J is for Jason...and Judgment

Way back in 1785, a poet named William Cowper (no, I'd never heard of him either) used the phrase "variety is the spice of life" in a poem called "The Task." It's probably the only thing an 18th century poet and I have in common, but I believe that statement to contain more than a bit of truth. I crave variety: in the music I listen to, the movies I watch, and yes, the comic books I read.

We live in an amazing time for comics. They are produced on every subject imaginable, from how-to manuals to space operas. They come in every form, from xeroxed pamphlets to enormous dust jacketed hardcovers. The Federal Treasury created comics to explain their monetary policies; at the same time someone, or many someones, were pouring their very personal triumphs and tragedies onto the page. They are entertainment, reportage, education. They are almost as many things as there are people producing them. But this is all a secret. A huge, sprawling, multicolored, very well kept secret.

Indie Comics Corner - Women With Crab Hands and Other Strangeness

So far my posts have been, in some way or another, very focused on the mainstream. Time to dip into the deeper, weirder end of the pool.

Hopefully this will be a semi-regular "feature" in which I'll give brief introductions and reviews for an assortment of eclectic comics fare from truly Indie publishers; there not only won't be any DC or Marvel stuff here, but no Boom!, no IDW, no Adhouse or Top Shelf. These publishers are usually going to be one man or woman with a dream and the will to create, and the results can be interesting and memorable, if not always polished.

I've had the first two issues of Reich for quite a while now. They are among the only comics published by Sparkplug that I own, and with the recent, untimely passing of publisher Dylan Williams, I thought it was time that I finally checked them out.
Reich is the biography of Wilhelm Reich, an eccentric psychoanalyst who studied, among other things, "orgastic potency." Writer/artist Elijah Brubaker has researched his life and work, attempting to separate fact from the considerable rumor and fiction such a divisive and unusual figure has bred, and successfully writes a captivating story about a largely unlikable man. His large headed and expressive figures convey personality and emotion well, further drawing us into Reich and his world.

There appear to be eight issues of this series completed so far; I recommend them to fans of biographical fiction, raconteurs, orgastic potency, and Chester Brown's Louis Riel. All eight issues of Reich and a LOT more are available at: Sparkplug Comics.

REVIEW: Mark Twain's Autobiography 1910-2010

Michael Kupperman just may be the one of the funniest people planet. At least that’s what Conan O’Brian thinks, he wrote it as an endorsement for Kupperman’s latest book, Mark Twain’s Autobiography 1910-2010.

It just so happens that I agree with Conan. Kupperman is a comedic genius. Filled with deliberately odd syntax, wizards, snarky dialog, vampires, outer space adventures, car chasing UFOs, and nearly every significant event of the past one hundred years Mark Twain’s Autobiography is easily the funniest thing that I have read in a very, very long time. Come to think of it, I don’t think I have ever read anything funnier. Nearly every page had me rolling. It wasn’t just a chuckle or even a hearty guffaw, either. It was maniacal,  hysterical, snorting, crying, temporarily not breathing, and contorting my body into uncomfortable shapes type of laughing. It’s that goddamn funny. So funny, in fact, that I would be entirely satisfied if Kupperman went ahead and decided to write the biographies of everyone else, ever.

X-Men and the Micronauts - Back Issue Review

Original Publication Date: January 1984 - April 1984

Writers: Chris Claremont & Bill Mantlo

Pencils: Butch Guice

Inks: Bob Wiacek

Colors: Bob Sharen

Letters: Michael Higgins

Editor: Bob Budiansky

The Review: Ahhhh, the early and mid 1980's....  When Marvel still did comics based on licensed properties.  I guess as a kid I was aware that there was a Micronauts comic and some of my buddies had the toys, but I never read it.  Now days on message boards, folks always say Micronauts was a great comic run, so it's kinda "on my list" along with a lot of other things that I may or may not ever read.

Sex & Violence in comics

Dan Slott started a twitter conversation last night where he asked comic readers who are parents what level of sex and violence they want to see in comics.  As you can imagine, the responses ran the gamut from full on NC-17 content to no sex/violence at all.

But, one theme that did pop out repeatedly was how much implied sexual content existed in shows "we" watched in the late 70's and early 80's.  One example that Slott brought up was Three's Company.  That show had the running gag that Jack was homosexual (which was why it was "okay" for him to live with single women) and tons of sexual innuendo.  

I tend to fall pretty strongly into the "unlimited violence but no sex" in my Marvel/DC comics.  Now, non-Big 2 are another matter as I love anything with pretty girls in it (although I am more a cheesecake fan than a sex scene fan).  Why is that?

Here's what it comes down to for me: I have a daughter.  I worry not one iota about her slicing off a friend's head with a sword or shooting up her school while imagining a scene from Punisher.  But, my biggest worry as a parent is pregnancy.  Pretty much all the other juvenile problems can be healed.  There is rehab for drugs and even if you go through a phase of stealing cars as a juvenile, you can eventually still go to college and lead a productive life.  Heck...you can even stop being a stripper.

Pregnancy is different.  My hat is off to those who have thrived as teen parents, but I'm talking about this from a parent's (specifically a father's) point of view.  But, no father in 2011 hopes that his daughter will have a child before she is (a) finished with her education, (b) established in her career and (c) married.  That's the optimal that we're all shooting for.

Double page spreads & Digital comics

This DC relaunch sure has been fun, right?  I've enjoyed a number of the titles immensely and I'm reading them all digitally.

One thing I was very curious to see was how DC's creators approached double-page spreads with the knowledge that these comics would be distributed digitally.  The problem with the double-page spread is that they don't work digitally.  They take what should be the most majestic scene of the issue and make it the least impressive.

Don't believe me?  Look at this comparison of areas (in square inches):

• Normal comic book page: 72.2
• Double page comic spread: 144.4
• iPad2 screen: 45.9

I'm honestly surprised that the iPad's screen is only 63% the size of a standard comic page because reading normal comic pages on the iPad isn't off-putting at all.  But, the double-page spreads end up being displayed at less than 1/3 of the intended size.  Suddenly all the scale and majesty is lost as we squint to even read the words on the page.

But, sometimes it works better than others.  Let's look at a few examples:


Justice League #1 by Geoff Johns and Jim Lee:

This is kinda the no-harm/no-foul of the digital double-page spread.  Maybe we don't get the thrill of a BIG image, but we digital readers can still see the whole of the action because the double-page spread is just one big image.  However, Johns/Lee could have accomplished this same effect digitally with a single-page slash image and that would have freed up an extra page for Batman and Green Lantern to talk to each other in the sewer.

The New 52...On a Budget

I'm one broke-ass comic collector lately. I don't really have anything to complain about; like a lot of the members of family Comicus Collecticus I have shelves full of unread material that my current budgetary restrictions are an open invitation to catch up on. What it has meant, however, is that even if I were inclined to sample some of the DC relaunch titles I would have to pick and choose which ones to buy very carefully. When it comes to comics, I don't do restraint well. And I don't particularly like missing out on the conversation. So what can I do?

Read previews, that's what. Normally, I don't read previews. In this case, it's all I have the chance to read, so read them I shall. This is really an experiment on several levels: reading previews in the first place, and trying books (like Superboy) that I would ordinary have only the slightest interest in.

These "reviews" should be taken with an entire shaker of salt. I don't really believe it's fair to judge or review a book based on 3-5 pages of it. These are my half-baked impressions based on those previews and you should not place any value on them whatsoever. You have been warned.

O Comics! My Comics!

Art: Steve Ditko from the story Deep Ruby,
appearing in Eerie #6

Why do we do it? What makes comics so important to us? What makes us stand tall in the face of mockery from obnoxious, ignorant, outsiders? What makes us suffer the sometimes rude, elitist, and cruel words that fellow fans will spew from behind the anonymity of the internet? Why do comics affect us on a deep, emotional level that few other mediums ever have or could? Why would I spend the time writing this column that is coming dangerously close to being a cry for personal validation?

The answer to all of those questions is a simple one: comics are an end in themselves. Neither comics, nor I, need any additional validation. Their very existence proves their worthiness and that they are a worthwhile pursuit.

Iceman vol. 1 - Back Issue Review

Originally published: December 1984 - June 1985

Length: 4 issues

Writer: J.M. DeMatteis

Pencils: Alan Kupperberg

Inks: Mike Gustovich

Colors: Bob Sharen

Letters: Janice Chiang

Editor: Bob Budiansky

The Review: This series sprang out of the mid-1980's Marvel miniseries initiative.  There were some real jewels in that era, some real crap and some that are just kinda so-so.  Iceman is one of the so-so ones.

The basic theme of this mini is that of relations with one's parents as we see Bobby Drake doing his darnedest to please his demanding parents while also becoming an adult man.  In this way, it is an interesting window into the times.  In the 1980's, comic books were targeted at young boys, so it makes a lot of sense to portray the parent/child relationship through the eyes of the child.  Everything is through Bobby Drake's eyes and has a very, "Why can't they just understand me and let me be my own person?!?!" vibe to it.  In 2011, when comics are more targeted at middle-aged men who are more likely to be parents themselves, so we're more likely to see the parent/child relationship explored by seeing Wolverine taking a young mutant under his wing and being exasperated by her childish behavior.  Times change...

T.M.A.C. Two Man Army Corps

For those who may not know OMAC, he's basically a futuristic version of Captain America created by Jack Kirby and gets his powers from a sentient satellite called Brother Eye. You should also know that I have only read the first issue of Jack Kirby's OMAC, and I've only read the first issue of the Dan Didio & Keith Giffen's new 52 OMAC. With the excitement for the book and the DCnU, I am doing an issue by issue comparison of both series.

It Came From (someone else's) Long Box! -- Captain America #445-448 Operation Rebirth

I think it’s fair to say that nearly all comics fans have had an experience where a good friend—whose taste in comics they trust—lends them a book or stack of comics, they read it, and the story falls completely flat for them. Not everybody likes everything. Not every story or style is appreciated by every fan and it’s not even about what’s good versus what’s bad. There’s just no accounting for taste. One person’s Watchmen is another’s Ravage 2099. I had recently had one such experience with Mark Waid and Ron Garney’s Captain America: Operation Rebirth.

A few weeks back, at our regular Summit City Ink drink ‘n draw, my friend, Andy, lent me his issues of Operation Rebirth. Andy’s a longtime Captain America fan (he’s very fond of this story) and we usually have pretty similar tastes when it comes to comics. Given his enthusiasm, and our history, I agreed to borrow and read the issues. While I would not say that the Watchmen versus Ravage 2099 comparison that I used above is in any way an accurate description of my reaction, Operation Rebirth just did not work for me.

Event Miniseries - ARGH!

Not to get into hyperbole, but there are few things more frustrating to me than the miniseries that tie into comic book "events".  You know they'll probably be mediocre, but we buy them because we don't want to "miss something."

By way of personal example, I skipped ALL of the Flashpoint tie-ins and did feel like I missed a lot reading just the main series.  Oh...I was able to figure out what happened, but it always felt like I was only reading half of the story.

On the other hand, I bought everything for Fear Itself and am now kicking myself.  When it is all over, I'll have invested WAY more time and money in the miniseries than in the event itself.  Let's run them down:

Fear Itself: Black Widow - I recall thinking this was okay and liking the art, but I don't remotely remember what happened.

Fear Itself: Deadpool - Awful and unimportant.  Uncanny X-Force has showed that Deadpool can be a real character, but this miniseries was dreadful.

Fear Itself: Fearsome Four - Terrible.  This has had the most jumbled art team imaginable.  My only excuse for this is that Marvel thought Michael Kaluta was doing this series (which would have been good), but when that fell through....they soldiered on anyway.  The high point has been a few pages with Simon Bisley art.

Fear Itself: Fellowship of Fear - Ugh.  A recap of who the Worthy are in FI.  Seem to recall this was all reprint material.  

Gotham Central is Good Police

Cop shows are as thick as thieves on the landscape of our television screens. If a show doesn't feature attention starved ex-celebrities kicking each other out of houses or people humiliating themselves for recording contracts, there's a good chance it features police officers, doctors, lawyers, or some combination thereof. Because of their ubiquity, I'm kind of burned out on them; when done well, however, shows about criminals and the people who dedicate their lives (sometimes literally) to catching them can neatly encapsulate many of the themes that make for compelling drama: social inequity, physical danger, families strained and cracking and surrogate families being built.

In comic books, there are plenty of criminals. Many of them are of the gaudy, insane variety that we do not see as reflections of ourselves and society's ills. They are pursued and defeated by beings that similarly live above and outside of society, with some notable exceptions (The Punisher, for example, in most of his incarnations.) There are not a lot of cops. Well, they're there, but they aren't cast as the heroes in these dramas. They're cannon fodder, or annoyances, or people to kidnap or kill.

While not existing outside of the world in which these gaudy, insane villains exist, Gotham Central re-casts these police officers in the role we're accustomed to seeing them in on television. They are the ones who catch the bad guys. Sometimes they are the bad guys, because they're as flawed as we are, and sometimes as flawed as those they chase.

The problem is "Comic Book Guy"...

Anyone who follows sales numbers for comics knows that our hobby is hurting.  And...if you frequent message boards online or follow interviews with creators and editors, you know that there is all this chattering about attracting the "new reader".  Heck...the entire DC relaunch is about getting new readers.

"Official Spokesman"

But, the fly in the ointment is that comic books have a severe image problem.  If you mention comic books to a "civilian, they will first think of our "official spokesman": The Comic Book Guy from the Simpsons.  Ugh....although CBG has had a few moments of heroism over the two decades that The Simpsons has been on the air, he's mostly an object of ridicule.  

No boy wants to grow up to be the CBG, no man wants to hang out with the CBG and no woman wants to sleep with CBG (or even stand next to him on public transportation).

She looks SO happy, right?

If you continue your conversation with your civilian friends, they will doubtless ask whether you watch The Big Bang Theory.  These guys are only an improvement on CBG in that they are not obese.  But they have the same basic problems as CBG: no boy wants to grow up to be those guys, no man wants to hang out with the Big Bang Theory Guys and women usually don't want to sleep with them (although it being a fictional show....the geek does occasionally get the girl).