AICN COMICS: CROSSGEN Sneak Peek!! THE PATH Prequel!! Plus The Rest of This Week's Reviews!!

Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.

I admit that I know very little about this book. All I know is that Andrew from Gray Haven Magazine.com sent this preview of this upcoming title along for you to enjoy, so here it is:

Here's the last few reviews I couldn't fit in today's column, starting with one that should appeal to all cult movie freaks:

Son of the Gun #1: Born in the Trash

By Bess and Jodorowsky

Translated by Justin Kelly

Published by Humanoids Publishing

Reviewed by Alan David Doane

Anyone who enjoys the hard-boiled crime noir of DC's 100 Bullets should prepare themselves for an even harder-hitting criminal saga in this fantastic hardcover.

This ultra-violent saga of the criminal career of one strangely deformed young man begins and ends with a scene of a Christ-like figure being crucified. The narrative covers the life of a baby boy born with a tail, who suffers torment through his childhood, until he decides to strike back at a life that his shown him nothing but cruelty and misery. His rise as a violent, feared criminal figure reaches its apotheosis when he joins a group of also-deformed cohorts, sort of an international Dick Tracy rogue's gallery, to work for a corrupt politician.

The violence builds in symphonic waves here, from schoolyard scuffles ultimately to political assassination. But Bess and Jodorowsky keep the narrative in the same gutter where Juan Solo spends his life; no matter how high he climbs in his chosen field, he's still the angry little freak striking out at his tormentors, begging for attention and approval that rarely comes, and never lasts long.

The subtitle, "Born in the Trash," hints strongly at the theme: The violence and destruction that result from a loss of self-worth. The lead character here is never made to feel he is worth anything, so he values nothing, and kills anything that stands in the way of his violent ambition.

Son of the Gun reminds me of Reservoir Dogs, with the cinematography of From Dusk Til Dawn. The life-story of Solo is filled with violent scenes of murder, rape and chaos. His character is utterly detestible, but you can't look away as he continues down his violent path. The art is painted in reds, yellows and oranges, echoing the spilled blood that is always a moment away when you live this violent an existence.

This is a gripping start to what promises to be a landmark tale in the genre of crime comics for adults. The ending hints that redemption of some sort may lie ahead for Juan Solo. Given the severity of the damage to his soul and the viciousness of his crimes, it's hard to see how that could happen. I look forward to seeing where the saga goes from here.

Overall: 8/10

Spider-Man's Tangled Web #11

Written and Illustrated by Darwyn Cooke

Published by Marvel Comics

Reviewed by Drew Haverstock

A few years back, Brevoort and Co. hired Mike Allred (now a hot commodity on X-Force/X-Statics/X-whatever) to do an Annual for Untold Tales of Spider-Man. In the process, for a brief moment we were taken back to a time where Peter's romantic side collided with his heroic side in hysterical "Parker-luck" fashion.

Today, I'm telling fans of the Paul Dini / Bruce Timm style of storytelling from Batman: The Animated Series, beware. You're going to be sucked into the world of Spider-Man in short order thanks to a great new storyteller - Darwyn Cooke. And the best thing about it, Darwyn found a way to recapture that magic of Peter botching up things in wonderful fashion without going over the top.

Centered around Valentine's Day, this snippet shows Peter in over his head as usual, with villains, JJJ, women, and alleyway bums. Cooke does a magnificent job of capturing the essence of the newsroom, marrying the chaotic lifestyle of those inside perfectly to Peter's conundrum at hand. Spence, the new and amiable intern for the Daily Bugle, is the glue that keeps this book together. And after heading out the door to fetch his editor and company coffee from down the way, we see how much Peter and Spence have in common. But in the end, only one of them has the webs to foul things up and take the awkwardness to the next level.

This is my first exposure to Cooke's efforts, and I'm officially on board as a fan. Simple, clean lines in his artwork combined with classic cartoon storyboard pacing make this issue one of the best in the series since Tangled Web was created.

Mr. Axel Alonso, you've created a monster. Thank you. And below is a score that I rarely give out, but here is well deserved.

Overall: 10/10

The Town that Didn't Exist

By Enki Bilal and Pierre Christin

Translated by Justin Kelly

Published by Humanoids Publishing

Reviewed by Alan David Doane

A lovely, lyrical tale about a town where a strike against a factory has threatened to destroy the lives of both the workers and management of the company. The elderly owner dies, leaving it to his crippled granddaughter to return to the town and somehow salvage a dire situation. Her solution is unconventional, and though it is a success, a few aren't so sure they want the paradise she manages to create.

The opening pages of this stunning graphic novel recalled strongly a local strike that took place where I live in 2001. A 100-year old family-owned paper mill was in contract negotiations with its workers, and when the mill demanded too many concessions, the union called a strike. It lasted for months, and in the middle of it, September 11th happened. At that point, all public sentiment was focused elsewhere, the strike failed, and the union was broken.

We see such a thing here, as the factory's workers continue their strike while the board of directors plans to crush them. Bilal and Christin humanize both sides, though, and the spanner in the works is the unexpected death of the owner and the arrival of his granddaughter, whose solution to the ongoing standoff is unique and surprising. The way she plows through any problem she can't go around is appealing, and very often funny as hell. She may not be able to walk, but she runs roughshod over anyone who tries to stand in her way.

Christin's story is human and touching, focusing on the way the events of the story play out for one young boy, and beginning and ending the story with his dreams, and how they play into his hopes for the future. I found the ending ironic: Even Paradise has its detractors. It's a theme as old as religion, and as fresh as the young boy here, tired of perfection.

Bilal's art is subtle and profoundly lifelike, for all its stylization. The colours are muted but beautiful in depicting the everyday life of the town, but turn grand and gorgeous when an idealized new home is constructed for all the residents to share. There's a three-dimensionality to the artwork that lends a startling approximation of the real world, one that you'd be more than happy to fall in to and have a look around.

This 54-page hardcover graphic album is beautiful to look at, and its story is a timeless parable that feels for all the world like an old, old tale made new again in this striking presentation.

Overall: 10/10

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