I’ve got the long form stuff coming for Bruce Wayne and X-Men, but there were just a few other comic matters that didn’t warrant their own posts.
Kickass 2 #1: Why? I mean, the first series was created and fast tracked to Hollywood faster than anything I know of. When you think about how Spider-Man was in development limbo for over 20 years, yet Millar gets cameras rolling before the last issue ships, well it’s just mindblowing. Say what you will about the man, but he seems to know business. That said, why keep this as a comic? The money can’t be better than Hollywood. It’s a movie now, so keep it a movie.
Also, I didn’t like the look of JR Jr’s art this time around. Looked almost like watercolors. Gave it a dreamy effect I did not like.
Based on the way the Millar Model works, this book feels like one of those movie prequel/sequels that IDW puts out. Ya know, the ones that you know don’t “count” or “matter”, despite the publisher’s protests to the contrary. When Kickass 2 makes it to theaters, it ain’t gonna look like this. What you’re reading is just something Millar threw together to tide you over.
Avengers #6: I went on an Avengers rant during the last batch of Comical Thoughts, but the end of this story arc just brought about more things I didn’t like. At the end of the day, you hire Bendis for his “talky talky” shtick. You do NOT hire Bendis for time travel stories. We have Warren Ellis for those. Time travel”s not supposed to “make sense”, as it’s time travel. At the same time, it should be written in a way where the reader immediately cosigns with “Well, time travel is confusing”. Instead, this storyline was built on the back of Bendis’s desire to really make you think about time travel, which is where it falls apart. Countless web geeks have pointed out the temporal flaws in Back to the Future, but you’re not supposed to focus on them. It feels like Bendis set out to make time travel “accessible”, when he really just pointed out that he didn’t know what the fuck he was talking about.
It’s ironic because this was an example where Bendis’s signature strength was his biggest failure. The man is known for his decompression, as he can stretch any story out to the 6-issue length that is loved by Borders and Barnes & Noble. The problem here is that this story should’ve been told in no more than 3 issues. By stretching it out, it exposed more holes and flaws. You can keep your mouth shut, and have people assume you’re an idiot, or you can open your mouth and prove to them that you’re one. This introductory arc just proved that Bendis still needs to learn when to keep his mouth closed.
Secret Avengers #6: I get why “Avengers” is on the cover, but that’s not an accurate description of who they are. If anything, this book should’ve been a relaunch of the Secret Warriors concept.
Teen Titans #88: this is the debut of yet another creative team tasked with making the team relevant again. Since the Young Justice cartoon is on the way, starring much of the Teen Titans roster, you could say a lot is riding on this one. It was a decent read, with good art, and a last page that teases a development I find intriguing.
I will say this: I dropped Teen Titans over a year ago, as the creative teams just seemed to be flying without a plan. While I was gone, Titans were killed, new members were added, and there were a couple of Titans-wide crossovers. To join the book today, it’s almost like reading the book from the good days, right before I dropped it. That might sound like a good thing – that I can pick it up after all this time without feeling I’ve missed a beat. However, I can’t help but feel that it’s a slap in the face to the people who stuck with the book through all that, only to find that those stories and events no longer “matter”. It’s not like there was a retcon, as the stories still exist, however the script even drops a reference to the fact that those issues were the wrong direction for the team. The acknowledgment is refreshing, but it’s still odd how a year’s worth of comics were nothing more than the result of a “Well, we had to put out something” attitude. I guess I’m just used to comics using cataclysmic events as agents of change rather than the way Teen Titans has gone about it.
Detective Comics #870: This was the conclusion of a filler arc, but I just wanted to say how glad I was to see Scott McDaniel’s art. About 10 years ago, he was THE Batman artist. Sure, his style may not have been as clean as an Aparo or even Lee, but it was always kinetic. He’s great at showing Batman in action. He went from Nightwing to Batman to Green Arrow, and then kinda fell off the map. It just goes to show how easily someone can go from golden boy to guest star in this industry.
Uncanny X-Men #529: I’m going to need someone to get Whilce Portacio off this book. He brings a reputation with him, as he was one of the Image founders. That said, he’s always the one who dropped out and never really perfected his style.
If you look back, ALL the Image founders had similar styles. Over time, it seems like Top Cow is the only Image imprint that retains a house style. Everyone is built on the foundation of Silvestri, while adding their own particular flourishes. This was true of Michael Turner, Brandon Peterson, David Finch and Michael Broussard. You even see hints of it in early J. Scott Campbell, before he developed his own style. That’s what Whilce Portacio’s art looks like today: unfinished early J. Scott Campbell. Some might think that’s a compliment, but there are many homeroom classes in America, with kids in the back row, doodling in an early J. Scott Campbell style. Those same kids aren’t being paid to draw friggin’ X-Men.
Ultimate Enemy #4: Saw that coming a mile away. When you consider that any Marvel Universe *needs* a Dr Doom, combined with the oft-discussed FF period where Reed became Dr Doom, you kinda knew the Ultimate Universe would eat that up. I AM surprised that it was based out of Ultimate Power, seeing as how nobody read that book. Then again, it, too, was written by Jeph Loeb (by the end of the series, at least), so of course he was gonna pimp his own work. I just don’t see why this “saga” requires three 4-part miniseries. It would be best if he would take some of that time and figure out what he wants to do with Ultimate X. After all, it really hard to tell a compelling story about Alternate Universe Wolverine’s son, when Regular Wolverine’s son is a badass bisexual assassin. The Ultimate Universe is no longer the most exciting place to be in the Marvel Multiverse – especially since the Ultimatum Wave killed all the interesting characters.
Darkwing Duck #4: I’ve already tweeted that I felt this series was a love letter to the fans. It’s that good and more. We already knew that Darkwing Duck was in the same universe as Duck Tales, due to Launchpad and Gizmoduck’s appearances. This issue, however, just served to strengthen those bonds. So, what started out as a Darkwing Duck revival, is now also a Duck Tales revival. I didn’t think things could get any better, and then we got that last page reveal. I’m really excited to see where this comic is heading.
Skullkickers #1: more like “Walletfuckers”. Overhyped, derivative dreck. It was billed as “The Hangover meets D&D”. Whoever came up with that either needs to be fired or promoted. Either way, I won’t be taking a second look.
Action Comics #894: This is the one we’d all been awaiting: the reintroduction of Vertigo characters into DCU Proper. I’ve always been a fan of Neil Gaiman’s depiction of Death, as no one can resist a cute goth girl with a sense of naivete. That said, I don’t know if this issue accomplished all that we were expecting. If nothing else, I think it just planted the seed of the future possibilities now that these characters are available for DCU creators to use. I am curious how they will fit into a theological model that also includes The Spectre. It was certainly an interesting read, but it read more like “special filler” than an “event”. Maybe that was the point.
That does it for now. Guess I should do some “work” or something…
