You know what’s weird? I read a comic that had actual ballet in it this week, and yet it’s Catman who looks like he’s trying out for Swan Lake:
Or maybe that’s just the bitchin’ pink lightning.
In either case, it’s Thursday night, and that means that it’s time once again for the Internet’s Most Somnambulistic Comics Reviews! Here’s what I picked up this week…
…and here’s what I thought about ’em!
DC Holiday Special 2009: Given the amount of time I’ve already spent this month talking about Christmas Comics, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that I picked this one up, even given my Halloween Special. And I’m glad I did, too: Maybe it’s just that I like Christmas more than I like Halloween (owing to the fact that I like Christmas more than I like 99% of other things, period), but this special’s a million times better than the last one.
Of course, that’s not really saying much–any comic with the right number of pages and two staples is well on its way to being better than that waste of ink–so a few specifics. As with most anthologies, the majority of what’s in here averages out to just inoffensive, although again, that’s a step up from what I was expecting and there’s still neat stuff to it. Superman fighting the Golem on Hanukkah, for example, is great based on concept alone, and while it’s well-done, it feels like more could’ve been done with it if it only had a little more space. There’s a fun Captain Marvel story, a Red Tornado story that unfortunately stars Red Tornado and makes no sense, although it’s not aggressively terrible (again: a step up from Halloween), and while Sterling Gates’s Doom Patrol story is more than a little maudlin, if you can’t get away with sentiment on Christmas, when can you? It’s also pretty interesting to note that this is the first time I’ve seen a holiday special with two war stories (both of which are based on actual events), and while Billy Tucci’s style for Sgt. Rock didn’t work for me on the mini-series, it’s pretty well done here. The only real clunker is the Deadman story, which, to be honest, I didn’t even get through.
The standouts, however, are where the real action is. Fred Van Lente does a fun Martian Manhunter story that feels like he packs in a lot more than the 6 pages it actually takes up, but the best thing in the issue is one glorious page of Angel and the Ape by Andrew Pepoy, which I seriously hope leads to more. I love those guys.
Oh, and B’wana Beast wears a Santa Hat.
Still, I do think it’s a bit overpriced at $5.99 (again, while it’s fun, there’s nothing in here that’s worth paying a price you could get two issues of Batman and Robin or Incredible Hercules for), but it’s still further ahead of the game than Marvel, who put out a Holiday Special this year that, while magazine-sized, was mostly reprints and set the reader back ten bucks. I don’t care if Santa Claus does get the Inifnity Gauntlet in that book–okay, well, yes, I actually do care about that, but odds are you don’t–that’s an awful lot to drop on single comic.
Ghostbusters: Past, Present and Future: Continuing tonight’s theme of Christmas comics, we’ve got this one, which represents the first Ghostbusters comic I’ve ever read. Don’t get me wrong: I like the hell out of Ghostbusters, but I don’t really have much of a desire to follow the characters into other media, for reasons that I’ll get to in a minute.
Still: Christmas Comic. At the very least, while it’s been done before the idea of the Ghostbusters fighting Dickens’ Ghosts of Christmas is one that pretty much sells itself, and in this one it ends up being pretty fun, though there are problems. To start with, the art is inconsistent and overinked to the point where I’m wondering if the artist holds stock in the Sharpie corporation, with faces that go from almost Richard Corben-esque to Geocities fan-art and back in the span of two pages. Nick Runge’s cover might not get the likenesses down, but it’s clean, well-composed and the spirit of the thing (no pun intended) is there, whereas large swaths of the interiors are just a mess.
The other problem, and one that I suspect is probably endemic to the franchise, is that it just feels off. Not bad, per se–like I said, it’s fun enough that I had a good time reading it and there’s a nice little twist at the end that’s executed very well–but just not quite what it should be. But then again, I imagine that probably owes a lot to the fact that it wasn’t written by Harold Raimis and I didn’t have Bill Murray standing there reading Peter Venkman’s lines.
Hopefully they’ll remember to include that for the trade.
PunisherMAX #2: This comic is amazing.
When the first issue came out, I mentioned that it felt like Jason Aaron was following in Garth Ennis’s footsteps on the Punisher, but with this issue, it’s becoming clear that he’s taking the ideas that Ennis brough with him during his eight year run and turning them into something that takes this book to its next natural progression: By making someone that’s even worse than the Punisher.
Just like the first issue, Frank Castle’s barely in this one. And why should he be? We’ve had eight years to understand what makes him work as an unstoppable, almost one-dimensional engine of vengeance. Now, Aaron’s using that as an implicit fact of the book, and when he does show up, it’s as a reflection to further define the Kingpin. In the meantime, Aaron’s focus stays on Fisk, and over the course of the issue he’s shown to be even more ruthless, brutal, and implacable as the Punisher, with a cold detachment that hides the thing that really does make them the same: No matter how cold they are, these are two guys for whom everything is personal.
There’s even a symmetery to their methods that Aaron sets up (and that Dillon pulls off amazingly) with the fact that they both display the tools they’re going to use beforehand, and the way they differ–with Frank shooting his guy in the head once he gets what he needs and Fisk dragging things out for his own satisfaction–is a brilliant way to set them up as opposites.
Admittedly, I’m a total sucker for an Evil Opposite story, but it’s rare that one comes along that’s done so well.
I’m sure I’ll be talking about this more when it’s time to do comics reviews on the next episode of Ajax, but here’s the short version: It’s incredible stuff, and you ought to be reading it.
S.W.O.R.D. #2
And that’s the week. As always, any questions, comments, Adam-X fan-fiction or discussions on how absolutely gorgeous the new Iron Man cover designs are can be left in the comments section below.
Marvel’s just dicking with me now. I love the concept of S.W.O.R.D.’s mini-series but hate, hate the execution (namely the artist does not comprehened anatomy of humans – let alone McCoy – and Gyrich, I loathe).
Now they went and threw in an awesome plot-hook from a decade-and-a-half ago and I want to read it.
*Le sigh.*
Well played, Marvel. Well played.
No Phonogram? Or the Ba/Moon Daytrippers? Is your stuff having shipping issues?
Store. Not stuff. STORE. Fuck I’m tired…
Adam X the X-Treme looked around his cell, contemplating the most x-treme way to handle his current predicament.
“X-Cuse me?” he called to the S.W.O.R.D. agent guarding his cell. “I need to use the bathroom! X-Cuse me?”
After a pause, during which his words hung in the air like rainclouds on an autumn day he called out again, “Never mind.”
A moment passed. Adam X the X-Treme looked around his cell, contemplating the most x-treme way to handle his new predicament.
“X-cuse me?” he called out. “I need a wet nap!”
I also loved Punisher Max 2, except the bit with 8-year old Fisk. A liitle too chatty and articulate for a child that age, I’d say.
I wonder if the Kingpin will survive this arc.
I love the new Iron Man covers and I hope society treats them more kindly than they did the Post-NML Batman covers.
“A liitle too chatty and articulate for a child that age, I’d say.”
Never have children of your own or read Louise Simonson’s Power Pack. It sounds like either experience will freak you out.
This comments section isn’t going to turn into some sort of Adam X fanfic tag, is it? That would be terrible.
Because I will read every word.
Hey Chris, I was wondering what you thought of the main feature in this week’s Adventure Comics. Personally, my reaction swung back and forth between “THIS IS RAD” and “wait what no” all the way to “well, it might be a little heavy-handed, but — OH MY GOD” at the end.
Great stuff as always, Chris, but there’s a problem with the “Geocities Fan Art” link.
Also, based on that single panel, I feel sorry for the person Catman is kicking.
Does GI Joe Classic vol. 6 suffer from the same reproduction problems as others in the IDW series? You mentioned some bad recoloring and photoshop trouble back in the June 3, 2009 “Week in Ink”.
Thanks and keep up the good work!
What was the comic with ballet in it? I’ve promised a ballet-loving friend to send her a comic someday with ballerinas in it…
Apparently there is a new Groo series based on a thinly veiled reference to some recent events. Meh.
At this time of year, we should all be considering what our own contribution to the DC Holiday Special would be if DC were to call us up and contribute.
The first idea I had involves a Kryptonian reindeer landing somewhere on earth and Krypto and maybe Supergirl having to try and prevent it from wrecking up the joint through confusion.
One of my favorite comics (and hardest finds) is “Ghostbusters: Legion” which was put out by 88mph studios and was awesome. It would be more awesome if they’d ever put out the trade of the mini (four issues), but they went out of business or just plain sucked; I can’t remember which. Might flip through the Christmas one at my shop today. I considered getting the last mini that went out, but I couldn’t make it through it.
Adam-X website: http://www.tawmis.com/xtreme/
And there was much rejoicing. :)
We all read that last alt text in Roger Daltrey’s voice, didn’t we?
“Stuff of Legend” features a toy ballerina, I believe.
I’ve been reading some Rom recently- I realise this is way off topic, but who else should I raise this with? Anyway, Bill Mantlo frequently mentions Rom was a man of peace and a poet. What I want to know is did he ever give us any of his poems? I appreciate that much of what Rom does is poetry, but does he ever cut loose?
“I have got a neutralizer,
So it’s futile to disguise a
Wraith”
namely the artist does not comprehened anatomy of humans – let alone McCoy
Yeah, you’d think fewer people would mess up the anatomy of the imaginary blue half-cat super-genius.
I wonder if the Kingpin will survive this arc.
So do I, which I think is great about it. In other stories there’s no question that Frank’s gonna kill the bad guy, as that is what he does. This one, though, might be an attempt at giving Frank an arch-enemy for the MAX Universe, which is a neat idea.
Hey Chris, I was wondering what you thought of the main feature in this week’s Adventure Comics.
I liked it, but not as much as the last issue.
Does GI Joe Classic vol. 6 suffer from the same reproduction problems as others in the IDW series?
Nope! It looks good, and aside from a couple spots here in there where it’s unavoidable, it looks really bright and crisp.
What was the comic with ballet in it?
Black Widow. It was only like a panel though.
At this time of year, we should all be considering what our own contribution to the DC Holiday Special would be if DC were to call us up and contribute.
I will tell you this right now: I will write DC’s entire 64 page Christmas special for next year for half of whatever they’re paying their writers now.
Thanks for weighing in on AC #5. I liked last issue better, too (the lack of Legion this week makes me sad), but that last panel on the Prime story really got me in the gut.
DC, if you’re reading this, I will personally fork-over Sims’ wages (half of whatever you’re paying your writers now) to see that happen. Let’s talk.
….
….
K, well, it’s the thought that counts. Thanks for keeping it awesomely entertaining, Chris! Your writing actually helps me enjoy the Holidays a bit more, which is rough with no family anywhere close-by. Yeah…I got sentimental. Sue me. Merry Chris(Sims)tmas!
That opening panel of Catman looks oddly like it came out of the Anita Blake series.
Except, I mean, for the actual action going on.
I bet Catman’s jeans have a hidden gusset.
“I imagine that probably owes a lot to the fact that it wasn’t written by Harold Raimis and I didn’t have Bill Murray standing there reading Peter Venkman’s lines.”
Mind you, Murray improv’d 90 percent of his lines anyway, so even if Ramis had written it it would still not feel right.
Although the least they could do was get JMS to write one of these, what with being so heavily involved with Real Ghostbusters.
I’m hoping the “Adventure” story means we won’t see Superboy Prime for a while. As for the story itself, it was more of the same thing we always see: Superboy Prime throws a violent tantrum, blames his behavior on someone else, and is left somewhere to sulk.
@ Joel — I’m pretty sure the last panel of “Adventure” means Prime’s gonna get his heart ripped out of his chest cavity.
@Gayle –
LEGION was published in TPB in the UK by Titan Books. Linkage
(Apologies if the HTML screws up, my web-fu is weak)
Aaron’s already said that Kingpin survives the first arc and I believe he’s introducing MAX Bullseye in the second arc. I think that was one of the first interviews he did for CBR when it was announced he was taking over the title.