Comic Galore Reviews
Here are some mini reviews of recent trade graphic novels. In some cases I have commented on the whole series. None of these are your standard superheroes exploits, and most deal with adult situations. You can find these works at your local comic shop or the geek’s best friend, the internet.
CONAN: THE HALL OF THE DEAD AND OTHER STORIES
This is the fourth volume of the cool ass Conan series, adapted from Robert E. Howard’s stories. They are only using official Conan canon, (no stories written by other authors, but you might find those in the mini-series.) and rearranging the stories in chronological order, in this on going series. The first three volumes were written by the impeccable Kurt Busiek. It is muscular prose, with crisp, adroit action. It has Conan uttering minimalist dialogue, unless uttering insults. So it is very faithful. Starting on the fourth volume Busiek leaves, which isn’t surprising. He is a great writer but has a commitment problem. Often leaving for years, and then resuming a long dead series. I am sure in three or four years he will write for the series again. Mike Mignola is a transitional writer, and makes his issue very “Hellboy-ish.” It is okay, but then Timothy Truman picks up the on going writing duties. I wasn’t familiar with his work before. It is stunning, and true to Conan. His version is even more primal, and very unpredictable. The art by Cary Nord is a revelation. First there is no ink used. He pencils the comic and the colorist just goes over his work. It looks like a frozen “cell” shade from videogames’ past. Some of the art looks smeared on like a blurred photograph, when the wrong shutter speed is used, or the wrong type of film. The first volume is “The Frost Giant’s Daughter and Other Stories.” The other books in the series are: The God in the Bowl and Other Stories and The Elephant Tower and Other Stories.
FELL
This is the first volume or mini-series written by Warren Ellis. Who can tell with him? He has great ideas that he could write an on going series that never end, but has the freedom to end them whenever. I assume he does it when he gets bored, or another idea pops off in his prolific head. He does this many times in the past, but in this case it doesn’t matter much. Each issue is self contained. Could it go on forever? Yes! It was my favorite comic when it was released monthly. It is Neo Noir crime fiction in a world that is close to ours. It is a corrupt world, with a mysterious cop transferred to Bridge Town. We never know why, but there is inkling that it because of corruption. The art is dark, and fits well with the series. It is done by Ben Templesmith. He is probably excited he isn’t drawing vampires or zombies, all though some citizens resemble those undead. Templesmith does his own ink and colors to give it a multimedia neo impressionist painting look. He may not even use pencils, and goes straight to using inks. He uses mostly little color, primarily blue or black tones. The little bright colors that are used are when violence occurs. Oranges and red spice the pages, and assaults are senses because of the lack of color palate before the flare of violence. In general the art is decisive. You may hate it or love it, but you will not think of it adequate of ho hum. In my opinion, Ellis is the best writer in comics right now. In fact this may be the best thing in my comic recommendations in this column, unless of course you hate the art.
THE BOYS VOLUME ONE: THE NAME OF THE GAME
Written by Garth Ennis, and drawn by Darick Robertson. Mr. Ennis’s first creator owned comic since “Preacher.” I don’t want to compare this comic to “Preacher,” I will say this has the possibility of being as great as that series if not better. The plot is simple. It takes place in a superhero world. It deals with the consequences of what that would mean to average people, and how superheroes would inadvertently affect them. One such man is known as “Wee” Hughie, whose look is actually based on Simon Pegg from “Shaun of the Dead,” and “Hot Fuzz” fame. A super hero accidentally kills his girlfriend catching a super villain. Eventually Hughie winds up in a group known as the “Boys” who police the superheroes using violent tactics. Robertson is a favorite artist from his Transmet days. His art is clean and uses thick long lines. It looks like the best animation just stopped on that frame. The frame is then inserted into a comic book. This series is at the beginning, and is definitely building towards an end, when that is I don’t know. His “Preacher” series went into 60 issues, so enjoy the ride. It is interesting to note that Ennis’s and Robertson’s first publisher canceled the Boys after 6 issues, and has been picked up by another publisher. The content is very violent, which is a trademark of Ennis. It also employs morbid humor, and sexual situations. It is for people who are tired of superheroes, and want them to get their just deserts.
AMERICAN VIRGIN: GOING DOWN (Volume two)
American Virgin is written by Steven T. Seagle. It is very frank, adult, dimensional look at religion and faith; what happens when something brutal tests those attributes. It is about a charismatic young man named, Adam Chamberlain, leader of an abstention movement. (He is being groomed by his evangelist family to be a political figure in the future.)He has pledged to be a virgin, until his marriage to his fiancé. He believes God has talked to him, and official commanded him to be with this woman for the rest of his life. Something happens, and his fiancé is killed by an extreme fundamentalist group, while she is a missionary in Africa. The first volume (Head) sees him going to Africa to search for his killers. This book isn’t an attack on religion, or an endorsement of religion, but an in depth character portrayal of someone having to either reaffirm his beliefs or discard them. It is asking two important questions. Are sex and violence two sides of a coin? The other question is which is a worse act, a sexual one or a violent one. Is one more evil than the other? The art by Becky Cloonan is very cartoon-y look with deep dark inks and lines. Unfortunately some characters look like caricatures, (Like Adam’s parents.) which are a shame, since this is mediation on humanity, and not a shame or farce on people of different views. Also some characters look to similar. I will say the skin looks like skin…people’s freckles look like freckles, and people actually have bad skin that looks gross and looks like skin. This is an accomplishment. This book has major sexual themes, and lots and lots of nudity.
COWARD, A CRIMINAL EDITION.
Each collected book is a separate story arc of the comic series called “Criminal.” This is the first story arc. In the comics, they have started a second arc. It has all new characters and plots different from this first arc. What the two arcs share is that they are all dealing with the underworld. This is a grown up story for someone who misses the Sopranos. It is a meditation on what it means to be a criminal, and how that reflects on an individual’s humanity. It is also a heist story. Criminal is created by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips, with Brubaker writing, and Phillips on art. Lots of shades and negative space used to give an idea of what living in shadows is like…to constantly have to hide from authorities and others in the same line of work. The lines use short brushes and are seemed sketched, via thin lines. The art is serviceable, but the story delectable. Brubaker knows his way around crime fiction, and gives the reader an impression of what it would be like to live in that sordid underbelly. Thanking him and yourself that it is temporary.
THE IMMORTAL IRON FIST: THE LAST IRON FIST STORY
This is closest to a superhero comic I will be reviewing in this column. The Immortal Iron Fist is a revamped and reintroduction of a comic book of a minor character popular in the seventies during the martial arts craze. In fact, I loved Iron Fist with Luke Cage in “Heroes for Hire.” It is now a more serious atmospheric affair. It is about Iron Fist, a long line of warriors trained in a mystical mythical realm that visits our plane every ten years. This comic is the biggest dud in the column. It isn’t bad, but they took out the fun of the character when they updated him for today’s audience. Danny Rand, the billionaire, who is Iron Fist, is an angst filled hero, who moans and complains about being a hero with an attitude like a mopey teenager. I am not sure, why no character in the Marvel Universe can be happy or excited about being a superhero anymore. Anyhow this series was conceived to be a short, but with the high sales changed into an ongoing series. I might invest in another trade to see if I will continue his adventures, but if it doesn’t lighten up, then I am gone. It is written by Ed Brubaker, and Matt Fraction. This may be part of the problem, Brubaker writes awesome crime fiction (See his Criminal above) but not everything has to be smoky, and shady. Fraction who has written “Punisher War Journal” should share the blame. They are writing Iron Fist…not Frank Castle…not Matt Murdock, but Iron Fist. The art by David Aja doesn’t help. His art is didactic with the writing. It is dark, murky, and impenetrable. Sometimes I can’t tell what the hell is going on, a cardinal sin in graphic novels. I know two characters are supposed to look similar, but when the only way to tell the difference is the guns…maybe you should go back on the character design. I wish the art was like the flashbacks. You can see what is going on. It has beautiful colors, bold lines, which pop out, making the art look three dimensional. The other thing I like about the art is when an attack occurs, and flashes into a zoom to what the attack is doing to the body, internally. The general story was alright, but when they renewed the series they just dropped momentum. I understand to drop nuggets of information in the new series. So it is a “blah” title that I had higher expectations for because of my appreciation of Iron Fist, and Brubaker’s name attached to the project. You might like it more, because you have lesser expectations now. As stated earlier, I will it give another trade to see if it improves. Maybe I will be able to distinguish what is going on.