(Click title to go directly to the review)
Advance Review: TOIL & TROUBLE #1
BEHIND THE MASK: THE BATMAN DEAD END STORY (2015)
JOHN FLOOD #1
THE SPIRIT #2
D4VE #1-5
THE SHADOW #1
LADY MECHANIKA: TABLET OF DESTINIES #4
THE AVENGER #3
Advance Review: ADAM.3 #1
SECRET WARS BATTLEWORLD Tour Guide Part XI!
In stores September 2nd!TOIL AND TROUBLE #1
Writer: Mairghread ScottArtist: Kelly & Nichole Matthews
Publisher: Archaia Entertainment
Reviewer: Lyzard
Double, double toil & trouble,
fire burn and cauldron bubble.
Story of a witches three,
one returning from the sea.
Written by the Mairghread Scott,
based upon a Shakespeare plot.
Drawn by the Matthews pair,
pictures with a distinct flair.
For a book of such potential,
it can be too deferential.
If you didn’t like my twist on the Bard, then this comic probably isn’t for you. TOIL AND TROUBLE #1, its title based on the famous witches’ incantation from William Shakespeare’s MACBETH, builds out three minor characters from one of his most famous works. In the play itself, there isn’t much divulged about the witches and it is only through multiple artists’ interpretations and some legends of yore that any defining characteristics, appearance and/or behavior-wise, have arisen. This leaves much room for interpretation, and yet the balance between fidelity and freedom is uneven.
TOIL AND TROUBLE centers around the witch Smertae, who has returned from exile to help her sisters, Riata and Cait, fight off the Norwegian and rebellious Scottish forces. Smertae is tasked with making sure Macbeth loses in battle, allowing the untested Prince Malcom the glorious victory.
These events are set presumably on the eve of whence the play begins. While the storyline is pure conjecture, the outcome will more than likely be the same. For as the comic opens “fate is like the tide, only the strongest can move against it, and only for so long.”
It is the comic’s sameness, its adherence to the Bardic way, that is its weak point. Artists Kelly & Nichole Matthews are not shackled by Shakespeare. They are free to pull on lore from multiple countries of Northern Europe in order to provide a unique representation of the magical trio. The witches are designed to be beautiful yet dangerous: Cait with her innocent child-like design but writhing snakes in her hair and Smertae’s graceful build and delicate face that just so happen to sport a mouth full of fangs. While the visuals’ inclusion of various cultures strengthens its impact, the writing struggles to insert new mythos into the well-renowned tale. Unlike other comics who have attempted to modernize Shakespeare’s writings, TOIL AND TROUBLE aims to stay true to not only its Shakespearean roots, but its supernatural as well. Whilst translating the grammatically infuriating Elizabethan speak, the reader must also decipher and piece together the various places, peoples, and things of uncommon mythos sprinkled a tad bit too heavily throughout the issue. Even at a mere twenty two pages, TOIL AND TROUBLE is not a fast read.
There is much to enjoy about the comic, from its simple beauty to its original take on stock characters. However, the comic is burdened by its inspiration, particularly its language and limited information in order to create a congruous backstory. How much more accessible it would be if the ending of issue #1 would have been the reveal of its connection to MACBETH.
Lyzard is Lyz Reblin, a graduate student at the University of Texas pursuing a master's degree in Media Studies... which is just a fancy way of saying she plays a lot video games, watches far too many horror films, and then tries to pass it all off as "research."
Now streaming on Amazon instant video and Hulu PlusBEHIND THE MASK: THE BATMAN DEAD END STORY (2015)
Directed by: Eric S. DowStarring: Sandy Collora, Michael O’Hearn, Clark Bartram, Kurt Carley, Neal Adams
Reviewed by: BottleImp
¬Let’s travel back in time to the hazy, faraway year of 2003. Christopher Nolan’s gritty, game-changing BATMAN BEGINS was still two years away, and the most recent iteration of the Caped Crusader to grace the silver screen was a rubber-nippled George Clooney in the festering day-glo turd that was BATMAN & ROBIN. It was in this year, at the San Diego Comic Con, that a certain short film made huge waves. Just barely eight minutes long, this film brought a Batman to the screen that was closer to the Dark Knight of the comics than any other cinematic Batman had been. This version of Gotham City’s protector not only battled the Joker, but fought one of H.R. Giger’s Aliens and faced down a pack of Predators. Again, in just over eight minutes. That short film was BATMAN: DEAD END, and it whipped fandom into a frenzy. It was bootlegged, downloaded, shared, and sold hours after its premiere at SDCC, and everyone who saw it had two thoughts. The first was “Now THIS is what the next Batman movie should be!” The second was “Who the hell is this guy Sandy Collora?”
The answer to that question is explored in BEHIND THE MASK: THE BATMAN DEAD END STORY, a documentary about the short film’s writer and director, Sandy Collora. The film goes back to show the path that led Collora to this high point (at least in terms of widespread popularity) in his career. His background as an artist and special effects makeup technician is discussed; Collora spent a few years in his late teens working in Stan Winston’s effects shop. Later he branched out into writing and directing as a commercial director. But looming above it all was Collora’s love of sci fi, horror, and comic books—specifically, the classic Batman comics drawn by the legendary Neal Adams. All these influences came together when Collora wanted to put together a short film that would attract the attention of Hollywood studios and lead to feature directing jobs, which led to the creation of the Batman film in question.
The bulk of the documentary is about DEAD END, and it allows viewers to see what happens when a project is worked on by people who are truly passionate about what they are making. Putting up his own money to finance the film, Collora created a love letter to some of his favorite films and comics. It’s hard not to get excited by his enthusiasm as he talks about the process of making the film, and the viewers get to hear and see interesting tidbits about what did and didn’t make it to the final cut (masks are shown being molded of the Predators fully revealed, mandibles and all, but their faces are never shown on screen—probably a budgetary restriction—while, more interestingly, the original casting for the film was going to pit Sylvester Stallone’s Batman against Mark Hamill performing for the first time in person as the Joker he voiced in BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES). Watching the filmmaking process from pre-production to the finished movie, one can’t help getting caught up once again in the sheer joy of creating possibly the truest representation of the iconic character. The costume is spot-on, clearly inspired by Alex Ross’ photorealistic Batman designs. The moodiness is perfect--lots of dramatic lighting against the rain and fog of a dingy alleyway. And, just as we all thought after seeing BATMAN: DEAD END for the first time, the question that came up was “when will Sandy Collora be directing a big-budget comic book movie?”
The second half of this documentary deals with that ultimately empty promise, showing the viewer the struggle that Collora faced (both in his attempts to parlay DEAD END into a studio directing gig and in dealing with a personal tragedy) following his ultra-popular fan-film. We hear the stories of the Hollywood machine all the time—how the studios are run by executives who are concerned more with numbers and marketing than with real talent—and Collora’s story sadly dovetails all too neatly with this. In the end, BEHIND THE MASK is a portrait of an artist who is unwilling to compromise his vision in order to work within the system. Whether or not Collora is wise to do so is left up to the viewer, but the film ends on a promising note.
And this documentary couldn’t have been released at a more relevant time. A certain comic book movie is currently all over the news—not because of any virtue it possesses, but because it seems to have been made by people who didn’t give a damn about the comic books that were supposed to have been the inspiration for the film. As I watched this documentary, I thought “wouldn’t it be nice if more comic book movies were made by people like Sandy Collora—people who actually loved the comics?” Maybe Collora’s time has finally come. If you're a fan of DEAD END, you'll love this film. If you've never seen DEAD END but are Batman fan, you'll still love it. And if you're just a fan of the passion an artist puts into his craft, you'll definitely enjoy BEHIND THE MASK.
The BottleImp is in reality Stephen Andrade, an artist and sign maker who lives in Western Massachusetts with his wife and baby daughter. Once every hundred years or so, in between work, painting, and changing diapers, he manages to review the occasional comic book, movie, or novel for AICN. You can see his artwork at sandradeillustration.com!
JOHN FLOOD #1
Writer: Justin JordanArtist: Jorge Coelho
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Reviewer: Humphrey Lee
I feel like I’ve stated it here before, but I’ll repeat again that I would assume that about half my comic book reviews in this space are now of brand new series because of how they tickle the analytical meat composition of my brain. There are so many new characters and themes and just so much PREMISE!!! to talk about that I enjoy breaking it all down and commenting on it and what potential I think it has or failed to grasp as the book unloads itself to make its presence known. Sometimes this leads to what I like to call “pilot-itis,” where the creative team just absolutely beats upon you just all the shit you just gotta see and please please please tune in for more!, which I can’t blame them for to be honest, because in this comic book arena we are in today, with a lot of new growth in the independent publishing market and, quite frankly, in an era where you may get an actual TV pilot off of your comic book “pilot”, your personal pimp game has to be strong, even if sometimes it makes your initial impression a bit overbearing. Sometimes less (in all its relative glory) can be a lot more, and I think this debut of JOHN FLOOD by Justin Jordan and Jorge Coelho is a prime example of this.
JOHN FLOOD does kind of give you the double barrel shot in the face of what the central conceit of the book and its titular character is: John Flood is a detective that no longer needs to sleep, and that is both advantageous and kind of euphorically fucked in a constant state of deprivation. And that’s really it, to be honest, and that simplicity is really refreshing in a way. There’s immediate implications to such a weird state of mind for a character type that revolves around their mental capacity, let alone what the fuck kind of experiment could be conducted to render such a base need inert from a human’s physiology. You start to think about how that potential energy could turn into kinetic storytelling-wise and then you expect to be beaten about the head with it and then, well, we don’t even really see our natural disasterly-named protagonist for about fourteen more pages.
Instead what we get is some cast- and world-building, complete with some playful dialogue, implied mystery, and backwoods terror. The thrust of JOHN FLOOD for about half its stay really revolves around current assistant to the King of Insomniacs, Lyta, doing a bit of recruiting in the form of a man named Alexander Berry, who was apparently a cop in a previous life and who is now a man dogged by some unrevealed terrible shit that went down that chases him a bit despite an acquittal. Meanwhile, blood and guts are being spilled in what looks like a hunting lodge and it’s apparent we’ve got our first case. And it all flows together so delightfully, which is really the simplest and best way to describe this debut. Delightful. While Flood’s unusual condition always hangs over the book in spirit, it’s never really the centerpiece of the whole spiel until the end when we really get some quality time with the man himself and using Alex Berry as a kind of proxy for the reader. It’s totally a John Watson meets Sherlock Holmes for the first time moment, but it works because there’s been a quiet buildup of Berry’s character and his tortured past juxtaposed against an anticipation that everything about Flood will be whacked out as hell, which it is and isn’t once we finally spend time with the eccentric private eye.
John Flood himself is of course a “smartest man in the room” archetype, but that’s where the “fun” of his condition comes into play because he’s not just a natural big brain that retains information like Bill Cosby does rape allegations; it’s because when you have an extra 3,000 hours a year for a solid decade you tend to pick up a hobby or seventeen. And just a touch of madness and eccentricity, which Flood is a bundle of, obviously, once we officially meet him and he starts going forth in all his quirky glory. And going, and going, and going, as these bloviating crime-solving types tend to be, though in Flood’s case it seems equally like a device for him to ensure he’s actually connected to reality as it is to steal the limelight. Regardless, he’s immediately got a loveably aloof presence with half-cogent semi-ramblings and promises to play off of Berry’s quiet physicality quite well.
Now, while Flood eventually comes in to steal back the focus of the book near the end, Jorge Coelho pretty much steals the show from jump. I haven’t had the pleasure of experiencing his art until JOHN FLOOD here, but it’s as vibrant as Flood is bemusing. There’s so much character in here, from the expressiveness of his figures to the sheer variety of the forms he renders. It’s got a John Romita Jr. vibe to it with the exaggerated blockiness of the characters, except that I personally feel it has way more layers to its style, just from a variety standpoint at the least, and the storytelling chops are just as solid, and I feel we’ve barely just begun to see what shenanigans are in store from a visual standpoint given that we were presented only a glimpse to how Flood’s addled brain processes the world around him.
JOHN FLOOD succeeds immensely in giving us just enough plot and premise to want to ultimately come back for more of both. And while we get just a bit more of a sampler of that compliment, the visuals of the book are an absolute smorgasbord worthy of the price of admission on their own. The scripted allure of the book is that it is just enough where it needs to be, and that art is just never going to be enough, it seems. But between the looming character backgrounds waiting to be revealed (from Flood’s sleep eliminating experiment to Berry’s mysterious incident) and the extent to which Flood casts his unwavering eye, JOHN FLOOD seems rife with that proverbial storytelling potential. Sometimes you just have to end these things with some punnery, so I’ll say this in closing: given what I’ve seen here in this debut, I’m highly looking forward to seeing what happens when Jordan and Coelho really open up the floodgates of JOHN FLOOD’s world.
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, 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.
THE SPIRIT #2
Writer: Matt WagnerArtist: Dan Schkade
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Reviewer: Masked Man
Talk about your concepts that won't die--say hello to Will Eisner's THE SPIRIT, a character created because Will needed work. As the story goes, back in the 1940s Will was trying to drum up work with a new private detective character he was working on. His editor asked if the character had a mask, because masked characters were big, to which Will said “why yes, he does”, and quickly added a mask to his character sketches. And that's how the world works, people. Oddly enough, THE SPIRIT was never really a hit, but that never stopped anyone from trying to make a go with him, mostly because Will Eisner was such a comic storytelling genius, everyone working in the industry is always just mad about him (oh, that Eisner).
So now it's Dynamite's turn, which makes sense considering their current involvement with The Green Hornet, The Shadow, The Avenger and Doc Savage. The Spirit seems to fit in well with that group. Yet the odd thing about Dynamite's run so far (spoilers) is that The Spirit's not in it! No, the Spirit has gone missing and is presumed dead, even though he was kinda always supposed to be dead. Anyway, his flunkies Ebony (don't call him Aloysius) and Sammy have decided to finally go looking for him. His doll Ellen has moved on--it has been two years--but of course still misses the big lug. Even Central City seems to be missing him, as the crime rate has risen. But never fear--to keep some action in these first few issues, there are flashbacks of The Spirit in action.
I'm not quite singing the praises of this new series, as it has been a sleepy start, but one thing that gets me is this is some of Matt Wagner's best writing for Dynamite. His other books, ZORRO and THE SHADOW, all just seemed like he was trying too hard, somehow trying to craft a more mature, updated, and unflinching version of these characters. The result which was just kinda boring, as it appeared Wagner was focusing on the wrong things. Here Wagner seems more invested in the characters themselves than trying to reinvent the wheel, though there are still modern updates (even though this is still a period piece from the 1940s). Still, The Spirit's world breathes more, and it doesn't feel like Wagner is trying to prove anything.
Of course, anytime Matt Wagner writes a comic book but doesn't draw it, I lament the lost opportunity to see his unique and stellar artwork. The artist on the series is Dan Schkade, and gosh darn it (did I just say that) if Schkade isn't trying to ape Wagner's look. To be fair, Schkade's own personal style is minimalism like Wagner, so it's not that much of a stretch for him, but his storytelling and design sense are clearly not as strong as Wagner's. Still, it's a fine-looking book and clearly fits The Spirit's hard-boiled, yet humorous world.
Overall, I get the feeling we are knee-deep in a 'figuring it out' story. The Spirit's not here, so Wagner has to figure out his world and sell it to us so when The Spirit finally takes center stage, Wagner should be ready to really wow us with him. Here's hoping.
D4VE #1-5
Writer: Ryan FerrierArt: Valentin Ramon
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Reviewer: Morbidlyobesefleshdevouringcat
Dabbling in the comics section here at AICN might mean you’re going to see several reviews for the same comic, depending on the publisher, also meaning a great juxtaposition of varying viewpoints and voices. Ryan Ferrier and Valentin Ramon’s D4VE is also getting another surge through the review vortex after having been previously given a “Best Digital Series” nod by MIGHTY MOUTH for the @$$IE Awards.
If you’re new to the D4VE scene here’s the DL: D4VE was originally published digitally through MONKEYBRAINS COMICS, but for those traditionalists (myself included) the comic can now be purchased as a print copy through IDW.<
Set in the distant future where the robots that humans have created have taken over Earth, D4VE follows a robot civilian by the title name. Dave isn’t happy. After the robots destroyed other life forms, extraterrestrial and beyond, the robot population has decided to settle down and become law abiding citizens, D4ve included. Previously a defense bot during the glory days, now the robot works on the lowest tier of a water power plant with a shit boss, stuck in a terrible marriage with a kid he forgot he and his wife ordered months ago. Essentially, D4ve is on the verge of a midlife crisis just waiting to happen, but this is about to change. It turns out the robots aren’t as alone as suspected and a new race called the K’Laar have landed on Earth, and it’s certainly not peace that they want.
Prior to further exploring the deep-rooted themes and plethora of societal nuances, let’s first examine Valentine’s art. D4VE is my first interaction with Valentine, and from how he handles D4VE it certainly won’t be my last. It’s fairly clear from the get go what sort of character D4ve is going to be: a dude who never “grew up” with a maturation level that only digs as deep as his egocentric personality, Valentine accentuates this trait through cartoonish backgrounds and vibrant bubbly colors. The coloring easily goes from palettes reminiscent of zany Saturday morning cartoons with large print sound effects to desolate, deep space darker hues used to invoke the imminent doom from the coming alien invasion.
Throughout the issues, D4ve finds himself grappling to maintain and hold onto a reality that he wants (the past, the alien butt-kicking) to accepting the life he currently lives, but is unable to adapt to. D4ve just wants to go back to being cool, to being needed in a way that he feels he has the capability of providing. Wrapped in an intensely comedic piece, D4VE as a series examines societal adaption and the importance of adhering to one’s unique individual needs. When the aliens begin their invasion in the later issues, D4ve gains a chance at being the person he is capable of being, therefore learning where he went wrong in terms of current and past relationships.
So much wrapped up and said in simply five issues, D4VE is just one of those comics where it doesn't make any sense not to dive in. With a second season coming up titled D4VE 2, it’s really fantastic to see the butthorn make his way back onto shelves.
THE SHADOW VOL. 2 #1
Writer: Cullen BunnArtist: Giovanni Timpano
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Reviewer: Lyzard
You know what I like about The Shadow? He’s an unapologetic @$$hole. He’s justice served with a can of whoop ass. Unlike other anti-heroes with their codes and restrictions, The Shadow is an unsavory character who will kick down the door, shooting first, asking questions later. The Shadow knows who he is and understands that sometimes a few bones need to be broken before the truth comes out. When he’s referred to as a big city crime-killing ghost, the word killing isn’t necessarily metaphorical. The masked vigilante isn’t without his scruples; though he does have a penchant for pulling out his guns, he ain’t a trigger-happy sadist. Just the threat of what The Shadow is capable of is enough to turn any hardened criminal into a rat.
THE SHADOW #1 follows the Dark Avenger as he hunts down the weakest link from the Society of United Magicians. Who are these gaudily dressed men? Their connection to the pulp fiction antihero was divulged last summer in THE SHADOW #0, an “issue” that continues to crop up throughout the book. A quick recap at the beginning of the comic reveals that the Society of United Magician are “an esoteric society of murderous magicians who [are] hellbent on escaping the ultimate trap--death itself!” The Shadow infiltrated this group and learned the elusive trick from Houdini himself. In THE SHADOW #1, the Society of United Magicians have taken drastic measures to learn the secret, including kidnapping Harry Houdini’s widow.
Writer Cullen Bunn, who previously wrote the true introductory issue of THE SHADOW, is now paired artist Giovanni Timpano. Intense best describes both their works. Intense as in violent. Intense as in extreme, forceful. No one emotes subtly. They are slack-jawed, wide-eyed, menacingly glaring. Red is profuse, whether it be just the Shadow’s costume or the result of his intense interrogations. His pontificating is boisterous, even when just thinking to himself. Reading Bunn’s words you can just imagine Orson Welles hamming it up, and seeing Timpano’s drawings you could only wish that Tarantino would have been the one to direct the 90s filmic adaptation.
Dynamite is releasing THE SHADOW #1 for $1 in an effort to woo new readers into picking up what should be a well-known classic. Recently, both on the screen and the racks, we’ve seen how grit and superheroes don’t necessarily meld together. The Shadow, however, is the true, original dark knight and his return is very much welcomed.
LADY MECHANIKA: THE TABLET OF DESTINIES #4
Writer: M.M. ChenArtist: Joe Benitez and Martin Montiel
Publisher: Benitez Productions
Reviewer: Masked Man
Joe Benitez's Lady Mechanika continues to roll on in her second adventure. Unlike her first, penned by Benitez himself which was a typical cyber (steam)punk adventure, this one is written by M.M. Chen, and is much more of an Indiana Jones adventure, so if you like that, I suggest you give this a shot.
As with the previous issues of LADY MECHANIKA, this is just a solid issue--a really well done adventure comic. As many of us continue to buy mediocre comic after mediocre comic, here's one that will restore your faith in simple good comics. The characters are fun, the artwork is great, and the story is good; there is just nothing bad you can say about this book.
Now for the plot recap with minor spoilers: The Professor (here's a flaw, I can't find his name in the issue) and Mr. Stassmann are digging around Africa in hopes of discovering the Tablet of Destinies, a fabled object of advanced knowledge. Their expedition has been taken over by Direktor Fleisch and goons in hopes of acquiring the Tablet. Fleisch's goons also attempted to kidnap the Professor's niece, Winfred, as extra leverage against him. This got the attention of Lady Mechanika, who with young Winfred hse headed to Africa to find the Professor and learn what has been going on. On their way there, their dirigible was shot out of the sky and Mechanika and Winfred are lost in the African desert. While they do find some people to help them, it may turn out to be a case of out of the frying pan and into the fire!
One of the things I enjoy most about this issue (not being a big steampunk fan) is how Chen handles the tone and characters. As our characters are lost in the desert, something we've seen many times, I did get a sense of how lost and vulnerable they were. Mind you, Benitez' artwork really helps sell this as well. As they face even greater dangers, it's cool to see Lady Mechanika handle it all in such a cool manner. Being an incredible bad@$$, it's very cool to see her not handle every problem with an @$$kicking (should I throw in a Wonder Woman dig? Well, I guess I just did). Also Lady Mechanika isn't invincible, and with young Winfred at her side, it's best that she first tries to solve problems with her mind before her fists. This all creates a great sense of character and plot working together, as opposed to plot dictating what characters should do.
I'd be remiss if I didn't give more credit to Joe Benitez' artwork, assisted by Martin Montiel (who handles the backgrounds, I believe). His highly detailed yet somewhat cartoony world just looks great. Now he does like to use a lot of close-up panels of eyes and tops of head for dialogue, getting up to nine panels on a page, but his sense of design and storytelling prevents this from negatively effecting the story. Unlike, say, Ed McGuinness, Benitez saves the space for all the important story beats, not pretty shots, which then forces story beats into tiny panels.
I don't think this will blow your mind unless you are a steampunk freak, but it will prove that good comic books are still being made.
THE AVENGER #3
Writer: Mark WaidArt: Ronilson Friere
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Reviewer: Rock-Me Amodeo
My local comic shop, when I was 12, also sold books, mostly paperbacks. As cheap as comics were back then (“still only 35 cents!”) and as young as I was, I still recognized my investment of money-to-time-of-enjoyment was eclipsed by a paperback over a comic book. And knowing what kinds of comics I liked, Bob (the owner) recommended to me a series of novels about some guy named “The Avenger.”
Being an AVENGERS fan, I was unwilling to give it a try, knowing they had nothing to do with each other. I felt oddly disloyal. But I gave it a shot anyway. I still remember the book, too. “The Devil’s Horns.” And the thing I really remember was the next few nights, knowing I had to get up for school at 6am, but staying up until 1 or 2am, unable to put the book down. Those nights of hearing the wind blow through the windows, and at several points, being alternately jumpy and completely unnerved. And of course, the long minutes after putting the book on my window shelf and attempting to settle into sleep, in those wee hours of the morning. Eyes wide open.
I was hooked.
There have been many failed attempts to bring Kenneth Robeson’s creation to comic book format, and they haven’t been bad. This one, I’m happy to report, is more than ‘not bad.’
The first few pages set the stage and feels like the novels, which is fitting, since I’m pretty sure Waid is either quoting or channeling Robeson (or one of the many ghostwriters used) and since they often quoted and re-quoted themselves, I thought that was neat. But more than that, I felt like Waid wasn’t trying to reinvent the character, simply re-present the character, and that I loved. And I respect that, as well, because as we have learned in recent cinematic history, sometimes writers get a little too clever, and attempts to completely overhaul certain iconic characters have turned out less than, well, fantastic.
Friere’s art, and the overall mood, feels like the novels. Dark. Brooding. The art really has to shine for an effort like this, and it does. Anything less than great would detract from the story and make the characters come off as caricatures, because Waid doesn’t make the dialogue cutesy or anachronistic, and that’s just jake with me. The supporting characters are shown as they were in the time period given, and Waid could have made them accurate with a full effort, or a joke with less effort. He goes for it, and it works.
This is a wonderful presentation of an undervalued property. It’s a step into the past. I hope THE AVENGER has a nice long run - I’m looking forward to being spooked and thrilled on a monthly basis. I can see myself reading this at 1AM, and still being a little unnerved.
Rock-Me Amodeo is a daytime computer guy and nighttime all kinds of things. He’s also probably the only guy ever to write a book and a movie still hoping he might someday break into comics.
ADAM.3 #1
Writer/Artist: Scott KolinsPublisher: Dark Horse Comics
Reviewer: MajinFu
Adam.3 #1's first couple of chapters caught me off guard. What appears at first to be an homage to Jack Kirby quickly implodes into a rather scattered family drama that held my attention, mostly for the art but also due to a somewhat cryptic narrative.
It starts out well enough, placing the reader into Adam's search for his son. We don't see Adam's son Beo at first, but we know he's pissed at his pops because he didn't say thank you for some weird gift, a couple of bracers that clearly used to have chains attached to them. Shackles. But hey, they match his outfit so whatever, right? Adam has to look for his boy, whom I guess you know is his kid because they both wear a bit of purple, and did I mention Adam is sort of like Tarzan too? Dude's on a first name basis with every animal in the jungle. He swims with the dolphins, who wish “Love and Happiness To ALL!” and an eagle straight-up hugs Adam on the very next page. Seriously, that shit's adorbs and I'm not even joking. So it goes on like that for awhile because Adam's king of the jungle...
…and then there was Mojo.
Mojo is different from the other animals. Unlike the others animals, who resemble the ones we see at the zoo, Mojo is some kind of sabre-toothed donkey bunny, and the first time we see him he's being chased by a messed-up bear with ambitions to eat him. The bear is clearly upset. After trying to break up the scuffle and then punching the bear in the face does not work, Adam soothes the savage beast with a precise blow to the jugular. When Adam questions Mojo about the occurrence he does not speak. A mum rabbit-ass? The mystery is afoot! Will you care? Maybe!
Questions. LOTS of questions are what we get from this first issue, and the story's delivery is so stuttered that it's hard to deduce many answers, but so calculated that you could venture to guess what's going to happen.
Most of the time you just have to go with it, enjoy the art and then you can deduce the rest from perusing the issue a second time. Luckily, enjoying the art is a simple joy here. Scott Kolins' prolific artistic career is evident in the beauty of his visual storytelling, presented in a landscape format to suit the lush setting. The marriage of Kirby's geometric dynamism with more realistic wildlife figures is supported by an expansive color pallette. Furthermore, Mr. Kolins' depth as an artist informs the storytelling better than some of the more cluttered narration devices that are present. Adam's premonitions share an ominous red filter with violent flashes of his own son, as well as the visual clue of their similar red eyes, while the unusually artificial color palette of Adam and his family forebode a dissonance with the natural world. Little touches like these may help to develop a story by adding an additional layer for the readers' subconscious to extrapolate.
The complexity of language in the story's world is presented by an array of mannerisms and jargon which add texture to the narrative but may also impede some readers' enjoyment. Letterer Michael Heisler (who also did work on last week's excellent THIS DAMNED BAND #1) applies several visual cues to distinguish the wide array of voices in this story, from the chirping of a floating orb that accompanies Adam so he can communicate with his lover Skye, to a full party of congratulatory animals, even the nightmarish voices invading the main character's mind.
Adam's harmony in the natural world versus the chaos of his familial life really drives this first issue, but not to any natural conclusion yet. It is only the first issue after all, but the questions of where this story is going and the exceptional art will keep me looking out for further installments. I'm getting a serious MOON vibe from this book, and if you've seen the movie starring Samuel Rockwell then you can probably infer where this story is headed--or perhaps not.
I barely touched on Adam's nest-mate Skye, carrying her and Adam's next two offspring. She is the sole female presence in the story, a gentle matriarch who nevertheless seems to be scorned by Beo. The dynamic between these two characters is perhaps the most enigmatic, with Adam right in the middle of it. Seeing the relationship teased between these three characters is what really captured my interest. Like I said before, so much is laid out for you and there's a good bit to chew on, but it's hard to know if the story is pushing you in one direction just to lead you on or not. Perhaps it's meant to throw you off. ADAM.3 #1 is a puzzle, but it's hard to judge the bigger picture until I can see more of the pieces.
SECRET WARS BATTLEWORLD TRAVEL GUIDE Part XI
orThere are always constants, no matter the reality, and one of them is that Red Skull will always be a psycho nut bag with squirrels for brains.
Previously, on Secret Wars…M.O.D.O.K. continued to be a freaky little bastard, and two versions of Angela just straight wrecked some people.
INFINITY GAUNTLET #3 (Dustin Weaver & Gerry Duggan)It turns out the Nova family Corps is muuuuuuuuuch more badass than earlier established, as evidenced by their repeated murder of Thanos throughout time, but he has the time gem, and can just try again and again. Think EDGE OF TOMORROW, but with a giant purple murder god instead of Tom Cruise. He ultimately decides to try teaming up with them instead. He and the family ultimately team up with Star-Lord and Gamora and fly through space fighting bug monsters. It’s very much what I want in a comic book.
SPIDER-ISLAND #2 (Christos Gage & Paco Diaz)The plan to turn evil spider monster versions of your favourite heroes into regular monster versions of your favourite heroes has been a rousing success, and now we have Lizard Hulk, Were-Cap, vampire Captain Marvel, and Green Goblin Iron Man. As the heroes team up and try to fight an army of other spider people, Flash Thompson makes some startling discoveries and also has to deal with being the most stable hero in the group--which, considering he’s bonded with an alien that eats people, is saying something.
ULTIMATE END #4 (Brian Michael Bendis & Mark Bagley)The combined world of regular world and ultimate world keeps being terribly confusing. Look, all I know is that two Tonys are arguing, and I have no idea which one is which. The Avengers and The Ultimates try to deal with the ending of IRON MAN 3, and somehow the fucking Punisher is going to try and shoot the Hulk, because when your one horse pony move is shooting stuff, it’s not like you’re gonna change midstream.
FUTURE IMPERFECT #4 (Peter David & Greg Land)Not going to lie, I’ve been loving the hell out of Maestro and his overly confident dumb ass. He just runs around talking about how awesome he is, and then he gets into a fight, and always wrecks people. In this one, he fights a couple of trolls for shits and giggles while also yelling at the rest of his frenemies team for not being able to take Hulk punches to the chest. Pansies.
GUARDIANS OF KNOW-WHERE #2 (Brian Michael Bendis & Mike Deodato)On the one hand, we get to meet the cosmic Avengers. On the other hand, this issue doesn’t really do anything besides introduce a new guy, the destroyer of destroyers, who seems to think he’s the next big thing. He’s, um, he’s not. He just sort of yells a lot, and then Rocket shoots him in the chest. It’s always fun when Rocket shoots stuff.
AGE OF APOCALYPSE #2 (Fabian Nicieza & Gerardo Sandoval)This region of Battle-World is NUTS. Not always in a good way, but wow, it is always surprising. It’s just different enough from the old version of Age of Apocalypse to be odd, and just familiar enough to make sort of kind of sense. I mean, Doug Ramsey is apparently the last hope for this domain. That’s always disconcerting.
Also? DR. NEMESIS IS IN THIS SHIT, AND OH MY GOD YES. I DON’T EVEN CARE THAT IT’S EVIL DR. NEMESIS, I JUST LOVE DR. NEMESIS AND HIS DRUG/DISEASE GUN.
RED SKULL #2 (Josh Williamson & Riley Rossmo)Now that the most of the suicide squad has been murdered by zombies, it’s down to Magneto to just try and not die while hanging out with the Red Skull. This may prove troublesome, because Red Skull has been hanging out with the Annihilation Wave. Red Skull is actually pretty good at talking to people (and alien monster people), but the MVP of the group behind the wall is Age of X Magneto, who figures out to make the coolest new suit ever out of, mostly metal, and some dead bugs too.
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN – RENEW YOUR VOWS #3 (Dan Slott & Adam Kubert)Awwwwwwww, this world is so sad. I mean, trust me, this Spider-Man is amazing, just wrecking a self important Doc Ock in seconds. But it’s so sad, seeing MJ have to lie to her daughter about how Spider-Man always wins. Oh, and how all those other heroes are dead and stuff. That sucks too. Spider-family goes to work and tries to save the day, which is a REALLY uphill battle in this section of Battle-World. But in positive news, Shocker got a promotion!
GIANT SIZE LITTLE MARVEL AVX #3 (Skottie Young)This world is just so much fun. I want to live here, forever and forever.
CIVIL WAR #2 (Charles Soule & Leinil Francis Yu)Spider-Man and She-Hulk do NOT fuck around in this domain. It takes no time at all before they shift into kickass mode, and they have been ITCHING for it. It doesn’t take much, and it especially doesn’t take long for Peter to fly off the handle here. But things are complicated by problems like food shortages and all around “oh nooooooo” plans.
SIEGE #2 (Kieron Gillen & Filipe Andrade)MAGIK AND HELA RIDE MONSTERS AND THE THING IS PART OF THE WALL LITERALLY AND THERE IS AN ARMY OF CYCLOPS CLONES AND ABIGAIL BRAND IS THE BEST DAMN CHARACTER EVER THE WALL IS SO GODDAMN COOL.
Battle-World Travel Tip!
DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT TRY TO PISS OF DR. NEMESIS. THAT WAS TRUE OF NORMAL DR. NEMESIS, BUT THIS IS AOA DR. NEMESIS. HE IS GOING TO CAUSE SO MUCH DESTRUCTION, EVEN IF IT’S ONLY IN MY MIND.
Proofs, co-edits & common sense provided by Sleazy G
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