(Click title to go directly to the review)
PAPER GIRLS #4
SPIDER-MAN/DEADPOOL #1
ACTION COMICS #48
DELUGE #1
STRAY BULLETS: SUNSHINE & ROSES #11
PAPER GIRLS #4
Writer: Brian K. VaughanArt: Cliff Chaing
Publisher: Image Comics
Reviewer: Humphrey Lee
Brian K. Vaughan has always been kind of the “King of the Reference” when it comes to comic books, from Y: THE LAST MAN’s Yorick Brown being a cultural and historical random fact machine to EX MACHINA’s Mitchell Hundred being a political stand in for most of the biggest real life events of the early 2000’s. With the assist of artist extraordinaire, Cliff Chiang, on their new book PAPER GIRLS, BKV is taking that royal title and expanding it to “King of the Reference AND Nostalgia.”
This book, placed in the 80’s, really is pure 80’s, from the not even 8-bit gaming references, to the breezy suburban nights out on their bikes that our four heroines spend causing trouble, to the weirdly deformed and ragged humans from the future (maybe???) fighting weird floating cyber eye things with lasers, everything about this book just oozes the whimsical extravagance of the time. I’m really, really digging what this book is developing into between the indulgences in the story twists and the time attitude of the era, though admittedly the angst was pretty strong with this one for the past couple issues.
But I love the humor, I dig the references, and I enjoy the escalation in shenaniganing with where the plot is going every single issue. Issue by issue, PAPER GIRLS is inching its way up my reading pile each month.
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.
SPIDER-MAN/DEADPOOL #1
Writer: Joe KellyArtist: Ed McGuinness
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewer: lionel.putz@gmail.com
Some comic books are such shameless pandering, from concept to execution, that it’s easy to feel a bit insulted as comic book fan. Taking two of Marvel’s best-selling, most popular, quippiest heroes and shoving them into their own team-up book for contrived reasons? Definitely reeks of a naked cash grab by a faceless corporation. Fortunately for Marvel, I am one of those suckers who was going to see the solicitation for this book and say, “Spider-Man/Deadpool series? I’d be stupid not to buy this!” no matter what, and so it is with a very tepid enthusiasm that I review this book.
Spidey and Deadpool, as Deadpool loves to point out, are heroes that bear some passing similarities. Both love to toss banter at their opponents (“Come for the quips. Stay for the bromance!” screams the tagline). Both operate better alone than in a group setting (Spider-Man has always been an objectively terrible Avenger; if not for Marvel corporate mandate, I suspect Fury would’ve revoked his membership a long time ago). Both usually have ulterior motives known only to themselves for their seemingly bizarre or strange behaviors and plans. And both have an inexplicable affinity for red spandex. My dollars spent on this book seem to indicate I understand the appeal, and the desire to see these two characters interact.
The problem, though, is that these two characters aren’t really that similar, and Deadpool remains one of the trickiest characters in the Marvel Universe to handle. In this first issue, we see Deadpool kidnap Spider-Man to go on a quick detour to Hell to fight Dormammu while also trying to convince him to work with him one-on-one, what with Spidey having quit the Steve Rogers-led Uncanny Avengers in that book’s opening pages over his refusal to work with the Merc with a Mouth. Spidey, Deadpool tells him, can help him learn to be a better hero. Also, Deadpool thinks that Spidey has lost his way by working for corporate CEO Peter Parker because… reasons? Like, Deadpool is anti-establishment, maybe? But also incorporated now and can offer Spidey a job? And this is ultimately Deadpool’s ulterior motive, too: he’s trying to get Spider-Man away from his security job at Parker Industries so that can he kill Parker and collect a huge mercenary fee because… more reasons?
Again, that’s sort of the problem with this book. It feels contrived because it has to be. Spider-Man—very rightly and justifiably—hates Wade Wilson, and wants nothing to do with his particular brand of insanity. No one in the Marvel Universe logically should. (That Deadpool’s currently bankrolling the Avengers is another contrivance of the All-New, All-Different Marvel that I’ve given up trying to understand, but suffice it to say, it makes no sense and annoys me endlessly. I’m also not a fan of Peter Parker as Tony Stark-light, but at least that one has some narrative logic behind it.) So we have what essentially boils down to a sitcom-level misunderstanding (“Parker is Spider-Man!”) as an excuse to watch Deadpool and Spider-Man quip-fight each other, with Parker slowly going mad in the process—“I need so much therapy,” he says aloud to no one in particular following the events of this issue.
With those not inconsiderable complaints out of the way, yes, I like watching Deadpool antagonize Spider-Man, and love any situation where Spider-Man is forced to be the reluctant adult in the room. There are some genuinely funny moments in here, including the entire cold-open, as well as Spider-Man’s later strategic use of Deadpool’s grenades with Deadpool still attached to them. The book is also well-drawn, with some nice big single- and double-page spreads to let the action and dialogue breath. So, if you like Spider-Man, if you are a sucker for most Deadpool-premise books, if you think you can check your cynicism at the door, I can reluctantly recommend this book. I will be sticking with it for at least a few more issues. Also working in its favor? The issue includes a reprint of the truly remarkable The Vision #1, so that alone pretty much justifies picking this up if you haven’t read that amazing book yet.
On the other hand, if your nerd-sense started tingling in disgust at the very notion of this team-up, it’s probably exactly as soulless an exercise as you feared, and maybe you can skip it. I dunno. Personally, I’m still a sucker for all the pithy one-liners. Don’t judge me.
Lionel Putz is a lawyer by day. He watched Matlock in a bar last night; the sound wasn't on, but he's pretty sure he got the gist of it. Email him at lionel.putz@gmail.com
ACTION COMICS #48
Writer: Greg PakArt: Aaron Kruder
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewer: Humphrey Lee
This issue is very much a “When World’s Collide” affair, not so much in that it is on its way to resolving a big, brewing conflict with a depowered Superman and “New 52” newbie nemesis Wrath, but because it is a big slugfest between my enjoyment of this book and my almost universal disdain for DC Editorial decisions. You see, I have really, really enjoyed this Greg Pak/Aaron Kuder run on the big blue boy scout.
I picked up and perused an issue about six months back, was highly enamored by what I saw and immediately hunted down the back issues. I will take this point even further in saying that January is usually when I start brainstorming nominations for our “@$$ie” awards and this run comes up a solid bit when pondering what to write up. But at the same time, fuck this issue in a couple ways, none to really do with the creative crew. Fuck that it is resolving a pretty much exclusive Pak/Kuder build up with Wrath in yet another crossover, because Superman family titles apparently are not allowed to go more than eight months without interlocking in some way.
Also fuck that this was so nonchalantly launched that “Savage War” is not even mentioned on the cover and as someone who sometimes goes on auto-pilot when preordering comics had no clue this was happening until I was about three pages in, to which I rolled my eyes in annoyance but still ended up enjoying this issue for the most part because Pak and Kuder’s presentation on the book and character is just top notch.
Unfortunately, the circumstances around this issue are a reason why I’m wary to try many DC and Marvel titles these days and sometimes wind up late to the party, as I was on this otherwise stellar run by the current creative tandem.
DELUGE #1
Writer: J.D. OlivaArtist: Richard P. Clark
Publisher: Comixology Reviewer: Henry Higgins is My Homeboy
DELUGE opens with a survivor of Hurricane Katrina trying to flag down help, only to be shot by the passing by men.
This is that sort of book.
The book – brought together after years of work by Oliva and Clark – shows off an immediately interesting world, a city where everyone is familiar but no one is who they say they are. There’s a divide, and a level of violence that’s just acceptable. But that’s not to downplay the violence. Each scene where something gets big, it gets big. This isn’t KICK-ASS, where the violence is a punch line half the time. Here, each gun shot, punch, or movement carries weight to it.
The book focuses on two people – likable cop Pat who’s just trying to do her job, and Jamal, a gangbanger from Chicago who’s secretly a federal agent. There’s not a large amount of depth for either of them yet, but seeing a pair of reluctant heroes in a situation this shitty does have my attention. We’re moving into the shady grey areas of justice, with people panicking and resorting to any kind of violence to protect themselves. And that’s not even talking about the all of a sudden Punisher cops, trying to use the hurricane as a cover to “clean up” their city.
The mystery at the center of the story, about a cover up, a criminal, and the chaos that people can cause in these times of emergency is good, like, really good.
The book is available on Comixology, and well worth a check out. Especially if you’re looking for an engaging crime mystery. Now, all we need to know is how Jamal deals with Punisher Cops, because seriously, Punisher cops are the worst.
STRAY BULLETS: SUNSHINE & ROSES #11
Writer: David LaphamArt: David Lapham
Publisher: Image Comics
Reviewer: Humphrey Lee
Y’know, I’ve been reading this book for a very, very, third very added for emphasis that this book had an extended period of trouble getting back into print, long time and, goddamn, it still never ceases to amaze me sometimes. Typically it’s with a wink and a nod as it indulges in its own special brand of nihilism and narrative hopping, but sometimes, oh lucky sometimes, it’s when David Lapham goes full bugfuck into his “Amy Racecar” side tales and chicanery like he does here.
And my god is this one of the best examples of those absurdities, with several occasions where I shook my head at what I was reading and one completely fucked and hysterical line where I simply put down the book and did a lap around my living room before diving right back into the extravagance. Every issue we get of STRAY BULLETS is a treasure because it was never a sure thing of us getting more of the book once the original run was ended (hell, it was never a sure thing that run would even be completely collected in trade form) but issues like this are even more so works of well-crafted insanity and beauty/
I hope we get several years more of this eclectic crime noir so we can get several more issues like this gem.
Proofs, co-edits & common sense provided by Sleazy G
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