Curmudgeonly Comments: René Magritte Edition

Ce n'est pas une revue.

The Invisibles: Say You Want A Revolution (v1): I didn't read this when it first came out back, as I'm generally lowbrow and this seemed like Morrison going highbrow, but I'm becoming more of a Morrison fanboy, so I figured I'd give it a try. It's very British, very 1980s (well, the style originated in the 1980s, even if most of its examples are 1990s). I like the Jill Thompson issues better than the Steve Yeowell issues. It's ambitious, with a lot going on, and this is no more than part one of a much longer story. Probably I'll pick up other collections from time to time, but I'm not going to rush out and buy the rest of the volumes immediately, which I guess qualifies as a mild recommendation.

Invincible: Eight is Enough (v2): 25% off sale at my local comic bookery, so I figured I'd give this a second try. It still has pretty crappy art, a perfectly ordinary teen-superhero story, and not enough Atom Eve. I did not anticipate the perpetrator of #7 (the third chapter herein), I don't know what's going on, and the book hasn't built up enough expectation that the payoff (not in this volume) will be worth it, so there probably won't be a third try. Not recommended at this price.

The Punisher: Streets of Laredo (v5): Marvel does not appear to have a consistent numbering scheme for their Ennis Punisher volumes. I like Ennis, though he's not stretching himself on the Punisher. He probably can't really stretch himself on a corporate icon, though it would be nice if he were doing more than rewriting old Preacher scripts without the emotional impact. Tim Bradstreet's covers are amazing. It is no real surprise that the best story in the volume is a collaboration with Steve Dillon; it is contrived, the protagonist has authorial fiat, but it has some decent emotional content. The Elektra story is almost parodic. The title story, with sub-par Cam Kennedy art, is basically trite. The second Steve Dillon piece, winding up the volume, is also treading water. Read Preacher first, otherwise neutral recommendation.

Tom Strong's Terrific Tales v1: There are basically three series in this anthology: The largely inconsequential Young Tom Strong, by Steve Moore; the always-good Tom Strong shorts by Alan Moore et al. (I particularly like Svetlana X and I admire the craft of the trading card story); and the Jonni Future stories by Art Adams (with Steve Moore). And man, can that Art Adams draw up a storm. He doesn't often seem to hook up with the really best writers, so he generally seems to be wasting a lot of potential. Jonni Future is really pretty, but weightless.

Quick Takes:

• Not Recommended:
  • Doctor Spectrum #3: A whole lot of nothing moving at a glacial pace.
• Neutral Recommendation:
  • The Batman Strikes #2: An undistinguished Man-Bat story; I am disappointed with the current round of animated-series comics, including Justice League Unlimited, in a way I never have been before.
  • Ultimate Spider-Man #67: Conclusion to the at-best-mildly-amusing body-switch story.
  • Planetary #21: An overt advertisement for the end of the comic pamphlet. There is absolutely no creative success or strength here based on this as a standalone issue, though it probably reads just fine in a lump with other issues.
  • Madrox #2: Not everything Peter David writes is gold. I am not invested in what happens here, and should probably drop the book.
  • Bart Simpson #20: This book's multiple stories have always made it feel like it skewed younger and more Archie than the main Simpsons family book. That always make it more uneven as well.
• Mildly Recommended:
  • Usagi Yojimbo #79: Two relatively insignificant stories.
  • Ultimate Elektra #3: Good art, the colorist puts in almost enough contrast, the story is unexciting.
  • Solo: Tim Sale: Overpriced, but an adequate set of short stories, and Sale's a good artist, either on his own or ripping off Frank Miller's Sin City.
  • Plastic Man #11: Fairly amusing, but did Baker run out of pages or what? That was one abrupt ending.
  • PVP #10: Good as a strip but meh as a comic book.
  • Terra Obscura v2 #3: I bet Alan Moore would have gotten the names of all of the time-tossed teen heroes into that scene. The well-foreshadowed revelation of the final scene is the natural result of the last decade or so of Batman-as-asshole characterization, a Batman-as-villain story.
  • JSA: Strange Adventures #3: The Jack Williamson elements seem inadequately integrated into the other goings-on. Probably this reads better in a lump than in month-separated chapters.
  • Simpsons Comics #99: They're borrowing plot ideas from the Blondie comi strip.
• Recommended:
  • PS 238 #8: Ominous clouds on the horizon in a genuinely imaginative superhero comic.

Posted by Greg at November 8, 2004 10:04 AM