Random links

Paul DeBenedetto on the death of the superhero film

Comics (...) don’t need bad superhero action flicks giving them a bad name. The superhero movie is an awful trend and, if 2011 pans out the way I think it will, it’s also a dying one.

He claims there hasn't been a good super-hero movie since 2008 (the year The Dark Knight was released) and sees this as evidence that the genre is soon going to be extinct. Movie audiences won't have the patience to put up with crappy super-hero movies for much longer, and once they lose interest, that only leaves the fans of the comics. And there simply aren't enough of us to make those movies profitable.

The argument seems to make sense, but I'm not sure the death of the super-hero movie is upon us just yet. For one thing, crappy movies make a shit-ton of money at the box office all the time. This is pretty much the norm at Hollywood. I haven't really studied the box office returns of super-hero movies in the past two or three years, so I don't know how well they've been doing, but in any case I think we ought to wait and see how Thor, Captain America and Green Lantern fair in 2011 before passing judgement.

In other words, this will probably be a crucial year for the future of super-hero movies, as the success or failure of these three big blockbusters will determine what happens next.

Graeme McMillan on IDW's Infestation crossover event

There are all manner of reasons why IDW’s Infestation shouldn’t work for me. For one thing, it’s all about zombies, and I really don’t like zombies with the obvious exceptions. For another, it’s a crossover. So why am I eagerly anticipating the whole thing, having read the first issue?

I was definitely planning on skipping this whole thing, because (a) this seems a bit derivative of recent big events at Marvel and DC, (b) I'm getting kind of sick of zombies, and (c) I don't follow any of the franchises involved (Transformers, Ghostbusters, Star Trek and GI Joe). But this is the second positive review of the first issue of the mini-series that I read, and I have to admit that my curiosity has been piqued a little.

Ryan Fisher on comic books aimed at women

I don’t even understand the whole notion that companies need to pander to the female demographic at all. They don’t need “special books” to get into the hobby, they just need to feel like it’s not a boys club.

Yes. This is the same argument that I keep reading from female bloggers as well. Kelly Thompson, in particular, has often said that only a small adjustment would be needed in order to make DC and Marvel's comics more appealing to women. You don't need to completely change the formula or make books specifically for women. Just, you know, make a little effort not to piss them off by treating them like second-rate customers.

(And speaking of Kelly Thompson, there's a new episode of 3 Chicks Review Comics.)

From some official DC document

...the now-retired Wally West...

Uh...

Brian Wood on Northlanders

This is the book I increasingly feel I was born to write, and is so completely tied into my identity as a creator. And based solely on the incredible range and diversity of the artists we’ve had on the series, there is nothing else like it out there.

I'm so glad that this book exists and that I've started following it. (I need to catch up on the trades, as well.) I agree completely that it is completely unlike anything else.

David Hine, asked how many Muslim characters there are in super-hero comics

Probably not as many as there should be. I mean, America is a very diverse culture, as is France, as is this country, and we try to reflect that in the diversity of our characters. It’s not a political statement.

I was glad to read David Hine's clear-headed responses to some of the truly outrageous and idiotic criticism his "Muslim Batman" story has elicited.

Curt Purcell on the link between violent rhetoric and violent actions

When I was very young, on a family vacation to visit Grandma Millie (in Arizona, as it happens), we went to a rodeo. I had no interest whatsoever in a rodeo, and amused myself during the bull-riding part by cheering for the bull to get someone. I'm sure you can guess where this is going--the bull did get someone. He trampled a clown. Now, obviously, there was no "link" between my "rhetoric" and what happened. Nobody blamed me. I didn't think saying it aloud magically made it happen, or blame myself in any other way. But here's the thing: there didn't need to be any such "link" for me to feel ashamed--appropriately--for my foolish words. It was enough for me to see what it looked like when what I'd been cheering for actually happened.

That's a powerful analogy and it perfectly illustrates my own feelings about the issue in a way that I haven't seen expressed quite so succinctly or convincingly anywhere else in the deluge of internet commentary since the terrible tragedy in Arizona.

(A few of these links were found at Comics Worth Reading.)

Too Much Awesome: More comics in March

Axe Cop: Bad Guy Earth

Dark Horse

Axe Cop: Bad Guy Earth #1 (of 3) - I didn't pick up a copy of the collection that came out recently, but the webcomic is always a lot of fun. For those who don't know, this is the work of 29-year-old artist Ethan Nicolle and his five-year-old brother Malachai. There's a good interview with Ethan on iFanbook, where he talks about the creative process. This mini-series is the result of a full month of playtime between the two brothers, during which the storyline emerged. Ethan wrote all three issues based on his brother's ideas before he started drawing it. I'm guessing this will result in more cohesive story than the webcomic, which tends to move all over the place, as you would expect anything coming from the mind of a five-year-old to do.

IDW

Genius, Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth - There was a bit of a controversy recently when a writer for the A.V. Club fabricated a review of this book and it was posted on the website... before the book was even completed! The writer was fired and the A.V. Club issued an apology, emphasizing that the publisher had absolutely nothing to do with it. Meanwhile, this biography of the artist expanded until it couldn't be contained in a single volume. This book will detail his life story and work through the early 1960s, with a second volume expected for October.

Image

Butcher Baker: The Righteous Maker #1 - The cover is outrageous and the three-page preview is hilariously covered with big red CENSORED boxes. It's a pretty good marketing stunt, but the real reason I'm looking forward to this is that it's written by Joe Casey.

Halcyon #5 (of 5) - The first four issues of this were solicited as an ongoing. Now, unexpectedly and without explanation, it's been changed to a mini-series. I don't understand how that works. Does it have anything to do with sales? Only two issues have come out, so you'd think they'd give it a bit more of a chance. Or did the creators just lose interest? I just wish there were a little more transparency when these kinds of changes happen. I find it rather insulting that they just announce this as the "MINISERIES CONCLUSION," as if nobody would notice that what it really is is a prematurely cancelled ongoing.


I'm also going to pick up Infinite Vacations #3 and Orc Stain #8.

Avatar

Caligula #1 - David Lapham writing a comic about Caligula for Avatar? I don't think I'm going to buy this, but somehow it makes perfect sense.

Boom!

Hellraiser #1 - This is apparently "Clive Barker's long-awaited return to tell a new chapter in the series' official continuity." This might be worth a look, though I think I'm going to pass.

Soldier Zero #6 - Paul Cornell's last issue, with Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning sharing writing duties with him before taking over next month. I'm still not sure if my interest in this new series is going to be maintained long enough to make it past the first story arc, but the change of writers makes me want to stick around for a few more issues to see where it goes. (Not that I dislike Paul Cornell. I just wasn't completely sold on this yet, but a different creative team means I need to re-evaluate it. I guess.)

Stan Lee's two other new series, The Traveler and Starborn, also continue.

Fantagraphics

The Comics Journal #301 - This is a massive new 600-page format for this long-lived periodical, filled with "criticism, interviews, debate, commentary and history to inspire love from the comics cognoscenti and scorn from the philistines." I'm tempted to get it just because of that hilariously pretentious description. The only thing I'm worried about is that I already have a hard time keeping up with the multiple blogs about comics that I follow. Adding 600 pages of reading material to that just sounds completely overwhelming. But tempting.

12-Gauge

Magus #4 - The main reason why I bought the first issue of this was Rebekah Isaacs' art, so I was a bit worried when I saw that a different artist was listed in the solicitations for this issue. However, writer Jon Price has apparently confirmed that she is still on the book and that there was a mistake in the solicitation text.

Marvel - addendum

Finally, earlier this month when I looked at Marvel's solicitationss, I somehow completely missed out on this amazing cover by Mike Mignola:

It's a variant for the first issue of Annihilators #1 (of 4), written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. As with most Marvel solicitations, I can't really make sense of the blurb. But, man, that's a nice cover.

Too Much Awesome: Comics in January

Time to look at the January 2011 solicitations, as listed in Previews #266.

DARK HORSE

Hmm, there's not a single book from Dark Horse I'm interested in this month.

DC

The DC solicitations start with a bunch of random one-shots, none of which look all that interesting to me. Depending on whether or not Krul's Teen Titans gone south by then, I might check out the Wonder Girl one-shot that ties into it, otherwise I think I'm going to pass on all of these.

The new anthology mini-series Weird Worlds features "a kind-hearted monster called Garbageman." I think that speaks for itself, but you can read more about that wonderful creation in this interview with Aaron Lopresti, who will be writing and drawing that story.

Batman: Europa is a new mini-series based on a story by Brian Azzarello and Matteo Casali, with painted art by "many of the industry's top talents. This first issue is by Jim Lee, and if that cover is any indication, it's going to be really, really ugly. Not interested.

I'll probably be getting the new issues of Batman Inc, Batman and Robin, Knight and Squire, Red Robin, Birds of Prey, Action Comics, Superboy, The Flash, Adventure Comics, Legion of Super-Heroes and Teen Titans, all of which are on my regular pull list at the moment.

Superman/Batman #80 is the conclusion of a two-part story by Chris Roberson and Jesus Merino, taking place in the 853rd century, and I'm looking forward to that as well.

In the collected editions section, I noticed that the first collection of Paul Cornell's Action Comics run is going to be titled Superman: The Black Ring. Now why would they put "Superman" in the title when the character is not even featured in the story? I know, I know, the answer is probably just that his name sells better than Lex Luthor's, but that seems really disingenuous, even by DC's low standards. Is it possible that Superman does make an appearance at the end of the story Cornell has planned? I'm also confused by the fact that there's no "volume 1" attached to the title, since that collection only includes issues #890-895 and the story will not have concluded by then. Very weird.

Notice a bunch of Wildstorm titles at the end of the DC Comics section. Mostly these are mini-series that haven't yet concluded, but it's nice to see a seamless transition into DC's main imprint instead of a bunch of abrupt cancellations.

VERTIGO

Daytripper gets a trade paperback collection. I bought all the single issues, so I won't be getting this, but I highly recommend this beautiful story by Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon.

I'm going to be picking up the new issues of Northlanders and Sweet Tooth. It seems like there are fewer and fewer Vertigo books of interest. I hope they're going to announce some new titles soon.

IDW

I'm not going to get sucked into this Infestation mega crossover event, featuring zombies across IDW's various licensed properties (Star Trek, G.I. Joe, Transformers, Ghostbusters), but I'll admit it's a pretty clever marketing stunt. Of course, it would maybe have a bit more impact if we hadn't seen major zombie crossover events at DC and Marvel recently. Coupled with the surge in popularity of Kirkman's Walking Dead due to the new TV series, I'd expect most people to be really sick of zombies by January. I'm pretty sure I will be.

I bought the first issue of Steve Niles and Kelley Jones' Edge of Doom mini-series this month and didn't think much of it, so I'm dropping this one.

There's a trade paperback of something called Off-Road, written and drawn by Sean Murphy. I'm assuming this was previously released as a mini-series, although the solicitation doesn't say. It's the first time I notice this title, but I'm probably going to look into it, since I really love Murphy's art.

IMAGE

I dropped Morning Glories after issue #3. I don't understand where all the positive reviews are coming from, as I found both the art and the writing to be mediocre.

And yet, here I am looking at Nick Spencer's new series, The Infinite Vacation, thinking it looks pretty cool. Art is by Christian Ward and it looks a lot more up my alley than Joe Eisma's work in Morning Glories. I'm intrigued, if not completely sold on this one.

And depending on how I like the first issues of Halcyon and Marineman (coming out in November and December, respectively), I may or may not continue reading them in January.

MARVEL

I will be getting the new issues of Avengers: Children's Crusade, Secret Avengers, and Thor. I think that's it. I dropped Avengers Academy because it hasn't been very good (and the last issue, to put it politely, sucked cock) and I'm not really tempted by anything else at the moment. Which is not a bad thing, considering my budget is already stretched thin as it is.

There's a Magneto one-shot written by Howard Chaykin and pencilled by "TBD." Awesome.

ICON

Casanova continues, with Fabio Moon taking over art duties from Gabriel Ba. They're both amazing artists, so that's cool.

I'll also be getting Mark Millar and Leinil Yu's Superior, unless something goes horribly wrong in issue #2 or #3.

BOOM!

By January, all three of Stan Lee's new series will have launched: Soldier Zero, Starborn and The Traveler. I read the first issue of Soldier Zero this week and I'm currently working on a review of it. I haven't decided yet whether I'm going to continue reading it or check out those other two books when they launch, but for now I'll just say these are worth keeping an eye on.

RED 5

I have Atomic Robo and the Deadly Art of Science #3 on my pull  list.

12 GAUGE

I'm picking up the first issue of Magus in December. Depending on whether or not that's any good, I may or may not pick up the second issue in January. The premise is interesting.

And that's all for January, folks.

October solicitations (Previews #263) – part three

Concluding my look at this August issue of Previews. Now with images! (By the way, I need to come up with a better title than "Comments on Previews" for this feature. I suck at titles.)

IDW

Steve Niles, author of 30 Days of Night, has a new series called Edge of Doom, co-created by artist Kelley Jones. Niles describes it as a five-issue series, in which all the stories are stand-alone but connected, and compares it to The Twilight Zone. The first issue is about a man who discovers that "his garden contains a world of little demons that have picked him for their next sacrifice!" Sounds very promising. (October 6)

I wasn't familiar with The Coffin, by Phil Hester and Mike Huddleston, but it's getting a 10th Anniversary Edition hardcover reprint with a bunch of bonus features. The premise of the story alone is enough to seriously pique my interest: A scientist invents "an impenetrable cybernetic skin that will trap the human soul after the body within has died – a walking coffin." Sounds both creepy and thought-provoking. (October 6)

IMAGE

Jonathan Hickman has two new trades coming out on October 13: Pax Romana and Red Mass for Mars. While both look good, I'm mostly interested in the latter, illustrated by Ryan Bodenheim and set in a distant post-apocalyptic world.

Morning Glories #3. Whether or not I pick this up will depend on how good the first issue, which comes out next week, turns out to be. (October 20)

Also looking forward to new issues of Bulletproof Coffin, Meta 4 (both October 13) and Orc Stain (October 27).

OTHER STUFF

That picture of Paul Levitz holding a copy of his ridiculously oversized book, 75 Years of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Mythmaking, is hilarious. It sounds like a fascinating read, but holy shit, did it have to be that big and expensive? People are actually going to pay $200 for a book so huge you can't even hold it? Of course they will. (October 27)

Neonomicon #3. I enjoyed the first issue, but I need to take another look at it after watching David Smart's excellent and very insightful two-part video review. Very much looking forward to the next issue to see whether it supports Smart's analysis so far. (Avatar, October 27)

I'm pretty excited about Charles Burns' X'ed Out, which apparently draws inspiration "from such diverse influences as Hergé and William Burroughs." The cover's homage to L'Étoile mystérieuse is already a classic. The only other work of Burns that I'm familiar with is Black Hole, which is in black and white, so I'm curious to see what he does with colour. (Pantheon, October 20)

The Horror! The Horror! Comic Books the Government Didn't Want You to Read! sounds like a must-have collection for fans of horror comics from the 1950s. I have a few friends who I'm sure would be interested. Maybe I'll bully one of them into writing a review for this blog. (November 3)

Finally, I noticed there will be new printings of Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics and Will Eisner's Comics and Sequential Art and Graphic Storytelling and Visual Narrative, all of which are classics any serious comics fan/blogger/wannabe-critic should have in his or her collection.

COMING SOON TO THIS BLOG: Reviews of actual comic books, instead of a way-too-long review of a comic book catalogue!