Oh, mama. I bought a ton of comics this week, and I have no idea how it happened. It’s after 1 a.m. right now, because it’s taken me this long to read everything, and in certain cases, read again. Don’t be afraid to read a book, read something else, and then return to the earlier book. You never know what you’ll pick up on a second, closer reading until you try it. Because of the potential length of this — I’m verbose, what of it? — some of these little reviews may be micro-reviews, especially if it’s a case of restating something I’ve said many times before.
That’s my sly way of introducing Northlanders 43. You all know I love the book and I’m gutted by its cancellation, so let me just add further that creator/writer Brian Wood is building towards a massive flaming pyre of death with this final arc. Of course, this being a book about vikings, it’s important to note that after every cleansing fire in Norse mythology, there’s an eventual rebirth (wishful thinking on my part; there’ve been rumors that Wood is going to take Northlanders to another publisher). Iceland is being settled by vikings in 880 A.D. in this issue, and the little boy of last month is now a ruthless, hard nut who slaughters a village of enemies to get his way. After killing his mother last go round, this issue’s mass-murder and banishment of his father is almost prosaic. Almost. Brian Wood still limns the essence of a character in the most efficient, slashing strokes — Ulf Haukson is a psychotic, ambitious and somehow engenders a little sympathy because its his father’s fault he’s this way — which is to say, Northlanders remains the most personally compelling book on the market, for at least seven more months.
FF 8 is less compelling than it once was as far as I’m concerned. Multiple Reeds now fight our Reed and his father on the High Evolutionary’s turf while the Inhumans choose to enter the fray. It’s kinda awesome, but we’ve been on the cusp of this fight for three months now, and we’re still not really getting anywhere. Also, everybody but the Thing shows up in this issue, and when you’re getting to the big punch-out we’ve apparently been circling for I don’t know how many months, Thing is kinda the guy you’d think would be most in his element. But no — not even present. A year ago at this time, I was fretting that Jonathan Hickman was going to kill ol’ Benjy. He didn’t, but he may as well have, because Thing’s been the odd man out in this book. Personal challenge to Jonathan Hickman: try to have Thing punch somebody, somewhere, some time in 2011. It sounds easy — heck, Dan Slott’s done it a couple times over in Amazing Spider-Man — but time is running out, and you haven’t been able to make it happen yet.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1 — how awesome is it to type that? — is a pretty great comic book first issue. If you’re familiar with the original Mirage series, Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz and Dan Duncan touch on some very well-loved plot points in this updated relaunch (Prof. Baxter, April O’Neil, Casey Jones and even nervous lab guy Chet are present), while also twisting things around a bit. Baxter’s a lot more nefarious from the beginning, the turtles are still actual turtles and a certain Krang makes a veiled appearance much earlier in the series. No Shredder or Foot yet, but you know that’s coming. I had a great deal of hope for this series, and after reading issue 1, my hopes are even higher. Everything is here, but it feels a little newer and a little shinier. This is a great time to start (or resume) your relationship with TMNT — I didn’t realize how much I missed the goofy humor and pure action of the series until I actually had this in hand.
Following Cerebus 12 is an oddball book in that most of it is given over to interviews and story analysis, with very little traditional comic book content. But you should always expect the unexpected with Dave Sim. For me, Sim’s interview with David Petersen (Mouse Guard genius) was worth the cover price. Primarily because it’s always interesting to eavesdrop on two experts talking about their chosen field, but also because it sparked an interesting conversation about Mouse Guard and D&D with Steenz, the ultra-cool catlady who prowls around Star Clipper just generally being awesome and enthusiastic about comics. If there’s anything you can count on a Dave Sim book doing, it’s sparking a conversation. Although, Dave himself notes on the letters page that of the three projects he’s been working on (Glamourpuss, Cerebus TV and this), nobody talks about or comments on any of it, so he’s probably dropping this book. It’s a shame; his conversation with Petersen is fantastic, and I’d like to read more of his one-on-one things such as this.
Speaking of D&D, Dungeons and Dragons 10 came out, and it’s a great read, as usual. I know I’m the only one buying it — although maybe Steenz is? — so I won’t bore you (too much) with discussing it. Let’s just say that when your wildcard team member, the avaricious and relentlessly self-centered thief, is crafting your strategy, things are going to get out of whack quickly and repeatedly. And they do. This book always reads like the best parts of a really high-caliber campaign, thanks to John Rogers.
I bought The Iron Age: Omega 1 because of the promise of classic-era Power Man and Iron Fist, and technically, they’re in this book. Briefly, and with little to do. This is more a Tony Stark and Hank Pym story, and I liked that just fine, but I had expectations of modern-era Tony Stark having to negotiate a plan with the take-no-prisoners Luke Cage and the touchy-feely-let’s-be-socially-conscious naiveté of Danny Rand. Yes, I’m disappointed. Dazzler is in this one more than Luke & Danny, and I’ve never ever cared about whatever it is Dazzler does. Still, it’s a good Tony and Hank story.
Justice League of America Retro-Active 1: the 90s, however, is an amazing piece of comic book art. If you’ve never experienced the J.M. DeMatteis/Keith Giffen (with penciller Kevin Maguire) Justice League International years, this is going to sell you on the entire concept. The new story in the first half is as splendiferous and entertaining a comic book as you’ll find. Characterizations are perfect, jokes are plentiful, action is hot, Guy Gardner is a colossal a-hole and yet somehow likeable and issues of sexism and stupidity are referenced in such a way that you agree with the principal (stereotyping women is wrong) even as you chuckle while the guy heroes do it. This is in essence a comic book cliché — a team fight breaks out over some false assumptions — and it’s so fresh and beautifully done that you go along for the ride. The back-up story is a 90s classic by the same team, and in it you see how these guys handled the serious stuff; which is to say, with just as much panache and respect as they deal out the silly stuff. If DC were using these guys’ ideas as the groundwork for the new universe, I’d feel a whole lot better about the whole thing, Instead, once again, this is just a tip of the hat to a classic of yesterday. Consider it one last look before the first spade-full of dirt hits the coffin, if you like.
Bart Simpson 62: Wage Slave is another fine read. Honestly, since I saw the way my nephews flipped out over the mere idea of Simpsons’ comics at Free Comic Book Day, I’ve been buying these to pass on to them. Now I’m kinda regretting it, because books like this I’d like to hang on to for my own benefit (selfish uncle!). Two big stories explore Bart, Homer and Grandpa Simpson attempting to rebuild a classic car for Bart, and Mr. Burns getting the child labor laws repealed so he can make more money by having the children of Springfield work at the plant — care to guess who takes Homer’s job? There are lots of sight gags and callbacks to various TV episodes, you can hear the characters’ voices while reading the dialogue and — honestly — these stories are better than anything I saw the last time I watched The Simpsons. I haven’t seen a new episode of the show in years, though, so maybe the comics are mirroring a Renaissance of the TV show. I kinda think not; this is where the true spirit of The Simpsons I know and love seems to be these days. Right here in the Bongo Comics.
Also maintaining the true spirit of comics is Dark Horse Presents 3 — at least if you define that true spirit as being “tell stories in an innovative way that takes full advantage of the medium, be entertaining, have a ‘wow’ factor and offer a variety of stories.” DHP is straight up and down killer stuff, with the notable exceptions of Concrete (I’ve never liked Concrete, though, so I’m no judge) and Howard Chaykin’s Masked Man, which has been a huge disappointment to me. There’s sci-fi here (Dave Gibbons’ interesting if slightly shallow Treatment, the much more gripping Rotten Apple by Sanford Greene and Chuck Brown), fantasy (Richard Corben’s absolutely Corben-esque Murky World) and modern confessional indie comics (Carla Speed McNeil’s Finder). I’ve touted my Corben fixation quite a bit in this space, so let me say that I was stunned by McNeil’s Finder. I drifted away from what I rightly or wrongly deem the “cutesy indie comics scene” a long time ago, because I could only watch people reshape their diaries so many times, but this installment of Finder really got to me. It’s a simple story — young man Jaeger carries an old woman on his back through the city to get her to her family in time for the birth of a new baby — but there was something deeply personal nestled inside it that made it resonate. Namely, the woman tells Jaeger, “We’re all time travelers if we live long enough” — my own grandmother ended a lot of stories with a phrase very much like that, and I dropped the comic when I saw it/heard it again after all these years. It’s been a long time since I got the chills reading a comic, and it was welcome indeed. I would have never picked up McNeil’s work before this, but thanks to DHP, I suspect I’m going to look into her body of work. We clearly have something in common on some level, and I aim to find out what that something is.
Also, Jim Steranko’s ultra-hard boiled noir story, Red Tide, has been re-colored and one chapter is included herein. I’m not really a fan of the noir stuff, but HOLY COW is this thing phenomenal. This is the Ur-noir story told in a manner that is unique to comics. It pays homage to the classic Raymond Chandler/Damon Runyon/Mickey Spillane years of the field — our private detective here is named Chandler, and the plot is either borrowed from or influenced the film D.O.A. (I’m ignorant of the facts, educate me if you know) — but Steranko’s masterful technique makes this thing fresh as a daisy. Lip service is often paid to Steranko just because of those 20-something issues of S.H.I.E.L.D. he did 40 years ago, but it’s this sort of heavy-duty, brain-melting draftsmanship that makes other artists shake their head in disbelief. Page 8 of the story (52 in the issue) exhibits a use of Venetian blinds filtering a light source that will cause your mind to reel in its complexity — for sheer beauty of a fixed image, Steranko has no peer.
Hey, it’s 3 a.m. So much for brevity. I think it’s clear I’m absolutely deranged for Dark Horse Presents. This thing is a smashing success as far as I’m concerned, and it’s the best thing I read this week. And most promising of all is the final note on the letters page, which says that DHP is going monthly effective immediately. I know $8 is pricey for a comic book, especially a monthly book, but Dark Horse Presents is worth it. Boy, is it ever worth it.
-Paul
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