Hey folks, Harry here with the Sexiest Man in Comics and the Amazing Mutant Fanboy and their Comic Column du jour... Once again some damn fine suggestions, and after his column is another treat from Andrew and the folks at Marvel.... Check It Out!!! here ya go....
Welcome back, once again, to another week of the best in comics with Premium Pulp. I’m the Sexiest Man in Comics, here alongside the Amazing Mutant Fanboy, and we’re ready to roll on this Comic Con week with four books that are sure to knock your socks off.
Starting things off this week is a book that you all should be picking up if you’re fans of team books in general, "JSA." If you’ve not been reading this book, shame on you, but issue #26 offers new readers a chance to get onto the book with a great re-introduction to the team that doesn’t leave old readers in the cold. Fresh off the epic return of Hawkman to the JSA roster, the team is lucky enough to have some downtime, allowing the members of the team to reassess their roles and relationships. In this issue you’ll find Hawkman’s courting of Hawkgirl, a great battle of strength between Atom Smasher and Black Adam, and Dr. Fate continuing his quest to reclaim the mind and life of his spellbound wife.
In my mind, the best way to judge a team book, or any superhero book for that matter, is by taking a look at quiet issues like this one. Sure, one can get sucked into the action on a book, but if you’re still engrossed during issues like this one, you know that there are skillful scribes and artists collaborating on a book. JSA has been a favorite of mine for a while now, as Goyer and Johns have carefully and successfully given each character on the book a strong voice and purpose on the team. Now with Goyer off to do his whole screenwriting gig, Johns continues to keep the book going with this strong issue, that while acting as an issue to catch one’s breath with, it also moves a number of storylines forward, including providing some interesting info on the nature Sentinel’s powers.
The artwork here is also top-notch, as Morales and Bair do strong work with little to no action, something that some artists in the field today have problems with from time to time. Here, each panel adds to the careful pacing of the writing, which makes the art transparent, something that you want in a character driven piece such as this.
Moving on to another DC team book, we have the JLA starting yet another mini-epic with their latest encounter with the White Martians in "JLA" #55. Now to be honest, I know that Waid may not be everyone’s cup of tea, and I know there are a lot of people who think that this book should have been retired after Morrison’s time on it. However, this is another great example of how Waid can (when he’s on top of his game) deftly merge Silver Age plots with Silicon Age sensibilities. In this issue, we find the White Martians taking down Martian Manhunter at the very beginning, only to focus their attention on the rest of the league later by taking over the minds of those close to the heroes. The result is scenes with Lois Lane ripping off Clark Kent’s shirt in the middle of the Daily Planet newsroom, Nightwing snapping a line as Batman swings across the Gotham City skyline, and the rest of the league being surrounded by suicidal Russians.
And all of this works for two reasons. First off, Waid’s pacing and dialogue is spot on. Each incident is given a great deal of care, as the league doesn’t drop into "standard super-hero mode," instead Waid focuses on what each leaguer does to get themselves out of the mess (with some humorous results in Superman’s case). Second, Hitch and Neary’s artwork on this book is, as always, near perfect. Their style on this book fits so well, it reminds me of the strength of the Maguire and later Hughes days on the early 90’s JLI run. The styles fit so perfectly with the words around them, in this case as Hitch and Neary have the amazing ability to make each panel seem 3-D in essence.
This brings us to yet another team book, though this time of a different sort. "Queen and Country" #3 proves yet again why Greg Rucka is one of the best writers we have in the industry. I think that my wife’s own review of the book pretty much summed it up: "I hate having to wait for the next issue! I want to know what happens next now!" Certainly issue after issue Rucka has left us with great cliffhangers, but what’s great about these cliffhangers is that they are somewhat subtle each time. You don’t get a splash page with some diabolical spy holding someone hostage, instead the action just stops abruptly, almost as if you’re reading a chilling spy novel (which is a good time to note that if you haven’t read some of Rucka’s novels, you really should start, as they are amazing page turners). In this issue, we see the Minders continuing their set up of Russians who would like to see Minder 2 (the lovely Tara Chase) put to rest for her actions in assassinating one of their pals. While the first issue of this story arc started out with a bang, the last two have been about the internal politics that surround the spy world, and I’ve found it nothing short of fascinating. From the CIA’s refusal to help protect the Minder they helped put in jeopardy, to the constant bickering between the internal and international British intelligence forces, this book reads better than anything Tom Clancy has put out in the last five years.
I enjoyed it too, and what also makes the book for me is the art. Steve Rolston does an amazing job of giving all the characters an ethnic feel. The British characters look British, the American’s look American, and the Russians look Russian. Too often, we have comic books where everyone, regardless of ethnicity looks the same. It’s a real skill that Rolston has, and I’ll be sad to see him go after the next issue. Finally, another book that has some top-notch artwork, and our co-pick for PULP OF THE WEEK, is the first issue of "Elektra." Now I was very hesitant about even taking a look at this book, as I felt that the reintroduction of Elektra would be the latest in a long line of deaths cheapened by the comic book industry by their unwillingness to let popular characters ride off into the sunset. However, the Marvel Knights line proves once again that they can do almost anything in perfect fashion. The set up for this first issue is simple. First, we get our customary origin tale, deftly drawn by Chuck Austen, who gives this sequence a great look to keep it separate from the meat and potatoes of the rest of the book. Then, Elektra is hired by S.H.E.I.L.D. to take down the latest leader of Iraq and raid their weapons cache, hopefully striking a blow against the revamped (and much more plausible) Hydra.
We all know that the writing on this book is top-notch, as Brian Michael Bendis puts forth yet another great issue, that beautifully handles both the origin of Elektra and the set-up for the coming action and the feel of this book. But the real surprise of this book is Chuck Austen’s beautiful renderings. I know it’s early, but I think this book is going to give "Black Panther" a run for its money as the best Marvel book out there.
Well, that’s a wrap from us this week. Hey, you know, we spent the entire week without making a single joke about how laughable "Azrael: Agent of the Bat" is.
I think you just did dude.
Oh. Well, I’m the Amazing Mutant Fanboy…
…and I’m the Sexiest Man In Comics, telling all you comic lovers to get on that plane and head to the Comic Mecca this week.
And here's Andrew from Grayhaven to give you a chance to tour the NY offices of Marvel Comics.... Hop to it! Write you bastages!
Marvel Comics and Grayhavenmagazine.com present the "Prove You Are A Marvel Hero!" Contest
Hey, True Believers! We're looking for the one fan that can prove that they too are a hero! Show us how you've used Marvel Comics to help people. Maybe you've given away comics to a hospital, or have read to the blind, or introduced a younger brother or sister to a favorite Marvel title.
The person who proves they're a real hero gets to come to the home of the heroes for a grand tour of the House of Ideas, Marvel Comics!
Send your letters of how you have been a real hero with the subject line: Marvel hero contest to here. The winner will have to prove their claims and then they can join the GHM editors for a tour of the new Marvel Comics.
Contest ends July 31st.
NOTHING IS THICKER THAN BLOOD: THE COVER TO ORIGIN #2!
Welcome to the working week, True Believers!
Okay, we all know that Monday's suck. But maybe I can make your day a little
more bareable by sharing this sweeeet image with you!
It's the cover to ORIGIN #2, which will reach stores on October 3rd. It's penciled by our very own EIC Joe Quesada and colored by the amazingly talented Richard Isanove.
Here's a description of the issue:
ORIGIN #2
* THE SCOOP: The true story of Wolverine continues!
* THE STORY: Superstar writer Paul Jenkins delivers a mysterious tale set in the early 1900's that reveals the answers to some of Marvel Comics' most asked questions: Who was the man named Logan? When did he acquire his powers? Who was his family? With art by superstar X-veteran Andy Kubert --
and covers by Marvel EIC Joe Quesada -- this tale is sure to be the hottest book of the year!
* THE FORMAT: Each chapter of this six-issue series will be 32 pages, with ads -- printed on glossy stock paper with a cardstock cover. vAnd just because we're as anxious as you are to learn Logan's true story, we're releasing ORIGIN #3 during the same month, on October 31st!
Okay... now back to regularly scheduled Monday malaise!
'Nuff Said!
Bill Rosemann
Marvel Comics
