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Thursday, September 9, 2010
Tim's Reviews
Wow…one more week until Christmas…it’s amazing how fast the time seems to pass between Halloween and New Years…one big whirlwind. I apologize for missing last week’s column but I was a bit under the weather but were back this week with a whole slew of new releases.
Atomic Robo #3 (Red 5 Comics)
Written by Brian Clevinger
Art by Scott Wegner
In “Pyramid Scheme” Robo and his team have traveled to Egypt to face their latest threat - an ancient pyramid that has just decided to move on its own and it’s headed straight for the city of Luxor, while emitting random death ray beams. Robo finds himself in a touch situation; he has an overwhelming desire to nuke the pyramid to kingdom come and yet has to placate the Egyptians who don’t want their ancient archaeological wonder to be destroyed if at all possible. This sets up some rather amusing repartee between Robo and the rest of the team, and it’s one of the things that I like about the title so much. Clevinger has scripted a series that is funny and exciting. Robo is like the Chevy Chase of robots…a pure wise-cracking smart ass but one who loves to blow stuff up! With nukes ruled out except in the direst situation, Robo decides to take the fight to the bowels of the pyramid, finding a miraculous site inside. There is more to this pyramid than meets the eye.
Scott Wegner’s style perfectly complements the tone of Clevinger’s stories. Robo’s look is a throwback to pulp magazines of the 30’s and 40’s with a cartoony yet modernized look to his pencils and inks. These two make a great team. This series is scheduled for six issues and I certainly hope that a regular series will soon be forthcoming. I’m not sure how many new comic book companies have sprung up in 2007, but as of right now, with titles like Atomic Robo and Abyss, Red 5 would get my vote for best new publisher of the year. Grade A-
Living with the Dead #1-3 (Dark Horse Comics)
Written by Mike Richardson
Art by Ben Stenbeck
One of the things I’ll be doing from time-to-time is reviewing complete runs or mini-series because often, that’s how I receive them. Living with the Dead is kind of like Shaun of the Dead meets A Bob Hope/Bing Crosby “Road” picture, and if that reference seems dated then sue me for being an old fart. Essentially the story is a buddy picture about a couple of guys surviving as best they can amidst a zombie virus outbreak to which they are seemingly immune. Straw is named after the term given to Ex-Yankees Slugger, Reggie Jackson, who was often referred to as the straw that stirs the drink in New York. Whip—well, he can’t seem to remember how he got his name. The aspiring actor and chef is clearly not the brains of the duo, but he means well.
The pair has found a clever way to avoid the zombies - put on Halloween masks and go about uttering the word “Brains” in order to fool the real undead. It’s silly and clearly inspired by Shaun of the Dead, but still funny, particularly since the masks really don’t resemble zombies all that much. A well-placed wrench is thrown into their usual routines of food runs and electronics looting when they spot a girl, the first other human they’ve seen in a very long time. They arrive to her rescue, fending off a horde of zombies and getting her safely back to their home, and that’s where the real trouble begins.
Like the Hope & Crosby Road movies, it’s always a damn woman that comes between friends and gets them to start acting like jealous twits. It’s not long before each is doing his best to outplay the other for Betty’s attention. They resort to spiking drinks and leaving their buddy alone and at the mercy of the zombies, all so they can get some alone time with the tramp..err…Betty. Dark Horse Publisher, Mike Richardson, wrote the story and while not all of the gags work, I for one appreciated this spoof on old Hollywood “buddy” films and thought Richardson did a great job. One of the best things about the series was the art of Stenbeck, which had an old school, EC Comics flair. I anticipate that Dark Horse will be delivering more Straw and Whip adventures very soon. Grade A-
First Born #3 (Top Cow)
Written by Ron Marz
Art by Stjepan Sejic
First Born #3 brings the mini-series to a close and yet the story is just beginning. Sara Pezzini, the previous Witchblade wielder is due to have her baby at any moment. She has fled to a secret mob safe house deep beneath the surface along with The Darkness, Danielle Baptiste (the new Witchblade) and The Magdelena who remains a bit conflicted over which side of the war to be on…the side with the Darkness or with the Angelus. As Danielle remains behind to help Sara with the delivery, The Darkness and the Magdalena go out to battle Angelus’ hordes…two lone warriors against a legion, all in the effort to protect the child. I’ve seen a major change in Top Cow over the past couple of years. The art in their books is still fantastic--and this Sejic guy is a true phenomenon—but now the stories have finally caught up and begun to engage the reader. It’s no longer just about big boobs in skimpy costumes (not that there’s anything wrong with that). This three issue series has now managed to hook me for the new Darkness title, as well as the ongoing Witchblade title, which gets a surprising twist at the end of First Born. I do want to see what happens to these characters next, including Magdelena and Angelus.
Marz has given these characters a new fresh bit of life, in part by humanizing them and making readers actually care about them. Jackie Estacado is no longer just an arrogant mobster. The events in this series have changed him for the better and he’s now more aware of his responsibilities not only as the father of Sara’s baby, but also to the world in general. And what does the story mean to the Magdelena? She had already disassociated herself with the Catholic Inquisition and now it can be argued that she ‘crossed sides’ to assist The Darkness. This will seemingly put her at even greater odds with the Church. And finally, what will this mean to Sara and Danielle (again…that ending twist)? This should create an interesting dynamic for the Witchblade. Sejic’s style is truly unlike any other artist’s. Comic art is great today but so few artists have truly distinctive styles that you need only see one panel and you know who did the art. Sejic is that type and I look forward to seeing more of his work. Grade B+
The Marvel Vault (Running Press)
Written by Roy Thomas & Peter Sanderson
This book traces Marvel’s history from the Golden Age right up through the present and is loaded with reproduction memorabilia culled from Marvel’s nearly 70-year history. It is written by Roy Thomas, writer and former Marvel Editor-in-Chief (and one of the foremost comic book scholars around) along with comic book critic and historian, Peter Sanderson.
Marvel’s lineage is traced back even prior to the formation of Timely Comics to publisher Martin Goodman who began publishing pulp magazines in 1932. With the pulp market dwindling in the late 1930’s, Goodman jumped into the new market of comic books with the publication of Marvel Comics #1 in 1939, and the rest, as they say, is history. I mentioned all of the little treasures to be found within. The reproduction pieces all come in clear plastic sleeves for protection. The first such piece is a set of 8 sketches by artist Bill Everett featuring his creation, the Sub-Mariner. These sketches are breakdowns for covers or splash pages, one of which shows the Human Torch and Toro lobbing fireballs at Hitler.
Rare panel art and covers, many of them being seen for the first time since their publication decades ago, are highlights of the book. Often, when people think about Marvel’s history they jump right from the Golden Age to the early 1960’s, completely overlooking the decade of the 1950’s. Marvel did not totally abandon the super hero comic as many might think, evidenced by the debut of Marvel Boy, later known as Quasar. Marvel’s books of the 50’s were highlighted by an array of horror, sci-fi, war, and westerns with nearly forgotten titles like Mystic, Menace, Navy Combat, and Yellow Claw.
It was the 60’s when Marvel exploded with Fantastic Four #1 in 1961. Another of the treasures is Stan Lee’s two-page, typed treatment for Fantastic Four #1. From there we meet The Hulk, Spider-Man, Thor, Dr. Strange, Iron Man, and the Avengers. There are vintage photographs of the Marvel Bullpen and rare convention photos such as Marvel’s long-time secretary Flo Steinberg attending a 1960’s comic convention, and Roy Thomas playing softball in Central Park in the 70’s. With this book you can own your own ID card and certificate to the Merry Marvel Marching Society, Marvel’s original fan club. Classic comic ads are reprinted for things such as Marvel T-shirts, which could be had for the princely sum of a buck and a half…with .15 cents for postage and handling!
Some of the other reproduction pieces include a Howard the Duck campaign sticker, a set of 10 of the Marvel Value stamps from the mid-70’s which NO ONE ever cut out, a visitor pass to the Marvel offices, and a copy of Roy Thomas’ stock certificate from 1993 for twenty shares when the company went public. For an old Marvel fan like myself, this is the kind of book that made you feel like a kid again when comics were just plain fun. With Christmas fast approaching, this will make a great gift. At $50 it is well worth the price. Grade A+
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April 22, 2008:
February 4, 2008:
November 20, 2006:
A Comic-Con without the Captain
