…ANNNNNDD we’re back.
Comics were purchased. Stories were told. The dust has settled and now it’s time to review the game tape to judge how the week went.
KABOOM's Adventure Time #1 (second print)
This first review will echo several of the excellent points that Jesse noticed in his review, but we came away from the book with two different feelings. This time I’m wearing the grumpy pants.
How is it that a cartoon series that tells stories in 12 minute chunks can’t seem to do the same in a comic book? I’m looking at you Adventure Time with Fin and Jake. I love this property; the cartoon is easily the smartest, weirdest, and funniest show on television. However, I was reticent to pick up the comic book for fear that it might not work in a static form. KABOOM’s new book (I picked up the second print this week) translates that weirdness very well. Ryan North and company also manage to translate the show’s hyperactive pace and kinetic feel well through page and panel layouts; it’s rare to see a page with more than four panels. The art in the main story mimics the cartoon well, down to the little details hidden in the back ground. The back-up story’s art is more stylized, looking as though it were painted by Vincent van Gogh. It’s bright and vibrant with a contrasting texture that the main story’s cartoon art won’t have. One other thing that was impressive was the little messages in the bottom-most gutter of many of the pages. This was something that I loved in Bob Burden’s Gumby. It’s nice to see that here in what is a successor to the surreality of Gumby.
At the end of the day, this is not something I’m going to pick up regularly. As I said earlier, I strongly disapprove of the fact that the main story in the book was not a done-in-one. Younger readers are going to be lost by this approach because a whole 30 days will pass before the second part comes out. That’s a friggin’ eternity and any number of other things have attracted their attention and money in the mean time. Heck, I’m in my 30′s and there are some books written for trades that I have a hard time keeping up with because the last issue was uninteresting middle.I appreciate the perceived need to keep the kids coming back to a comic based on a show, but I know that the same goal could have been achieved with a book that offers a similar experience to the show without replicating it exactly.
On a side note, why isn’t anyone replicating the successful digest model that has worked so well for Archie?
DC Comics' Action Comics (vol 2) #7
Action Comics (vol. 2) #7 is as good as it’s ever been, and after two woefully lackluster (filler?) issues this is a welcome relief. I’m not sure why the Collector story was so interrupted with trips both to the past and the future, but now that we’re back on track things are picking up and we’re getting a strong and fun story. Morrison’s reinvention of Superman and the world of Superman through Action is generally enjoyable. This issue especially. There’s great interplay between Luthor and…everyone really. We see less of Clark and more of Superman in this issue than we have in the past. Also, to his credit, Morrison also found a way to naturally introduce Superman’s actual costume into the story. I was reminded this month of why I read Action Comics first when it comes out.
Another book that I’m enjoying more in its newest volume is The Lone Ranger. After is nigh interminable origin volume in which the Ranger chases down Butch Cavendish, something new: shorter stories. Issues 1 & 2 were both fantastic in terms of telling western tales without being generic. This month’s issue #3 is starting a two issue arc that proved to be quite entertaining, and it provided a solid story with a cliff hanger at the end. Well done.
Finally, I really enjoyed Jonathan Hickman and Nick Pitarra’s Manhattan Projects #1. World War II, and the Manhattan Project specifically, is my favorite time period to read about. Hickman’s alternate history presents the historical players is a skewed and fantastically engaging light. From it’s hyper-science and portrayal of Einstein as a violent psychopath to it’s blending of zen
Manhattan Projects #1 published by Image Comics.
meditation, magic, and science, this is going to be a great ride. Pitarra’s art is easy to read. His style is the love child of Frank Quietly and Geof Darrow. It is fun, it fits well with this story, and the characters resemble their historical counterparts without being photo reference. 30 days can’t pass quickly enough.
In Brief
This week Kieron Gillen wrapped up his second arc in Uncanny X-Men (vol. 2). While the itself is essentially cribbed from Star Trek: The Next Generation, what makes the story enjoyable is the character interaction and the sharp dialogue.
G.I. JOE continues boldly with its new Cobra Commander. Although they’ve been three steps behind for a while, this issue shows a hint that a turning point is ahead. The rally inning is near…finally.
I’m still on the fence about this volume of The Avengers. #5 is less jumpy than past issues and there’s only a smattering of Bendis’ trademark snippy and snappy dialogue. It finally felt like something was happening, and it seems we’re on the down hill side of the arc. It’s still a time travel story and now they’ve thrown in Ultron which goes a long way for me. Disappointingly though, they stole Rip Hunter and the Distinguished Competition’s wall-of-scribbled-hints-of-the-future-schtick. I’ll see it 
through to the end of this arc, but I can’t see sticking around for Bendis’ slow and long-form storytelling.
The last book I picked up this week is Avengers #3. Last month I stated that nothing really happened. This month is different. The majority of the book is spent with the team fighting an alternate version of Apocalypse and his horsemen. It’s a bit muddled and Bendis still manages to do more talking than actual fighting. It’s a weird and awkwardly written fight, and it only serves the purpose of reminding us that Time is out of whack. JRJR’s art tells us that something exciting should be happening. The dialogue doesn’t really manage to match though. They’re talking about the “threat” as though they’re still sitting around the table. In addition there’s a disjointed sense to everything. I had planned on giving this series a try through the first arc, but, at this glacial pace, it’ll be issue 12 or 15 before that happens. I’m pretty much done with it.
Unfortunately, there only seems to be one Mad Hatter story: his infatuation with “Alice.” To his credit, Landry Walker does his best effort to make it interesting. If you didn’t bother to read Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade, then let me tell you that Landry Walker’s best effort is pretty good. It’s just not enough to hide the fact that we’ve heard this story before. There are some new and disturbing moments here. We see what makes the Hatter so dangerous; he’s not just a kook with fetish for hats and the writings of Lewis Carroll. Still, for most of you out there, I’d say unless you’re a big fan of Landry Walker and co., wait for the trade on this.
A while back, November or December, I predicted that we’d see Cobra Commander making an appearance the new GI Joe series by March of this year. So I was off by a few months. GI Joe #19 marks the second time we see the revamped Commander… briefly. He made an appearance in last month’s GI Joe: Cobra II. The new look is interesting and favorable. The fangs at the bottom are a really nice touch. 
I did pick up New Avengers #1 this week. It’s pretty okay. In spite of the fact that it’s got a strong and different line-up, it’s my least favorite beginning of the three starts. It’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but, more so than Avengers, this was classic talky Bendis. I like the magical-mystical-mysterious threat: someone’s after the Eye of Agamotto. On the other hand, It didn’t occur to me until just this minute, but all three Avengers titles follow the exact same plot. Team is set up, threat is introduced in hints woven throughout, final page is a surprise/ reveal. So this is essentially the third time in almost as many weeks that I’ve read this issue.
As much as I love Jeff Parker, this hasn’t been my favorite. As usual the dialogue is crisp, fun, and shows character. It’s the cookie cutter team meets team story that disappointed me. It ends more suddenly than feels natural too. The art in both present and “flashback” was fantastic. It was also nice that the story is building to something bigger in AoA regarding the Siren known as Venus. Again, Parker fans are going to love this, but Johnny-off-the-street-X-fan is going to get the wrong impression of the glory that is a Jeff Parker written book.
Guest writer John Ostrander penned a good Deadshot piece for Secret Six #15. Fans of Simone’s psychotic team probably won’t enjoy this shift of gears from the manic pace of the last several issues. Me? I was thankful for it. Maybe it’s just because I like Ostrander and miss the old Suicide Squad. At any rate, it’s a good book for Suicide Squad fans more than Secret Six fans. 
I know this is from last week, but I had to wait to get my copy of M.O.D.O.K.: Reign Delay. It’s pretty good in that cartoony, funny book way. It speaks to the nerd angst/ impotence that is probably pretty common amongst the sort of people who might pick this book off the shelf. Ever wonder how this guy goes to the bathroom? Wonder no more! Be warned though, it ain’t pretty.
I don’t know about you, but I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop after FF #571. You’ve got a secret consortium of Reed Richardses helping the multiverse with multiple Infinity Gauntlets, a basement full of lobotomized Dr. Dooms, and a guy with some of Doom’s DNA spliced into him. Surely something is going to go horribly wrong here shortly (I mean after the issues on the last page are resolved). The story still holds my attention with interesting ideas, but I could have done without the seemingly obligatory Reed and Sue arguement over how much time he spends in his lab. The art still bugs me. Over muscled is not a look for Reed Richards. Toward the end he also poorly channels Kirby in the face department. 
I’m not going to retread old ground talking about the Langridge Muppet book. Just accept the fact that it’s great and move on. Instead I’ll talk about this week’s other Muppet book. Muppet Peter Pan is starting off much better than its predecessor. It’s fast and funny. The book shows respect for the source material and the inserted Muppet characters.The art is also miles above and beyond here. I’m all for stylized looks and your own personal take, but last arc (Robin Hood) never stuck to the artist’s own model.
Dixon’s GI Joe #9 is finally picking up some steam. The problem early on was that he had two or three plot threads going, but only focused on one per issue. Now he’s weaving them together better. It helps that the Mainframe/ Snake Eyes connection was explored and explained quite well in last weeks Origin issue. At this pace, we might actually see Cobra Commander sometime early next year. Dare we hope for issue 12 to be the culmination of this arc?
