Hey folks, Harry here... sorry for the delay in getting this up, but what with the show in LA this week and then heading off to Minnesota for CONVERGENCE... well I'm lucky to be alive... Once again here we go with the comic columns and there's some great material this week... Check em out....
Welcome ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls to yet another stupendous, stupefying, stupor-inducing edition of Premium Pulp. I’m your favorite comic book reviewer in the whole wide world, The Amazing Mutant Fanboy, and I’m joined this week, as I am every week, by my partner in crime, that swingin’ comic book dude, The Sexiest Man in Comics.
As always, thank you Fanboy. And to you out there in cyberspace, we’ve got four books this week that we feel worthy of the AICN Premium Pulp moniker. Starting off this group is the first of our two Judd Winick books hitting the shelves July 5, 2001, "Green Lantern" #140. In typical comic book fashion, the cover and Diamond solicitation do little to really tell the reader what this book is about. The book actually starts out with Kyle and Alan Scott chatting in a bar about the younger Emerald Knight’s increasing abilities as a GL (like being able to create visual constructs that don’t actually look green), and the fact that he hasn’t had the need to charge his ring for over nine months. After some great quiet moments in the bar, the two start out for Kyle’s assistant’s birthday party, which again lead to some great moments away from the superheroics that we’ve seen non-stop during Winick’s run.
Finally, in the book’s third and final act, we get some action, and it’s ring constructs galore as the once and current Green Lanterns do some pretty intense sparring, with Banks and Faber doing a pretty strong job rendering these ring recreations on the comic book page. What makes this book stand out though is Winick’s strong grasp on each of the characters highlighted in this issue. From Kyle, to Jade, to Alan, to even Terry, Winick infuses each character with their own style and voice, something hard to find in many comics.
This is probably the most uneven book that DC has. One month, Winick can give us a great comic, yet on other months, you can pretty easily go to sleep reading the book. Lately, however, the quality has been picking up, and I think that Winick is getting a better sense of how to balance action with character development as he continues on this book. Hopefully as he continues to "practice" writing superhero genre books like this, he’ll continue to develop as one of the industry’s most promising talents.
Another practice session of Winick’s comes out this week with the second issue of "Exiles." I was really quite hesitant about this book when I first heard about it, but now I have to say that I’m really caught up in it after only two issues. For those new to the concept (and after two issues, who isn’t), Exiles is a group of alternate reality mutants that go back and forth between realities in an attempt to make right what once went wrong. Yes, it is shades of Quantum Leap, but it’s also got a bit of "What If?" thrown in there too, as you get to reimaginations of the Marvel Universe, as in this first Exiles mission, where the team has to fix a mess they themselves created in rescuing an insane Charles Xavier.
This book doesn’t fall into the same mistake that many a second issue does in re-introducing the characters, wasting readers’ time and trying their patience. Instead, we’re treated to wall-to-wall action and full character development, allowing the reader to feel completely engrossed and engaged from the get go. What also makes this book so enjoyable is that you don’t need to know a whole heck of a lot about the Marvel Mutant Universe in order to get into this book. All you really need to know is that there are mutants and Prof. X is usually one of the good guys. Basically if you’ve seen the movie, you can fit right into the current story arc.
And if you’re not a Mutant Lover like I am but are intrigued by the stories of the homo superior, I highly suggest picking up a copy of this book, and the previous issue. Not only is it a great read by one of the industry’s worst kept secrets, but as the story of the Exiles progresses, it can also serve as a primer to past mutant events. Think of this as a warped Cliff Notes for the Marvel Mutant Universe.
Next on our docket this week is the latest gem from the industry’s most celebrated pairing of late, Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, who turn out yet another great piece from the early days of a superhero, this time taking a look at Daredevil in "Daredevil: Yellow" #2. To be honest, I was always a bigger fan of this team’s takes on Superman than on Batman, and now I’m figuring that this Daredevil piece may take the number two spot on my list of Loeb and Sale works. But more on that in a minute.
This issue picks up right after the last, with Daredevil fixing to do in "The Fixer" for finishing his father when he wouldn’t flop in a fight "The Fixer" had fixed. Of course, unlike Batman, Daredevil’s first night on the prowl in costume doesn’t invoke much fear, until the horned one actually starts his rampage against those who helped put his father six-feet under. All of this battling and chasing takes place with the backdrop of Daredevil’s letter writing campaign to his dead girlfriend, Karen Page.
I said before that I was a big fan of Loeb and Sale’s work on Superman, and a big part of that was the poignant hook that each issue had. Each was told from the point of view of someone close to the Man of Steel, giving each issue its own hook. Here, by making the story come alive through the poignant letters of Mr. Mudock to his deceased love is a great hook in and of itself, and does an excellent job of underscoring the difference between Daredevil’s early days, and his later years after having all those who were close to him die because of his association to him. Couple that with a beautiful ending scene that ranks up there with the introduction of Mary Jane to Peter Parker, and you’ve got one great book that I deem PULP OF THE WEEK.
I Make Mine Marvel with my PULP OF THE WEEK as well this week, with another touching story from the Jeph Loeb House of Ideas "Fantastic Four" #45 starts out with the FF dealing with the changes in their powers after the events of the Negative Zone battles. With Johnny Storm no longer able to control his ability to Flame On and Off, it’s up to Reed Richards to figure out a way to make the Human Torch part human again. Of course this leads to a new look for the younger statesman of the team, but in the meantime Ben Grimm has his own changes that he’s got to deal with.
The Thing now has the ability to actually change back and forth from his rocky exterior to human form, something he’s been longing to do for the past 30 years or so. Faced with the opportunity to reclaim his humanity, he goes after the one woman who loved him even as The Thing, Alicia Masters. Of course, being the daughter of the Puppet Master, The Thing’s reintroduction to the blind sculptor is not without some problems.
Jeph Loeb is, in my mind, one of the best writers in the industry right now. He’s been able to consistently make one Superman title worth reading, and he’s certainly getting the Fantastic Four right here. Teaming up with Carlos Pacheleo and Rafael Marin for the plot in this book, you’ll be surprised that with this issue, there weren’t too many cooks spoiling the broth. Instead, you get a great issue with some excellent fill-in art from Jeff Johnson. All in all, a very poignant piece that ties up some loose ends from the beginning of World’s Greatest Comic Magazine’s early days.
Well, that’s it from our end of the comic book world. We’ll be back here again next week, dolling out platitudes for another batch of Premium Pulp.
You wanna make a bet that "Azrael: Agent of the Bat" #80 isn’t on the list?
I’m the Sexiest Man in Comics, reminding you to order your comics early…
…and I’m the Amazing Mutant Fanboy reminding you to buy comics often.
