Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Comics Out August 29, 2007

Geoff Johns, Richard Donner and Eric Powell's Action Comics 855. Bizarro attacks earth (specifically Superman's house). Superman travels to the weird cube shaped Bizarro World, which gets a big two page spread. Superman, it turns out, will be extra powerful now (under the light of the blue sun) and may even get new powers! But Bizarro will be different as well, changed perhaps. Once on the Bizarro world Superman is swarmed by mobs of Bizarros all talking crazy and acting insane. But the issue has heart as well (Superman remembers a tough childhood). And it turns out that the Bizarro world may not have long to exist and may take Superman with it! Now he has to fulfil the title and Escape From the Bizarro World!

I liked this issue better when it was written by Grant Morrison and drawn by Frank Quitely and was called All Star Superman #8.

And what happened with the whole Superman joins the Injustice Gang to stop Zod. Did I miss that? I know a few issues of Action Comics passed since I read that story, but I thought they were by fill in writers and artists and I was supposed to pick up that plot here -- is this some kind of a flashback to fill me in on Bizarro? I am not getting this stupid book anymore. And I kinda maybe could have been convinced to like Eric Powell's art, but now I am in too bad a mood to care.

Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo's Hellboy: Darkness Calls 5 (of 6). I am glad I stuck with this even though Mignola is not doing the art. Every issue I like Duncan Fegredo more and more. The third panel of this issue with the acorn, the arrow and the specks of blood is just perfect, especially as the action is hilariously frozen in the background of the next panel. The Pan's Labyrinth guy and the Kirby energy dots on the Medieval / Russian priest lookin guy are great as well. I am about an inch away from saying I like this as much as Mignola's art. The story is maybe a little exhausting, with this Terminator guy that just keeps coming and coming every issue, but it is a great visual reward.

In Comics News, Newsarma has an interview with Douglas Wolk and a two part excerpt from his new book, his chapter on The Invisibles. I have not had a chance to look at it closely, but it seems like smart stuff, even though I cannot enjoy how messy The Invisibles is -- I really just like the issues where the art does not suck. NOTHING can justify sucky art to me. Newsarama also has an interview with Brian K Vaughan about his upcoming Buffy issue, and it turns out Adrian Alphona, of Runaways fame, will be doing the art on Spiderman Loves Mary Jane.

Also on Newsarama, Batman 668 gets a review and they guy reviewing didn't notice Williams is mimicking other art styles until this issue. How many people are reading his review? I bet it is more than are reading this blog. Scheesh.

9 comments:

James said...

The situation with Action Comics is the same as Wonder Woman - they got so far behind that the last part of the story is going to come out as an annual at some point (only on Wonder Woman the writer is behind, and here it's the artist).

Timothy Callahan said...

The Newsarama guy also thinks Wingman looks like a Paul Pope drawing. Maybe his Batman issues look different than ours. Or maybe he's reading them in the dark. Underwater. With his eyes closed.

Marc Caputo said...

I did what I thought was a REALLY good review of art spiegelman and Francoise Mouly's anthology Big Fat Little Lit for Sequart.org (http://www.sequart.org/reviews/index.php?review=1740)
and someone did a review of the same book for Newsarama (http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=102000&highlight=big+fat+lit)
(Man, I actually searched this one out - I am such a ----h)
and there wasn't much substance to it. Granted, it was "written" by a mom and her kids, but come on! I only go to Newsarama for news; I can't even look at the boards anymore. I enjoy hanging with you lot much, much more.

Marc Caputo said...

Also, I just finished all 42 issues of BKV's Runaways. May be one of the better things I've read. And disappointingly, Whedon's little run isn't doing much for me, 1/2 way through. I'm interested in Moore's run, especially because I've come to really dig Ramos' art on X-Men.

Anonymous said...

I'm reading Reading Comics by Wolk and he has a great line about Alex Ross' art that sums up his perspective of supehero comics perfectly "They exude a grand seriousness, but they leave little to the imagination"
This brings me back to my Miller Vs Ross thoughts:

Ross treats superheroes with the reverence he believes they deserve (no matter how silly... c'mon... he lists Captain Marvel Jr. as one of his favorite characters)

On the other hand, Miller (on the all star Batman run) is handling them with the complete irreverence he believe they should be handled with (i.e. he thinks they should be fun)

James said...

tim c.: Sorry, but I actually see that a little bit; it's the lips. I know it's supposed to be Gibbons, but it's a little too loose for that (Watchmen era, anyway).

(The rest of the Newsarama review is inexcusable, of course.)

Anonymous said...

Hey, wait a damn minute. I brought up on Marc Singer's blog that Wingman kind of looks like a Paul Pope Owlman. Look at the corners of his mouth. I swear!

Timothy Callahan said...

Ha. Yeah, I can see some Paul Pope-ish lip action going on in a few panels, but Wingman stands up straight! No Paul Pope character ever stands up straight.

Then again, maybe it's a clue! A Paul Pope character inside a Gibbons costume proves that this Wingman is an impostor! Case closed.

Unknown said...

I flipped through that issue of Action Comics, and man, the art looked nice. I'm a big fan of Eric Powell, and Dave Stewart's colors were really cool, giving it a different look than in The Goon. But I didn't buy it, because I was sure the story would be lame. And sure enough, everything I've read agrees. I'll stick with All-Star Superman, thanks.

Oh, and the latest Hellboy issue was awesome. My favorite bit was Hellboy punching the guy and shouting "BOOM!"