Superman/Wonder Woman #1
Power Couple
Writer: Charles Soule
Artists: Tony S. Daniel, Batt
Colorist: Tomeu Morey
Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual
24 pages, $3.99
Since I found writer Charles Soule’s Action Comics #23.3 exuded a high level of dedication, I thought it my duty to check out his already infamous Superman Wonder Woman #1 comic. And I was happy I did it– because I just saved myself Twenty-Five bucks in six months… By not buying this series’ first Trade collection.
My ire isn’t focused on Clark and Diana being an item. Truth is, I don’t give a shit about them dating. It could be awesome or terrible– depending on who’s writing the narrative. (Unfortunately Geoff Johns has been the mastermind of the DC Universe lately, so their romantic encounters have all been crappy and uninteresting.) But in theory, good comics are all about experimentation– forgetting old continuity (at least for a while) and creating crazy/weird ideas to mix things up.
Moreover, I’m thrilled about Wonder Woman getting a second title. Batman has a gazillion books, with a new one just announced– Batman Eternal. (*sigh*) And Superman has at least four all to himself. It’s past time for the last member of DC’s Trinity to get her fair share of the spotlight. So, with all this positive context behind it– what could have possibly gone wrong with this comic?
Lots.
Credit must be given to Soule for attempting to get the voices of two powerful heroes right. It’s no small feat to write about an Alien god and an Amazon– while still capturing life-like, respectful impressions of them. Soule’s characterization isn’t always spot-on here, but at least Superman and Wonder Woman feel in character most of the time.
But this is also where the comic’s main flaw comes into play. In order to fully depict the two superheroes, Soule tries to blend heavy action sequences with quiet, peaceful moments of everyday life. You get punching on one page– then turn to another, and suddenly it’s all about kissing and cuddling. Surely getting a few “spooning” scenes here and there is part of the title’s premise, so it really isn’t a bugger (even if, let it be reminded, no one seems to give a shit about Clark and Diana’s sex life).
In truth, the extra-large amount of decompression used by Soule to depict the characters– and the dual aspect of their relationship– is much more annoying. Trying to write Superman and Wonder Woman by sex-ing things up? I don’t like it, but after all… Why the hell not? But then you add a huge number of double-page spreads to this bullshit? That’s a really bad idea, especially if you truly aim to produce something subtle and respectful.
I’ve said it already: I hate double-page spreads and splash pages littering comics. This book, technically, has twenty-four pages– but in reality? There’s barely a dozen pages in here because of all the wasted space. This lazy writing technique ends up delivering a bare, hollow story with shallow characterization– even when the tone of both protagonists are respected. By the end, nothing happened at all… And a tired cliffhanger wraps it all in a crappy bow, in the form of an annoying Doomsday kicking Diana’s ass. BLAH!
About the art, let me just quote Jose. Our recently returned IMJ Truthsayer™ predicted the following not long ago:
“I want to read [Superman/Wonder Woman #1] firsthand– to see just how terribly awful it will be. I understand this comic has a chance to be completely average (instead of sucking hard) [...]. If anything, I know the art won’t let me down in the sucking/awful department.”
At this stage, Jose’s words are not truthsaying– they’re practically soothsaying. Tony S. Daniel’s art is horrendous and gruesome, with innumerable anatomical errors. For instance, Tony has no clue how to draw hands… Always making them twice as big (or small) as they should be. It’s disturbing and often ugly to look at. If Rob Liefeld is the nemesis of feet, then Daniel is the most dangerous threat for hand lovers. Also, Diana’s nose changes size and form all the time– and I promise it’s a much bigger problem than it sounds like. And don’t even get me started on how awful and bland Daniel’s facial expressions are… The characters have the same body and face language for 24 pages… As his art does nothing to help convey any emotion in an issue that’s all about setting a tone, and grounding a superhero love affair in reality.
In a nutshell, a good but lazy attempt by Soule– but far too badly drawn by Daniel (and too decompressed) to be enjoyable. – Simon J. O’Connor
Star Wars #10
Writer: Brian Wood
Artist: Carlos D’Anda
Colorist: Gabe Eltaeb
Letterer: Michael Eisler
22 pages, $2.99
I was going to review Superman/Wonder Woman #1 this week, but it’s so conclusively toe-curlingly awful– I just lost the will. So I looked at what else was out there, wondering what I could even muster the slightest interest in…. Forever Evil Arkham War? Gimme a fuckin’ break! Wolverine? Perhaps if my IQ dropped about 50 points. That’s more or less how I came to choose Star Wars #10… There just wasn’t a lot out there to pick from this week, especially after Ian already greedily grabbed Afterlife with Archie!
It may surprise some of you to hear that I love Star Wars, especially the original trilogy. I bash Star Wars products quite regularly in my Previews Hits and Misses™ column but, in my defense, that’s down to how Lucasfilm (and now Disney– the REAL evil empire) whore out the franchise to make a bewildering array of shitty overpriced merchandise. When there is a rare good product I will usually praise it to the skies. Despite his numerous professional flaws, George Lucas created (well, when I say “created”, there’s large helpings of stuff from Akira Kurosawa, Jack Kirby and various 1930s film serials shamelessly used in Star Wars– with the identifying numbers filed off) a universe that was so diverse and interesting, that other minds have easily expanded on it in the last 30 or so years through prose and sequential art.
The first issue of Brian Wood’s Star Wars comic got a distinctly lukewarm review in one of the early IMJ Comic Book Reviews columns… But, on a whim, I figured I’d give the series a shot. To be honest, I’m quite glad I did. Wood seemed to be going through a bit of a slump about a year ago– with a lot of people echoing the IMJ View™ that Wood was imposing too much of his own storytelling tics into the multitude of projects he was pursuing (subsequent to his unjustified shitcanning by the morons that are running DC Comics these days). My own review of his new X-Men comic was positive overall and indicated a return to form for a guy who is, after all, one of the great talents in the American Comic Book Industry.
The structure of Star Wars #10 reminded me of the classic Chris Claremont era of Uncanny X-Men– with a lot of sub-plots being weaved throughout the narrative. The action flitted from location to location every few pages but the plotting was dense enough for each segment to feel like it had substance. There are three main strands intertwining in this issue: Princess Leia visiting the debris of her home planet Alderaan to find one of the designers of the Death Star… The second has Han Solo trying to escape from Boba Fett on the imperial headquarters planet of Coruscant… And the third plot thread has Luke Skywalker aboard Vader’s Super-Star Destroyer The Devastator on a spying mission.
I pretty much loved all of it– aside from one brief scene of Wedge Antilles telling Luke of a lost love– which struck me as a bit of a “Wood-ism” (i.e. an attempt to artificially inject pathos into a character’s story, something which has been absolutely plaguing Wood’s Conan comic since he took over that franchise). But I’m not here to rant about how pissed off I am about Conan, I’m here to talk about Star Wars– so I’ll save that for another day! On the whole, Wood’s dialogue is spot on for this story, making it feel like an authentic addition to the Star Wars universe.
I don’t know how they do it, but Dark Horse always seems to find artists who fit the properties they publish like a glove. (I only wish other licensed comics producers like IDW and Dynamite were as discriminating.) The likenesses, which are vital in any film or TV-based pamphlet, are pretty good here… Aside from Han Solo, whose look can get a bit sketchy. The other important aspect of Star Wars art is the spacecraft– and artist Carlos D’Anda is just fucking awesome at drawing these. I’m sure he gets lots of reference material from Lucasfilm, but I don’t fucking care– they look bloody great. D’Anda also gets a lot of help from colorist Gabe Elltaeb, who makes every page look wonderful in a subtle, understated way.
So there you have it– a positive review (and a well deserved one too)! Thank the almighty jeebus and the flying spaghetti monster we have companies like Dark Horse and Image who can still bring out top-notch product every month… If only to combat the morass of shite some other companies continually inflict on the comic buying public. If you’re a Star Wars fan (and who isn’t?), then I think there’s a very good chance you’ll like this. I’m going to look out for the collected versions of Brian Wood’s Star Wars myself. - Locusmortis
Batgirl #24
Batgirl Wanted Part 2 of 3 – Dragnet
Writer: Gail Simone
Artists: Fernando Pasarin,
Jonathan Glapion
Colorist: Blond
Letterer: Dezi Sienty
20 pages, $2.99
Where is the Gail Simone I heard so much about when I started reading comics? (To clarify, I haven’t read any of her Secret Six series– even though every comic book related site said it was amazing.) Since we’re two years into DC’s New 52 relaunch– with lots of titles canceled and others having experienced massive creative upheaval– this seemed as good a time as any to personally check in on the acclaimed writer. Unfortunately, like many IMJ Comic Book Reviewers before me– I discovered Batgirl stinks.
Nothing in this comic feels new. It’s like I’ve read most of the story points found in this book in different titles from other publishers– In just the last couple of weeks. Needless to say, my familiarity with this mishmash of thrown-together ideas makes it all seem kind of boring.
Barbara Gordon is trying to get away from being Batgirl. Hmmm… Where have I seen this superhero trope before? (The answer would be: My Ultimate Comics Spider-Man critique from the last IMJ Comic Book Review™ column and many other Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, Smallville comics… And on and on.) All points lead to her having to don the suit one final time. Gee, I bet this isn’t the last time Barbara Gordon puts on her black skin-tight bat suit… Any takers want to bet against me? (I’ll give you really good odds.)
Simone’s script also feels very pedantic. There’s too much whining and dysfunction going on for almost any character to appear interesting. Overly dramatic and depressed characters usually get criticized (look at any TV show forum). Thinking the world owes you something gets old really quickly. Since there’s way too much complaining in my day-to-day life– whether by me, my friends, or my family– I don’t really want to overdose on it in my funny books.
The pencils from Fernando Pasarin were just okay. The inks from Jonathan Glapion were just okay too– which is weird, because he usually helps define and enrich other artist’s pencil lines. The colours from Blond were good in spots, but bad in others. I know Batgirl #24 takes place in Gotham, but the contrast in the darker scenes was rather odd and a little over emphasised.
I really gave the New 52 a genuine effort, hoping to diversify my superhero reading. My monthly reads were sorely lacking in women heroes, and I was looking forward to reading some comics with strong female characters. With J.H. Williams III leaving Batwoman, the only DC comic with a strong woman lead I can still tout is Wonder Woman– and that seems really unfortunate. – Nick Furi
Ultimate Comics X-Men #32
World War X Part Four
Writer: Brian Wood
Artists: Alvaro Martinez, John Lucas
Colorist: Chris Sotomayor
Letterer: VC’s Joe Sabino
20 pages, $3.99
Ultimate Comics X-Men #32 is the perfect example of how more can end up with less. Despite a lot of plot and fury, the World War X storyline (which I haven’t followed in the least) doesn’t deliver much in this penultimate iteration.
Brian Wood depicts a world torn in half– trapped in a war between mutant factions– for no apparent reason whatsoever. It’s basically a cheap Tale of Two Cities, but I couldn’t give you a clue to why the two mutant clans can’t get along. The entire story lacks an organic structure and a natural feel. A lot of fighting and drama unfolds, but it seems unnatural and forced. No payoff seems imminent and nothing indicates the possibility of a big reveal or a hidden surprise.
In fact, the entire narrative is tired and truly average. I think I could guess what happened before this issue– or guess what will come next– with 100% accuracy. Nothing wrong in having no imagination (we can’t all be geniuses), but at least– if you want to write an over told story– do it brilliantly, or with some innovative additions. A lack of crazy plot twists or weird concepts is acceptable… But creating a story with no soul and no passion is not okay. I didn’t feel compelled to care about anyone or anything– and that’s one hell of a fictional faux-pas.
Alvaro Martinez’ art suffers from the same problem… As there’s no sense of fun and no originality in his style. It’s far from bad, but I don’t feel a thing when I look at it! It doesn’t seem like he had fun drawing it either… And every single person should enjoy his/her job– especially when they get to do something as cool and hip as drawing a comic book! But here I get the same feeling I do when some intern sends me a stupid, boring Powerpoint Presentation– Someone just wants to get something done as fast as humanly possible.
Maybe lovers of Marvel’s Ultimate Universe will find something valuable in this comic– but for me, this product lacks dedication and love. It wants to be epic and glorious (with explosions everywhere!) but doesn’t even start to achieve this ambitious goal.
Thank God DC still has Forever Evil for my epic story fix! *Snicker*… I can’t even keep a straight face while typing that! - Simon J. O’Connor
Coffin Hill #1
Forest of the Night
Writer: Caitlin Kittredge
Artist: Inaki Miranda
Colorist: Eva de la Cruz
Letterer: Travis Lanham
24 pages, $2.99
I am not a person who usually gets into the spirit of most holidays… I mean, besides the family oriented ones like Thanksgiving or Christmas. I’m not one to attend some giant shindig for New Year’s Eve, celebrate the Hallmark Cards-invented Valentine’s Day or dress up for Halloween.
Even if I don’t tend to participate in these types of ritualistic traditions, I thought I would at least try to turn up the creep factor in my comic reading to get into the ghoul-y spirit. Coffin Hill #1 seemed like a perfect chance for a festive change.
Sadly, the contents of this book are not completely up to the standard of creepiness I was looking for… Even if all serves as good set up for future events shrouded in the dark arts. Witches and Curses are constantly debated in the internal dialogue of main character Eve Coffin… And Hey! At least I got to witness a demonic ritual!
The simplicity behind artist Inaki Miranda’s character designs is awesome. Each character is easily distinguishable, but not overly complicated. Things are kept simple in order to enhance the rest of the panels with a little extra detail… And Miranda delivers a particularly stellar splash page. Eva de la Cruz’s great colouring job adds to the overall visual quality too. Cruz knows how to properly create a light and dark effect without having the entire comic look overly dreary. Not once did I stop and think this comic was trying too hard to be gritty.
It’s exciting to finally see a new Vertigo book with potential. Not every Vertigo series is going to be a knock out, of course, but the imprint gives creators more freedom– instead of forcing them to endure the oppressive editorial mandates currently screwing with the parent publisher’s superhero comics… And that’s good news. For lack of a better adjective, Coffin Hill #1 felt energetic– not a feeling I usually get when reading many of DC’s current flights and tights books.
It will be very interesting to see how this new wave of Vertigo titles fares. Will they be allowed to thrive unmolested… Or will they be jerked around too? I don’t think I will continue buying Coffin Hill as an ongoing monthly, but I will definitely check it out in trade form later on. In the usual “DC confusion” (an “affliction” that seems to rule the publisher these days), I had trouble nailing down whether this comic was an ongoing series or a limited one. Whatever the case, if the dark arts and fantasy themes keep up their current level of quality, it will be fun to check out this series again– just in time to get into an All Hallows Eve mood again next year. – Nick Furi
Uncanny X-Force #12
Writer: Sam Humphries
Artist: Adrian Alphona
Colorists: Chris Sotomayor,
Rachelle Rosenberg
Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
20 pages, $3.99
I had two choices for Sam Humphries‘ comic books this week. I wanted to check out the writer, mainly because IMJ Nation™ greats, Tom Devine and Jon Runyan, constantly praise his work ( mainly for an Image Comic called Our Love Is Real). After a few pages, I realized I should have just bought a copy of that comic instead– because I was rather disappointed by the story in Uncanny X-Force #12. (A slight bonus! This comic was not the worst thing I read this week!)
Story pacing was my main beef. The first half of the book was painfully slow and boring… Easily classified as pointless jibber-jabber that should not have taken up as much space as it did. This really annoyed me, because the last half of the comic really picked up the pace– and was even exciting.
I have been reviewing comics for a few months now, and I am already getting tired of describing mediocre art. It’s very hard to criticize such fluff… There isn’t necessarily anything wrong with it, but it isn’t amazing either. You’ve no doubt heard this before in many IMJ Comic Book Reviews, but serviceable artwork is the hardest to describe and critique. To clarify– artist Adrian Alphona’s art just doesn’t do it for me.
The colours from Chris Sotomayor and Rachelle Rosenberg stand as the only work I can give positive credit to here. Once again, I happily find a Marvel title not afraid to use bright colours.
Most likely, Uncanny X-Force #12 was just a random dud in the Sam Humphries’ canon. (Not every comic can be a winner.) In any case, I’ll be giving this creator another chance– again due to the high praise from the usually spot on reviews from the makers of A Comic Book Look. I’m sure my next Humphries choice will fare much better. – Nick Furi
The Walking Dead #115
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artists: Charlie Adlard, Stefano Gaudino
Gray tones: Cliff Rathburn
Letterer: Rus Wooton
22 Pages, $2.99
The war has begun… Kind of.
This issue sets up the next 11 issues of The Walking Dead, which will feature the war creator Robert Kirkman has been alluding to for the past year and a half.
Thankfully, tons of foreshadowing is not always a bad thing. There are some well-written character moments in this issue, making this an above average “calm before the storm” type story.
I’m very happy Rick got a chance to rationalize going to war with the Saviors in a conversation with Andrea. His reasoning makes sense too: They need to get rid of Negan and the Saviors, because they pose a very real threat to the other humans around them.
Rick, Andrea and Carl have the best scenes in this issue. There’s a moment between the three that really shows how much Carl has grown… He’s a completely different character now. (Imagine that… Characters actually developing and maturing over 115+ issues of a comic book series.) Carl’s not the only one either– all the major characters seem to have grown in some way… And it’s a testament to Kirkman’s talent that we can readily see how far they’ve come.
Charlie Adlard continues to be a fine artist, but sometimes I have no clue who some of the minor characters are. There’s two reasons for this confusion: There’s way too many of them and Adlard tends to draw many of their faces the same. At the end, when Kirkman delivers his cliffhanger… I found myself thinking, “Who is that guy?” I then had to “Google” this minor character in order to fully understand the ending. (And yeah, it does make sense now– and should prove to add to the growing list of problems Rick and his group are facing.)
I am curious to see how this conflict plays out. We’ve already seen Rick’s group go to battle with the Governor and other villains throughout the series, but this conflict seems much more like a full-scale war.
From November to April, some months will see two issues of The Walking Dead ship (instead of the regular once a month shipping). While I’m looking forward to getting two issues a month for a while, I’m also worried how the art will look. Adlard’s work looks very sketchy when it’s rushed– so I’m hoping they’ve figured out a way to cure this. I noticed Adlard is accompanied by an inker this issue (which isn’t usually the case)… So maybe this is how they plan to keep up the book’s schedule and the art quality?
With such a long narrative build (and Glenn’s death still firmly in hanging in the back of my mind), I’m hoping this war will play out as one of the best Walking Dead story arcs ever. The huge set-up really has me expecting a good pay-off.
- Aaron Evans
Katana #8
The Tightening Coil
Writer: Ann Nocenti
Artist: Cliff Richards
Colorist: Matt Yackey
Letterer: Taylor Esposito
20 pages, $2.99
I’ve never attended a Comic Con– and I probably never will– and yet, I am extremely excited by events like NYCC. I love announcements and big comic book news, as I can’t wait for all the big reveals to be exposed. There’s one set of revelations I’m especially looking forward to– the cancellation of such horrible DC comics as The Green Team, The Movement, and yes… Katana. These four-color turds are so godawful, I’ll definitely be a happy leprechaun when they get canned.
With writer Ann Nocenti at the wheel, it’s no shocker this comic book sucks. Still, it is a pity. For once, fans have a comic about a non-White woman… And that’s one hell of a rarity these days. Secondly, Katana offered readers a unique chance to dive into the rich and exciting world of Japan– and eventually explore Asia’s different countries and cultures… Even decide how they might add to the superhero genre. There was so much potential here and so many good stories to tell. It could even have been an attempt for DC to tell stories in a manga-esque manner. All this would have resulted in a good, sturdy comic– but that seems to be in direct conflict with the New 52′s strategic objectives.
Katana #8 is a mash-up of many bits– making every part of the story worthless and cheap. Since a scene only gets a few badly written pages to move the plot further, the reader can’t differentiate which sequence is important and which isn’t. A big fight between Katana and Coil ends up reading as rushed and silly– with Katana winning against her opponent without breaking a sweat. (This occurs after Coil is introduced as the most dangerous and experienced foe she could ever face!) The quick resolution made me feel as if I were just cheated by Nocenti. We were promised a deadly, impossible-to-win encounter– yet our hero overcomes this difficulty in minutes, with barely a scratch?
Same goes with the rest of the issue. A ghost takes possession of innocents for a few pages– but this worn plot point isn’t addressed by the end. Katana shares many discussions with different protagonists, but it’s all so rushed and sloppy– nothing smart is ever said. Through expository dialogue, Nocenti hurls a thousand “holier-than-thou” and “so-mystic-you-can’t-even-get-it” philosophical lessons at her readership– resulting in only three things: Tiresome Clichés, Boredom and Nocenti coming off as the Biggest Douchebag ever. No one needs you to expose what life is all about Ann– stop being a sanctimonious jerk and focus on your comic book’s plot instead.
Finally, I really dislike Cliff Richards’ artwork. It’s sketchy, neglected and doesn’t make me feel like the story is set in San Francisco. This is such a special city– with a vibe of its very own… So it should receive a painstakingly careful, special treatment. Instead, the images in this book could be re-used for an issue happening on Mars or Uranus… It would look all the same to me.
This comic actually sucks beyond the sum of its parts, resulting in a wasted opportunity– and a sad entry for Nocenti’s resume. - Simon J. O’Connor