BEFORE WATCHMEN: SILK SPECTRE #2

Writers: Amanda Conner & Darwyn Cooke
Artist: Amanda Conner
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewer: Optimous Douche

Welcome the #2’s. I want reviews moving forward to end the perpetual bitch-storm of whether BEFORE WATCHMEN is a worthwhile project or not and start focusing on the merits of the books themselves. Impassioned pleas will not make converts of the haters (even when those pleas are found at the end of the book in the editor column) and the hater’s venom spewed in the eyes of the converted simply isn’t strong enough to wash away the cataracts of sheer bliss. “Can’t we all just get along?” has been answered and the answer is an emphatic NO! So with that said, haters, I wish you the best in finding your own comic nirvana. BEFORE WATCHMEN fans, let’s talk some teen spirit 60’s style.

Issue one of SILK SPECTRE was a deep and disturbing extrapolation of “Toddlers in Tiaras” parenting stretched into superhero hyperbole. We all knew Sally Jupiter was far from Mom of the year in the original WATCHMEN, but SILK SPECTRE allowed us to see the tumultuous moments that built the unsavory bitterness between Sally and Laurie. At the end of the issue, we see Laurie break her shackles of oppression by heading west to imbibe the Summer ofLlove from its epicenter: Haight-Ashbury.

Most of the people reading this column missed the 60s, yours truly included. However, being an only child I spent far more time growing up with Baby Boomers and the Great Generation versus my own Gen X. With Gen X and Boomers the generational divide in most cases is a slight gap; I like rap, my Dad doesn’t. However, our ideologies on how the world should work are pretty much in synch. Between Boomers and the Great Generation, though, the difference in mores and world views is a canyon. Haight-Ashbury was the epitome of those differences: free love versus 50s cloistered bedroom sex, freeing the mind with a cornucopia of substances versus merely dulling life’s pain with hooch, and finally the communist view of helping your fellow man versus getting all you can for yourself in the shortest time possible. Time showed that the Boomers weren’t immune to the trappings of worldly possessions and status, but for a few glorious years the Boomers truly did change the world and scared the living shit out of the controlling establishment.

This historical accuracy, or to speak more succinctly the real history melding with comic fiction contained within the pages of SILK SPECTRE 2, as Laurie finds new freedoms in life amongst the communes of San Francisco, has made me fall even deeper in love with this series. I loved issue 1, but after reading COMEDIAN 1 where our favorite bastard snuggled up to the Kennedy clan, I realized that Laurie’s story in the first issue could have been told at any time using any character. Don’t get me wrong, these elements made the story transcend the original material, which was the point. But for an alternate history whore, nothing compares to seeing some of history’s greatest names cause the downfall of western civilization…or at least try to.

Most startling about this historical infusion was that neither Conner nor Cooke used the names one would associate with the Summer of Love. As Laurie and her hippy friends created their own commune and Laurie starts to protect the hippies, silk screening by day/go-go boot ass kicking by night, I naively expected a pot smoking session with Jerry Garcia or a three-way with Grace Slick. Thankfully C&C Comic Factory had something far more nefarious in mind that also helps create a true overarching plot for this series.

Ole’ Blue Eyes, ladies and gentlemen, the Chairman of the Board himself, Mr. Frank Sinatra is our overarching villain for this series. One of the biggest complaints I heard about COMEDIAN was that Azzarello took too many liberties with the voices of the Kennedys (especially Jackie). While I found an empowered Jackie to be a great twist, I can see how purists might call shenanigans. With Frank in SILK SPECTRE, though, there’s no mistaking that this is the voice of Sinatra.

Frank’s hatred of rock n’ roll was well documented, but as Conner has him say in this book, “at least Elvis still liked Cadillacs and big houses.” But folk music and the hippie movement threatened something Frank coveted more than power and dames – money. You see this with most people that start from nothing; they will do whatever they can to keep what is theirs. Realizing that the public conciousness was changing, Frank realizes that no amount of crooning will swing the pendulum back to his way of thinking, so like any great general Frank decides to hit the hippies where they live. Working with music moguls and a few very smart chemists, Frank concocts a type of acid that instead of making people “tune out” has them instead “tune in” to consumerism.

Don’t mistake me; despite this cool twist, C&C were still able to keep all of the wonderful truth and honesty about Laurie front and center through most of this book. From her opening letter to Hollis Mason, letting him know she’s all right in her new life, to the moments where she hides her secret identity from her boyfriend, there’s a brutal and painful honesty to every word and picture in this book. However, the twist with ole’ Blue Eyes and the conspiracy being set in motio, was the garnish this title needed to make it a real WATCHMEN book and retake the top spot as my favorite BEFORE WATCHMEN title.

Optimous has successfully blackmailed fellow @$$Hole BottleImp into being his artist on Average Joe. Look for Imp's forced labor on Optimous brain child in mid-2012 from COM.X. Friend Optimous on FaceBook to get Average Joe updates and because ceiling cat says it's the right thing to do.

THE WALKING DEAD #100

Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Charlie Adlard
Publisher: Image Comics
Reviewer: Humphrey Lee

I am not usually the kind of person to start off a piece with a rider (a lengthy lead-in anecdote, sure) but given my feelings on this latest milestone issue of THE WALKING DEAD as opposed to my feelings toward this series as a whole and the, let’s face it, reputation we @$$holes have to tend to shit rather hard on some comics, this is probably a necessary start for me and this review. So this is where I say that I have been a big fan of this book for several years. At a time when I was through with zombies, this book showed me the genre had more life (ah! The pun! It burns!). I think this title, as well as Kirkman sister project INVINCIBLE, have been so consistently good that two years ago I gave the man an @$$ie for Best Writer just for continuing to write them as well as they had been. And I have also really enjoyed the past couple arcs--the safety the crew has enjoyed while also having resolved to the idea of themselves as people who have seen some shit and know how to handle some shit to the point where they were feeling a bit trumped up on their abilities. That is a good lead in to a milestone such as this, that bit of the controlled violence within the group boiling over as conflict arises. It’s a good development arc for these characters trying to rationalize what they’ve done compared to where they currently are and what looked like a build up to a “gazing into the abyss” moment.

Yeah, that didn’t happen. Gratuitousness and ham-fistedness happened.

It’s not like I did not think it was a possibility this would occur; these moments tend to fall that way in TWD. Hell, one of the biggest moments of the series – the infamous “WE ARE THE WALKING DEAD!” bit – was pretty much as cheesy and blatant as they come, but it said what we were thinking and the book was developing thematically for about four years at the time so it’s forgivable as a moment of exasperation. But for such a big issue, something that was billed as a game changer (and, yes, it is definitely that, to its credit) I thought we were beyond the excessive talky-talk, the bloviating that unnecessarily exposits the situation and the status quo changes. And that is what the vast majority of this issue really does. You have this big conflict brewing, one that has implications for the life Rick and the survivors have been building for about thirty issues now and could be a big reflective undertaking for the characters and what they have become and what they are evolving into… and then it basically boils down to about eighteen pages of the new big bad, Negan, talking about how big his dick is.

When you reduce all of that down, which is really the basis of my overall dislike of this issue (since “hate” is by far too strong a word), it is that it took lots and lots of genuine plot and character development going for two years now and threw it aside to instantly create “The Governor Part 2” and make us hate him with one shocking display of ultraviolence as much as we did the actual Governor did for several grinding issues of sadism. That is also kind a bummer here as well, because now we have a new pack leader to despise and hate and he’s pretty uninteresting despite pages of explaining why he’s a threat like no other. This could change, of course. There could be some deeper, fucked up psychological stuff going on with this Negan and what he does, how he does it, what he represents, etc., but for now all I see is a punk who gathered other punks around him. They’re just bullies, and while that rawness about them is in its own way kind of intimidating, especially in such a lawless world, when they do go down it’s going to be because they folded in the face of someone (in this case it will probably be a bunch of someones between the two communities) standing up to them and putting them in their place of being scared pieces of shit that are only fearless because they have numbers and intimidation on their side. These types of characters are good for the cheap thrill when they get their comeuppance, but that “cheap” part is the gotcha of it all as you get that empty comedown after the high of watching a bad person have bad things visited upon them. It’s because they were empty figures to begin with and relevant only for the destruction they wrought.

Do not get me wrong, I am not basing my dislike of this book off of my premonition of where this is all could be heading. Trust me, I want Kirkman to prove me wrong with these developments and new baddies like he did just in making a zombie book within which I could become so invested. It’s between the overwrought introduction of Negan and the borderline torture porn way one of the cornerstone characters of this series meets his end that I am not a fan. There was a point during that sad sequence – and I truly did feel a twinge of sorrow given my like of that character and the brutality he saw at his end – where the gratuitous nature of it was somehow fitting, both of this series and this pack of hyenas that is now the focal point of the book. But then it just continued with violence for violence’s sake and more self-aggrandizing to pump up the bloodlust the reader is supposed to feel toward these villains and to make a point about how crazy dangerous they are and it just felt like the Charlie Sheen school of writing via ramming it home.

A lighter touch on the gas could have brought us to this turning point with less posturing, more psychology, and better “fill in the blanks” dread as the death went down; instead that pedal was floored and we got gore for the sake of gore and even more megalomaniacal ramblings than the other fucks who tried it and wound up food for those zombies this book isn’t actually about. To keep with the driving analogies, I’m just hoping this is the swerve part of a U-turn Kirkman is pulling as he takes us back to all the interesting character plots and developments he was working with before. My investment in the characters wants to see Negan put down and put down hard, but my investment in the world wants to see it done soon so it can go back to doing the interesting things it was gradually doing before the hard status quo shift. I do not want this because that world was “safe” to me, but because that world was still surprising. This world is now just some asshole that needs to die and it can do better.

Humphrey Lee has been an avid comic book reader going on fifteen years now and a contributor to Ain't It Cool comics for quite a few as well. In fact, reading comics is about all he does in his free time and where all the money from his day job wages goes to - funding his comic book habit so he can talk about them to you, our loyal readers (lucky you). He's a bit of a social networking whore, so you can find him all over the Interwebs on sites like Twitter, The MySpaces, Facebookand a blog where he also mostly talks about comics with his free time because he hasn't the slightest semblance of a life. Sad but true, and he gladly encourages you to add, read, and comment as you will.

BIONIC MAN #10

Writers: Kevin Smith with Phil Hester
Art: Jonathan Lau
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Reviewer: Masked Man

Well, Kevin Smith’s “Six Million Dollar Man” movie script turned comic book comes to a close. Looking over the series, it was uneven at times. Being a little slow to start, having an army of evil cyborgs right out of a “GI Joe” cartoon, the comic still managed a solid story with good characters. While it might have taken too long, Kevin Smith did a good job showing Steve Austin not only become the bionic man, but come to grips with it as well. Probably the biggest departure from the original book and TV show is how Steve is a cyborg in the anime sense. I’m not sure what is still organic on him; he seems to be full on robot! Jonathan Lau’s anime-inspired art helps give me this impression too. The best part of the book is Steve Austin himself. Steve has an indomitable will that pushes him, despite what he’s up against, be it evil cyborgs or unscrupulous government employees. Steve makes it clear he’s no one’s b!tch. And lest I forget the covers by Alex Ross, each one was awesome.

So how does it all end? Unfortunately, the gang really fumbled the ball here. The final issue is just sloppy. Jonathan Lau, while I might not love this style, has always been solid in his storytelling skills. Not so much here. The fight scenes are confusing and poorly laid out. The interaction between Jamie, the hostage, and Steve and Hull slugging in the finale just doesn’t read well. It all just hampers the story rather than help it. Any good comic, book, or movie should hold the viewers attention, so they don’t notice anything about the storytelling process. The moment they do, they aren’t thinking about the story anymore, which is not good for the overall experience of the story.

The story is equally unsatisfying. (1) Hull, the villain, had a big goon working for him who does little in the final fight. He’s killed in a cool fashion, but the character should have had more impact than just cannon fodder. (2)The hostage situation seemed poorly planned. Seriously, she’s too far away from the action, sitting on top of the Washington Monument (be nice to know how she got up there so fast too). (3)Someone needs to explain how that shutdown virus transfer thing worked. I like how Steve ‘delivered’ the virus, but I don’t believe you can install a virus by jamming one piece of computer hardware into another. (4) The wrap-up with Margaret, Steve’s boss, was done off camera?!? We’ve been waiting for this S.O.B. to get her comeuppance since she first showed up, and it’s done in a single word balloon?!? Very unsatisfying.

Now, the story had some good points too. The EMP was cool, Margaret’s plan to kill Steve and defeat the Hull was cool, and final slugfest was cool too. But in the end, it doesn’t save it from being just a run of the mill comic book, scoring 2 out of 4.

PUNK ROCK JESUS #1

Writer/Artist: Sean Murphy
Publisher: DC Vertigo
Reviewer: The Dean

Sacrilege is a strong word that comic book fans are probably a little too familiar with. I find it funny that I hear the word most often in discussions of superhero comics or their film adaptations, but I suppose it’s also quite fitting, as comic fans have a genuinely religious attachment to the characters and stories they hold so dear (difference being I don’t think anyone has been killed in the name of Beta Ray Bill, but I wouldn’t be surprised). There are plenty of things to be mad at out there, but comic books shouldn’t be among them for a variety of reasons, chief among them being that oversensitivity leads to the dismissal of some really great stories like Sean Murphy’s PUNK ROCK JESUS.

I’m sure there’s something here to be angry about, but to be honest, PUNK ROCK JESUS plays it pretty safe for now, and manages to put all parties involved in the story’s J2 experiment on the same level. Murphy opens the series with a prayer, fittingly enough, which is quickly answered in tragedy, and provides all the background we need at this point for the dark, mysterious muscle that ensures the security of J2’s host. Since I’ve mentioned J2 twice already, I should probably get to that – PUNK ROCK JESUS is set in the not too distant future where cloning has advanced to the point where it’s ready for its first human test subject. As if that weren’t reason enough to turn this into the television event of century, the DNA chosen for the experiment comes from the fabled (or factual, if you like) Shroud of Turin, giving us Jesus: the Sequel, hence “J2.” A virgin mother is chosen to carry the embryo, a TV producer is responsible for genetically modifying the unborn baby, and the birth leads to a surprise twist, which all seemingly guarantee that this Jesus’ life may be every bit as dramatic as the original’s, only this time it’ll all be televised!

The sci-fi elements of the story alone are intriguing, but what’s most exciting to me is that Murphy is able to do quite a bit of character development in the series’ debut issue. There isn’t one personality here that I see myself getting bored by anytime soon, and it’s difficult enough to create one interesting character let alone a whole cast full, but Murphy makes it natural, and easy to be engrossed by these lives. The somewhat modern setting helps in keeping the distraction away and our attention focused on the rich players in his story, but Murphy’s commentary on our celebrity-obsessed culture is difficult to miss here, and will probably turn out to be one of PUNK ROCK JESUS’ more consistent selling points as the series goes on.

The low-grade newspaper stock from Vertigo supplies a lot of the attitude implied by the title in this one – though I’m sure we’ll see the “punk” elements soon enough – and it really makes that already impressive artwork that much more engrossing and edgy. There’s really no other form this type of work should exist in other than its natural blacks and whites, and it almost gives the story a certain credence to it, as if what we’re getting is an honest look at ourselves and the Jesus we’d create should he exist today. I’m familiar with Murphy’s art primarily through his run on HELLBLAZER, but his visceral and aggressive style seem more powerful here, completing that “I can’t let my parents catch me reading this!” package that makes it all the more fun to read.

PUNK ROCK JESUS just feels like a classic in the making, and I urge you to get in on the ground floor while you still can. The punk elements are mostly implied for now, but there are plenty of angst-ridden and angry seeds planted throughout this debut issue (aside from the J2 seed itself) that suggest we’ll get more than we know what to do with soon enough. This may not be changing the world of comics any time soon, or shaking it to its core, but I predict PUNK ROCK JESUS will change the life of Sean Murphy and shoot him right to the forefront of the industry as one of its top young stars.

SPIDER-MEN #3

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Sara Pichelli
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewer: The Writing Rambler

As we approach Spider-Man's 50th anniversary we also find ourselves smack in the middle of a cross-universe Spidey adventure in SPIDER-MEN #3 (just writing that title reminded me too much of that godawful “Spider-Man 3” film and it angered me inside and made me want to go punch a baby...okay, I'm better now). I've been all in since issue 1 and it's no surprise that I loved what has further transpired in this story. Everything just works for me here. The focus is on the right Spider-Man as the 616 Universe's Peter Parker is who should be front and center in a story like this. The 616 Peter is who made us all love Spider-Man, and focusing on him just makes it feel like a classic Spidey tale despite it mostly taking place in the Ultimate Universe. With that said, I do feel the setting takes place in the right universe, as though it may sound like sacrilege to some, the Marvel Ultimate Universe is far more interesting of a place. All these pieces mixed together with a nice emotional sucker punch at the end of the issue has me ready and waiting for issues 4 and 5.

Brian Michael Bendis has cemented himself as one of the best Spider-Man writers to ever take up the task and this series is yet another testament to that. You have solid ingredients for a great story. First, there’s Peter lost in an alternate world where he's a mourned hero and certain loved ones who shaped what makes him Spider-Man are still alive. Then you have Miles Morales coming face to face with his hero and reacting the way any kid who's just learning how to use his powers would act. Throw those ideas together with a villain like Mysterio, who keeps Peter on edge trying to figure out just what's real and what's not, and I don't think it would be possible for me to dislike this story.

Sarah Pichelli also knocks yet another issue out of the park with her fantastic artwork. What she's done on ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN is some of the best Spider-Man work currently out there and she completely brings this SPIDER-MEN series to life. I couldn't imagine this series concluding without her work telling the story visually.

Marvel really has a great story on its hands with this limited series. It's a shame that it's only running 5 issues, but as anything more than that would probably be overkill, I think it's a wise decision. With so many Spider-Man related titles constantly being released I can imagine many may pass this over and just pick up their normal titles, but I really hope people give it a look because it's a fitting series to usher in the webslinger’s 50th year.

You can follow The Writing Rambler on his blog here and follow on Twitter @Writing_Rambler !

AMELIA COLE AND THE UNKNOWN WORLD #1

Writer: D.J. Kirkbride & Adam Knave
Artist: Nick Brokenshire
Publisher: MonkeyBrain Comics
Reviewer: Optimous Douche

Magic only works in comics when it is hampered by rules and laws. As much as we yearn for omnipotence and pristine infallibility as a species, it is always counterbalanced by our perpetual need for danger and smidges of schadenfreude. If we didn’t like the idea of the end not always being happily ever after, we would all be model citizens and never ever flirt with danger.

AMELIA COLE not only adheres to my staunch beliefs on magic, it is the foundational plot for this traveler between the real and mystical realms of existence.

Yes, Amelia Cole is a person, just a regular twenty-something at the opening of the book off to meet a friend for a cup of coffee - until a demon that’s a cross between Satan from “South Park” and The Gimp from “Pulp Fiction” decides to start killing people en masse. Through this action-packed exposition, we learn that reality lives on two realms – the magical and non-magical. I applaud the creators for introducing us to their world with a knock-down drag-out blood fest versus a simple talking and walking exercise.

The two worlds are very Harry Potter in nature (c’mon, you knew I would go there eventually), meaning the lines between the two are more gray than black and white. It isn’t until the battle ends and Amelia sees the horror on the faces of bystanders that she wasn’t battling in the magical world, but rather our mundane plane of existence. Why is this bad? Only Amelia and a select few should ever be able to cross – and our skull nipple-clamped demon is definitely NOT on the invite list.

After a run down a few back alleys and mystical doors later, we get to meet Amelia’s Dumbledore, Aunt Dani. A matronly woman crossed between Mrs. Cunningham and Mrs. Doubtfire, Aunt Dani illuminates to Amelia that her perpetual crossing between worlds has loosened the hinges of her magical doors to let anything and everything through them.

All of this sounds so simple, yet it works so well. Not once do we get too bogged down in the specifics of this world, and everything is only just left of center. When Dani and Amelia try to close all of the portals, it alerts the magical world version of Johnny Law. Uniforms, warrants, yet their billy clubs are wands. See? Simple.

Amelia is also a pretty cool chick and when she learns at the end of this issue that she wasn’t born in the magical world or the real world (a belief she held since childhood), it leaves us with a nice deepening mystery for issue 2.

As for Brokenshire’s art – well… the eyes have it. Where some detail is sacrificed in wide panels and slight things like facial features are lost, this small quibble is well balanced by the soulful expressions on every close-up.

For anyone looking for a heaping dose of magic, and a female protagonist who is more brains than bust, AMELIA COLE is your answer.

BEFORE WATCHMEN: MINUTEMEN #2

Writers: Darwyn Cooke
Art: Darwyn Cooke
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewer: Masked Man

BEFORE WATCHMEN is finally starting to roll out their second issues, the first one being MINUTEMEN. Now this is probably sacrilegious, but I was never a big fan of THE WATCHMEN. The grim, gritty superhero angle just doesn’t appeal to me much (though I’m a huge fan of THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS). I do have a healthy respect for WATCHMEN, though. But with my love of 1940’s superheroes (thank you Roy Thomas) I’m much more drawn to The Minutemen than the rest of the gang. I also feel you can’t get too upset about this book, because Alan barely wrote anything about them. But as it’s been mentioned before, that also means there’s no real reason to be a fan either. So, the real reason to pick up this book is Darwyn Cooke. He is such a master of the comic book art form, and storytelling in general! Everything he does is always worth the cover price, and he certainly doesn’t disappoint here. Every page looks great! From the coffee shop, to the Minutemen’s headquarters, to warehouses full of evil doers--Darwyn lays it all out with such flair.

Now, how about this issue’s story? Here, Darwyn gives us the first meeting and the first adventure of the Minutemen--plus an always amusing recruitment drive (I believe we can thank Keith Giffen for that invention). True to the form of these characters, nothing goes like your typical superhero team. This is one motley crew. Each of them has their own reason for becoming a crime fighter, some being noble, some not so much. Not that it’s a surprise or anything, but what’s interesting isn’t what breaks them apart, it’s what’s holding them together. There’s no way this team can work. We can see this as some members go off to fight crime and others just go get beer. So the question is, are they just going to implode, or will they actually be a functional superhero team? Thanks to Captain Metropolis, the brains of the bunch, they perform well on their first mission; each character is used well--despite the outcome.

Darwyn pushes the mature angle of the book, too, which might not be really necessary, but given THE WATCHMEN’s pedigree it fits right in. The way he reveals this team secret is quite a trip, too. You’re not sure what you are watching unfold until the end.

So, after books like THE GOLDEN AGE and THE TWELVE, another 40’s superhero comic might seem to be old hat--but again, this is nearly all about the creator: Darwyn Cooke. And MINUTEMEN #2 easily scores 3 out of 4.

THE THIRTY SIX VOLUME 1 TPB

Writer: Kristopher White
Artist: George Zapata
Publisher: Fossil Creek Productions
Reviewer: BottleImp

Several months ago I had the good fortune to have THE THIRTY SIX fall into my inbox, courtesy of the chief @$$hole ‘round these parts. “I think this’ll be right up your alley,” Ambush Bug said—and he was right. Part superhero team book, part mystical adventure series, and part loving nod to all things geeky, THE THIRTY SIX put a fresh face on the age-old “Hero’s Journey” story by couching it in the relatively unexplored mythology of Jewish Kabbalism. I read the first two issues and was eager to see more; now the story arc of issues #1-5 have been collected and published in this trade paperback.

The premise is seemingly simple: a group of thirty-six individuals, blessed (or cursed) by special abilities, are drawn together in a time of trouble (by chance or by fate, depending on your opinion) in order that they might join together to save the world from evil. THE THIRTY SIX brings the reader in at the beginning—or at least, somewhere in the early middle—of this gathering of super powered defenders, and it soon becomes evident that the actual assembling of the thirty-six will be an integral part of the unfolding plot. Writer Kristopher White makes the decision to make the assembling of the thirty-six gifted individuals not a prologue to the plot (I, for one, have read a lot of team-ups in comics that had the whole group neatly and rather boringly lined up by the end of the first issue), but the driving force of the series. Even more interesting is that the destiny binding these thirty-six people together in no way guarantees that they’ll get along all hugs and kisses. This issue finds Noam, the current bearer of the Staff of Moses and the central protagonist of the story, attacked by the man who carried the Staff before him—a man who, along with his allies, also belongs to the titular group. I love the idea that though all these people are chosen to band together to save the world, they don’t share the same view on how to go about saving it.

And when I say “saving the world,” I really, really mean “saving the world.” The arc collected in this trade paperback pits Noam and his allies against a trio of radical extremists who want to destroy the world by waking the legendary monster, the Leviathan. This isn’t just a cut-and-dried Godzilla rehash, though—there’s a lot more at stake than simply stopping a monster. White clearly knows that all the action in the world doesn’t mean a thing if the reader isn’t invested on an emotional level with the characters, and makes Noam’s battle against the Leviathan more personal and heart-wrenching than you’d expect to find while fighting a mammoth tentacled monstrosity. This combination of epic-scale warfare with intense human drama is what really makes THE THIRTY SIX so engrossing.

If I have one complaint—and I do, obviously, or I wouldn’t be bringing it up—it’s that the visual aspect of this comic doesn’t always gel with the story in a satisfying way. George Zapata’s page layouts, panel compositions and pacing work well to tell the story, but the same can’t always be said regarding his drawing style. Zapata favors a slightly cartoony look to his figures, with a rather heavy, loose linework. This semi-simplistic manner of inking lends itself well to the quieter moments and larger static images, but tends to clutter up the more detailed panels and muddle the action. There are several instances when reading this collection where I found myself wishing that Zapata had opted for more variance in his line weight and more details in the background elements. Small adjustments like these would add an extra dimension of clarity to the graphic storytelling, which in turn would elevate the entire package of art and writing to a new and even more entertaining level of quality.

The simple fact, however, is that THE THIRTY SIX is a wonderful seed of graphic storytelling that comic book readers will want to pay attention to as it grows and blossoms. In an age where information can be shared around the world with a click of a mouse I was lucky enough to have been introduced to this independent book, a book that I never would have discovered had I stayed within the strict confines of the local comic shop. But now you too can take advantage of the miraculous modern age—through Amazon.com, iTunes or directly through the creators—and pick up this trade paperback and experience a great story just beginning to bloom.

When released from his bottle, the Imp transforms into Stephen Andrade, an artist/illustrator/pirate monkey painter from New England. He's currently hard at work interpreting fellow @$$Hole Optimous Douche's brainwaves and transforming them into pretty pictures on AVERAGE JOE, an original graphic novel to be published by Com.x. You can see some of his artwork here.

WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN #13

Writer: Jason Aaron
Art: Nick Bradshaw
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewer: Henry Higgins is My Homeboy

Cool Origin, Shitty Tie-In…

Writing: (3/5) Jason Aaron has done a very good job on this title, mixing a very vivid and creative imagination with interesting character beats. The unwilling redemption of Quentin Quire, Broo, even some of the stuff with the teachers has been well done. It’s also blended together well, which isn’t the case in this issue. The character work is very engaging and consistently strong, but the battle that graces the cover is lackluster.

Where the issue does work is with the extended origin of Warbird. Her origin, while familiar, has enough creative little touches that help it stand out. The final moments especially give the whole affair a decidedly tragic tone, and it helps to elevate the character and the issue. Warbird stops being just the funny different character, and starts to display some real character and motivation. It’s a wonderful origin story--compact but dense enough to warrant a second read through.

The comic falters instead when it focuses on the battle between the X-Men and Shi’Ar. It loses track of itself, forgets characters and doesn’t flow too well. The small snippets we get are all interesting, but it quickly devolves into senseless punching, without any real rhyme or reason. The quick conversation between Gladiator and Cyclops is the some of the only real dialogue in the scene between the two camps. It lacks any of the substance the other sequence has. Even the quick moments inside the school with Kid Gladiator have something, and even then, it’s very quick and forgettable.

Art: (4/5) Bradshaw does an exceptional job at making the Shi’Ar scenes feel extremely alien, which helps sell the atmosphere. The Sky Slums early in the story look fantastic, as does most of the Shi’Ar territory. Bradshaw’s character work is a little more uneven, sometimes being incredibly well done, while at others seeming sloppy and forgettable. The most annoying part of that is when it’s in the same double page spread, such as the opening. More often than not it looks great, but it can be annoying at times to see the lesser faces crop up.

Bradshaw does have some exceptional assistance, with Efx providing fantastic coloring. Everything is bright and flashy, but always for a reason.

Best Moment: For some reason, the expression Bradshaw gives Iceman when Warbird passionately kisses his severed head cracks me up every time I see it.

Worst Moment: The point when I realized the Shi’Ar aren’t going to be the major player I was hoping for, and instead is just another excuse to make the X-Men look slightly more like dicks than the Avengers.

Overall: (3/5) On its own, it’s a very good issue of WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN, delving into one of the series more interesting new characters. As a tie-in, it accomplishes nothing new for AVENGERS VS. X-MEN other than “The X-Men punch more people”, which happens in roughly 110% of the last month of Marvel Comics. A bit of a wash, really.

THE WALKING DEAD #100

Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Charlie Adlard
Publisher: Image Comics
Reviewer: KletusCassidy

You how you can be with someone for a long time, things get a little monotonous and you find yourself thinking that maybe you want to try something different, then they show up in a sexy new nightie, bake you a lemon cake, give you rabid sweaty monkey sex and you realized why you’ve stayed with this person so long? I feel like that’s what Robert Kirkman is doing to me with THE WALKING DEAD. Over the last few issues I haven’t been that excited about what has happened, leaving Ol’ Kletus to say to himself “Ya know, maybe issue #100 is a good jumping off point, I don’t have a job, I need to conserve money…so maybe, much like many past relationships, now is a good time to part ways.” Then Kirkman drops an issue on me like this and now I realize why I’ve stuck with getting this comic for so long and refuse to wait months for the trade.

This story line takes place soon after Rick and his gang are led to a new community by a man named Jesus, which they are obviously skeptical about after dealing with a lot of crazy humans throughout their journey. The new area seems like a dream come true until they find out the community is being extorted by another group run by a man named Negan. Basically, shit happens and Negan’s goons try to strong arm Rick’s crew; they retaliate and here we are at the aftermath…I don’t think I spoiled any major plot points, so chill out, bro! Like I said the last few issues, while still interesting, this comic didn’t really excite me that much anymore and I found myself once again getting too comfortable with our protagonists’ situation. What I love about this issue is the tension starts from the first few pages and builds nicely until the gut wrenching end. My heart was pounding throughout this issue and I found myself racing through the pages to see what happens next, hoping for the best. I’ll admit not every issue is like this and sometimes it takes a minute for the right pieces to be in place, but when those dominoes start to fall, it makes for some damn good comics. I agree with my esteemed colleague that this situation does have an air of the Governor part deux, but I’m confident that Robert Kirkman will do a good job distinguishing the two. Also, I don’t find it a stretch that there would be multiple power hungry maniacs in a zombie (or any other type of) apocalypse, so it’s not that unbelievable that they would run into another crazy sadistic person willing to do fucked up things to gain respect and supplies. Much like INVINCIBLE, I feel like this comic can be picked up at any issue and still be enjoyed without knowing everything right away, although reading the whole story definitely has its benefits. Hell, I’d even say this issue is a good jumping on point because it’s brutal, most of the information you need to know can be figured out through the dialog, and this issue will give a new readers the best of what this comic has to offer: drama, savagery, great dialog, solid art and that feeling of “holy shit! What’s next?”

The artwork in this book is consistently great but I get so caught up in rushing to see what is going to happen next, I sometimes forget to completely appreciate Charlie Adlard’s awesome work. I usually end up going back for a second look at the art to take it all in. This isn’t the kind of comic that is going to make your jaw drop every issue (but what comic does?) but if you stick with it, there will definitely be some moments you won’t forget and this issue has a doozy.

This comic may not be for everyone because of its slow pace, but it is definitely works for me when those slow-burning set ups start to pay off. Not many writers can consistently create these kinds of tense moments that affect you physically. Geoff Johns did it in THE SINESTRO CORPS WAR where Sinestro and the Yellow Lanterns captured Kyle Rayner and he breaks down crying; Ed Brubaker did it in DAREDEVIL where Matt Murdock is locked in a cell, thinking that his best friend may be getting murdered on the other side of the cell door; Brad Meltzer did it in IDENTITY CRISIS where Tim Drake is crying, pleading with Batman to save his dad; Jeph Loeb did it at the end of SPIDER-MAN: BLUE and Robert Kirkman has done it multiple times since this comic began. Except when Robert Kirkman does it, I throw the comic down and curse his name because of the emotions he making me go through …hell, there’s only so much a manly man like Ol’ Kletus can take before he breaks down exclaiming, “whyyyyyyyyyyyy….Robert…whyyyyyyyyy {sniffle, sniffle}!” So when I’m reading THE WALKING DEAD and I say, “Fuck you, Robert Kirkman!” I mean it in the nicest way possible….good job, man, here’s to keeping me hooked for the foreseeable future.

Editing, compiling, imaging, coding, logos & cat-wrangling by Ambush Bug
Proofs, co-edits & common sense provided by Sleazy G
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