Just a few reviews

Okay, so I'm a little behind in my comics-reading.  There doesn't seem to be anything really exiting me lately in the comics world.

I did have a chance to read Booster Gold #39 on the weekend.  When Giffen and DeMatteis took over from Dan Jurgens, I was a little thrown off by the change in tone.  Jurgens did a nice job continuing the groundwork laid down by Geoff Johns, and G&D took a few steps back.  The stories got ridiculously silly and even violated a few of the intricate time travel "rules."  Being a fan of the JLI years, it hurts to not like something written by Giffen and DeMatteis 100%.  But this month's issue jettisoned the silliness for the serious side of the Booster Gold/Blue Beetle dynamic.  I'm hoping they continue along the lines.  The downside is, that this month's story seemed like an effort to hammer the final nail in Ted Kord's possibly-but-never-to-be-resurrected coffin.

That, and I read the Batman Annual.  I must have subscribed to it a year ago, and forgot to drop my subscription, so finding it in the mail was a bit of a surprise.  And what, may I ask, is going on in the Bat-universe?  I finally dropped my last tie to the Bat-world, Streets of Gotham, a few months ago, and now I have no idea what's going on.  I had a vague notion about Batman Incorporated, but apparently the government of France has signed a deal with them.  And not only that, but Bruce Wayne himself approaches the French prime minister and acts like...well, Batman.  What happened to playing the foppish playboy to derail any theories identifying him at the Batman?  If Bruce Wayne swoops into your country, finances Batman, Inc., and throws all sorts of technical jargon around and acts and speaks like the World's Greatest Detective, isn't that all a little too obvious?  *sigh*

Ah, well, I'm hoping some good comics will come my way soon.

Saturday Comics

I'm still not quite sure how to incorporate reviews into this blog (if at all), but I decided to do a "live reading," kind of like what Sea-of-Green did for reviewing the Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths DVD.

Okay, so I'm reading The Flash #1 by Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul.  I know very little about Barry Allen, though I read Flash: Rebirth, other than he is a forensic scientist who runs fast and wears bowties.

--Not sure I like the cover.  Dynamic, but Tony Harris's figures are too angular for my taste.

--Wario wants me to create games.  Okay.

--You can put icons next to your name in text messages?  News to me.

--Nice car, Trickster.  Also, love the gloves.

--Flash can stop bullets?

--Neil Gaiman's promoting National Library Week.  Just what I need in the middle of my comic: something to remind me of work.

--Central City apparently doesn't have child labor laws in place for construction sites.  Good.  Make the kids earn their keep, I always say.

--The Flash saves a kid from falling debris and introduces himself using his logo.  See, now THIS is what comics should be all about.

--Barry Allen's late to work again.

--The Weather Wizard rains out baseball games just to be a jerk.  These are the kinds of villains I love.

--Who can turn your eyeballs into glass?

--Sigh.  Retconned childhood trauma to give Barry Allen more "edge."  This is NOT what comics should be all about.

--Barry seems to be looking younger and younger with each passing panel...the hoodie doesn't help.  Would it kill someone to draw a superhero as a mature adult?  He looks nineteen.

--Mirror Master?  Oh noes!  What happened?

--"Does anyone know how to adjust these chairs?"  Bwa-ha.  I have that problem at work all the time.

--Forensic scientist and inter-office politics talk.  It looks like this series might have a strong focus on Barry's secret identity and day job.  Normalcy!  In a comic!  I'm liking that.

--Um...should you be telling the press all that secret police stuff?  And Iris, way to use your man to get a scoop for your paper.  Sheesh.

--Dinner with the Hawks?  Awwz.

--Cliffhanger!!  Dun dun daaaaaa!

--Wait, what?  Is this another story?  I'm confused.  Oh, wait.  It's an ad.  For a story not happening for another year.  Like I'm going to remember.  Wait a second..."the Flash's world will change."  Greaaaat.  Just when I got used to the whole "business as usual" here comes another crisis.  And there's a White Lantern ring involved.

--Uncolored Zatanna preview.  My eyes hurt from all the backwards reading already...

--DC Universe: Legacies.  A history of the DCU.  I'm intrigued.  This could be good for newer fans.  But where's Dr. Mid-Nite in that JSA photo, or does he come in later?

--"Sworn to protect!  Born to kill!"  Wait, is that the guy's motto, or the dog's?  That's certainly my dog's personal motto.  That and "kill all pizza delivery men."

I Readed A Book! (Review of Huntress: Cry for Blood)

Huntress: Cry for Blood

Story by Greg Rucka

Pencils by Rick Burchett

Inks by Rick Burchett and Terry Beatty (issues #5 and #6)

Short Synopsis:  After being framed for murder, Huntress must prove her innocence.  After meeting The Question, we learn her story as the only surviving family member of a mafia hit.

The Bottom Line:  A character-driven drama with noirish elements and a well-plotted story line, written on one of Rucka's good days and with great art, to boot.  Read it!

Why It's Good:  The comics medium, by its very nature, doesn't lend itself well to stories about moral choices and character change.  After all, if a character keeps changing over his or her decades-long history, are we going to recognize them anymore?  This works, though, for certain characters, and for flashback stories for popular, well-established characters.

The Huntress herself is a character in constant internal conflict, always straddling the line between Justice and Vengeance.  When it comes to her family history, that line, in her mind, gets a little blurred.  Fortunately, Huntress never lets this conflict devolve into an angsty angry-at-her-life attitude.  Instead, she's out for blood.

Our story starts with the murder of two mafiosos who have each been killed with an arrow from Huntress's crossbow.  The media, the police, and even Batman and Family suspect she's guilty.  Just when it seems like she's got no one to turn to, she nearly runs over The Question one night, and after some sparring, he absconds with her to his Super Secret Zen Hideout, where he and Richard Dragon give her a new outlook on life.

Helena, about to tell Vic her story

The story's a weighty one, heavy on backstory, and with clear-cut stakes for both Huntress and The Question.  For Helena, she must not only clear her name, but choose who she ultimately is: an agent of revenge struggling away from a broken past, or someone "better" than that who upholds the law.  The Question hopes Helena will put his wisdom into action after investing his time in taking her under his wing, plus there's the possiblity of a romantic relationship.  I'm not going to give away the ending, but it's a good one.

Granted I haven't read too many Huntress comics (but I've read quite a bit of The Question), but I feel Rucka is on his game when it comes to characterization.  I secretly suspect Rucka is Italian, because he writes them so well.  (They are also drawn very believably by Burchett.)  Rucka handles The Question quite well, too, and I really like seeing Vic as the good-hearted Sensei To The Superheroes and in a lighter mood than his Denny O'Neill days.  I wish Vic would come along more often and set people straight.  (Oh, wait, he can't.  He's dead.)  Rucka balances the Zen insight with the sarcasm quite well, too.  (The latter being, of course, Vic Sage's one superpower.)

The Art:  I really enjoyed the art.  It's quite different from today's comic art: very "2D" with little shading, and the characters' expressions are very slightly caricatures while at the same time preserving realism.  His figures are realistic: no over-roided guys or DDD-busted girls here.  There's a great efficiency of line and cleanliness to the style and inking that you don't see today unless you crack open a Johnny DC title.  It's a nice, refreshing break from the complicated, fantasized, hyper-reality of comics art today.

Not only that, but Burchett draws Vic Sage really well.  Vic is a real character, and that should show on his face, and Burchett thankfully doesn't hold back on the smug little expressions that only Vic Sage is capable of.  Compare and Contrast time!

Vic channeling the Great James Cagney?

A more recent appearance of Vic.  (Oh wait.  "Charlie."):

Mr. Generic

Not to mention, there's all sorts of great little visual details, like Vic punching a soda machine.  If anyone gets to punch a vending machine in the DC Universe, it's Vic Sage.

Oh, yeah, and Batman shows up.  And Vic gives him some lip.  That's always amusing.

Batman: Mr. Grumpy Gills

The only downside to the story is that it's rather complicated to keep all the mafiosos and who-did-what and who's-related-to-whom straight.  But I wouldn't let that detract from a very enjoyable story.

It's a shame it's not in print anymore--hopefully it'll be reprinted soon.  But I urge you to look for it and read it, if you haven't already.