 |
| Four of these books banded together to create Blur |
Saga #1 (Pick of the Week): The elephant in the room for comic releases this week. What do I say? Was it fun? Absolutely. Was it smart? No doubt. This new sci-fi-fantasy epic by Vaughan and Staples has been heralded as the second coming of creator-owned comics (or third, but who's keeping count?). There's a fair number of strange things at play during the first oversized issue: a cat lie-detector, a unicorn-woman, and erectile dysfunction in the form of a tv-headed alien. Drawn with a strangeness and familiarity, Fiona Staples makes the triumphant first issue a regular romp across the cosmos. The heart of the story, however, stays true to its two charming protagonists, Alana and Marko, and their new baby girl Hazel. The choice at making the book narrated from the point of view of Hazel is an inspired choice and while Vaughan has always been smart at adding references to his work that play between satire and metafiction, Saga continues the trend. Hazel's narration allows the reader to acknowledge that no, this isn't a "comic-book" story about pinning the future on a young girl. Vaughan reminds us the stakes aren't the galaxy, but this new family, and as such the universe can wait -- because there's nothing more compelling than people looking out for each other.
Team: Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples.
Saucer Country #1: My "aliens and conspiracy theories" phase came and went before I was out of my teens. Saucer Country reminds me why those stories were so fascinating while promising to be something new. Most science-fiction stories involving alien abduction focus on the "out there" -- the hunt for truth versus fiction, Mulder. Exceptional tales, like Saucer Country, mirror external search with the "in there" of the subject's mind. Is Governor Alvarado the victim of alien probing, or could her abuse-survivor trauma be the source of fantastical explanations? The best thing about reading Saucer Country is I don't know what to expect. Alien abductions seem to be done-to-death fare but with a female character that has the means (and courage) to push herself to the highest level of government to find the truth, I'll be sticking around to see where this goes, plus Ryan Kelly on art isn't too shabby either. Special MVP credit to Giulia Brusco on colours for making the entire book ooze green suspense.
Team: Paul Cornell, Ryan Kelly, Giulia Brusco.
Peter Panzerfaust #2: Panzerfaust wins the "Han Solo" moment of the year for the "I Surrender" page. A strong follow up to the first issue, the structure feels far more polished. The players are spoken for and the plan is set, both clarified to the reader through light exposition and solid visual clues. Wiebe's writing comes across are authentic in the boy's speech and Jenkin's art is at its finest when it plays within the broken boundaries of a panel grid. As a war story my expectation is that in time the book will stray away from its cleaner depiction of war-torn streets and begin to explore the damage of mass-rubble, but I'll be damned if Peter and the boys haven't already racked up a remarkable body count. Panzerfaust remains a boyish thrill that makes subtle reference to its source material while providing the great poses, world-building, and smart cliffhangers that comics are known for.
Team: Kurtis Wiebe, Tyler Jenkins.
Thief of Thieves #2: After an underwhelming first issue, issue two gets to the meat of what the story's about. Giving up his life of crime, Conrad spends the issue trying to rebuild the bridge with his ex-wife while reminiscing over a previous heist. Smothered in the beautifully coloured pages by artist Shawn Martinbrough and colorist Felix Serrano, Nick Spencer's tale goes against a common crime convention: the last heist. Courage and money won't win back love where it might have before (shown in the flashback heist's robbing of a diamond store to steal an engagement ring). Little surprises like Conrad's wife being the getaway driver or her being pregnant give the story a pump of life that drives home the cover's tagline: "There is nothing he can't steal... Nothing he can't have... except for the life he left behind".
Team: Robert Kirkman, Nick Spencer, Shawn Martinbrough, Felix Serrano.
Demon Knights #7: The siege against our heroes has come and failed, and if the team's struggle to buy time should be a mirror to my reading the book, they JUST held out. The cunning of Vandal Savage, heroism of Jason Blood/Etrigan, and revival of Madame Xanadu were more than enough to get my heart racing. The art by Diogenes Neves remains insanely detailed and makes it unfair to other artists who leave blank backgrounds. The siege itself has been slow moving and the introduction of all the characters and probably would have been better to read in trade. That said, Cornell still demonstrates enough charm to make the book an enjoyable read (even if upon reflection things ponder on a little too long). Loud, fun, and fierce, the next arc will be something I pick up in trade.
Team: Paul Cornell, Diogenes Neves, Robson Rocha, Oclair Albert.
Batwoman #7: Kate Kane's villains are proving to become modern revivals of those stories told to scare young children. Whereas Batman's rogues reflect the shattered psyche, Batwoman's luxuriate in the myth of urban legend: the Man with the Hook, White Queen, Bloody Mary, the Weeping Woman, and Killer Croc? It makes sense when you think about alligators in the sewers. It's a fascinating little bundle of foes. For the rest of the book the chronology and pacing continue to suffer some minor nitpicks. The bouncing between the "now" and the "weeks"/"days" ago does does little to escalate the drama. It's a rule of writing to keep the stakes high and tension moving, but by straddling several timeframes (and character relationships) the book speeds through rather loosely with the indication of where the dramatic beats should be. Instead, things just keep piling on and getting bigger and aa result of this, the story just kind of feels there, growing without an immediate emotional core.
Team: J.H. Williams III, W. Haden Blackman, Amy Reeder.
Until next week.
No comments:
Post a Comment