#13

7/26/06

Hey folks, Ambush Bug here bringing you another exciting installment of AICN Comics. I just wanted to remind everyone that Sleazy G, Humphrey Lee, and I are going to be at the 10th Annual Wizard World Chicago Comic Convention in Rosemont, Illinois this weekend. You can find information here for tickets, location, and scheduling. It looks to be another fun con experience. Drop us an email if you’re going to be at the con and want us to check out your books, chat comics, grab a cold beverage, or whatever. Hope to see you all there!

And now, on to the reviews!

The Pull List
(Click title to go directly to the review)
JACK OF FABLES #1
JSA CLASSIFIED #14
CIVIL WAR: YOUNG AVENGERS & RUNAWAYS #1
ASTRO CITY: SAMARITAN SPECIAL #1
SHE-HULK #9
Indie Jones presents SHATTER
Indie Jones presents THE COMPLETE ALAN MOORE FUTURE SHOCKS TPB
Indie Jones presents a full load of books from BOOM! Studios
CHEAP SHOTS!
Tales From the Crevice…It Came From the 90’s: MAGE V2: THE HERO DEFINED

JACK OF FABLES #1

Writer(s): Bill Willingham & Matthew Sturges
Penciler: Tony Akins
Publisher: Vertigo/DC Comics
Reviewed by Humphrey Lee

Okay, we all know that FABLES is one of the most entertaining and critically acclaimed comics on the market (and if we don't know this by now, I hereby wish evil things on you--like, “Deliverance” type evil things). One of the more interesting takes on these fairy tale characters would definitely be one Jack Horner (y'know, the one that climbed that big beanstalk). But does that necessarily mean we need a spin-off series from the FABLES book starring the old Stalkclimber? Isn't another book in the FABLES vein a bit of overkill?

And I have to say now that not only is it not overkill, but I'm actually extremely glad JACK OF FABLES exists. And I'll tell you why...

There's something inherently cool about Willingham's version of Jack Horner. I mean, the character is an arrogant, egotistical, selfish sonuvabitch, but at the same time he's so fun to watch as he hatches his harebrained and self-serving plans. I thought the two-part story from FABLES that spawned this book wherein Jack became arguably the most popular fable (and thereby nigh-immortal) by instigating a series of blockbuster feature films starring "himself" was a stroke of genius. And it's a nice change of pace from the main title to just see Jack out and being himself in the real world while the regular crew of FABLES is back and dealing with the usual tidings. With so many folktales and urban legends and whatnot for Willingham to play with in the world of FABLES, I think it's a good thing to see a lot of these characters show up in a book besides FABLES so that the main title itself can become more streamlined in dealing with the more important business, like dealing with the Adversary, or checking on the other main characters like Bigby Wolf and Snow White and so on.

But all that said this issue is off to a little bit of a patchy start. It's nothing major at all, but despite my respect for the FABLES storyline that started this book, I really didn't need this title to spend its first five pages or so basically recapping that story. I think it's safe to say that the main audience of this title would be those that have already read FABLES and know why this all started. A little bit of catching up in between the events in that FABLES arc and where Jack's at now might be in order, but a full recap of all those events is a little bit more than filler IMO. After that though the story streamlines a little more into something that I again have to give hats off to Mr. Willingham for in that he's created another intriguing scenario for our main character, and also set up a little bit of mystery combined with the unexpected return of a rogue Fable we haven't seen in quite a bit.

So despite a little bit of a misstep at the beginning it doesn't take long for everything to rev up to the point where I already can't wait until the next issue. I daresay I can see myself becoming a little more antsy towards future issues of this book than the mother book because this already has established a more Action/Adventure-like tone that carries through a little bit better than the more methodical pace FABLES itself follows when it comes to reading both of them on a month to month basis. Either way it looks like Vertigo and Willingham have just that little bit more money from me each month.

JSA CLASSIFIED #14

Writer: Steve Englehart
Penciller: Tom Derenick
Inker: Mark Farmer
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewer: Squashua

I’m in the comic shop, looking at the stack in front of me. Heavy load this week, so something had to give before my wallet did. Filing through the covers, I spotted JLA CLASSIFIED #25, with the final part of the Detroit League tale. Having been bored to tears by the first three parts, a long, drawn-out Royal Flush Gang yarn with each issue told from a different Detroit JLA-era member viewpoint, I considered tossing it. Back in the day, DC would have done a single issue with three chapters; these days it’s pad-pad-pad for trade.

So I apologized to my local comic shop owner for having ordered the copy and handed back the issue. He told me the Detroit League story wasn’t thrilling some of his other patrons either. We chatted for a bit, I paid for the rest of my stack, then left.

At home, I glanced at the cover of JSA CLASSIFIED #14, finally noticed Vixen and the words "Detroit Shuffle", and promptly threw up in my mouth. Fucking damn it, this is dirty pool. JSA CLASSIFIED unexpectedly continues the tale of the Detroit League straight from JLA CLASSIFIED without any warning to the JSA audience. Vixen, Gypsy and Star Girl team up to hunt down Amos Fortune, whose latest scheme is the same modus operandi as existing JSA villain-ness, Roulette. Other than the first two pages featuring Star Girl reminiscing, the characters themselves act out-of-character: Star Girl is an uncharacteristically elitist jerk, Vixen revels in amateur hour, and Gypsy is so contemplative that she’s going to end up being J’onn in disguise, not that her green thought-boxes weren’t a dead giveaway. And when did Amos Fortune become the In-Betweener?

The dialogue is all over the place, and half of the time I just don’t understand where the floating text boxes are coming from. But that’s not what really pissed me off. It’s that there was no warning to the average JSA CLASSIFIED reader that that is part five of a four issues too-long storyline crossed over from JLA CLASSIFIED. It’s not like they billed this as, “Crisis in Detroit.” This crossover is simply not justified.

Having read the issue, another problem I had was the Detroit League being referred to as the "Biggest Fiasco in Superhero History." Unless I missed an important historical footnote by not reading JLA CLASSIFIED #25, I figured Sue Dibny getting ass-raped in the JLA Satellite held the #1 spot, but since that isn’t public knowledge I’ll go with The Atom’s wife murdering Sue Dibny. I can follow that up with investments in Kooey-Kooey-Kooey and allowing Red Tornado and Tomorrow Girl to infiltrate the team. Or maybe Batman getting all his "final acts of vengeance" stolen by the Demon’s Head holds the winning hand. Yeah, any of those seem much more “fiasco-y” than the Detroit League. Heck, I’m sure each talkbacker can name at least one topper, even the Marvel readers.

All in all, this tale has been unnecessarily drawn out and stinks of pre-cancellation filler. I will not be picking up the next issue, and should have spent my ill-distributed $2.99 on 9/10ths of a gallon of gas. Shame on you, DC Comics, for publishing this drek.

CIVIL WAR: YOUNG AVENGERS & RUNAWAYS #1

Writer: Zeb Wells
Artist: Stefano Caselli
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewer: Ambush Bug

YOUNG AVENGERS and RUNAWAYS are two of my favorite series Marvel is publishing these days, so whether I should pick it up was a no-brainer when I saw the book on the shelves last week, despite the fact that it was a CIVIL WAR tie in. I’ve been relatively tight-lipped so far regarding my thoughts on the whole CIVIL WAR hullabaloo, but no longer. Dragging some of my favorite characters into the mix is one surefire way to get this bug to write a bit about it all.

My thoughts on CIVIL WAR so far? Well, as far as the way the crossover has been put together, it’s been a disappointment. There’s only so much to do and so many places to go with the main problem and that has proven evident in the myriad of tie-ins which basically recap the ramshackle story and don’t really add much to it at all. On top of that, main players like Captain America, Iron Man, and Daredevil have their own storylines going on and are too busy to tie in. Since these are some of the integral players in this piece, it’d be good to get a book with their perspective, but that’s not the case so far. Instead we have Cap’s underground movement formed and fighting in the main CIVIL WAR book, but in NEW AVENGERS they’re still recruiting. Add in unnecessary tie ins like FRONTLINE and you have an inflated Seinfeldian somethin’-‘bout-nothin’ fluff “event.” There’s only one storyline here. Cap’s people v. Iron Man’s people. One group is acting like a bunch of iron-fisted facists. The other, a bunch of brutal revolutionaries. Whose side am I on? The side that doesn’t buy into bending characters to fit the story. That’s whose side I’m on.

But, like I said before, although I’d like to close my eyes and wait for CIVIL WAR to go away, it’s been about a week or two since the last issues of RUNAWAYS and YOUNG AVENGERS have come out, and that’s all it takes for me to miss the adventures of these young heroes.

Although he has yet to prove himself like YA’s Allan Heinberg and RUNAWAYS’ Brian K. Vaughan, Zeb Wells has popped up here and there with some impressive stuff in the past few years. I enjoyed his new take on the NEW WARRIORS which lead into this whole CIVIL WAR fiasco, and I’ve liked the way he’s written Spider-Man in the past. Wells conveys a sense of fun in his stories and with dour material like CIVIL WAR, it’s a welcome sight.

In this issue, I don’t know if Wells is using his characters to state the obvious (kind of the whole “kids see things a lot clearer than adults” angle) or if he himself is oblivious to the fact, but some of the dialog seems to shoot barbs at what’s going on in the Marvel Universe and even in this comic itself. Wells seems like a pretty astute writer, so I’ll have to believe he’s getting a bit self-referential when lines like the following pop up...

”Everyone’s so dour…even Captain America. No one’s acting like themselves.

Preach on, wickity Wiccan!

Lines like that make me think that Wells may have his own opinions as to how the powers that be are handling their main players.

But I can’t fault this book for being so closely tied to CIVIL WAR. It’s great to see these characters again, even when they aren’t written by the writers who made them famous. It’s paced pretty well and although it’s a bit ham-fisted the way the Young Avengers decide that they need to race to the Runaways’ rescue, it seems to highlight what makes the two teams distinct and special. Sure this issue seems to be putting the two teams at odds a bit, but at least they’re acting in character. YOUNG AVENGERS are headstrong and continue to admire and disobey the Avengers. The Runaways are distrusting of just about everyone and everything outside of their own little family. Really, this is the way the whole CIVIL WAR crossover should be handled, with both sides acting the part and reacting to the story instead of the story guiding the way the characters act and react. Maybe if Wells had a bigger part in this crossover, I wouldn’t have gotten so nauseated when Iron Man decimates Captain America’s face in the latest issue of CIVIL WAR.

Artist Stefano Caselli seems to be capable enough in this book, and he draws some pretty powerful panels. But Molly Hayes says it best on page 22 of this book after Wiccan tries to introduce the Young Avengers…

”You don’t look very “young” to me!”

And ya know what? She’s right. The artists of both YOUNG AVENGERS and RUNAWAYS always make sure to draw these characters as kids. In this book, the guys are bulky bodybuilders and the girls are busty super models. Nico and Karolina are walking around with D cups, while Speed and Patriot look like they could easily take on the Hulk. A little more attention and variation to the difference in sizes and shapes of these kids would have been nice. It wouldn’t have been as noticeable had the artists of the series that spawned this issue didn’t take all of that into careful consideration.

If anything, this issue proves to me that Zeb Wells is a writer to watch. He’s been scribbling in the periphery of the Marvel U for a little while and it’s just a matter of time before he breaks out and makes more people take notice. He handled this book pretty well, adding fun and an intriguing story, all the while keeping the characters in character. I wish there were more books like this at Marvel these days.

ASTRO CITY SAMARITAN SPECIAL # 1

Written by: Kurt Busiek
Illustrated by: Brent E. Anderson
Published by: Wildstorm Comics
Reviewed by: superhero

Another issue of ASTRO CITY brings us a truly fantastic superhero tale. Or, rather, brings us another classic super villain tale. ASTRO CITY SPECIAL # 1 details the history of The Infidel, who appears to be the Lex Luthor/Doctor Doom to Astro City’s champion The Samaritan. This issue of ASTRO CITY also happens to be the best super baddie origin tale since Alan Moore’s THE KILLING JOKE.

Although this story doesn’t elicit the same sympathy for its central character that Alan Moore’s classic tale did, it nevertheless presents a fantastic read in its own right. Busiek presents a truly well thought out origin tale that obviously harkens back to the classic arch-nemeses of yesteryear, but provides a modern thoughtfulness that all of his ASTRO CITY work has had in the past. In these forty or so pages, Busiek demonstrates why he is known as one of the best writers in the comic book biz.

While much of this issue does indeed deal with the origins of the aforementioned Infidel, what truly makes this book compelling is the framing sequence surrounding the whole story. Much of the book involves The Infidel and Samaritan sitting down to a civilized meal together while the villain of the piece reflects on his life and the circumstances which brought these two to be at odds with one another. While The Infidel’s remembrances are a great read to be sure it’s the basic fact of two enemies reaching a point where they could sit down at a meal together because they realized the futility of their ongoing battle that impressed me the most. Imagine a superhero and a super villain much like Superman and Lex Luthor looking at each other during one of their most climactic battles and realizing, “What’s the point?”

That’s what made this book work for me. The fact that Busiek actually addresses the futility of the whole superhero/super villain dynamic. I mean, really, we’ve all thought about it. How many times can Batman capture the Joker only to have him escape again? How many times can the FF send Doom back to Latveria with his armored tail between his legs only to have him back trying to blow up the Baxter Building again? I mean, after a while wouldn’t they all just get sick of it and either just kill each other or call a truce? I mean, let’s face it, Spider-Man will never truly beat the Green Goblin and vice-versa so, realistically, at what point do the two major players just get sick of the game their playing and walk away?

This is the element of this book which fascinated me the most. Like I said before, The Infidel’s origin tale is some good reading, but it’s the basic idea that a bad guy and a good guy who are sworn enemies can realize that they are at an impasse and then treat each other with respect that I thought was truly original here. What also stuck out to me was the fact that The Infidel comes across as more interesting and more refined than Samaritan has ever been made out to be. While I suppose that’s unfair to say as I don’t believe that Samaritan has ever gotten the full, in-depth historical treatment that The Infidel got in these pages, part of me thinks that Busiek presented it this way on purpose. Honestly, don’t a lot of us actually think that the villains in a lot of our comic books are sometimes more interesting than the protagonists themselves? I think Busiek knows this and has presented The Infidel as the more interesting character, not only in these pages, but in the ASTRO CITY universe in general because of it.

If I had to list one complaint about the book, it’d be the fact that the big bad of this book happens to be black man. Not only that, but a black man from Africa and the Middle East. I’m not trying to say that the fact that the villain of the piece is black smacks of racism, but I do kind of find it somewhat off-putting. Don’t get me wrong, as I said before, The Infidel is portrayed a being a very three-dimensional character with obvious intelligence and charisma. If anything Busiek’s actually had several ASTRO CITY arcs with positive portrayals of people of all races. My problem just happens to be with the fact that you’ve got the Euro Western Ideal white superhero facing off against the black Middle Eastern/African bad guy and it seems a little, I don’t know…I guess I could see how someone might see it as racist. Now I don’t see it as such and I’m pretty positive that Busiek didn’t mean to portray it as such, but I did find it a little too typical of comic books and popular fiction in general.

But that’s a minor, and possibly self-imagined, quibble on my part. ASTRO CITY SPECIAL NUMER ONE truly is just that: special. It’s that rare and enjoyable origin story that rarely comes around these days. Now if only Busiek and Anderson could get around to getting us these great ASTRO CITY stories more often then that’d make me one truly happy camper.

SHE-HULK #9

Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Paul Smith
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewed with love by: Squashua

My dearest Dan Slott.

Will you marry me?

I’ll let you do anal.

Please?

I mean, I’m not gay, don’t get me wrong, but I’d let you because you gave me a nine-panel spit-take. And that was hot.

Nine. Panel. Spit. Take. When Parker revealed himself, we only got J. Jonah Jameson falling off his desk, but you marry off She-Hulk to John Jameson and bequeath us a wedding present with a nine-panel spit-take, J.J.J. inclusive. That was masterful.

Many of the schemes that J. Jonah has plotted against Spider-Man are stripped naked with this issue and there is not one moment without both laugh-out-loud hysterics and meaningful insight. She-Hulk is a funny book, but not in a slapstick-y, fourth-wall-breaking, stupid way. Dan “Keith Giffen” Slott, you understand the Marvel Universe that came before, and you don’t discard it. You cherish it and revel in it, and make me chuckle at the overall ridiculous and silly nature of its rich comic history.

And it’s not all silly, as you continue to show us. There’s been some harsh stuff, what with the trial of Starfox, serial rapist. Through use of his powers, he’s plowed his way through thousands of females, including She-Hulk, and she’s out to take him down. It’s a comeuppance that’s been needed for a long time.

It’s like you actually care about these characters and their deep and detailed backgrounds. Every bit of the rich tapestry woven by other writers becomes a part of your tale; you don’t discard anything, and you don’t just write them like they’re homework assignments. Take, for example, Wolverine in seven different X-Men teams in the same month and his own book; none of the writers even bother to consider their poor readers who have to figure out the logistics of Logan co-existing on Long Island, Japan, Canada, Genosha and the Shi’ar Empire simultaneously. Of course, X-fans seem to eat that shit up, but you…YOU, Dan…you actually care about your readers.

It’s like you check in with all the other Marvel writers and ask, ”Hey, what’s going on? What’cha writing, anything good? What’s {character name here} doing these days? Oh, may I refer to it? Why thank you, I promise to make sure it’s juggled properly.” And you coordinate. Drop a mention of She-Hulk’s CIVIL WAR actions and attitude, toss in a reference to “Planet Hulk,” and dive head-first into the Spider-Man universe. You care about dotting your I’s and crossing your T’s. And I look for that in a writer.

And that’s why I care about you, Dan. I’ll take your Thing into my Slott. I used to take it, right up until your Thing was cancelled, and I’ll promise to keep taking it until your She-Hulk is cancelled, but I hope it’s never cancelled. It’s that good. And I promise you, I’ll “Doctor Light” the family pet of any reader who doesn’t pick up this series. You have my word.

She-Hulk is the most entertaining, meaty, fun and accessible comic book that Marvel Comics is publishing... with the exception of that single issue of New Avengers from last week featuring Luke Cage defying the registration act. That was pretty fucking awesome, too. Keep that up Bendis, and I'll consider letting you do me too, that is, as long as my new hubby is willing to share.

SHATTER TPB

Writer: Peter Gillis
Artist: Mike Saenz
Publisher: AiT/Planet Lar
Reviewer: Prof. Challenger

For those of you who weren't around when SHATTER first came out from FIRST COMICS, then you really can't grasp how revolutionary this series was.

SHATTER was the first comic book series created entirely on computer. Using a first generation Apple computer, a bunch of floppy disks, and a dot matrix printer (what?!?!?), the team of Peter Gillis and Mike Saenz produced a cutting-edge, hardboiled futuristic detective series. As impressive as it was at the time, it may be moreso today given the higher level of computer literacy nowadays. By that I mean, when we look at this book now, we actually understand the amount of unbelievable effort it took to produce, whereas at the time, computer graphics were still like magic to most of us. We did not really understand what went into it.

Peter Gillis had already made a name for himself in the comics field through his work at Marvel. I remember his name on some old WHAT IF? comics particularly. And coming on the heels of movies like BLADERUNNER, the anti-hero freelance cop for hire of SHATTER was a familiar-seeming character. Gillis comprehended well the direction that our increasingly digitized western culture was headed and made some prescient predictions in this series that make it quaint to look at today. At its root though, this is film noir detective comics and good ones at that, even without the "gimmick" of the computer-generated art.

Not every artist knows how to frame and pace a story in graphic form, but Saenz did it exceptionally well - especially considering the severe graphic limitations of those early Apple computers. The talent that he showed was exceptional. His characters are interesting to look at. His men are handsome. His women are sexy. His cityscapes and settings just flat out amazing.

Anyone who's sampled some of AiT/Planet Lar's product knows they are a bastion of black and white quality out there. With SHATTER, they are not only a historical repository for a lost classic, they also are reproducing it for the first time here in pure dot matrix black-and-white which raises the artistic bar for the work, in my opinion. Color is nice, and sometimes necessary, but in a classic work using this technique, I prefer seeing the black-and-white so that I can fully appreciate Saenz's work.

THE COMPLETE ALAN MOORE FUTURE SHOCKS TPB

Writer: Alan Moore
Artists: Bryan Talbot, Ian Gibson, Dave Gibbons, and many more
Publisher: Rebellion ( 2000AD Comics )
Reviewer: Baytor

First off, let me get the nit-pick out of the way. While the 47 stories reprinted here are, without a doubt, the most complete collection of Alan Moore's short stories from his 2000AD days, it isn't actually a complete collection of his Future Shocks. They missed "A Holiday In Hell" clearly labeled as "Tharg's Future Shocks" from the 1980 Sci-Fi Special. I would also have liked to see his two stray Ro-Jaws Robo-Tales ("Killer In The Cab" and "The Dating Game") reprinted, as they're only a slight variation on the Future Shocks and Twisted Time tales featured here. In fact, Abelard Snazz's first adventure was a Robo-Tales, so their exclusion mystifies me.

Despite my disappointment that these three stories do not appear (along with another half dozen shorts across a multitude of other 2000AD properties), this collection is a lot of fun for the dedicated Alan Moore fan. While there's nothing as deep and meaningful as WATCHMEN or V FOR VENDETTA within these pages, Moore does have considerable fun skewering and deconstructing science-fiction clichÃ©s. At its best, it rivals his wonderful Jack B. Quick tales from TOMORROW STORIES, with a lot of clever wordplay and delightfully wonky abuses of pseudo-science. It's only when he attempts to take the subject matter seriously that the 2-8 page limitation truly rears its ugly head.

Take, for instance, the two-page story, "All Of Them Were Empty", which lands with a melodramatic THUNK as its two lead characters lament their horrible situation, never rising above being a lame re-telling of a famous Stephen King short story. Another dramatic short, "Ring Road", manages to spoil itself with the title, so by the time you realize the lead character is advancing through time on the second page, you've already guessed the twist ending.

"The Reversible Man" is one of the few serious tales that ends up being charming and poignant, as we watch a perfectly ordinary life told backwards. The story begins with the narrator experiencing a fatal heart attack and we follow him as he grows less and less irritated with his wife, moves back in with his parents, reverts to childhood, forgets all that Latin and chemistry that he never had any use for, and ultimately ends with his birth.

But the collection really shines with the humorous stories. "Chronocops" takes us inside the world of the men and women of time enforcement as they prevent people from killing their own ancestors or becoming their own grandfather, and has loads of fun with time paradoxes in the process. In "Wages Of Sin", Tharg takes applications for an evil Overlord school, where we learn that a wave is not a claw-like gesture of defiance as you fall into your own atomic reactor. One of Moore's most famous DC stories, "Mogo Doesn't Socialize" gets a companion piece as paranoia reigns supreme when "The Bounty Hunters" hunt a shape-shifting killer, who could be anything… including the planet they're standing on. Werewolves, Superman's origin, over-the-hill space adventures, inappropriate uses for time machines… almost everything gets parodied within these pages. We even learn where flies go in the winter.

As is the case with almost all fiction based on the twist ending, you can often see the twist coming halfway through, but they're short enough and charming enough to forgive their occasional short-comings.

Of course, the big crowd-pleaser here is probably "Abelard Snazz". Sporting a double pair of eyes (which causes a mild headache if you look at him too long), this egomaniac genius always manages to snag defeat from the jaws of victory in a series of quick-witted tales. Think an older, unluckier version of Jack B. Quick and you get the idea. He always manages to come up with the most ridiculous solution to a given problem, but somehow manages to leave the situation worse than when he started. You gotta love anyone who can turn his digital watch into a deadly neuron-whisk in a matter of seconds.

And did I mention lovely art by the likes of Bryan Talbot, Ian Gibson, Dave Gibbons, Alan Davis, Steve Dillon, and loads of others? Go buy this already.

A full load of books from BOOM! Studios

Reviewer: Ambush Bug

For a little over a year, BOOM! Studios have been putting out some really impressive books. Seems every week there’s a new BOOM! book on the shelves. From the irreverence of HERO SQUARED to the promise of such intriguing series as TALENT and X ISLE to incredibly entertaining anthology series such as ZOMBIE TALES and CTHULU TALES, this company seems to have a lot of talent in its stable and continues to be one of the fastest rising stars in publishing outside of the Big Two. What has truly impressed me, though, is that BOOM! has continued to grow at an exponential rate over the past few months and doesn’t appear to be slowing down one bit. I liken this company to the now defunct CROSSGEN in that regard, and that raises some concern. Seems that CROSSGEN, too, barreled out of the gates with talent and promise, only to find themselves over-extended and unprepared for the chaotic comic book market. CROSSGEN, though, relied on mostly fantasy projects and many of their books were interconnected. BOOM!, on the other hand, does not have these pitfalls built into their product line and that may be the factor that saves BOOM! from following in other failed publishers’ footsteps.

The cool thing about BOOM! is the variety. Fantasy, super-heroics, comedies, horror, sci fi, adventure…you name it, BOOM! has published it or is gearing up to publish it soon. Not adhering to a set genre and offering such a wide variety of books are things most other publishing companies don’t do. Another plus is the fact that, for the most part, BOOM!’s properties are not connected. Each series is the writer’s own, allowing the writer to make his own rules and establish his own universes. It’s a publishing line where anything can happen and you don’t have to pick up an entire set of books to enjoy a good story. Marvel and DC sure can’t say that these days.

First up is HERO SQUARED #3. The most recent issue is labeled an All Therapy issue and it’s just that. You may think that two guys sitting in a therapist’s office and talking about their problems is a boring way to tell a story and I’d probably agree if the story were in the hands of anyone other than writers Keith Giffen and JM DeMatteis. Turns out this is a perfect issue for those of you who are unfamiliar with the HERO SQUARED universe. Milo is your typical slacker type, but his life is completely changed when Captain Valor crashes into his life. Turns out Valor is Milo from an alternate universe, a universe where Milo meets a wizard on a school field trip and becomes the most powerful hero of that world. In this reality, though, Milo ditched school the day of the field trip and never received powers from the Wizard. Since Valor’s universe was destroyed, he has now taken residence in this reality and is unhappily paired up with Milo until he makes sure that the same fate doesn’t happen here. To top things off, Milo’s girlfriend is this Earth’s counterpart to Valor’s arch-nemesis. Confused? Well, that’s why this therapy issue is so good. It presents the problems these two Milos face while living on the same plane of existence in a clear and often hilarious manner. There are some really funny moments and yes, this is quite a talkity issue, but that’s what therapy is all about and that’s what DeMatteis and Giffen do best. This is an unconventionally entertaining issue in an unconditionally entertaining series.

Next up is BLACK PLAGUE #1. This first issue does a good job of setting up what looks to be a pretty straightforward take on superheroics, something BOOM! hasn’t really tried before. Written by Joe Casey, this book shows a lot of promise and the character design of the Black Plague is pretty cool to say the least. This is one of those books where who’s on the side of good and evil are fuzzy. There’s a blurry moral line drawn in the sand. At times, I found myself a bit confused about who was who and there is a costume color discrepancy involving a bunch of thugs in suits during an integral fight scene that added to the confusion a bit, but all in all this is a slick first installment of a book with a promising new superhero/villain.

The title character in JEREMIAH HARM #4 is a true bad@$$ in every sense. He’s a bit of John Wayne, a bit a Lobo, and a whole lot of attitude. He’s an interstellar bad guy who’s been let loose from prison to track down some interstellar aliens who are even badder than him, and he doesn’t really care how much wanton destruction he causes to bring the bad guys down. In this issue, Harm brings down an alien who is basically a big cloud of toxic gas in a way that is disgusting and entertaining at the same time. Missing in this issue is the phenomenal artwork by Rael Lyra. Rafael Albuquerque fills in with the art chores here and does so confidently. This ballsy sci fi book is a must read for fans of Cameron’s TERMINATOR and ALIENS. It’s that type of dirty, gritty sci fi adventure mix that permeates throughout this book.

Finally, WAR OF THE WORLDS: SECOND WAVE #5 continues to entertain and surprise as the camera pans back from the immediate destruction caused by the landing of a second strike of alien pods on Earth. Much like WALKING DEAD, this book focuses on the struggles of survival rather than the threat itself. What started out as last year’s summer blockbuster now has evolved into a rich study of how civilization changes in the wake of disaster. In fact, I prefer the way writer Michael Alan Nelson is handling the downfall of this civilization to the way Kirkman is doing it in WALKING DEAD. In this book, Nelson shows us that the world that we know doesn’t die immediately, it slowly slides into the abyss. Communication is not completely down. We’re not cut off from all of the happenings around the world as you are in WALKING DEAD. Turns out states have seceded and become their own nations. Sheriffs and lawmen have taken charge and make their own rules. It’s much more of a mentality seen in many Old West stories, where the bad guys and those in charge are playing the alien attack to their advantage. My problem with this book centers on the fact that despite the top two heroes there really isn’t a very likable cast since everyone is basically trying to kill each other before the aliens do. Given time, though, I think there’ll be some people to root for since the aliens seem to be coming back in full force at the end of this issue.

So check out these titles from BOOM! They’re produced by some of today’s strongest writers and artists and printing-wise have some of the best production values around. I’m pulling for BOOM! to survive and not follow the same path as many promising publishers have in the past. Here’s hoping this is the beginning of a long history of publishing fine comics. So far, so good.

Remember, if you have an Indie book you’d like one of the @$$holes to take a look at, click on your favorite reviewer’s link and drop us an email.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #20
Marvel Comics

I hate to say it, but I think Cap has finally lost a little steam. Oh, the writing quality is still tremendous, and there's still some very high energy action occurring in the pages of the Star-Spangled Avenger’s solo book, but it hasn't really felt like it's gone anywhere these past couple issues. So far it's been "Cap goes to London and..." and that's about it. Sure, there's been some nice character asides with Cap and his old pals Spitfire and Union Jack, but the overall plot seems to have stalled a bit. Sin and Crossbones are up to no good and the Winter Soldier is kinda behind the scenes doing, uh, stuff, I guess. I dunno, there's a lot of stuff coming to a head it seems, but the build up on each individual point just doesn't seem to have enough "oomph" behind them. There's definitely a powder keg here ready to explode, it's just that watching the fuse burn down hasn't exactly been terribly riveting. When this all comes to a head in next issue’s arc ender though, I have a feeling everything will be right back on track. - Humphrey

THE GOON #18
Dark Horse Comics

Yeah, this is a fill-in issue. Sure, it sucks that some bible-thumpin’ split-tail got her panties in a bunch because the actual issue of THE GOON that was due out this month featured sodomy with animals or whatever it was supposed to be (the “heinous” acts are only eluded to in this book, pretty cleverly I might add as the Goon’s sidekick Frankie picks up the comic in question and proceeds to give a reactionary play-by-play while the Goon wails on a giant Spanish-talking lizard) and got a bunch of retailers to boycott the series if the issue was published. But this issue, while not on par with the quality of guffaws as the usual issue of THE GOON, shows me that creator Eric Powell and Dark Horse to have their shit together to have material like this to fall back on when something like this arises. This is the type of professionalism I like to see in comics. The Big Two would have just delayed the book for eons. They could learn a lot of this level of professionalism. And I liked the short story in the end where the Goon gets into a fight with a big dude. It’s got a funny punch line in your typical Goon style. - Ambush Bug

DAREDEVIL #87
Marvel Comics

The conclusion to Ed Brubaker's first arc on this title is a blast and a half. Even though I had the identity of Fauxdevil spoiled for me, the page where he reveals himself still managed to astonish me, although nothing astonished me as much as that final page. The next issue can't come soon enough. Bru is taking the story Bendis built up, and he is fucking running with it. I love the direction this is going, with Matt focusing all his energy on tracking down the people who had Foggy killed. I love all the little touches the book has, with Dakota North proving herself smarter than a room full of superheroes, and The Punisher telling Matt that "You don't want to be me." And if you don't love the two comedians in the beginning who sound like Frank Miller and Bendis characters, then I don't want to know you. -- Vroom Socko

52 – Week 12
DC Comics

Crazy Captain Marvel. Those three simple words indicate a must-buy issue. The seven deadly sins have driven Captain Marvel batshit, and you need to see it. Oh, and there are also some cool moments with Black Adam and his bitch, Renee Montoya and her bitch, and Elongated Man and his bitch. All that action, plus speculate on the mystery of whether they artistically blacked out Wonder Girl’s titties with a black t-shirt, and marvel at the wonder that is Adrianna’s duplicating word balloon. With one primary editor and two assistant editors, you’d think they’d catch shit like that, so it must be intentional! Luckily for them this is a time travel story, and they can always blame a hiccup in the continuum! Oh, and Mark Waid makes very good use of his 2-page Wonder Woman summary. I do appreciate the references to key issues; that means they’re in continuity, right? Pick this one up, though the lack of Batwoman sure should disappoint all the bandwagon readers from Week 11, but hey…Isis! - Squash

It Came From the 90’s
By Vroom Socko

If there is one rule of thumb when it comes to fiction, it’s that any sequel that comes over a decade after the original is going to be of questionable quality at best. You have your EPISODE I, your DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN…but then there are the exceptions, like the recent CLERKS II. And there’s this week’s Tale from the 90’s, the second installment of Matt Wagner’s heroic saga called MAGE.

First published in 1984, the initial run of MAGE was subtitled “The Hero Discovered.” It featured the story of young Kevin Matchstick, a man caught up in a mystical battle between the Umbra Sprite and Mirth, the World Mage. The series reached its high point when it revealed that Kevin is actually the mystical reincarnation of King Arthur, with Excalibur taking the form of a baseball bat. A follow-up story was promised but various problems, including the collapse of the original publisher, kept it from materializing until 1998. It was then that the second MAGE was finally published, this time with the subtitle “The Hero Defined.”

“The Hero Defined” has Kevin finding himself in charge of a cadre of other heroes, primarily Joe Phat, the personification of the trickster Coyote, and Kirby Hero, the super strong Olympian. These three find themselves tracking down the source of an evil manifestation that proves to be the work of the surviving creatures from the first series. There’s also a witch that falls for Kevin, and a crazy old man who claims to be another World Mage sent to follow in the footsteps of Mirth.

This series rocks, not just because Matt Wagner is an amazing artist and skilled writer, but because he’s willing to take this character and make him both fascinating and unlikable. While the first series had Kevin slowly coming to accept his true nature, the second focuses on his refusal to grow beyond that nature. “Arthur was a king, after all,” he says early on. Of course, Arthur was more than that, but you wouldn’t know it to hear Kevin talk. There’s nothing more dangerous than someone who’s convinced, absolutely convinced, that they know exactly what the right thing to do is in every situation. That’s Kevin here, and the journey he goes on because of this manages to be even more captivating that the first installment.

Of course, this isn’t all about self-reflection and introspection. There’s also a whole lot of smashing in monsters’ heads with a baseball bat. You either like that sort of thing or you don’t. Me, I can’t get enough of it. The MAGE series is meant to be a trilogy, and I just hope that we don’t have to wait until 2012 to read “The Hero Denied.” In the meantime, both previous installments are available from Image, and your comic book library just isn’t complete without them.

AICN COMICS REVIEWS JACK OF FABLES! SHE-HULK! TALES FROM THE CREVICE looks at MAGE! AND MUCH MORE!!!