April '24 Reading Round Up

 

Lots of comics to get into, no time for a cranky preamble. Let's go!

 

 

Not sure what the point of Batman: Dark Age is other than to bank more money on top of the Superman: Space Age comic that came out last year and employed the same creative team. That was, mmmm - interesting and pretty decent; nothing jaw dropping but I enjoyed it a bit. This? This was a yawn. The problem with Allred is that he draws compelling visually stimulating backdrops but the faces of his characters almost all look the same. It would work for an art gallery but it doesn’t work for a sequential art book that requires a distinct narrative. I feel like all of his male leads look like Marlon Brando. Maybe he should write a comic for Image called ‘Brando’ where all the men in the world turn into Marlon Brandos. This book has the feel of a George Jetson future coupled with the back alleys of a grimy New York of the 60s. It’s another Bats origin story and there’s nothing necessarily different going on here except Bats meets Selina at a police station while being arrested for running around as a drunk teen. It reminded me of the scene from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off where Jennifer Grey met a strung out Charlie Sheen.

 

 

Unfortunately the scene in this book was as entertaining as anything Charlie Sheen has done in the past decade, meaning it wasn’t. It just all feels unnecessary and a bit goofy. The comic starts with Bruce in an old folks home where he apparently has amnesia. He’s given a book with blank pages and is told to remember his life. If I were him, I’d just pick up any old Batman comic from the past 50 years since his story is told over and over and over and fucking over. Maybe this was DC’s way of sticking it to Marvel since Marvel is eventually coming out with a MiracleMan: Dark Age book. Who knows. What I do know is for $6 you could buy Titan’s Savage Sword of Conan and get an oversized beautifully crafted anthology of wonderful tales and art. I’d rather have 6 SSOC’s than 6 of Marlon Bat-Do. This was poop in a bowl where somehow all the poops look the same. 

 

 

 

Just another reminder that if you’re not reading Love Everlasting you’re either a Communist or someone who doesn’t like dogs. Seriously, this has turned into one of the best ongoing series out there for the past couple of years running. Unlike Jeff Lemire, who just makes shit weirder and weirder to entice you to keep following his books, King has masterfully developed this world bit by bit revealing a smidge here and there, month by month. We’re getting close to finding out what’s going on and the slow burn of anticipation is what monthly comics are all about. This reminds me a bit of ‘Severance’ one of the best TV shows ever that came out a few years ago; the world building and slow reveal of what was going on was perfectly executed. With this, Dubz and Wyndhorn as his current ongoing series, King is on an absolute tear.

 

 

 

Ultimate Spidey 3 was fun, nothing special, but an enjoyable read. Feels like Hickman is buttoning down the hatches on releasing or revealing anything too earth shattering as of right now; it’s basically three issues of set-up. One gripe that I have is this: How the hell are they calling what Harry Osborn looks like when he’s flying around on his little heli-scooter, The Green Goblin? This is an alternate Universe where Spidey never existed right? So there’s no early version of Double G right? Does that thing right underneath look like a Green Goblin to you?

 

 

 

Of course it fucking doesn’t! It looks like a Green Robot with a Bela Lugosi haircut. It looks like Iron Man and the She Hulk had a baby. Maybe they should call it the Iron Hulk. I don’t see Tony Stark ever hooking up with the She Hulk, she’s definitely not his type. He likes ‘em blonde and petite or when he needs that dominant heel in the neck like most multi billionaires need, he goes for those crazy Russian chicks. Anyway, I’m still pulling a Marvisney book after three issues which says something. Still, a talentless hack editor is probably lurking over Hickman waiting to ruin the story somehow or give Spidey some tits.

 

 

 

 

Despite there being only one issue left, I’m gonna have to say buh bye to Red Light, the AI Hooker mini-series. It just devolved into a poop-arific gore fest. I think the creative team had a real solid premise on their hands but they took too many shortcuts with violence rather than actually delving into the nuts and bolts of what it means for a sentient robot to want to be free; that’s fucking interesting! What’s not interesting is reading about two douchebags having a cock fight over a ho, an AI Ho at that. I’m also very disturbed by the fact that the AI Hooker decided to give herself a butch haircut once she escaped. Why is it that women who think they’re free of the patriarchy or whatever decide to chop off their beautiful hair??? How is that giving loser dudes the finger? What about all the great amazing guys who are waiting for you on the other side of your oppressive existence who can’t wait to run their fingers through your long luxurious locks? I can tell you right now, those guys are NOT thrilled with your Billy Idol haircuts at all. Anyway, maybe I’ll need to write the AI Hooker story this planet obviously needs. I've probably already been on a Raya date with one of them, that would totally be on brand for that app.

 

 

 

 

I really hope Bendis & Co. pull a ‘Pearl’ and just keep extending Masterpiece for 12-18 more issues despite the fact that it says there’s only 6 issues in this series. I feel like they’re just starting this book up and there’s way more to go than a couple of issues. Maybe they’re just playing the trade paperback game like so many publishers do rather than the ongoing series game. I don’t know how Bendis fared with Supes over at DC but sounds like it was a complete bust. The guy just knows how to write the shit outta indie comics with unique stories; maybe he should just stick to them. Although, yes, his Daredevil was a Masterpiece with Maleev. This isn’t necessarily a masterpiece but there’s something about a Bendis Book where you feel like everyone is contributing and given the opportunity to shine. Case in point, this issue. As I’m reading this I’m saying to myself ‘Wow, the letterer of this story is really kicking ass, I feel like he’s totally getting the dynamics of the dialogue’. I can’t remember the last time I was noticing a comic letterer even though I know how integral they are to a book. So, kudos to Josh Reed the letterer of this comic book. You’re killing it homie! I can’t say there are any other letterers that come to mind that really stand out. Oh! That Hassan guy, what’s his name? Lemme look, yeah, Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, he’s a fucking great letterer. I feel like letterers are the offensive linemen of comic books. You don’t hear about them often but without them you aren’t running a play or making a book. Bendis officially the Patron Saint of Left Tackles in the Comic Biz.

 

 

 

 

We are witnessing one of the great Comic Scribe Streaks in the history of the medium. Everything that King puts his words to these days is turning out to be pure gold. Over the past 20 years who’s come close to this slew of wow books, Snyder, Hickman, Lemire, Fraction maybe? Right now King is the King of the Comic Roost. Helen of Wyndhorn cements him at the top of the heap of the industry. From the opening page you realize you’ve got something special in your hands. Though the subject matter is way different, this reminds me of one of the most spectacular comics of the past 25 years ‘The Unwritten’, do you remember that one? Whatever happened to those dudes? Just the look and feel of the pages conveys a elevated story beyond what normal books seem to offer. Bilquis Evely is an absolute magician with her art. Her pages just draw you in and capture your imagination. I don’t know what happened to King after his Batman/Catwoman debacle but he obviously drew a line in the sand and decided that not only was he not going to put out unadulterated middling poop anymore but that he was going to swat each of his projects straight to the moon. As Ralph Kramden would say ‘Bang Zoom!’.

 

 

The final installment of Deep Cuts, a delightful set of jazz vignettes, was a bit of a clunker despite its ambitious attempt to unify all the stories in this series as one. I get what they were trying to do, which was create a through line between the fictional jazz artists they created in earlier issues to connect with the Musician who was the focus of this issue, but they definitely fell short of the mark. Maybe if you read this story in the trade paperback after having read the previous 5 stories all in a row it would’ve hit but since there was a 7 frikkin’ month layoff between Issue #3 and Issue #4, I had a real hard time trying to remember who they were talking about. Hiatuses suck. They really flush the story from your mind. Unless you’re waiting on some incredible cliff hanger you’re not going to remember fuck all as far as what a comic was doing over half a year ago. Ask me if I know what the hell is going on in Saga right now? No fucking clue. So all the references and names the creators dropped in this issue were lost on me. The crown jewel of this mini series is still Issue #5 which you could buy on its own and forgo the others if you wanted. I hope this inspires more comics to delve into and mine the landscape of musical artists and genres; the subject matter is ripe for the picking. As for these six issues, it was an enjoyable bee bop through a musical comic and a definite Dubya for the creative team.

 

Hmm, I think I’m onto Lemire. Look, he’s a bad ass, that’s for sure. You see his name on a book you get it and ask questions later. Yet I find it a bit puzzling how he would drop two books at the same time that would utilize the same device. So he’s got this one, FishFlies, as well as Phantom Road currently out on the stands. Phantom Road is basically a Stanger Things ‘Upside Down World’ deal.  It’s dope, but, yeah, there’s a world that looks like ours but different, mmkay gotcha. Now after 5 issues the dude that turned into an Enormous Fly in this book, looked at his reflection in the water towards the end, and, poof! He’s gone. Then the little girl who’s befriended and escaped with him goes and looks at the same spot in the water, and, well waddya know, she’s in another world that looks like hers but isn’t. C’mon bro. Like, didn’t one of your editors mention to you something like ‘Yo, this is the same shit homie’. Or were they too busy lining up to worship at the Lemire taint as they are wont to do at Image? Again, not dropping any of these books at all, but definitely a bit of a smudge on the great Lemire.

 

 

That's all I got! Happy Reading!