issues, pick them up and read them- it is awesome. Sandman #4 – We continue in the Golden Age as Wesley Dodds confronts his inner demons being exposed to the same gas he uses on criminals. He now knows who he needs to go after to hopefully stop his research notebooks from being used for nefarious means. Ultimate Spider-Man #1 – Variant Cover A. Did I mention Marvel is really milking the Multiverse for all it’s worth? Recently a series had the evil Reed Richards from one multiverse try to pull together a perfect world in which he stopped most of the heroes who would stop him from ever becoming heroes. For example- he plucked that little radioactive/genetically altered spider off its web just before it could bite Peter Parker… so no Spider-Man. Life goes on, things happen, Peter lives, Uncle Ben lives, Aunt May… Peter and MJ get married, have a couple kids life is wonderful, except… something is missing. One thing I loved about the first run of Ultimate Spider-Man was how we knew what was going to happen and they just kept building to it. Not in one issue, but a couple. In the Silver Age an origin was a paragraph and narrative text box, maybe a couple panels… that was it and then- “WHAM!” we’re off fighting crime. Retelling a simple origin and making it a stand alone story was cool. In this case this first issue, sets us up for what could be awesome… only time and future issues will tell. Fishflies #4 – Jeff Lemire has written some pretty cool, and weird stuff. Fishflies falls into both those categories. Bad guy turned into giant bug now BFF for a lonesome little girl. It’s got a supernatural vibe and has with most of his work I will be going back and rereading it again and again finding new things each time until the series is complete. Strange New Worlds The Scorpius Run #5 – The Federation and its core values are put to the test as we complete the Scorpius Run Race. How will this change the crew and the universe as we know it? As with many of the comics related to Star Trek… not in any noticeable way, but while we wait for a new season, it is nice to catch a few more adventures of the Enterprise under Christopher Pike. Speed Force #3 – I’m really getting better at understanding younglingspeak… This comic is definitely geared toward a younger demographic than me. I mentioned in my last commentary on Speed Force that It just made me feel old. It still does, but then again, I am old. It looks like the story is coming to a climax with Social Media, Music, and stuff trying to take over the world!!! bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! See? Fredric Wertham was right! Batman and Robin #5 – Single parent, Bruce Wayne tries to raise his son in Gotham City with hilarious results is this light sit-com. OK- I know I picked up the first issue, but may have neglected the others. This is what happens when you create pull list months before the comic is released. In some cases the comic isn’t even on the pull list because DC (or Marvel) decided to not announce it until after they printed out their monthly catalog. That is a wonderful excuse (that I’m sure I will use again), but may not actually be correct. Whatever. Bruce and Damian Wayne are trying to figure out what bad things are going on at Gotham High… I know, I know, it’s high school there’s a lot of bad things going on. Bruce put Damian there specifically so he could relate to his peers… Damian is not amused. Currently they are trying to find “Shush” the female version of “Hush” and determine what horrible plot is being hatched. Hooray! Damian made it on the Football (Soccer) team and what’s up with that goalie? Miles Morales: Spider-Man #15 – Gang War ’nuff said. I do apologize for those expecting more… It’s a massive cross title story that in the end will have little impact on the universe. If it does, great… give it a year and no one will remember. Big thing about this issue- Ms. Marvel makes a guest appearance after dying… Action Comics #1061 – No matter how much I’d like to write this entire thing in Bizarrospeak, I won’t. Bizarro uses magic in hopes he will be able to return to Bizarro World? That’s my best guess. In the end, normally it would be something like “Hi-Jinks Ensue” and we all live happily ever after… Not this time.
I started posting on the infamous Facebook (yes I’m old) last week the comics I picked up on Wednesday. When I decided to do it again, I figured I would do it here… might as well as I try to figure out how to get this site updated so my friend Bill stops complaining about how it doesn’t seem be up to date- it works fine for me so I don’t get why it is important, but every time I share I post I get a comment about updating the site… ugh.
I realized the thing that many people don’t understand about comic books or other serialized forms of storytelling is the need to be able to remember the story in between issues. People read books, watch movies or now binge TV series they no longer are required to hold that story for any length of time. With TV the longest you need to remover back is a week. In comics it ranges from usually a month to it could be a year or more mattering the writer or the artist. So as I try to not give away spoilers for these various titles I may end up bringing overly general in my description- more talking about the character and the general arc, and not the details. Sometimes it’s because I just don’t remember everything. Pick up the trade paperback (if they publish one) if you have a bad memory- I do that for Saga. Teachers dismiss comics without understanding how much a reader has to process and remember between each issue. We really don’t have that kind of thing anymore.
Captain America #4 – Cap is fighting a demon while the story bounces between pre-supersoldier 1940’s and today… yup! It all connects. Well written, just not used to Cap fighting demons, even if they are connected to Nazis. I have just returned to reading Cap so we shall see where this goes. Action Comics #1060 – after the War World saga Superman needs to rescue his “adopted daughter” by dealing with magic and the multiverse all while the lead villain (related to Batman from another dimension) tries to convince the world that Superman (and Kryptonians in general) are more trouble than they are worth. World’s Finest: Teen Titans #6 – taking the original Teen Titans and updating them to modern times. So how would teenagers deal with Social Media and fandom? The Terror Titan’s vs. the Teen Titans- who will be victorious? Frankly, I like this take on the first superhero group I seriously collected. Speed Force #2 – bringing in Mr. Terrific into a story about an app. Dripping with modern slang… it reminds me a lot of my first few issues of Teen Titans when the characters would say “groovy” and “hip” a lot so they sounded like they were really teens. Yes, there are Speedsters in the story, but the focus is Mr. Terrific. Wesley Dodds The Sandman #3 – the Sandman, considered one of the first heroes in the DC Universe (not in the comics, but in the DCU) has been one of my favorites as he was portrayed in “Sandman Mystery Theatre” and popped into “Starman” I’m enjoying this jump back into the golden age of superheroes with a hit of a modern twist to the storytelling. Miles Morales: Spider-Man #13 – Gang War! Nuff said. Just filling in the massive crossover in the more down to earth Marvel titles taking place in New York. The Enfield Gang Massacre #5 –That Texas Blood has been an interesting series dealing with weird crime in a small Texas County. This story takes it back to the “Wild West” Phantom Road #7 – ummm… Twilight Zone, X-Files, Department of Truth… hard to put this one in a box without giving too much away. Still, I like it. Rogue Sun #17 – Soap Opera family drama with super hero and villains mixed in. Sibling rivalry, evil spirits, daddy issues. Radiant Black #27 & 27.5 – Umm… This series has created a number of rather bright and shiny (dare I say “Radiant” spin offs) but this is the original. Alien Armor gives you super powers, how you use it can be up to you… but with great power there must also be… It’s been a good series with good character development. Currently the world is at war with religious zealot aliens who are testing our hero. So what’s with the half (0.5 for those who don’t know how to convert fractions to decimals) issue? At one point in the comic the cosmic armor chose one person, then (let’s just say something happened) it chose another- the guys were friends so what we have now is two different stories going through the same events one issue with one guy being Radiant Black and the other with the other guy being Radiant Black. Kinda “What If” but due to the space time continuum, and the existence of multiverses, and it being a comic… Batman-Santa Claus Silent Knight #2 – the Dark Knight teams with St. Nick to fight Krampus. Frankly, a nice Holiday story, that while it is not lighthearted it kinda is. Batman #428 – Robin Lives! – along time ago DC comics brought in a new Robin since the old one was too old. As a gimmick (this was the late 80’s), at some point they decided to let the public determine his fate. The public being cold and cruel chose to kill him. This is the comic that would have been published if the vote had gone the other way. I think they may have switched out one or two pages, but that would make sense knowing that they were about to have two entirely different comics ready for print once the votes were tallied. No sidekicks were eventually killed in this storyline because in comics 99% of all characters come back. It may take years, but… Detective Comics #1079 – getting close to the end of this arc… mixing either ancient history, prophecy, revenge, magic, whatever, and who will finally rule Gotham. because ruling Gotham was part of an ancient prophecy… I kinda miss weird smiling fish and giant typewriters.
So that’s the run down. find a character you like, and start reading. there are a bunch of great stories out there and while I may not have gone into too many details or been too serious about my thoughts- the hardest part is coming into a story at the end and then having to figure it out. These aren’t your movie characters, while movies have influenced the characters that tends to vanish once the movie is no longer big. While it is hard to figure out, one of the craziest things is just hunting down the issues you need to tell that story. Fortunately with the Internet and Trade Paperbacks that isn’t has hard. I remember visiting comic shops all along the coast of California looking to fill in the missing spots in my collection. It was a great hunt and fun to see all the different shops, now with a mouse click I could have everything shipped to me. Where’s the fun in that?
I find it interesting how Bailey has avoided detection and has been able to survive… clever kid.
It looks like I’m still reading both for at least a while.
of this adventure, will the Sandman be able to recover his notebook filled with formulas that in the wrong hands (the military) could create havoc across the world? Didn’t this guys learn anything from watching Oppenheimer? Ultimate weapons just lead to ultimater weapons that lead to ultimatest weapons, that lead to… you get the idea. Well, I guess if you are a weapon manufacturer all that matters is profits.
Woo Hoo!
Yes! Sixty-nine different covers! I have no idea why… Prices ranging from $4.99 to $29.99 each. If they all were just cover price it cost someone over $350 (including tax) to purchase all of them. 
