tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36616263267623113522012-01-09T11:06:04.079+01:00ON COMIC BOOKS, GRAPHIC NOVELS AND OTHER COMICSMarc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3711100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-70845322267811417662012-01-09T09:42:00.001+01:002012-01-09T09:48:30.560+01:00

BY THURSTON GLUMME Crack-shot critic Rock Scorch came to the attention of comics readers the old-fashioned way: by putting shit on the Internet. The competitive-yodeler-by-training and comic-shop employee may be the only comics critic as known for a series of rap videos in which he once starred as he is for shit on the Internet. I've read other bloggers linking to Scorch the way old-timey

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-51915436577729765042011-12-23T12:55:00.002+01:002011-12-23T12:56:56.463+01:00

It pleases me to say that there is the kind of activity here again that enables me to take a bona fide break. So thank you for reading, merry Christmas, and see you in 2012!

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-58524906120597524962011-12-23T12:43:00.002+01:002011-12-23T12:45:16.734+01:00

Marvel, 36 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Stan Lee Artist: Marcos Martin Colorist: Muntsa Vicente, Javier Rodriguez Letterer: Joe Caramagna This book reprints 12 two-page “Spidey Sunday” strips originally published in Amazing Spider-Man #634 through 645, as well as the “Identity Crisis” short from issue #600, all of which were written by Spider-Man co-creator Stan Lee and drawn by Marcos Martin

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-70989773618999206632011-12-22T17:30:00.002+01:002011-12-22T17:42:02.663+01:00

Boom! Studios, 22 pages, $ 1.00 Writer: Gary Phillips Artist: Marc Laming Colorist: Darrin Moore Letterer: Steve Wands Cover artist: Paul Azaceta The Rinse is a baffling comic, for a number of reasons. This type of material—no fantastic elements, no big-name creators or characters, no superheroes—is a tough sell in the U.S. market, and so it’s laudable for publishers to try and

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-39834137827623628122011-12-21T21:41:00.001+01:002011-12-22T03:45:25.889+01:00

Image Comics, 27 pages, $ 3.99 Writer/penciler: Rick Veitch Inker: Gary Erskine Colorist: Dominic Regan Letterer: Annie Parkhouse Cover artist: Thomas Yeates Arguably, it’s moot to judge something on its merits as a story when it turns out that telling a story was never the point. But given that The Big Lie, released in time for the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks,

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-28718161878821923912011-12-20T14:23:00.002+01:002011-12-20T14:24:37.282+01:00

Boom!/Kaboom!, 8 pages plus extra material, $ 1.00 Writer/artist: Roger Langridge Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg Roger Langridge’s new kids’ comic is based on the Lewis Carroll poem “The Walrus and the Carpenter”: The story is about Wilburforce J. Walrus (an anthropomorphic walrus) and Clyde McDunk (a carpenter), who live together in a little fairy house near the beach, in a little fairy town

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-46629061664757602912011-12-19T23:57:00.002+01:002011-12-20T00:01:57.056+01:00

Dynamite Entertainment, 12 pages plus extra material, $ 1.00 Writers: Kurt Busiek, Alex Ross Artists: Jack Herbert, Alex Ross Colorist: Vinicius Andrade Letterer: Simon Bowland Besides half the Marvel Universe and Darkseid and the New Gods over at DC, Jack Kirby also created hundreds of lesser-known characters that didn’t end up being owned by his publishers. That’s where Kirby:

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-23817609916345120252011-12-16T08:04:00.002+01:002011-12-16T10:22:59.900+01:00

Marvel, 34 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: David Lapham Artist: David Aja Colorist: Bettie Breitweiser Letterer: Dave Lanphear There’s an entire subgenre of Wolverine stories in which “an old friend” requires Logan’s help, and Wolverine: Debt of Death is one of those. As in many stories of this particular ilk, the old friend here, too, happens to be from Japan. The call for help, handily,

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-79200000667271046432011-12-15T09:31:00.002+01:002011-12-15T10:51:19.438+01:00

Marvel, 19 pages, $ 2.99 Writer/artist: Howard Chaykin Colorist: Jesus Aburtov Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher Well, this is a comic written and drawn by Howard Chaykin, so you know what you’re in for. Oh, you don’t? Okay, in a nutshell: The characters are a dashing, wise-cracking, more than a little bit snotty bunch, and there’s a lot of sex and violence. Also: textures. Many, many,

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-49721049301194192122011-12-14T08:19:00.002+01:002011-12-14T08:20:44.617+01:00

Marvel, 22 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Warren Ellis Artist: Jamie McKelvie Colorist: Matthew Wilson Letterer: Dave Lanphear Cover artists: John Cassaday and Paul Mounts I don’t usually read Secret Avengers, but #16 is the first of six issues written by Warren Ellis, each of which containing a full story illustrated by a different artist. So, in essence, these six issues of Secret

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-78590664773542341702011-12-13T10:09:00.002+01:002011-12-13T10:10:16.731+01:00

Marvel, 29 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Kieron Gillen Penciler: Carlos Pacheco Inker: Cam Smith Colorist: Frank D’Armata I rather like what Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo are doing over in the other half of the “Regenesis” relaunch. Can Kieron Gillen and Carlos Pacheco keep up? Well, first up, Uncanny X-Men is quite a different book from Wolverine & the X-Men—as it should be, certainly,

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-17728466876248735722011-12-12T09:32:00.002+01:002011-12-12T09:33:33.171+01:00

Marvel, 28 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Jason Aaron Penciler/colorist: Chris Bachalo Inkers: Tim Townsend, Jaime Mendoza, Al Vey Letterer: Rob Steen In which Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo turn in the best X-Men story I’ve read in years. About half a year back, when I saw the X-Men: First Class film, I was wondering why there wasn’t an X-Men comic that’s like it: a busy, self-contained,

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-52606620405976118732011-12-09T19:25:00.002+01:002011-12-09T19:27:55.914+01:00

Marvel, 34 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Kieron Gillen Artist: Billy Tan Colorist: Andres Mossa Letterer: Rob Steen Cover artists: Chris Bachalo and Tim Townsend To their credit, Marvel hasn’t been shy about the fact that someone from the marketing department tends to be present during their plotting retreats. When it was determined to launch Wolverine & the X-Men and relaunch Uncanny X-Men

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-43601894551694716352011-12-08T23:59:00.001+01:002011-12-09T10:01:33.792+01:00

Image Comics, 18 pages plus extra material, $ 2.99 Writer: Joe Casey Artist/colorist: Mike Huddleston Letterer: Rus Wooton Logo and graphic designer: Sonia Harris One of the things I like so much about Butcher Baker is that it doesn’t hide its penises. For all the grisly violence, the puerile or outright jaw-droppingly awkward notions of sex and the overall testosterone-drenched

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-71278483856862978892011-12-07T23:59:00.002+01:002011-12-08T23:57:14.259+01:00

Image Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Joe Casey Artist: Nathan Fox Colorist: Fco Plascencia Letterer: Comicraft This is the first issue by the new creative team of Joe Casey and Nathan Fox, who worked together before on the highly enjoyable Dark Reign: Zodiac miniseries at Marvel, a couple of years ago. And when was the last time you saw a “New Creative Team!” tagline one a comic?

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-10240590215021907682011-12-06T08:56:00.002+01:002011-12-06T08:57:22.311+01:00

IDW Publishing, 21 pages, $ 3.99 Writer/artist: John Byrne Colorist: Ronda Pattison Letterer: Shawn Lee Cowboys vs. dinosaurs? By John Byrne? Yay! Well, kind of. As it turns out, there are no real cowboys in the book, contrary to what the cover suggests. It’s set in some U.S. desert small town where folks have cattle, all right, but it’s the present day, unfortunately. The second big

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-82524500540027257232011-12-05T13:20:00.000+01:002012-01-04T00:10:54.738+01:00

Taking Stock of the DC Universe Relaunch Now that I‘ve gone through the whole bunch of individual debut issues (here’s the index for the reviews), let’s take a step back and look at some of the creative concerns and problems of the “New 52” relaunch. 1: ACCESSIBILITY A sincere effort to make the material accessible can be felt in virtually all the “New 52” debut issues. In terms of sheer

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-83043354904556812342011-12-02T14:46:00.002+01:002011-12-02T14:55:28.780+01:00

IDW Publishing, 22 pages, $ 3.99 Writer/artist: John Byrne Colorist: Ronda Pattison Letterer: Neil Uyetake It’s been a while since I last read a John Byrne comic—must have been an issue of X-Men: The Hidden Years, circa 1999 or so. While that series was, shall we say, not the most focused of all superhero adventures, I’ve always had a soft spot for Mr. Byrne’s stuff. German reprints of

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-80722173546512202312011-12-01T06:05:00.003+01:002011-12-01T06:18:22.632+01:00

Penny-Farthing Press, 2010, paperback, 104 pages, $ 19.95 Writer: Stuart Moore Penciler and colorist: Jon Proctor Inkers: Jeff Dabu, Jon Proctor Letterer: Jason Levine As it turns out, the “graphic novel” part of the subtitle is a bit of a misnomer. Rather than a standalone narrative, this is the first (and, to date, only) book in a projected series. Not that there’s anything wrong

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-47012078321721813662011-11-30T14:31:00.002+01:002011-11-30T14:33:19.838+01:00

DC Comics/Vertigo, 25 pages, $ 1.00 Writer: Brian Azzarello Artist: Eduardo Risso Colorists: Patricia Mulvihill, Giulia Brusco Letterer: Clem Robins Cover artist: Dave Johnson If you ever watched a dystopian sci-fi movie in the 1990s—you know, one of those unlikely ones with Arnold Schwarzenegger or Kevin Costner—Spaceman seems quite familiar. It’s about Orson, a guy built like a

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-47911603415618544892011-11-29T12:46:00.004+01:002011-12-09T04:38:27.049+01:00

Week 1: Justice League #1 Week 2: Detective Comics #1, Batwing #1, Green Arrow #1, Hawk & Dove #1, Justice League International #1, Men of War #1, Stormwatch #1, O.M.A.C. #1, Static Shock #1, Batgirl #1, Animal Man #1, Swamp Thing #1, Action Comics #1 Week 3: Green Lantern #1, Legion Lost #1, Mister Terrific #1, Batman and Robin #1, Batwoman #1, Deathstroke #1, Frankenstein: Agent of

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-25418661734704181392011-11-28T13:00:00.003+01:002011-12-08T23:56:56.871+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Co-writer and artist: Francis Manapul Co-writer and colorist: Brian Buccellato Letterer: Sal Cipriano The first 10 pages of Flash #1 are the best introduction to a superhero comic I’ve seen in a long time. It’s just good, stylish, irresistible straightforward storytelling. To (a) introduce the hero’s civilian identity, including Love Interest A and another

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-67272649656799052892011-11-27T11:18:00.003+01:002011-11-30T03:13:35.792+01:00

An Interview with Chew Artist Rob Guillory BY MARC-OLIVER FRISCHWhen Chew debuted in 2009, artist Rob Guillory was a blank slate for most comics fans, although his résumé already included work for publishers like Random House or Dark Horse Comics. Guillory’s early publications include a charity project that also counts Stan Lee among its contributors, as well as a short comic published in the

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-90020532253002642872011-11-26T15:15:00.004+01:002011-11-30T03:11:47.037+01:00

An Interview with Chew Writer John Layman BY MARC-OLIVER FRISCHJohn Layman has been around the block in U.S. mainstream comics. As an editor at Jim Lee’s WildStorm Studios, he oversaw influential comics such as Warren Ellis and John Cassaday’s Planetary, Ellis and Cully Hamner’s Red, Joe Casey’s Wildcats Version 3.0 and Mark Millar’s controversial run on The Authority, among others. While at

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-73276429765405204732011-11-25T11:50:00.002+01:002011-11-25T19:14:31.513+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer and co-plotter: Paul Jenkins Penciler and co-plotter: David Finch Inker: Richard Friend Colorist: Alex Sinclair Letterer: Sal Cipriano This is a very odd book to release one week after Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s Batman #1. For one thing, David Finch’s style, like Mr. Capullo’s as well, has a lot of the sensibilities popularized by artists

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-35191889582583125372011-11-24T15:00:00.002+01:002011-11-24T15:03:00.349+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Peter Milligan Artist: Mikel Janin Colorist: Ulises Arreola Letterer: Rob Leigh Cover artist: Ryan Sook In theory, this type of book should be right up Peter Milligan’s alley: not quite your average mainstream superhero thing, but still well within shouting distance of the mainstream. When Mr. Milligan was writing Marvel’s X-Force (later

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-31202750224386376122011-11-23T14:31:00.002+01:002011-11-23T14:33:08.181+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Co-plotters: Ethan Van Sciver, Gail Simone Writer: Gail Simone Artist: Yildiray Cinar Colorist: Steve Buccellato Letterer: Travis Lanham Cover artist: Ethan Van Sciver In principle, I don’t mind graphic violence and cruelty in superhero comics. They’re just one more tool from the box that can be applied as required. And, for that matter, the two

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-46558307703513625912011-11-22T13:39:00.002+01:002011-11-25T00:17:17.583+01:00

DC Comics, 22 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Geoff Johns Penciler: Ivan Reis Inker: Joe Prado Colorist: Rod Reis Letterer: Nick J. Napolitano Geoff Johns has a message for you: Aquaman is a serious and important character. Very serious and very important, in fact. Terribly serious and important. A tremendously serious and important character, that’s Aquaman. Which, you know, is a

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-69046260815617685682011-11-21T12:33:00.003+01:002011-11-21T12:41:28.338+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Scott Lobdell Penciler: Brett Booth Inker: Norm Rapmund Colorist: Andrew Dalhouse Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual Welcome to the 1990s! DC Comics editor-in-chief Bob Harras, writer Scott Lobdell and penciler Brett Booth turn in a Teen Titans revamp that reads and looks like something created 20 years ago. The fact that the story is titled “Teen

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-8536109253298628122011-11-18T15:17:00.002+01:002011-11-18T15:22:25.143+01:00

DC Comics, 28 pages, $ 3.99 Writers: Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray Artist: Moritat Colorist: Gabriel Bautista Letterer: Rob Leigh All Star Western is, pretty much, a straightforward relaunch of the Jonah Hex title that ran for 70 issues from 2006 through 2011. The routine goes like this: Jonah Hex, the horribly scarred mercenary and grim avenger of the innocent created by writer John

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-28447725305802513202011-11-17T10:26:00.002+01:002011-11-17T13:36:04.369+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Mike Costa Layout artist: Graham Nolan Artist: Ken Lashley Colorist: Guy Major Letterer: Rob Leigh With Blackhawks, DC revives a series of war comics created by—among others—Will Eisner in the 1940s and revamped by Howard Chaykin in the late 1980s. This time around, it’s not a straightforward war book, but more like the Thunderbirds with a

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-32277485248764167792011-11-16T11:30:00.002+01:002011-11-16T11:31:13.421+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Ron Marz Artist: Sami Basri Colorist: Jessica Kholinne Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher Voodoo certainly looks nice, thanks to Sami Basri’s art. There’s cheesecake, but Mr. Basri is not your average cheesecake artist—he can do regular-looking people (and women) in regular clothing, too. And for a superhero book, at least, a strip-club setting is

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-87376750629157719832011-11-15T09:53:00.002+01:002011-11-15T09:54:22.464+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Joshua Hale Fialkov Artist: Andrea Sorrentino Colorist: Marcelo Maiolo Letterer: Pat Brosseau Emo vampires, then. Usually, when people complain that “nothing happens” in a U.S. comic, they probably mean there’s too much dialogue. In this comic, nothing “happens” in the dialogue, by which I mean to say you couldn’t come up with a triter and less

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-83359296179013787552011-11-14T08:39:00.002+01:002011-11-14T08:40:26.275+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Tony S. Daniel Artist: Philip Tan Colorist: Sunny Gho Letterer: Travis Lanham Hawkman is one of the DC characters that arguably have much to gain from any given overhaul of their histories, and very little to lose. Since the character was created by Gardner Fox and Dennis Neville in 1940, he went through so many revisions and retroactive changes

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-71914679890767139302011-11-11T06:48:00.002+01:002011-11-11T09:39:32.060+01:00

DC Comics, 25 pages, $ 2.99 Writer and layout artist: George Pérez Artist: Jesús Merino Colorist: Brian Buccellato Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual If there’s a particular theme to Superman, then it’s a certain unease with the 21st century—it’s practically oozing from every page of the comic. In some ways, the reality we’re living in—and have been for some time—is presented as

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-15634686730977784642011-11-10T21:06:00.003+01:002011-11-11T01:34:14.854+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Scott Lobdell Artist: Kenneth Rocafort Colorist: Blond Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual I’m still not sure what’s more startling to me—that Scott Lobdell is writing three monthly superhero books in the year 2011—all selling, as of October, above the 50,000-unit mark, no less—or that he actually managed to kick off a wave of indignation with one of them

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-6726966260978448402011-11-09T08:11:00.002+01:002011-11-09T08:12:54.055+01:00

DC Comics, 24 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Brian Azzarello Artist: Cliff Chiang Colorist: Matthew Wilson Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher It’s safe to say Wonder Woman hasn’t been the easiest character to handle. DC, via its stories and promotional efforts, keeps insisting she’s one of its “top three” characters, but in reality, that’s hardly the case. If you ask people on the street about the

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-10116500507012155512011-11-08T09:01:00.003+01:002011-11-08T11:57:44.056+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Tony Bedard Penciler: Tyler Kirkham Inker: Batt Colorist: Nei Ruffino Letterer: Dave Sharpe There are superhero comics that are fresh and inventive and strive to deviate from the formula at every turn, and then there’s Green Lantern: New Guardians. First, a generic yellow ring bearer is abandoned by his ring in action and dies as a result.

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-36370346395164049502011-11-07T16:36:00.002+01:002011-11-07T16:42:53.980+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Judd Winick Artist: Guillem March Colorist: Tomeu Morey Letterer: Sal Cipriano Catwoman gets a lot of things right. There’s a fast-paced opening sequence that—literally—hits the ground running and pulls you in with great-looking art and solid storytelling from everyone involved. And it’s followed up by an equally convincing scene that makes both

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-89472070340942004222011-11-04T18:36:00.002+01:002011-11-04T18:38:12.694+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Paul Jenkins Artist: Bernard Chang Colorist: Blond Letterer: Dave Sharpe Cover artist: Ryan Sook In theory, Paul Jenkins’ take on the Deadman concept is one I have a lot of time for: In order to redeem himself, Deadman has to “possess” other people’s bodies, identify the problems in their lives and fix them, with each “solved case” taking him a

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-56540848359776431432011-11-03T16:34:00.002+01:002011-11-03T16:35:28.502+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writers: Michael Green and Mike Johnson Penciler: Mahmud Asrar Inkers: Dan Green with Mahmud Asrar Colorist: Dave McCaig Letterer: John J. Hill All you need of this comic are the first four pages: dramatic, well-drawn, beautifully colored—even the credits look well-designed, which is a rare sight in superhero comics. Okay, the pants thing on page four

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-5857379007389561922011-11-02T13:46:00.002+01:002011-11-02T13:47:37.933+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Kyle Higgins Penciler: Eddy Barrows Inker: J.P. Mayer Colorist: Rod Reis Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual Some comics strive to offer something unexpected and imaginative with every scene, others are more like Nightwing. Writer Kyle Higgins and penciler Eddy Barrows know how to communicate the plot of their story competently, but that’s about the

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-89991431673744928192011-11-01T17:05:00.002+01:002011-11-01T17:07:51.944+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Paul Levitz Artist: Francis Portela Colorist: Javier Mena Letterer: Pat Brosseau Cover artist: Karl Kerschl I think I’ve mentioned before that the “New 52” launches rather surprised me by being reasonably accessible comics, for the most part. Their other sins aside, it’s evident that the majority of the creators working on these books at least

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-1056812541071492472011-10-31T11:57:00.002+01:002011-10-31T11:59:06.383+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: J.T. Krul Artist: Freddie Williams II Colorist: Jose Villarrubia Letterer: Rob Leigh Cover artist: Stanley Lau This is the character who inspired Watchmen’s Doctor Manhattan, of course. I’m not very familiar with Captain Atom beyond that, but the story suggests that Krul is broadly taking a cue from Manhattan’s portrayal: Atom is growing more

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-37466177483674951552011-10-28T15:45:00.002+02:002011-10-28T15:49:11.902+02:00

DC Comics, 24 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Scott Snyder Penciler: Greg Capullo Inker: Jonathan Glapion Colorist: FCO Plascencia Letterer: Jimmy Betancourt I was looking forward to this one, based on Scott Snyder’s Detective Comics work and the unexpected match-up with Greg Capullo, who hasn’t done any major Marvel or DC work since the mid-1990s. As it turns out, Capullo holds up his end

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-22459801746037978852011-10-27T12:28:00.002+02:002011-10-27T12:30:19.429+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Duane Swierczynski Artist: Jesus Saiz Colorist: Nei Ruffino Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual Just last year, writer Gail Simone returned to her signature title Birds of Prey, relaunched it and re-established it as a well-received title with solid mid-level sales. For its “New 52” relaunch, DC decided to switch creative teams again anyway. Reading the new

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-28795705721690361102011-10-26T12:33:00.002+02:002011-10-26T12:34:44.493+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Peter J. Tomasi Penciler: Fernando Pasarin Inker: Scott Hanna Colorist: Gabe Eltaeb Letterer: Pat Brosseau Cover artists: Doug Mahnke, Christian Alamy and Randy Mayor “If my weapon hadn’t have run out, you Lanterns would’ve been cooked!” says the villain dude in the Green Lantern Corps #1—emphasis mine. He doesn’t talk funny in general, so

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-59592255620674327112011-10-25T12:26:00.002+02:002011-10-25T13:00:43.237+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Tony Bedard Penciler: Ig Guara Inker: Ruy José Colorist: Pete Pantazis Letterer: Rob Leigh Cover artists: Tyler Kirkham, Sal Regla and Nathan Eyring I’m not trying to be cruel with these books, but if you’re doing 52 new superhero titles and one of them is like Blue Beetle, then that’s as good a sign as any that maybe 51 would have done.

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-55546047761247890382011-10-24T11:35:00.002+02:002011-10-24T13:49:27.037+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Nathan Edmondson Penciler: Cafu Inker: Jason Gorder Colorist: Andrew Dalhouse Letterer: Wes Abbott The good news is, if you like Nathan Edmondson’s creator-owned action thriller Who Is Jake Ellis? and expect more of the same from Grifter, you won’t be disappointed. Like the hero of the aforementioned miniseries, Grifter protagonist Cole Cash

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-71707993087579212892011-10-21T07:42:00.001+02:002011-10-21T07:42:00.798+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Scott Lobdell Penciler: R.B. Silva Inker: Rob Lean Colorists: The Hories Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual Cover artists: Eric Canete and Guy Major Based on Scott Lobdell’s work for Marvel and his brief, mad run on Wildcats in the 1990s, I expected a fast-paced, maybe melodramatic, maybe somewhat dumb, but ultimately entertaining action comic

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-25044869988247096262011-10-20T00:11:00.002+02:002011-10-20T00:13:12.924+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Adam Glass Pencilers: Federico Dallocchio and Ransom Getty Inkers: Federico Dallocchio and Scott Hanna Colorist: Val Staples Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher Cover artist: Ryan Benjamin For all intents and purposes, Suicide Squad replaces Gail Simone’s fan-favorite Secret Six as DC’s resident villain-themed title. And, of course, it carries the

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-35670506429084368912011-10-19T19:56:00.004+02:002011-10-19T23:22:06.685+02:00

At the Frankfurt Book Fair last Friday, I had the opportunity to talk to Charlie Adlard, artist of The Walking Dead (which I’m translating into German) about his work on the award-winning comic-book series, his career in comics, his other creator-owned work, his collaborations with Joe Casey and the industry at large. Here's a video of the whole panel.

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-91860675629014723532011-10-19T12:13:00.002+02:002011-10-19T12:15:37.484+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Peter Milligan Penciler: Ed Benes Inker: Rob Hunter Colorist: Nathan Eyring Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual When it comes to Peter Milligan’s mainstream superhero work, opinions differ. Some say it tends to be a bit rubbish; others are rather critical. Given that Red Lanterns is a series about space monsters who are puking blood all the time

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-53697882125638660652011-10-18T13:30:00.003+02:002011-10-18T13:32:52.613+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Paul Cornell Penciler: Diógenes Neves Inker: Oclair Albert Colorist: Marcelo Maiolo Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher Cover artists: Tony Daniel and Tomeu Morey Maybe this will read better in the first paperback collection, but as a debut issue, Demon Knights #1—a fantasy book starring characters like the Jack Kirby creation Etrigan and Grant

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-63763229512548463362011-10-17T12:00:00.002+02:002011-10-17T13:11:21.467+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writers: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning Artist: Fernando Dagnino Colorist: Santi Arcas Letterer: Rob Leigh Cover artists: Ivan Reis, Joe Prado and Rod Reis I’ve never read the original series that ran from 1997 through 1999, but Resurrection Man, written and created by the prolific British team Abnett and Lanning, basically reads like a cross between

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-30499799138378016532011-10-14T00:16:00.002+02:002011-10-14T00:17:27.946+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Jeff Lemire Artist: Alberto Ponticelli Colorist: Jose Villarrubia Letterer: Pat Brosseau Cover artists: J.G. Jones and Hi-Fi Frankenstein is a comic about a group of creature soldiers—led by Frankenstein’s Monster—that fights other monsters with swords and guns, and it’s pretty well-done. I’m not sure what else I could say at this point that

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-37456825010241914642011-10-13T14:14:00.002+02:002011-10-13T14:15:41.510+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Kyle Higgins Penciler: Joe Bennett Inker: Art Thibert Colorist: Jason Wright Letterer: Travis Lanham Cover artist: Simon Bisley In theory, I can see myself following a shallow, over-the-top action thriller starring a badass, one-eyed hired killer—especially if it happens to be drawn by Joe Bennett, who’s one of the more underrated artists

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-69114063382746756372011-10-12T07:41:00.002+02:002011-10-12T16:52:08.608+02:00

DC Comics, 22 pages, $ 2.99 Writers: J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman Artist: J.H. Williams III Colorist: Dave Stewart Letterer: Todd Klein Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you were probably expecting this to be a great-looking comic. The question, with regard to Batwoman, was if the writing was going to hold up, now that J.H. Williams’ collaborator Greg Rucka, who wrote

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-54834203015994780862011-10-11T15:37:00.002+02:002011-10-11T15:38:46.848+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Peter J. Tomasi Penciler: Patrick Gleason Inker: Mick Gray Colorist: John Kalisz Letterer: Patrick Brosseau As the title would suggest, this book is very much about the relationship between Batman and Robin. The big difference, compared to its previous incarnation, is that Batman is now Bruce Wayne again, and that may be part of the reason why

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-10942375417238872282011-10-10T14:29:00.002+02:002011-10-10T16:29:19.158+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Eric Wallace Penciler: Gianluca Gugliotta Inker: Wayne Faucher Colorist: Mike Atiyeh Letterer: Dave Sharpe Cover artist: J.G. Jones and Lovern Kindzierski In principle, it’s a laudable goal to imbue the DC Universe with more diverse—meaning “not white, male and heterosexual”—characters. In practice, it gets us books like Mister Terrific,

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-4173514454650096722011-10-07T13:25:00.002+02:002011-10-07T13:26:26.820+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Fabian Nicieza Artist: Pete Woods Colorist: Brad Anderson Letterer: Travis Lanham Technobabble, time bubbles and colorful superheroes stranded in the distant past—which just so happens to be our present—while in pursuit of a fugitive time-traveler who’s evidently trying to take revenge for something that’s about to happen, but hasn’t yet: Legion

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-23829502437942267562011-10-06T13:31:00.002+02:002011-10-06T13:37:16.810+02:00

DC Comics, 22 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Geoff Johns Penciler: Doug Mahnke Inkers: Christian Alamy and Tom Nguyen Colorist: David Baron Letterer: Sal Cipriano Cover artists: Ivan Reis, Joe Prado and Rod Reis The Green Lantern concept is one of the most frustrating ones in comic-book history. In theory, you’ve got a guy with a magic ring that conjures up anything he can imagine.

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-14570944417360178182011-10-05T14:22:00.002+02:002011-10-05T16:50:09.708+02:00

DC Comics, 29 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Grant Morrison Penciler: Rags Morales Inker: Rick Bryant Colorist: Brad Anderson Letterer: Patrick Brosseau One of the things Grant Morrison can be relied on to do when he approaches a corporate property is to take the title literally, see where that takes him and make sure that it’ll end up being writ large all over the DNA of the book—in

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-64141211069431777862011-10-04T12:26:00.002+02:002011-10-04T12:27:20.677+02:00

DC Comics, 22 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Scott Snyder Artist: Yanick Paquette Colorist: Nathan Fairbairn Letterer: John J. Hill Scott Snyder has a degree in creative writing and counts Rick Bass among his influences, according to his Wikipedia entry. Judging from Swamp Thing, both things are easy to believe, although Snyder doesn’t do much beyond introducing the protagonist and

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-75657841051267949382011-10-03T08:26:00.003+02:002011-12-08T23:49:17.267+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Jeff Lemire Penciler: Travel Foreman Inkers: Travel Foreman and Dan Green Colorist: Lovern Kindzierski Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher Thematically, Jeff Lemire’s Animal Man picks up where Grant Morrison’s Animal Man left off, pretty much. At the end of the Morrison run, the writer himself showed up in the story to bring his hero’s family back

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-52103966292757988822011-09-30T08:09:00.003+02:002011-12-08T23:48:37.719+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Gail Simone Penciler: Ardian Syaf Inker: Vincente Cifuentes Colorist: Ulises Arreola Letterer: Dave Sharpe Cover artist: Adam Hughes Once you get past the Adam Hughes cover with its requisite airbrushed face, there’s a pretty solid comic waiting underneath. The creators of Batgirl deliver a debut issue that’s so jam-packed with proper

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-74767967311366934602011-09-29T12:38:00.002+02:002011-09-29T12:41:05.284+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writers: Scott McDaniel and John Rozum Penciler: Scott McDaniel Inkers: Jonathan Glapion and Le Beau Underwood Colorist: Guy Major Letterer: Dezi Sienty I’m not sure why the creators thought that cluttering up a supposedly fast-paced lead-in action sequence with captions and dialogue was a good idea. They were wrong, at any rate, so what we end up

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-48684208471357398122011-09-28T13:08:00.002+02:002011-09-28T17:08:34.176+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writers: Keith Giffen and Dan DiDio Penciler: Keith Giffen Inker: Scott Koblish Colorist: Hi-Fi Letterer: Travis Lanham In which Keith Giffen, Dan DiDio and company have their hero Kirby-crackling his way through a smorgasbord of doohickeys, thingamajigs and whachamacallits. O.M.A.C. is a comic that’s intermittently fun to read, but still not very

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-10832643025923080292011-09-27T12:02:00.002+02:002011-09-27T15:16:43.123+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Paul Cornell Artist: Miguel Sepulveda Colorist: Allen Passalaqua Letterer: Rob Leigh The new Stormwatch is one of the relaunched DC titles I was looking forward to, thanks to Paul Cornell, who got good mileage out of a similar concept in Marvel’s Captain Britain and MI13 a few years ago. A group of elite super-soldiers defending Earth against

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-16484468915444509282011-09-26T08:44:00.002+02:002011-09-26T08:50:02.244+02:00

DC Comics, 28 pages, $ 3.99 Writers: Ivan Brandon, Jonathan Vankin Artists: Tom Derenick, Phil Winslade Colorists: Matt Wilson, Thomas Chu Letterer: Rob Leigh Cover artist: Viktor Kalchev Men of War—which revives a title that last ran from 1977 through 1980—is one of those odd hybrid books that you’d have expected from WildStorm, if the imprint were still around, at least as far

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-89147208107065458612011-09-23T00:52:00.007+02:002011-12-08T23:48:06.956+01:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Dan Jurgens Penciler: Aaron Lopresti Inker: Matt Ryan Colorist: Hi-Fi Letterer: Travis Lanham The five creators listed above have almost 100 years of experience in the comics industry between them, so Justice League International was always going to be an effort that’s at least competent, barring any major accidents in the production chain.

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-87024676971771098672011-09-22T01:23:00.002+02:002011-09-22T01:25:39.395+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Sterling Gates Artist: Rob Liefeld Colorist: Matt Yackey Letterer: Dezi Sienty Quick: You’re DC Comics editor-in-chief Bob Harras, and you’ve just been tasked with assembling 52 creative teams that will reintroduce the DC Universe to a big, bright new audience of first-time readers—who do you call? Hawk & Dove is everything you’d expect from a

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-7085634784783314352011-09-21T19:42:00.006+02:002011-11-29T17:44:40.963+01:00

Talking to Comic Book Resources, Paul Cornell, writer of the DC Comics “New 52” title Stormwatch, addresses the need to bring new readers up to speed: There's going to be people as unobtrusively as possible—but still pretty obtrusive because we're not writing for the trade anymore but for single issues—saying “I am so-and-so, and this is what I do.” Evidently, it’s impossible for proper

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-81032129973285933742011-09-21T00:45:00.002+02:002011-09-21T00:46:53.324+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: J.T. Krul Penciler: Dan Jurgens Inker: George Pérez Colorist: David Baron Letterer: Rob Leigh Cover artist: Dave Wilkins Thanks to Messrs. Jurgens, Pérez and Baron, Green Arrow #1 mostly looks like a sturdy, traditional superhero comic should. Thanks to Mr. Krul, reading it is a fairly painful affair, anyway. The art is good-looking and

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-73277352453947971602011-09-20T00:42:00.002+02:002011-09-20T00:53:49.454+02:00

DC Comics, 20 pages, $ 2.99 Writer: Judd Winick Artist: Ben Oliver Colorist: Brian Reber Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual On the plus side, this isn’t the train wreck I was expecting after reading the advertising copy and creator interviews, which dished out a lot of hoary old clichés. “Africa, a land of beauty—and of great horror. A land of creation and conflict,” the first two lines of

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-37382044207189661182011-09-19T01:02:00.002+02:002011-09-19T01:08:11.091+02:00

DC Comics, 24 pages, $ 2.99 Writer/penciler: Tony Salvador Daniel Inker: Ryan Winn Colorist: Tomeu Morey Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher Conceptually, Detective Comics picks up where Justice League left off: accessibility. Batman is still hunted by the police, which is instantly recognizable to anyone who’s seen Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, obviously. The creators take great

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-39038200583479363172011-09-05T18:53:00.003+02:002011-09-19T01:09:28.132+02:00

DC Comics, 24 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Geoff Johns Penciler: Jim Lee Inker: Scott Williams Colorist: Alex Sinclair Letterer: Patrick Brosseau Not counting Wonder Woman’s appearance on the cover and a couple of extras in crowd scenes, there’s exactly one female character in Justice League #1, the flagship book of DC’s big September relaunch, and she’s literally a cheerleader—her

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-60913397326594389912010-05-31T15:43:00.005+02:002010-05-31T16:05:46.107+02:00

10 Things Superhero Comics Do Better Than Any Other Genre in Any Other Storytelling Form What are superhero comics good at? What are we looking for in them? Are they ready to be retired, or are there things still to be done with them? Riffing on an essay by Tom Spurgeon, I discussed these questions last week, which spawned a variety of responses—some folks offered answers; others were annoyed

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-4409954808330224712010-05-21T13:56:00.002+02:002010-05-21T13:58:16.512+02:00

o "It's a Plane! It's a Bird! It's a Machine That Turns Thoughts Into Things!" Welcome to the Whorebaggery Edition of the Linksplurge. First up, there's a German-language print article by yours truly coming up in next month's Comicgate-Magazin Nr. 5, available for pre-order now if you're in Europe, or at the Comicgate booth at this year's Erlangen Comic Salon. In the piece, I look at the

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-59758879217651667142010-05-20T20:04:00.003+02:002010-05-21T00:51:29.594+02:00

DC Comics/Vertigo, 22 pages, $ 1.00 Writer: Chris Roberson Artist: Michael Allred Colorist: Laura Allred Letterer: Todd Klein As you'd expect from a comic book with art by Mike and Laura Allred, I, Zombie, the latest Vertigo series promoted with a low-priced debut issue, looks quirky and dynamic, with settings that lend the story the required authenticity and characters that appear

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-47223893973135011792010-05-17T23:08:00.001+02:002010-05-18T17:57:49.376+02:00

Marvel, 38 pages, $ 3.99 Writer: Matt Fraction Artist: Salvador Larroca Colorist: Frank D'Armata Letterer: Joe Caramagna Cover artists: Salvador Larroca, Rian Hughes You don't need to look very long, or very hard, to find valid points of criticism in the first chapter of "Stark Resilient," the latest multi-part storyline in writer Matt Fraction and artist Salvador Larroca's

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-25564779147431321232010-04-29T21:02:00.002+02:002010-04-29T21:11:34.475+02:00

o "Survive the Digital Revolution" At Publishers Weekly, Heidi MacDonald talks to comics retailers about digital distribution. Representatives from publisher IDW and the digital-comics distributor Comixology also weigh in. The term "cautiously optimistic" comes up, and that seems about right; slowly but surely, retailers seem to be coming around to the ideas that (a) there's no point in

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-43932192706251344722010-04-28T23:41:00.002+02:002010-05-29T20:14:14.463+02:00

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Never-Ending Marvel and DC Mega-Narratives At 4thletter!, David Brothers explains why the notion of "canon" in relation to the Marvel and DC superhero universes, and the question whether something's "in continuity," deserve a horrible death. As someone who spent a big chunk of his comics-reading career devouring a lot of Marvel books—most of which

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-45789829753615974972010-04-22T23:12:00.001+02:002010-04-23T03:16:11.042+02:00

o "I Adore Superman, and I Hope I Get the Chance to Use Him" I wouldn't have raised an eyebrow at the quote if it wasn't new Action Comics writer Paul Cornell who said it. You know, Action Comics, the book that used to have Superman in it? "No, it's Lex Luthor's book, at least for the first story arc. I adore Superman, and I hope I get the chance to use him, but for now I'm pleased to be

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-30786494618494560862010-04-20T16:01:00.002+02:002010-04-20T16:04:07.968+02:00

Erm, dear Marvel?No, I didn't.

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-89587750193128754992010-04-20T15:52:00.002+02:002010-04-20T15:57:57.436+02:00

o "One Very Deeply Odd Comic Book Series" Tom Spurgeon reviews Robert Morales and Kyle Baker's Truth: Red, White & Black, Marvel's rather bleak 2003 miniseries about a group of black soldiers abused as guinea pigs in a proto-Captain America super-soldier program by the American government. Along with Morales' subsequent seven-issue run on Captain America proper (art by Chris Bachalo and Eddie

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-76807504935676504122010-04-16T16:35:00.002+02:002010-04-17T11:41:30.278+02:00

o "Proud to Be Working with Pat" Pat Lee is back, doing comics for Dynamite Entertainment, but somehow the last four paragraphs of his biography got lost in the original press release. Christopher Butcher, to the rescue. o "The Only William Blake Poem Comics Ever Quote" In this week's "Emanata" column, Douglas Wolk examines the storytelling device of the flash-forward. o "Opens Up with a Baby

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-1899360100029345962010-04-16T16:34:00.004+02:002010-04-24T20:25:40.117+02:00

At The Savage Critics, Graeme McMillan makes some astute observations about the current state of Marvel's X-Men comics, which have managed to be utterly bland and backwards in the last five years or so, despite the presence of otherwise reliable creators like Ed Brubaker, Mike Carey and Matt Fraction. "It’s as if Grant Morrison never happened," McMillan says at one point, and I agree. The reason

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-20253700487234633762010-04-16T16:33:00.002+02:002010-04-17T11:48:44.602+02:00

Marvel, 38 pages, $ 3.99 Writer/artist: Chris Weston Co-inker: Gary Erskine Colorist: Chris Chuckry Letterer: Jimmy Betancourt Cover artist: Paolo Rivera The most entertaining moment in this one-shot special by British writer/artist Chris Weston comes when the prose unintentionally suggests that the original, android Human Torch, Marvel's very first superhero character from 1939

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-63698745498984032632010-04-15T22:10:00.002+02:002010-04-16T03:54:27.512+02:00

I haven't seen the film adaptation of Mark Millar's Kick-Ass, and I wasn't planning to, but the kinds of reactions the movie is provoking from critics like Roger Ebert (who uttered the quote in the headline above) or Dana Stevens ("nihilistic and flip") are making me reconsider. The amount of hand-wringing as people—even established, experienced critics—try and fail to explain what exactly rubs

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-19205049801617842962010-04-14T18:51:00.002+02:002010-04-16T09:19:10.131+02:00

Image Comics, 32 pages, $ 1.00 Writer: Joe Casey Artist: Rob Liefeld Colorist: Matt Yackey Letterer: Rus Wooton In theory, it makes sense to release Youngblood #1 as part of Image's own line of promotional $ 1.00 comics—it was the very first Image comic, after all, back when Image was still an imprint of the now defunct Malibu Comics, and it sold a million copies. Then again, all

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-74983649070838326812010-04-13T19:13:00.002+02:002010-04-13T19:15:22.306+02:00

o "Just Close Your Eyes and Throw a Dart." That's some pretty Jack Kirby art The New York Times shows off in this piece by Dave Itzkoff, which says that animation studio Ruby-Spears Productions, which employed Kirby in the 1980s, just discovered 600 production boards the creator produced while working there, and now plans to capitalize on those properties in "movies, television shows, comics,

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-79274654886720688812010-04-13T19:07:00.002+02:002010-04-13T19:11:05.030+02:00

DC Comics, 22 pages, $ 2.99 Writers: Dennis O'Neil, Greg Rucka Penciler: Denys Cowan Inkers: Bill Sienkiewicz, John Stanisci Colorist: David Baron Letterer: John J. Hill Cover artists: Cully Hamner, Dave McCaig This one-shot had three major strikes against it in my book before I ever cracked the cover. One, its motivation—both in plot terms and in marketing terms—is that it

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-58912293173549584082010-04-12T21:53:00.005+02:002010-04-13T12:52:11.039+02:00

Marvel, 48 pages, $ 3.99 Writers: Kieron Gillen, Peter Milligan, Ted McKeever, Mike Carey Artists: Frazer Irving, Frank Brunner, Ted McKeever, Marcos Martin Letterer: Joe Caramagna Cover artist: Lucio Parrillo Credit where it's due: With The Mystic Hands of Dr. Strange, editors Jody LeHeup and John Barber have made the book that succeeds where the previous Indomitable Iron Man

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-47445902760886300172010-04-09T23:42:00.001+02:002010-04-10T00:46:34.291+02:00

o "A Two-Page Spread of Sixteenth-Century Florence So Gorgeous and Imaginatively Precise That It Takes a Moment to Register That It's Also Got Galactus in It" Douglas Wolk does his twice-weekly-or-so thing at Techland again, talking about the way S.H.I.E.L.D. artist Dustin Weaver and Market Day writer/artist James Sturm root their stories in place and time. o "An Insanely Responsible and Decent

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-52062938449652900432010-04-07T23:10:00.002+02:002010-04-08T02:37:28.066+02:00

o "Feeder System for Brick and Mortar Stores" Marvel editor Joe Quesada's comments on distributing Marvel comics on Apple's new Ipad device are probably the most bafflingly wrong-headed thing I've seen this week, in terms of comics-related nonsense on the Internet. My only question about Quesada's statement is: Does he believe that, or is Marvel just scared stiff of those direct-market, "

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-60484873708147397312010-04-07T01:15:00.002+02:002010-04-07T01:17:25.309+02:00

o "Not Currently Doing Anything for DC Right Now" Judging from his work—what I've read of it, anyway—I've always regarded Greg Rucka as one of the most literary writers in the North American market. This brave transcript of his panel discussion with Comics Alliance editor Laura Hudson at Wondercon last weekend confirms that it's not just a trick of the light or something, but the result of

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-9341114711957106512010-04-05T15:13:00.003+02:002010-04-13T13:20:04.920+02:00

Writer and Image Comics partner Robert Kirkman is a busy man these days. In addition to writing his continuing signature series, the superhero epic Invincible and the post-apocalyptic zombie saga The Walking Dead, Kirkman has been working on the latest wave of "Pilot Season" one-shots from Image imprint Top Cow, a miniseries called Haunt that pairs him with Todd McFarlane, a reunion project of

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-59819242199934565642010-03-26T23:03:00.002+01:002010-03-27T12:33:12.686+01:00

o Picking on Mark Millar Douglas Wolk is at it again, tearing that Nemesis book a new one in a lively dialogue with fellow Techland writer Evan Narcisse. I think it's tremendous that comics criticism in the year 2010 has people who say things like, "knowing that you're perpetrating a cliché doesn't mean you've earned it." And because he's a lot more prolific than I, here he is again, about

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3661626326762311352.post-2471764133298254692010-03-24T23:53:00.002+01:002010-04-19T10:21:31.096+02:00

Marvel, 48 pages, $ 3.99 Writers: Paul Cornell, Howard Chaykin, Duane Swierczynski, Alex Irvine Artists: Will Rosado, Howard Chaykin, Manuel García, Stefano Gaudiano, Nelson DeCastro Letterer: Joe Caramagna Cover artist: Lucio Parrillo Indomitable Iron Man is one of those 1970s pastiche black-and-white anthology one-shots that Marvel's been publishing lately. The book's biggest

Marc-Oliver Frischnoreply@blogger.com0