AICN COMICS: Introducing New Indy Reviewers!!

Published by COM.X PUBLISHING

Written and Created by ROB WILLIAMS

Pencilled and Inked by TREVOR HAIRSINE

Colored by LEN O’GRADY

Logo, Lettering and Design by EDDIE DEIGHTON

Edited by EDDIE DEIGHTON

OK, so you’re really pissed off that Wildstorm/DC Comics has pulled the plug on THE AUTHORITY right? I mean you’re ticked as Hell right? So what do you do? Where do you go for your ass kicking take-no-prisoners superhero book? THE ULTIMATES is neat but are you gonna get all the sexual innuendo you got with THE AUTHORITY? Are you gonna get the extremely ambiguous superhero type who draws the line then crosses it with that Marvel book? Probably not. So where are you gonna get your widescreen AUTHORITY fix now? What-do-you-do?

You pick up CLA$$WAR # 1 from COM.X COMICS that’s what you do.

Now, I may be a bit late with writing up this review (the cover date says January ’02) but I’d never even HEARD of this book or this company before I picked it up to look at it and I’m someone who’s always looking for something new in my comics. Truth to tell I picked it up mainly because their cover logo looked like a Marvel MAX book at first glance and that’s what I thought it might have been. I thought that CLA$$WAR was a Marvel MAX book that I hadn’t heard of. Little did I know that this was MUCH better (Yeah, I know with the Marvel MAX books that’s not saying much but, hey, I can always hope!).

So here’s the dilli-o behind the premise: Imagine what would happen if Superman one day woke up to what a joke our whole government system was. Imagine if ol’ Supes finally grew some balls and finally came to the realization that the government wasn’t at all what he believed it to be. Imagine if the blinders that DC Comics has had Krypton’s last son in for the past 40 years as far as politics and dirty dealing politicians go were suddenly taken off.

If you can imagine that then you’ve got a pretty good idea of what the first issue of CLA$$WAR gives the reader.

CLA$$WAR opens on a rainy day in Washington D.C. with a lone man in a raincoat standing behind the fence that overlooks the White House. His countenance is angry and embittered and he makes no efforts to shield himself from the rain. Suddenly he drops the coat to the ground and stands revealed in a patriotically themed costume as he lifts up into the cloudy sky directly above the home of the President of the United States of America. And almost immediately the world will never be the same.

As the story progresses we come to learn that this man is known as AMERICAN and he is this comic world’s equivalent of Marvel’s Captain America or DC’s own, you guessed it, Superman. American has discovered something disturbing going on within the confines of the United States’s political system and it has completely unraveled him. Where once he was America’s golden boy he has now become an angry and intimidating figure, draping fear and uncertainty over the populace of the USA. American’s pissed and he’s going to get some answers and he’s going straight to the top dog to get them.

In CLA$$WAR we are also introduced to his compatriots, a super team known as THE ENOLA GAY. This is basically this world’s version of The Justice League. We discover over the course of the issue that these “heroes” aren’t necessarily your father’s superheroes much like The Authority. Not only that but they also consider what American’s doing to be completely off the wall and a danger to them. See, they like things just the way they are and it seems as if American may be rocking the boat a bit to much for the US’s premier super team.

Basically what we’re treated to over the premiere issue’s twentysomething pages is a feeling of creepy uneasiness as we see an almost godlike being decide that the people he’s been working to protect and save for all these years just aren’t worth it. That the honorable work he thought he was doing was all a sham. That he and everything he stands for is a lie and he’s gonna take it to the people responsible for the mess he’s allowed to let slip by him. Imagine. Just imagine a superhuman with the power to destroy mountains hovering over the nation’s capitol as the world watches in fear to see what he’s going to do next. That’s what this comic gives us. The feeling that, “Oh, man, we’re in for it now.”

The thing that’s a bit unsettling about this book is that it SO resembles The Authority in appearance that it’s unbelievable. Everything from the art to the coloring to the paper stock (truth to tell CLA$$WAR’s stock is a bit better) is almost manufactured to look like The Authority’s early run. Which doesn’t hurt it in any way but it DOES make the book seem like an Authority wannabe. Many of the ideas in the book are EXTREMELY derivative. Not only clipping from The Authority but from THE WATCHMEN and other sources as well. There’s an instance where we go back into a flashback and it’s revealed that The Gulf War in this book’s reality ended within 48 hours because of American and Enola Gay’s intervention. Seemed a bit too close to The Watchmen’s Dr. Manhattan ending the Vietnam War in record time for my tastes. Make no mistake CLA$$WAR tells a good story but it swipes from so many other sources in the first issue that it’s hard to call it a book for the ages because of its lack of complete originality. Not only lack of originality but also just flat out copying of ideas from other works who’ve done it better.

But here’s the thing. Despite the fact that it is derivative CLA$$WAR is still a really GREAT read. This is helped out by the fact that it’s a mature readers book (says so on the cover) so it’s pretty much given carte blanche in how far the characters are willing to go. I mean are you EVER going to see Superman burn the word “LIAR” in the President’s forehead with his heat vision? Definitely not. But in this book that’s just what American does to this world’s President which is the scene that really put this book over the edge for me. Not because of the violence of the act but because of the basic conception of it! I thought the moment to be brilliant and it signaled to me that this book was playing for keeps.

Now before you all go getting your panties in a bunch, no, the President in the book is not George Dubya or even a clever facsimile. It’s a totally fictional, 100 percent comic book made Prez so no one has to get all uppity about any disrespect to our current Commander-In-Chief. There is, however, a cameo by a very badly drawn George Dubya Senior in the Gulf War flashback so maybe they are alluding to something after all. Either way it didn’t bother me but if you’re an extreme conservative or die hard patriot who thinks that the US Govt. is full of squeaky clean do-gooders maybe this book isn’t for you. In any case you’ve been warned.

So here’s the deal. Great, fun, read. Really good art helped by fantastic coloring. Good writing if a bit derivative but it can be forgiven because there are some fantastic moments and snippets of dialogue that make up for it. Look at the flashback scene where American takes out his Russian counterpart and you’ll know what I mean. And since The Authority’s no longer gonna be around CLA$$WAR is a book that could be a hearty substitute.

Like I said, I’d never heard of this book or the company that publishes it until now. Turns out that Com.X is a British publishing group. I found that out by going to their website www.comxcomics.com. The site is kind of a mess with not all the links connecting to everything the way they should but it seems like they’ve got some interesting stuff. Also, they had no information as to when CLA$$WAR # 2 was coming out which seemed pretty boneheaded to me.

Figures. A comic this decent that trashes the American system would HAVE to be done by a bucnha Brits. Damn them Brits! They write such good comics even if some of ‘em can’t put a decent publicity website up!

So anyway, according to superhero’s brand spanking new rating system, CLA$$WAR gets:

THREE STARS-***!!!

Check out the ratings below and feel free to pilfer the system for your own comic reviewing use!

FIVE STARS-***** A comic work that will stay with you for a lifetime. One that expands the medium and actually encourages thought.

EX: Moore’s WATCHMEN, Miller’s Original DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, Garth Ennis’s PREACHER, and the original DC COMICS PRESENTS SUPERMAN VS. SPIDER-MAN (OK, that one’s just for me. Hey it blew my top off when I was a kid. What can I say?)

FOUR STARS-**** Comics that are awe inspiring high adventure and fantastic tales of humanity. A Comic that sets the bar for those who will follow. A Trailblazer.

EX: THE AUTHORITY, Moore’s PROMETHEA, Bendis’s POWERS, Miller’s run on DAREDEVIL, Chris Claremont and John Byrne’s run on THE UNCANNY X-MEN

THREE STARS-*** A Comic that’s just a great rip roarin’ read but doesn’t necessarily advance the medium in any way. A good tale that’s above the average norm but doesn’t necessarily blow the roof off of anything. Straightforward, decent comics worth the money you’d put into ‘em.

EX: The current run of THE JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA, Morrison’s run on THE JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA, Bendis’s ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN, Mike Mignola’s HELLBOY

TWO STARS-** An average comic. Nothing great about it but nothing absolutely horrible either. Could be a good read depending on your tastes but isn’t likely to knock anybody’s socks off.

EX: Any current issue of the SUPERMAN books, CAPTAIN CARROT AND HIS AMAZING ZOO CREW, JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES, CAPTAIN AMERICA, Marvel’s NEW WARRIORS

ONE STAR-* A just plain flat out crappy comic. Headed for the quarter bin at a comic store near you.

EX: Marvel’s NEW UNIVERSE (Except for Byrne’s Star Brand stuff!)

NO STARS-Jesus, how did this thing get published? Your stuck in the bathroom and you’re outta toilet paper? Use this sucker to wipe your ass…

EX: Marvel’s U.S. 1 mini-series.

Then there’s Big Joe, who slapped me with the following massive missive:

Hey Moriarty,

Well, after reading that you'll accept comics reviews from damn near anyone I figured I'd send some of mine your way. I'm not sure on how you do this, and I'm not even sure that you want them sent directly to you (you didn't acutally say where to send them to). So give these a look and if they're something you can use, great! If they're something you wouldn't mind getting regularly, drop me a line and let me know (especially if you'd like them regularly but in a different format).

Well. Thanks for the outlet. Now on with the show

-Big Joe

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Just to give everyone a hads up on what I'll go over, here's a breakdown of each review:

Title: Gives us the title of the book itself.

Issue: Gives us the issue number being reviewed.

Story by: Gives us the plotters & scripters for this issue.

Art by: Gives us the pencilers and inkers for this issue.

Plot: Gives us the basics of what actually happened this issue. You might not want to read this section if you have problems with spoilers.

Pacing: Gives us an impression on how well the story moves along.

Script: Gives us an impression on the dialogue and narration used in the issue.

Art: Gives us an impression of the art from my perspective.

Overall: This is a summary of any thoughts that don't fit in somewhere else.

Now on to the reviews:

Title: Captain Marvel

Issue: 31

Story by: Peter David

Art by: Derec Aucoin

Plot: Marlo has her life flash before her eyes (I think, not really all that familiar with her character) since at the end of last issue she wished she was dead and…well…dropped dead. Moondragon shows up and drops a bomb on Marlo after Death “took refuge” in Marlo’s body, she left Marlo with some sort of wish fulfillment powers. They can’t be consciously controlled of course. So Marlo is likely one of the most powerful, and due to the lack of control, dangerous individuals in the multiverse. Moondragon then resuscitates Marlo who immediately grasps the implications of her powers.

Oh...and then Captain Marvel shows up.

Pacing: Marlo’s life flashes by and we go along for the ride. Moondragon steps in for some exposition. Captain Marvel shows. I guess I could consider this a talking heads issue if any real information was passed along. But, really, no information was passed along beyond Marlo has some crazy-powerful, yet unpredictable powers. Oh...and then Captain Marvel shows up on the last page. Nothing happened here. Now granted, this is only the second issue of the series that I’ve read (more on that later) but unless there’s been a whole lot of build up to this moment, I don’t see the point of this issue.

Script: Peter David is a master of dialogue and exposition. And there was lots of exposition in this one as soon as Moondragon showed up. And while normally I cringe at that sort of thing, Mr. David’s dialogue is such a joy to read that I can forgive some awkwardness in delivering information to the reader. The dialogue of the geeks as they watch Al deliver CPR is classic...I’ve met those guys.

Art: Derec Aucoin has a neat visual style that reminds me of Mike Allred. I don’t know why really, they don’t look at all alike really. But it reminds me of Allred for some reason. The storytelling is top-notch. The paneling is dynamic enough and the payoffs are there when they’re needed. I just get the feeling that Derec’s art may not be everyone’s cup o noodles. And then there’s the cover. I sat there and stared at it for a few minutes as I knew the style, deep down, but couldn’t figure out who it was until I check marvel.com and then it hit me like a bolt of lightning, Kevin Maguire. Man, am I looking forward to Formerly Known as the Justice League. Kevin’s classic Justice League stuff makes me smile. “One punch...did you see that...one punch…” Man that was classic…

Overall: Well, I’ll be the first to admit that I started picking up Captain Marvel because of the whole Jemas/David/Quesada online publicity stunt. I figured that I absolutely adore Mr. David’s Young Justice, I’ll give this a shot and help make Jemas look like the jackass he is. But I’ll have to admit, the book is pretty inaccessible. I would think that after a big four-issue story-arc, this issue would have been a great jumping on point for folks. But you know what? Captain Marvel doesn’t show up until the last page! I mean…it’s his book for goodness sake.

AICN Recommendation: Give It a Pass.

Title: JSA

Issue: 35

Story by: David Goyer & Geoff Johns

Art by: Leonard Kirk & Keith Champagne

Plot: Stealing Thunder Part 3 of 5. Ultra-Humanite tricked Jakeem Thunder into giving up the Thunderbolt. Now, with the power of the Thunderbolt at his command, the Ultra-Humanite controls the world and the world’s greatest heroes. Except for a small resistance of heroes (Icicle, Sand, Crimson Avenger, Hourman, Power Girl, Captain Marvel, & Jakeem) who are fighting against the Humanite and trying to free the world’s heroes. Thing is, Captain Marvel was knocked out last issue and some of the most powerful heroes in the world are trying to tear our intrepid heroes apart when this issue opens. So what happens? Jakeem frees the heroes from the Humanite’s control but leaves them all unconscious as a result. Wildcat & Dr. Fate (well...Hector Hall sans helmet and amulet of Nabu) try to escape from the Humanite’s control only to be stopped by the Hawks. The issue ends with Captain Marvel waking up only to be blasted by the Humanite and turned back into Billy Batson. And then we see the Humanite leading his gorillas into battle. The issue ends with Hourman taking Sand and disappearing.

Pacing: Goyer & Johns love big, epic storylines. Their fans love big, epic storylines. Stealing Thunder is 5 issues long. Could it have been four? Yep, but then it wouldn’t be epic…right? 17 pages of this issue are taken up by the battle to free the world’s heroes. Now, I’m all for a big damn brouhaha. But I think a couple of pages could have been cut and maybe the escape of Wildcat and Hector Hall played out a bit more. Overall, you can tell that this is the middle chapter in the story. Not a lot happens, but the little that does happen is pivotal to the “big picture” story. Does that justify the length of this fight? I don’t know...yet.

Script: I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, Geoff Johns is great at dialogue. The exposition is there, but you tend to not notice it. A perfect example of when this works well for them is Wildcat’s line as the Hawks (Hawkman and Hawkgirl) stop their escape attempt, “Gee, Hec. Looks like your parents caught us sneakin’ out on a school night”. Good line that conveys the knowledge that Hector Hall is the son of Carter and Shiera Hall, the last incarnation of Hawkman and Hawkwoman. An example of when this doesn’t work is Crimson Avenger’s line after shooting Captain Atom and having him and four other heroes disappearing into thin air, “Captain Atom’s composed of Quantum Energy under that hard candy shell. Let a little out and they make a leap—about a week into the future”; a very awkward attempt to explain Captain Atom’s powers. I still think Johns’ work on the Flash is better, but this is heaps better than his Hawkman work.

Art: Kirk & Champagne do a good job with laying out a fight scene that could very easily become muddled and confusing. I particularly like the look of their Power Girl. She’s powerful without the cheesecake factor kicking in. And man they make me miss the Rex Tyler-Hourman. Their paneling is dynamic and their splashes are right where they need to be (the Atom Smasher scene is great). And that last splash of Ultra-Humanite and his army of gorillas reminded me to one of my rules to live by: Gorillas are scary. Minimum Safe Distance: 50 yards.

Overall: This is most definitely the middle of a longer story. Not enough actually happens to justify a full issue on these events. But then, that may simply be my wanting more out of my comics rather than less. And some, I’m sure, would see that as a presumptuous statement on my part. I say to those people, to each his own. I’m on the JSA ride for the long haul. Hell, I still wish they’d bring back the All-Star Squadron. So you better believe I’ll stick around on this one. Here’s hoping Roy Thomas and Jerry Ordway get to do a fill-in issue (they're both still alive right?).

AICN Recommendation: Recommended (Assuming you get the last two issues too...)

Title: Lab Rats

Issue: 1

Story by: John Byrne

Art by: John Byrne

Plot: There's these kids (who call themselves lab rats) who work in this facility where they are inserted into this virtual reality machine. Not all of them though, there's one who has a broken ankle who isn't plugged in and there's a new one that hasn't had the chance to be plugged in yet. Well, as it turns out, this machine can convince a person that they've been hurt or even killed and that person will then be hurt or killed (minus any actual physical trauma) in real life. So one of the plugged in kids gets killed early on and the rest of the issue is the remaining plugged in kids trying to get out of the machine which can't be shut off due to that possibly killing them.

Pacing: Well, the plot does move along and the subplots are interwoven pretty seamlessly. I guess my only issue with the pacing is that not a whole lot happens. In essence, we get introduced to the players and then the issue ends. It's like the part of a one-hour TV show that happens before the credits roll. I wanted more; and if I were a more cynical person would feel cheated.

Script: I've read a couple of online folks thoughts who have real serious issues with Mr. Byrne's "ignorance of teenage speech patterns". I've also read Mr. Byrne's responses to such criticism enough to know his response would be along the lines of "Teenagers don't talk like that? You'd better let the teens I hear on the street know they're not talking correctly then..." Now I can see both sides of this particular pissing match. It's true that Mr. Byrne's dialogue is a tad stiff and expositional. At the same time, can we know from a single issue whether these are normal teenagers? Because if they're abnormal teens, wouldn't it follow that they have abnormal speech patterns? Regardless, Mr. Byrne's script might read a bit tough, but it's not the primary reason I bought the book. I just want this to turn into a good story.

Art: Wow. Is there a subject among Byrne Victims and Bashers alike that has garnered more debate than the artistic changes that Mr. Byrne has gone through in his career? And he's changed, albeit in a subtle way, again. Long-time fans will remember the tight line work from the Uncanny X-Men days and the absolute joy of looking over the racks and seeing a cover by Byrne and Austin. Like crack to a junky that stuff was. And then Mr. Byrne started experimenting with his art style. And fans reacted. Many reacted very negatively. Saying he was getting old and his new stuff couldn't be compared to his old "good" stuff. And I think that's true. You can't compare "classic"-Byrne to post-"classic"-Byrne. Nor can you compare either of those to the current neo-Byrne style. They are different. Are they all drawn by the same guy? Yep. But it's like comparing the art work of Frank Miller's Daredevil to DK2. There are obvious differences. They are different styles. All by the same hand, true, but each having its own strengths and weaknesses. In Lab Rats, Mr. Byrne's line work has transformed into what I'm going to call an amalgamation of his classic and post-classic styles. His classic style had very tight line work and few, if any, broken lines. His post-classic work had a very loose lines and few, if any, unbroken lines. The work in Lab Rats seems to be somewhere in between. Close-up shots look very tight. Mr. Byrne has stated that he's experimenting with keeping the brush on the page as long as possible without breaking the line. The mid-range shots (on the other hand) seem to be closer to the post-classic line quality in so far as the details of the scene become much more sketchy than they may have been in the Uncanny X-Men/Fantastic Four days. Regardless, I enjoy Mr. Byrne's style. He is my second favorite artist working in comics today (although George Perez is working so hard on Avengers/JLA that he might not qualify as working in comics _today_). In addition to the stylistic changes that Mr. Byrne is experimenting with, he's also experimenting with CGI. I didn't notice one piece of obvious CGI work in the issue. Which, of course, means he's doing a damn fine job integrating it in.

Overall: Lab Rats #1 is a beginning. It's an appetizer. I wanted more at the end. And I was upset that I had to wait 30 days for another taste. And regardless of my negative thoughts about this issue, I'm on for the ride. Mr. Byrne doesn't put out as much as he used to and I'm going to enjoy what I can get while he's still around rather than wait until he's gone and garner appreciation for what he accomplished like I had to do for Jack Kirby.

AICN Recommendation: Recommended if you're a not a Byrne Basher.

That's it for this installment. If you'd like to drop me a line, feel free to E-mail me right here!!

If you want to be an AICN COMICS reviewer, complete with your own ratings system, able to say whatever you want about the books you’re reading, then WRITE US! That’s what it’s all about. Thanks to these two guys for a great job!!

"Moriarty" out.