Okay folks, here's two weeks' worth of reviews, since last week's shipment was held up until Monday by Christmas holiday delays. And due to similar New Year's shenanigans, I only got this week's comics today, so those reviews are hot off the presses. Sadly Farscape #1 - one of last week's comics that I wanted to take a look at, being a big Farscape fan - didn't arrive; Diamond accidentally shipped a box of my store's comics to Malaysia. Thanks Diamond, I'm sure people make that mistake all the time.
In other news, recently Will Hughes of The Voyages of SheBuccaneer contacted me, having read the review of issue #3 (here), and since I never got #1 or #2 (no idea why, since I'd ordered them through my comic store well in advance; the phrase "Diamond didn't bother" floats to mind), he asked if I'd like copies sent out to me. Would I? You betcha. They arrived this week (on New Year's Eve, in fact), signed by Will (who's the artist on the comics), so before we move on with current comics, let's finally review She-Buccaneer in its entirety thus far:
The Voyages of SheBuccaneer #1-3 ~ As it turns out issue #3 - the only one I got originally (see above) - was a good representation of this title as a whole, as the other two issues I read served to confirm pretty much everything I'd got from #3 (although the character of the narrator, Sir Nigel Redfern, is fleshed out in more detail). Each issue is a fairly discrete episode set within a larger quest - the first, 'Tombs of Eden', sets the Captain on her quest to bring her lover Jack Rackham back from the dead, sending her to Egypt in search of a means to that end and recovering a crystal skull which contains maps to seven mystical gemstones; the second issue, 'Eye of Atlantis', has the crew reaching the fabled lost civilisation and braving all manner of danger in search of the first such gem, and the third, as reviewed before, concerns another gem in the possession of a Persian ruler. What I like most about this comic - besides the fine figure of a lass who's the dauntless Captain - is this episodic feel, that each issue manages to pack in a complete story, with beginning, middle, and end, including plot twists, guest and supporting characters, and the like. Having a few more pages per issue than usual (25 for issue one, 27 for issue two, 28 for issue three, not including bonus material) helps, but the real trick is economical storytelling - looking back over each issue, it's difficult to find a bit of narration or dialogue, or a panel in art terms, that doesn't serve to build the story in some way. The art is exciting and kinetic, backing up the fast-paced writing, but both writing and art have a feeling of plausibility to them - whether they're showing fantastical stuff like Atlantean monsters, or more real-world matters like Bedouin tribesmen and the pirates themselves, there's a sense that thought has gone into how they'll look and behave - a sense of culture, rather than just these things being invented out of thin air for the convenience of the story (see the review of Red Sonja below for what happens when the creators don't put in that effort convincingly).
Each issue features a different double-page pin-up of the Captain (whose name we still don't know - she's mostly just called 'Captain', or 'SheBuccaneer' occasionally in dialogue) brought to life in the person of Crystal Mantecon, who looks gloriously piratical, as well as having the don't-mess-with-me quality that her comic counterpart has (the story doesn't hand-wave away the implausibility of a pirate crew following a woman's orders - the Captain is tough), plus letters pages and various other extras. The note from Will and Heidi Hughes (artist and writer respectively) slipped into issue one when they sent it to me says that issue #4 will be along this January - I never took the title off my standing order, so hopefully it'll arrive through my local comic store as usual.
Previews #224 ~ The list of interesting items seems longer than usual this month, so let's not delay. Comics to look out for:
p75: Batman: Battle for the Cowl #1 (has Batwoman on the cover)
p79: Oracle #1 (post-Birds of Prey)
p83: Action Comics #875 (note to self: find out who Flamebird is)
p89: Justice League of America #31 (might be a good point to get back on board)
p175: Incredible Journey #2 (must've overlooked it last month)
Marvel p25: Dark Reign: Elektra #1 (I'll probably just have a glance at it in the store)
p224: Executive Assistant Iris #1 (sounds like fun)
p244: Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose #55 (must have the Previews Exclusive cover)
p287: Voyagers of the SheBuccaneer: Eye of the Jade Dragon #1 (looks good)
p301: London Horror Comics #2 (a bit of a random pick)
p310: Neozoic volume one (been meaning to get this when it arrived).
And merchandise-wise, the Trekkie in me won't let me proceed without pointing out the error on p201: the NX-01 isn't USS Enterprise, it's just Enterprise - the 'USS' applies to United Federation of Planets/Starfleet vessels, which didn't yet exist in the Star Trek: Enterprise timeframe. Also, with apologies to everyone affected by the finalcial crisis, it'd be really convenient if the US dollar would crash again so all this becomes affordable. No, not seriously. Now then:
p135: Zatanna statue (going to be very expensive, but I'm very tempted)
p136: Wonder Woman animated maquette (looks good, but if I give in I'll get the proper statue)
p137: Justice League International series 2: Fire
p138: 'The Real Power of the DC Universe' poster (I must have this!)
p140: Terminator: Salvation Blair Williams minibust (not for me, but looks okay)
p142: World of Warcraft series 4: Succubus Amberlash (resolicited, gotta order her again)
p396: Star Trek DS9 Sisko/Dukat two-pack (I love DS9)
p400: Star Trek: Borg Seven of Nine borg form & catsuit (and I love Seven)
p408: Resident Evil Sheva
p418: Ms. Marvel modern & classic statues (too expensive for me, but I'm very tempted)
p450: Ikki Tousen Ryomou (I've been watching the show recently, it's silly fun)
p451: Doctor Who Adipose plush toy (fat has never been so cute)
p452: Sky Doll Noa statue (again, can't afford it, but really want it.
Contract Solo Missions: Panzer ~ Panzer's the comedy character of Contract - Tsumi's the quiet one, Jessie's the stable one who holds the team together, but Panzer's loud and chaotic and hilarious to watch, with his tendency towards over-the-top mayhem and continuous quoting of old movies. This issue has him off on his own, but knows better than to really isolate him - half the humour of watching him in action is seeing the reactions of everyone else - so he gets inadvertently thrust into the role of shepherd to a bunch of tough-talking but inexperienced mercs engaged in a mission which, in Aliens terms (Panzer would approve) is a pretty straight-up Bug Hunt. It gets better, though, since Panzer's the only one (besides his lady friend, who seems fairly unfazed) who's really got it together, so as well as laughing at Panzer being a maniac, you also get to laugh at the rest of the mercs panicking as they realise how out of their depth they are. At the same time, there's more than comedy going on - the mission is real, we get to see merc tactics and cool gadgets in action (for all his goofball humour, Panzer's no dimwit when it comes to a fight), and some effort goes into giving the rookies some character, such that when Panzer singles one out, you can look back and see how it makes sense given their actions during the fight. The main story is 20 pages, plus there's the usual glossary page and thanks page, another glossary page in the back with more in-depth articles on topics relevant to this particular story, and an Andy MacDonald sketch of Panzer, with his power fist looking even more crazy and dangerous than usual. My favourite, though, is the two-page short story in the back - I don't want to describe anything, since that might spoil it, but I darn near peed myself laughing when I turned the page. Thus ends the year for Contract, unquestionably one of 2008's brightest stars.
Atomic Robo: Dogs of War #5 ~ Already reviewed here, thanks to Red 5 letting me have a look at their preview list; I just wanted to remind everyone that it's part of this week's haul.
She-Hulk #36 ~ Shulkie's visit to earthquake-and-dictator-ravaged Marinmer wraps up as she comes face to face with President-for-life Darqon Par, and under Peter David's pen it's a showdown worth seeing. No, Par doesn't 'surprisingly' turn out to have superpowers - he's just smart, which allows him to spin the encounter out just long enough to deliver a satisfying counterpoint to She-Hulk's arguments. David writes with subtlety - Par is a villain, an evil man, no argument, but we're left wondering: does that make everything he says a lie? A lot of his evil is self-confessed - in a way, he's rather honest and open about himself, once he has no reason not to be. Shulkie and her Lady Liberators undoubtedly have the high moral ground, but are they being naive - in the end, did they manage to change anything? Valkyrie faces the same question in a very well-written aside sequence between her, Red Guardian, and one of the locals, which looks at similar themes from a different point of view. And in the end, it's a question left unanswered - after all, a Marvel comic book isn't going to nail down a question that's tasked philosophers since the beginning of civilisation. But while there aren't easy answers, the questions in the story are posed in such a way as to make you think - you come away from the issue contemplating it, not just receiving whatever the author felt like preaching. It's not just philosophy though, as a superhero story Par makes a good enough antagonist that the take-down is satisfying, and has to be a bit more inventive than 'punch villain' in order to work. It's just damned good comics all around - and a real shame that there aren't many issues left.
Red Sonja #40 ~ This'll be my last issue; it's a step up from the previous one, in that it has Sonja actually do things of her own volition, rather than just having her follow whatever path is necessary to railroad her into the metal bikini, and although the villain has a bit of a feebly cliched escape, at least Sonja's execution of the pirates, and her seeming to struggle with her past-life memories, rather than just being a dumb vessel for them, adds some interest. But overall, I still find it shallow - Sonja's supposedly a noblewoman, yet that means nothing in a story which doesn't bother to develop a background where diplomacy and political factions have meaning, or even exist. I'm not asking for Artesia-style maps and glossaries and complete histories of every realm and kingdom in the known world, but c'mon, gimme something to work with here. After six issues, this world Sonja's been reborn into is a featureless blank canvas, which makes Sonja and her adversary just a pair of nameless thugs looking for the same big of treasure over the rainbow, and however pretty the covers are - though I chose this month's more because it's so ridiculously eye-candy-riffic it makes me laugh - that's not worth my money when there are better comics out there.
Ms. Marvel #34 ~ We're firmly back in the present now, after the last two issues being pre-superpowers flashbacks, but it's far from a return to business as usual. For reasons still to be revealed (though it's not difficult to guess at the rough cause) Carol's present-day circumstances are somewhat different to when we last saw her: she's no longer part of the Avengers, evidently she's very much on the out with (possibly in hiding from) the new superhero world order, and for some reason she's not using her powers. Brian Reed's evidently hoping that the first two issues of this post-Secret Invasion arc have hooked readers enough to be willing to sit through some setup, with the promise of explanations later, as the reasons for all of this are left very vague for now - all that's certain (and it was mentioned back in #31, if I recall, so it's not new) is that Carol's set her sights on Norman Osborne, and she's going about preparing her attack. For the moment that involves getting access to something called 'Essential', which is highly guarded, necessitating a team-up with Spider-Man, since although Carols sans powers is still a formidable force, she's up against a lot of hired goons between her and her goal. Spidey's dialogue sparkles as always, and I'm looking forward to seeing the two of them team up again - hopefully in the circumstances this issue hints at, as that'd be an absolute hoot to read.
Wonder Woman #27 ~ Great events are afoot in this title, as it becomes clear just how much though Gail Simone has been putting into it since she came on board. The Olympians are back, and grappling in their dignified, detached way with a world that's forgotten them and despoiled their memory; Athena's wisdom shows her the path for old gods to take, but for all his power Zeus doesn't truly understand, and sets in motion what he thinks will make things right. Meanwhile Wonder Woman is defeated - and all the work Simone has done in reinforcing her dignity and her strength pays off here, as we see her really beaten, and it's shocking. That shock, seeing the seemingly indomitable Diana broken, shows us what a power Genocide is (which is a good thing, since the only flaw in all this remains its appearance, which I still find a bit mediocre), and the addition of Wonder Woman's lasso to its arsenal - given what Simone told us about the lasso in earlier issues, hinting at the terrible power it has, that's a scary, scary thing. In a practical sense this issue is most about moving its pieces around in order to set them up for the story to come - getting Cassie and Donna in, putting Nemesis by Diana's side, recalling the Amazons and setting up their fate - but it's done so well, so persuasively, that it almost guarantees the ensuing story is going to be a real winner.
Hulk #9 ~ Bruce Banner and a bunch of Wendigos are still throwing down in Las Vegas, with Ms. Marvel and Sentry helping out, and while I quickly skimmed over that and it looked quite amiable, it's obviously the other half of the book I bought this for (yep, both covers - I can't say no to Cho, but the retro cover was too cute to miss). Plotwise, it's a bit unsatisfying - this is Red Hulk's book, so he's not getting taken down in the end, and evidently we're still in the setup phase of the big Red Hulk story, so the issue only teases with who he is and what he's up to, without delivering any real answers. On the plus side the big fight is nice and spectacular, with fun dialogue (and Shulkie's narration), and Frank Cho's battle art is stellar. One page stands out, as the girls discuss what to do with Hulk once he's down - it's a wealth of fun dialogue snippets (Tigra and Hellcat sharing a gripe over people making kitty litter jokes, heh).
Patsy Walker: Hellcat #4 ~ It's been a while since the last issue - I don't know what the delay was, perhaps Immonen lost her story notes and had to try to remember what she's planned based on issues #1-3 alone. That'd take some doing. Luckily the delay doesn't seem to have affected the story - it's still as loopy as ever. In fact, I'd say by the Bridge of Rabbits, it's topped its previous efforts and gone completely nuts. But it's still fun, and while the dialogue may be bizarre, Immonen also shows a deft hand at sketching out characters in a short space of time, providing a three-way conversation between Hellcat and two newcomers that's surprisingly grounded, and gives this issue a sense of stability - or at least rationality - that'd been missing up until now.
Avengers: The Initiative #20 ~ This here, this is a quality comic book. As always it covers a lot of ground, with characters and storylines weaving in and out - there's a send-off for the new Skrull Kill Krew introduced during Secret Invasion (at least, I take that scene to be their send-off for now, until they turn up again), an intriguing subplot with Tigra (we need more Tigra), and some setup for future stories with Gauntlet now reluctant de facto leader of the Initiative and putting his own stamp on things, oh, and we find out who Mutant Zero is. But the heart of this issue is a conversation between Hank Pym - the real one, freshly freed from Skrull custody, and dealing with everything that's happened in his absence, and that his Skrull counterpart did as him during his absence - and Janet. Yes, Wasp. Yes, she's dead, but trust me, it makes sense in the end. Hank's turned up in various capacities in a few comics I've been following - this one, obviously, and Mighty Avengers, and the real Hank got some serious attention during the Secret Invasion Avengers issues, so even though I wouldn't say I've ever followed the character, I feel like I've acquired a grounding in him. This issue does him justice, I think - it hits just the right balance between the flawed, confused man who makes mistakes, and the optimistic hero who just wants to do what's right and make a difference. I think his fans will be happy.
Cyblade #2 ~ Checking back to my review of issue #1 (a href="issues081022.html">here), my reaction was pretty much "Don't like it much, but will stick around to see if it improves." It hasn't, so I'll be dropping it. The storyline is still simplistic, leaning heavily on 90s super-conspiracy cliches, the characters still aren't showing themselves to be much more than vessels for whatever the story needs them to say or do, and the art's still basic and unimpressive - although a flashback, drawn by Afua Richardson, while not there yet, looks like the work of an artist who could develop into a contender. But if those flashbacks (which are a small part of this issue) are going to continue in this title, I won't be around to see them - the above complaints do nothing to endear me to the book, and the continuation of the silly self-censoring nudity panels just annoys me. The contortions the art goes through so as not to show a nipple here are just ludicrous - presumably the idea (if it's not just to exploit) is to reflect Dominique's vulnerability through having her naked, but if so, just show her naked. For heaven's sake, people, the world's not going to end if you put a bare breast in a comic - and if you're not willing to do that, stop trying to pretend. Selah.
Sorry, I'm not usually that nasty - I try to look at the comics I review in a positive light, and see what others might find enjoyable in a comic even if I may not have, but this one's just ticked me off from the start.
Justice Society of America #22 ~ Well, this is it - 'Thy Kingdom Come'/'One World Under Gog' is over. And it's a satisfying conclusion, not so much due to the Gog angle of it (that was always just going to be a matter of 'punch bad guy really hard, save world', I guess), but because this issue brings this arc back to where it really began, with Superman of Earth-22. I don't know how this'd play to someone who's read Kingdom Come - I still haven't gotten around to it - but I quite liked what happened. So far as the JSA goes, I liked what I saw as well - more the aftermath than the battle, though most everyone got their little moment to shine in action (including Cyclone - and true to form, her tank top vanished again in one panel). But just like before, way back before this big story arc began, I'm feeling like there are so many stories to be told with the JSA members that there just isn't room in one comic for them all. We get little snippets, pointers to indicate who's feeling what and who's going in what direction, but in most cases that's all - it's just a big cast, and 22 pages isn't a lot of room to tell all their stories. Still, wanting more isn't the worst feeling to have after reading a comic, and with the promise of the return of Isis next, I'm certainly not going anywhere.
Guardians of the Galaxy #8 ~ I'm not sure about this 'War of Kings' thing - I enjoyed Annihilation: Conquest, but while there was a lot of cool sci-fantasy in it, what I enjoyed most about it was probably the characters, mainly Quasar. Annihilation, which I read in TPBs, was okay, but not quite the kick-ass spectacle that fan chatter had led me to expect, and with 'War of Kings' throwing in other races like the Shi'ar and so on, who I've got no history with (and last saw involved with the X-Men, which means I'd rather just ignore the pack of them - not an X-Men fan, me), I don't know that I want to start buying more Marvel cosmic books just to see more of them and their ilk. Which leaves me wondering: am I going to be able to read just Guardians of the Galaxy and not feel like I'm missing half the story? This issue seems to be laying a lot of track for big cosmic political events - particularly on Hala, which we revisit for the first time since the Phalanx invasion, and find big and unsettling events going on there, which (as we saw last issue) wind up with Starlord being tossed into the Negative Zone and finishing up face to face with Blastaar, who's got a doozy of a plan lined up (although not a very clever one - just ambitious). Meanwhile the remaining Guardians have a bit of action and seem to more or less get along, and Adam Warlock with Gamora in tow is still messing with the Universal Church of Truth, and Quasar's a no-show this issue. It's still very much a novel in 22-page chunks, not a monthly superhero team comic in the traditional sense; I'm fine with reading this comic as such, but like I said, what I'm wondering now is whether I'll be able to read this novel alone, or whether 'War of Kings' is going to want me to read a bunch of other stuff too.
Grimm Fairy Tales #33 ~ My on-a-whim choice for this week - I've been vaguely aware of this title, which retells classic fairy tales with modern interpretations, for a while, but never quite felt like picking one up until now; what tipped the scale, for some reason, was that I had a look at the inside cover and found that it was doing 'Three Snake Leaves', a fairy tale I've never heard of, so I guess I was curious. Plus, near-naked woman on the cover, never a bad thing. Like all fairy tales it's basically a cautionary/morality tale - this one based on the fairly universal concept "Be careful when you mess around with the natural order of things" - and it weaves a retelling of the original story (via what I take to be a recurring character in this title, a kind of 'storyteller' figure) and the modern-day reenactment of it, tweaked to fit into its new setting. As a story in itself - since it's self-contained - I quite enjoyed it, and it's got the necessary macabre quality that all good fairy tales should, but I'm not sure I'd really want to add this to my standing order as a regular buy, unless it turned out that there was a greater plot going on than just the individual tales, with the storyteller serving to link them together. I may wind up picking up the trade paperbacks though, since it generally works out cheaper that way than buying the issues - this one's quite close to being a comic I'd like to buy, so the TPBs may prove tempting enough.
