| Pen-Elayne
For Your Thoughts - Week of January 1-6, 1996
This week's digest: IMPULSE #11 IMPULSE #11 Story: Mark Waid Here's what I thought... This book works on so many levels for me that it's hard to know where to begin. So, shrugging and charging in extemporaneously as is my wont, I figure to take it chronologically by page. Weird-looking Savitar on the cover. Although the female gaze in me can appreciate the fact that his right butt cheek is dead square in the center of the cover <g>, his upper body is a little too contorted to make anatomical sense - even by Ramos' stylistic standards. Still, nice parallel effect created by the lighting from upper left and Savitar's "light sabre" <g> thrusting toward upper left (cutting into the lightning trail left by the "S" in the title). Good contrast of colors too (hey Tom, do you color the covers as well?). Mark makes two very interesting choices on the first three pages - to establish the book's protagonist again (even though we're in the midst of a multi-part epic featuring just about all the current DCU speedsters, check the book's title - this issue has to, in some important way, be About Bart as well), and to play with what I've always found to be a very tricky expositional form - second-person narrative (2PN). If you'll notice, in FLASH Mark uses almost exclusively 1PN, from "My name is Wally West..." onward. In IMPULSE he has, until now, chosen straight and standard 3PN style most of the way through. The hard thing I've found with 2PN is keeping the fourth wall intact. Here the author is so obviously talking to the reader that being addressed directly carries with it the danger of being pulled out of the story. And we need to stay fully involved for it to work its magic on us. I think Mark accomplishes this well through the use of humor, as he brings the players on board for us once more. He doesn't so much wink at IMPULSE readers as respect our intelligent readership. Check the parallel cadence: "Max Mercury, you already know." A given for this bok. "The Flash probably looks familiar too." Not as much of a given, which he acknowledges. Many people do read IMPULSE and not FLASH. "Maybe even Jay Garrick, Flash's predecessor." Moving from the well-known in today's DCU to the not-as-well-known - and readers don't need to know, for purposes of this story, that Jay is technically the late Barry Allen's predecessor and Barry was Wally's. The minimal amount of information presented in compact form. Lastly, "But if the father-daughter team of Johnny and Jesse Quick is new to you, don't panic. You're not in over your head any more than they are. Everyone gets introduced in time." It's interesting that Johnny and Jesse come last in the intros, not only because they are generally the most obscure speedsters of the current crop but because the last-listed item in a series is often the item best retained in memory, and that becomes important later in the story. Now, the slight wink here is that everyone present has just been introduced, of course - and I admit I did feel a slight away-from-story tug with this line. The writer probably knows that on some level as well, because the next caption jumps right back to resetting the scene of action, and the two-page splash-with-credits adds three insets with three short caption bursts to speed things up again. Before I continue, I want to explain that the process I have just deconstructed is not necessarily a conscious one, or even an intentional one, any more so than my analysis of pp. 1-3 was what I consciously set out to do when I started this review. Most often, it just flows that way due to the writer's instincts, experience, etc. I just think it's cool to point these things out. <g> Onward, then. Savitar, watching the action from the top of page 4, still has Christina by the throat. On a leash. Arms still bandaged, she trails after him on her hands and knees as he walks away with disdain. Anybody still want to hazard an opinion this woman isn't physically and psychologically abused? I didn't think so. Max notices Savitar's absence, and calls it to the Quicks' attention. Pay attention to Max, he knows more about Savitar than anyone else right now. "So long as the ninjas darw their speed directly from Savitar, he's at least partially depleted." Remember, it's a speed-sharing kinda thing. Has been since the storyline's beginning. Only so much of the Force into which Savitar's tapped to go around. This will also come into play later in the book. The Quicks race away to find the bad guy. Meanwhile, Wally remembers how easy it was to defeat the avatars in Max's house, and suggests he and Jay move up the stairwell to catch the ninjas in close quarters. Unfortunately, nobody told Bart the plan. The panel where Wally and Jay slap their foreheads and sighing upon seeing Bart having the time of his life whomping ninjas out in the courtyard is precious. One of the issue's best laughs. Max, Johnny and Jesse have stumbled upon what appears to be Savitar's library. Apparently he self-publishes. Doesn't matter; I strill drooled at all those books (great up-angle on Ramos' establishing shot). There's a brief foreshadowing exchange between Johnny and Max in which we're told in no uncertain terms that Johnny is indeed a convert to the Speed Force theory. Jesse notices that the place is "more than a library" - it's more like a shrine Savitar's built to honor himself. Savitar, suddenly appearing with some goons and still clutching Christine's "leash," is impressed with Jesse's deductive capabilities, and with how quickly she moves to save Dad from an avatar's sword. He jerks Christina's head up violently - which made my neck hurt something awful, and my heart absolutely ache for her - as we see Max putting the shrine candles and the books together and starting a big ol' conflagration... Cut back to Jay, Wally and Bart, and a couple pages of great snappy fighting dialogue. Then cut to Iris, Linda and XS (three simultaneous venues featuring three hero characters each - I love this kind of thing) as Linda has it out with Iris over her moral stance in not revealing "the future" so as not to untowardly affect the outcome of current events. "For God's sake, Iris," Linda shouts, "EVERYBODY affects the present just by existing!" Well, it depends - I mean one theory of time travel (oh no, my head just started hurting again) says that a person out of their time is bound to cause more serious ripples than a person living within their correct time... but then, Iris is a 20th century gal (that ache is getting worse, I can tell) who affected the future by living in the 30th and mothering the Tornado Twins who begat Bart and Jenni who are now living out of their time (ouch! ouch! ouch! I'm going to stop now)... Anyway, something in what Linda says affects Iris, who decides to share a Future Secret with Jenni. Wait till FLASH #111 to find out what it is. Cut back to Bart, Wally and Jay, who find the more avatars they defeat the faster the remaining ones become. Sharing the Speed Force, remember? Same effect, in reverse, as the one Wally experienced when first speeding with the others towards Max's house. Then back to the smoldering library/shrine with Johnny, Max and -- oh no, Jesse's been caught. How, damn it? She moved with such grace! Ah, but with less experience. Savitar gloats some more about making Jesse his next consort, and Christina snaps. Now, there are two things she could have done here. One, turn on Savitar for the way he's been mistreating her. And if she weren't so hopelessly codependent, she would have. But she's still got classic battered woman syndrome, and decides to prove herself to her lover and master once more. The Leash breaks as she lunges right for Jesse at superspeed. Johnny sees. Johnny tries to invoke the formula. He has to get there to save his daughter (who's already saved him at least once) before Christina reaches her. He tries to invoke 3x2... a second time. Christina's gaining. Johnny mutters, "ah, the hell with it" and pours it on -- -- surpassing Christina -- -- surpassing everything. Johnny has entered the Speed Force. And the impact throws everyone down, and gives Jesse the upper hand. As she grabs Christina she cries out to Max. But Max isn't there either. He's followed Johnny to the edge of the Speed Force, trying to call him back. And, in a move that's sure to create dissension in the 'net ranks, Johnny refuses. He doesn't want to go back. "I can feel it calling me... finally." And he says his goodbyes to Jesse ("tell her I love her, Max, and tell her I'll always be a part of her. Now... more than ever.") and to Max ("you may not have been the best student... but you were a great teacher" - really wonderful line) and to us. Max echoes my sentiments exactly regarding the transcendence of Johnny Quick, who doesn't die, but moves up to The Next Level. All he can say, and all I can say to the engineer of this lovely, perfect scene, is "Thank you." Let me pause for a second to pull out my old files... ah, there it is. From my review of FLASH #108, way back in October (gah, I'm quoting myself, the second-to-last refuge of the scoundrel!): "Speculation has already begun as to which major speedster character will die at the end of this epic, as Mark and Brian have already confirmed will happen... I think we can safely eliminate Wally and Bart as possibilities... Jesse seems to get grazed with bullets a lot lately, so I think we all want to cut her some more slack. And, she's still got a lot of growing to do. This leaves the older generation - Johnny Quick, Jay Garrick and Max Mercury. "I've eliminated Jay as a possibility. Despite the fate of the Rogues Gallery members in UNDERWORLD UNLEASHED, I don't think Mark wants to bid farewell to a member of the JSA. At least, not *this* member. Johnny is certainly in the running (pun intended), but I don't think he'll buy it, despite his disbelief in the Speed Force (the kind of thing that might get one killed in a narrative like this). Because Max Mercury is, to me, the most logical choice from a literary, storytelling point of view..." And later, I say, "let us remember, as Mark told Max's origin, that Max's greatest dream has always been to become one with the Speed Force. He's tried to join with it permanently on more than one occasion, to come up short each time. His 'death' would mean transcendence, in the same way Barry Allen's death did, in a way that Johnny Quick's death might not (in part because Johnny doesn't believe in the Speed Force as such - even if he were to suddenly see the light at the moment of death, it wouldn't have the emotional impact and satisfaction that Max's transcendence would)." At the time I thought this was true - there wasn't enough emotional resonance then for me to think the story would work as well with Johnny in the sacrificial role. And I don't know how anyone else reads this book, but I have always read it, since Mark first started on it, on an emotionally resonant level, so that impact is paramount with me. Does it do for me emotionally what it's supposed to? I didn't believe it would with Johnny, but Johnny was built up enough to make it work - and he even "saw the light" before the moment of transcendence. I'm very, very pleased with this final exit. If a hero's final exit can ever be A Good Thing (and there are those who say it cannot), it can't get much better than bowing out like this - and in service to the story. Wally, Bart and Jay topple some castle walls on their remaining foes by sychronizing their vibrations, which carry into the room where Jesse still grips Christina. She tries to save her (she tries to save her!), but Christina responds, "What...makes you think... I want to live, Preistess?" as Jesse dives out of the way of more falling concrete. I think we all wish we could have saved her. I'm not sure what happens on page 20 - like Jesse, I was too busy weeping. Even Bart is visibly shaken. This is very important. This is The Boy Who Doesn't Learn, learning. Learning like Johnny learned to believe. Like Max learned to believe in Johnny. Very, very nice. Apparently Savitar, upon overhearing Wally saying something about "Iris and Linda in Manchester," creates this wind and speaks from it (put me in mind of that line in Nick Danger, "How does he make his voice do that?"), threatening harm upon the speedsters' loved ones. Wally hightails it back to Manchester, the other speedsters close behind, as we head to the final lap. Will Max and Impulse both survive, asks the teaser? Well, yeah - I've actually seen the script for IMPULSE #12. (Wish I hadn't; there's a killer spoiler for FLASH #111, and I'm biting my virtual tongue 'cause I'm not gonna tell you what it is...) This review is long enough. I'm going to end it with "wow" again. So, what did y'all think? JUSTICE LEAGUE TASK FORCE #32 Writer: Christopher Priest Here's what I thought... I knew I was in trouble with this issue when the splash w/ credits didn't appear until page 13 - something I've never, ever seen Priest do before. Perhaps for some people 13 is a lucky number. But certainly not for Mystek this issue as, to all appearances, she bites the big one in deep space, all alone in the night... Let's flip ahead for a moment to the NEXT ISSUE box in "Task Masters," the JLTF letter column. Someone screwed up and put in the synopsis of this issue: "All hell breaks loose during the Task Force's inter- stellar flight when a claustrophobic Mystek goes postal with deadly consequences. Our promise to you: someone will die next issue..." I'm grateful for this lettercol mistake, because it helps me examine just what makes me so uncomfortable about Mystek's death. My discomfort starts with Roo's word "promise." Promise? Did I somehow miss the hordes of fans trying to break down the 6th floor office doors at 1700 Broadway, screaming, "Please, please give us death! We want death! Lordy, if there's a sympathetic bone in your body, we beg of you, heed our request for hero death now!!!"??? Let alone the question of whether or not Death Sells because of some inherent reader demand (if indeed it sells at all, and many editors seem to think that, like sex, it's a given), isn't this just all a little too... callous? To promise someone will die? Contrast this with the current "Dead Heat" storyline in FLASH and IMPULSE, where a death was announced (some say hyped) but certainly not with the apparent relish implicit in the word "promise," and where a case can be made that the hero in question - who got a wonderful, poignant sendoff - didn't even really die, but merely transcended to his next level of existence (my preferred hero exit, if I must choose one). There are other interesting comparisons one can examine vis a vis the decisions to off these two characters. Long-time DC stalwart Johnny Quick received a fitting final salute, where we-barely-knew-ye Barclay (Mystek's actual name) suffocates, first psychologically and then physically, in her costume in deep space. Is death made more trivial when it's only a "minor" character? A character who hasn't really had the time or experience in being a hero yet? Is it significant when the character killed is "only" a woman - moreover, a woman pretending to be a man? (Slight digression - I'm not accusing Priest or anyone else of sexism or misogyny or whatever. I know Jim better than that. I'm just pointing out that it's possible to extrapolate a pattern from this sort of thing when it happens often enough.) Most importantly, how does each death serve its particular story? Well, I've already gone into how Johnny's does in my review of IMPULSE, but how does Mystek's here? I'm flashing back to the death of Ice, and I don't want to. I can't help feeling that this character has been killed because the creative team in charge couldn't think of anything better to do with her. She was superfluous (one woman too many in a team consisting of two?). She served no purpose. Therefore, in order for there to be a story, any "extra" hero character had to be eliminated. I hope I'm wrong. I pray I'm wrong. Because I also keep flashing back to Priest, the writer of this book, stating repeatedly how much he detests the idea of killing characters. He'd rather put them on a bus, he's said. Don't see no damn bus in deepest space. No air either. Just this poor, poor woman in a bloated uniform. Roll credits. Can I please state now and forever, for the record, that I would like someone to "PROMISE" me in a NEXT ISSUE blurb that a character will live? Please? Onward. The book is, as usual, well crafted. Aside from Priest inexplicably referring to Mystek as "he" on page 1, coming hard on the hilarious "Mystek has no weasel" scene in JLTF #31 (yes, yes, I know, inside the uniform Mystek is presumably a "he" - only two out of the other three inhabitants of the JLTF ship know the truth now), the whole hull breach scene is well done and logical. We're again taken inside Gypsy's and Triumph's thought processes, which are fascinating. We learn a little more about the uniforms. We see Billy Mac being an asshole, then not being an asshole - if that boy doesn't watch out, he'll wake up a hero someday. And we see J'Onn a good deal grimmer than we've seen him in awhile - also to good effect. If not for - well, you know, The Death - this would be an incredible scene, with a terrific payoff. As it is... Well, enough of that. Ray Terrill, in an attack of conscience, has found the planet Xanthcar and touched down. His first thought is food. This seems to be a recurring theme with the Terrill family. You'd think someone like Ray would be packing MREs or something by this point. The natives (lessee, a Gumby, an Elvis impersonator, a pseudo-Spock, prolly a few others I'm missing) aren't happy. Ray speeds away from them, looking for the courthouse, where the trial of Desperon is proceeding. Cameos by Ito and Cochran, of course. Naturally, Ray can't get in, and battles some nasty security folk. Thank goodness he hears his name - it came from Glenn Gammeron the Skip Tracer (think spacefaring bounty hunter). Funniest exchange - Ray: "You speak English?" Glenn: "Sure I do. Everyone [on Xanthcar] does." Ray: "But - no one answered me..." Glenn: "Xanthcans hate tourists." Very, very funny response to the question we've been asking since watching Star Trek as kids. ("They all just happen to speak English?" "Why... sure!") Glenn notes that Ray's shenanigans have given the Tornadians an opening to capture Space-Ito. Glenn's concern, of course, is Desperon, so he rushes back in to check on his prisoner. Ray looks up - J'Onn's finally arrived. Ray gives J'Onn a quick they-went-thataway as we cut to Gypsy and Triumph dealing with the heavier gravity and thicker atmosphere of Xanthcar. Gypsy tries to adjust her breathing pattern a little, but it's all too much for Billy Mac with the Broken Back - who falls, hard. And we pick him and other things up next issue. On the one hand, this issue holds a lot more good insights into the minds of Gypsy and Triumph. On the other hand, Mystek dies, and that about cancels out anything else for me, to the point where I'm just kind of numb, may Priest forgive me. The art is lovely. Too bad they're only filling in. So, what did y'all think? THE RAY #21 Writer: Christopher Priest Here's what I thought... I thought the art was, actually, a little worse than last issue. I mean, I think Armstrong and Parks got Condor a little better, overall. He certainly looks more menacing and wing-y and all that. And the crucifixion splash works well. But... I dunno. Some places the inking is excruciatingly heavy, and the faces in some panels (like Ray on page 6, panel 1) don't look right at all. Add to that a story featuring characters in which I have little interest, and this really felt like a "get on with it" issue to me. I'm sorry, I've tried, but I just can't work up enough curiosity about Black Condor and his personal angst. I'm sure Condor fans will get a big kick out of this issue, and there are fun moments here and there, but I'm afraid it just didn't speak to me. Black Condor battles White Eagle. Something about WE being made nutzoid do to some old guy's experiments on both of them, and WE wanting some of BC's brain cells so he can regenerate his sanity or whatever. I say, go for the damn biopsy already, what's the big deal? The old guy who experimented on them has this deformed left arm with a claw on the end of it. Am I supposed to care? Good scenes - Ray with Jazz, commenting on her sleeping habits and trying to extricate himself from her bed. Ray in the bathroom being surprised by the illusory appearance of the Golden Age Condor in the middle of taking a whiz (would've been nice to at least have a sound effect, guys - I mean, we're talking about a natural body function here). Joshua and the hippie couple looking for Ray (Josh having flown their car to the top of Ray's old apartment building), and Josh hanging upside down in mid-air while the hippie couple talks to Edmund Fu. The echo of this later when Ray chats upside down after having come to "rescue" Condor. Best sentence in the issue - Ray thinks at first that White Eagle must be Death Duck (whom he doesn't know Josh has offed) finally having homed in on him. WE screams "PAY THE PRICE!" and shoots power at him. Ray responds, "No - I programmed Masque with better dialogue." Chuckle. Overall, though - next issue, please. This one just wasn't my cuppa. And sometimes, that's okay. Least nobody died. :) So, what did y'all think? BATMAN & ROBIN ADVENTURES #4 Writer: Ty Templeton Here's what I thought... Did I miss an announcement last issue about Paul Dini no longer writing this book? I thought he was supposed to be the big draw. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. I think Templeton does a fine job here exploring the mindset of the Penguin, whom I've always considered one of Batman's harder-to-grasp foes. And it's a treat seeing Burchett pencil and ink for a change. (He's apparently back to only inking with next issue, which Tim Harkins will pencil.) Templeton plays with the idea that the Penguin isn't necessarily one of those villains you despise. One tends to disagree with his methods more than his goals. Here, he's holed up in the Gotham Zoo, having trained his minions of "killer birds" to get rid of visitors so he can be alone with his goons, waiting for the Batman. Who doesn't disappoint, as we see a nice far shot of him in the middle of the page 1 splash panel, behind Summer Gleeson's wordy captions. Once in the zoo, Batman finds the birds, rather than attacking him, are herding him towards a specific location. He's wearing a gas mask (the gas didn't seem to work on the birds), of which he's quickly divested by the Penguin's goons. He returns the favor by confiscating their guns and knocking them cold. In the aviary, Batman demands the return of the hostages. Turns out there were no hostages - "I had some of my boys scream like victims in front of enough witnesses to convince the cops," so the Penguin could buy some time. According to him, the real "hostages" are the exotic birds of the Gotham Zoo, whom the Penguin has decided to free using technology sold to him by the Mad Hatter, in the form of little discs placed on their heads and controlled by a remote in his possession. His aim? "I'm breaking all the political prisoners out." He's smuggling the birds back into their natural habitats! And he's paid for this by committing a series of burglaries. Batman doesn't understand. Pity. I do. I think it's very noble. I'm sure, however, that Batman's pissed because the ends don't necessarily justify the means. The Penguin doesn't care what Batman thinks. He sets his goons to work - uh, no. Then he looses a crazed bald eagle on his adversary. Batman beats the eagle off. Next come... the birds. I'm so glad I was never able to sit through that Hitchcock movie, this stuff is creepy enough in comic book form. The Penguin has changed the program on his disc so that the birds attack the image they've been trained to recognize. Can y'all guess the ending? One of two things - Batman loses the suit (but he can't reveal himself in front of the Penguin), or Batman disguises the suit. With mud. Icky, but effective. The Penguin is captured -- -- but his birds, at least some of them, are free. And I gotta say, I'm kinda sorta on the Penguin's side in this, as we see him smile at a picture of Molly, the zoo's prize toucan, from inside his jail cell... A lovely, bittersweet tale, neatly told. Recommended as a good jumping-off point to discuss animal rights issues with the younger set. So, what did y'all think? LEGIONNAIRES #34 Writer: Tom Peyer Here's what I thought... I thought it was a very nice touch having the Roll Call feature the Legionnaires spelling out the word "Legionnaires" in ASL. Kudos to whoever thought of that. It's such a little thing, but one which will undoubtedly mean a whole heck of a lot to some people reading this. (Interesting that Invisible Kid's ring is missing. You can't see Imra's and Rokk's because of the way their fingers are placed, but you should be able to see Lyle's, if it hadn't broken off last issue. Presumably Gates doesn't need one. :) Also interesting that all the Legionnaires wear their rings on their right hands. Mandatory, or is nobody left-handed? It's such a dominant kinda trait on this planet...) Vi is so pretty in this splash. Everyone Moy draws is just very pretty. The only artist around who draws prettier people is Colleen Doran. Prettiness seems to be more and more a lost art (pun intended) in comics, and it feels really... comfy to look at this art. I like comfy. When we last left the kids, they'd been knocked out by some goon in a mask, determined to melt, disintegrate, etc. them. Vi escaped his finger of doom by shrinking, and now it's up to her to kick badguy butt. Only... only it's not a bad guy, not really, as Vi discovers when she smashes his mask. It's a brainwashed Jan Arrah. Meanwhile on Drak IV, Valor has been looking for amusement and trouble, and finds it. He beats off the Gatherer gang with at least five powers tied behind his back, and has a grand old time doing so. Guess he'll come in mighty handy against the Fatal Fi-- I'm sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. Meanwhile on Sorcerer's World, Zoe gets a nice makeover from Mysa, who slaps some sigil into her and makes her hair grow and her clothes turn green, with a Legionnaire belt to boot. Don't like the white face, though, looks too much like a mime. Bad flashbacks to Shields and Yarnell. Mysa sends her after the Emerald Eye. Back in the main plot, the Legionnaires, having regained consciousness and returned to HQ, are examining Jan's memories to see what went wrong, and who's responsible. Big surprise - it's Ambassador Wazzo, still in the grip of a grief-stricken logic that somehow holds that killing the people whom she believed caused her daughter to die will bring Tinya back. Vidcall comes in - Imra gets it. Lori (aka Hockey Girl) has been found, and arrested. Imra goes off to chase after the subplot. Elsewhere in HQ, Chuck Taine's trying to get accurate readings, but Vi and Lu have the music on so loud in their quarters (I didn't realize they were roomies; did I miss something?) they don't hear him knock. He barges in - on Vi in her undies, mercifully holding up her costume so we can't see as much as Chuck apparently does. Very tasteful, and I applaud Moy his restraint. Amazingly, Chuck's more mortified than Vi - and in keeping with her newfound inner strength, she's altered her costume a bit to an off-the-shoulder number (and possibly a Wonderbra - how old is she supposed to be, again?). At the SP station, Imra picks up Lori, giving the shop owner Hockey Girl had inadvertently insulted a little piece of her mind, and Lori does seem rather contrite as she comes along quietly. I'm looking forward to subplots involving her; she's fun. Cos, Lyle and Gim break into the UP exec meeting to present their findings of Winema Wazzo's treachery to the President. Madame Pres is pissed, but notices something on the memory playback - apparently the Sun-Eater is seen through a (doctored?) viewscreen behind Jan. Oy. And it turns out there's an underground bunker containing secret UP archives! Obviously they've built UP headquarters over the remains of the Pentagon. Madame Pres gives the Legionnaires the heebie-jeebies as she details five psychos originally engineered to fight the Sun-Eater. One of these psychos is so far gone she doesn't even bother covering her midriff or her shoulders with any kind of protective covering, like the male psychos have. I mean, she has chains across her bare stomach (held there by an ever-so-fashionable 20th century type belly-button ring) and going from her shoulders to her neck that just any enemy could pull on to hurt her badly! Yep, she must've been out of her mind to hire that costume designer. :) Most of the "Fatal Five" are in prison, but Madame Pres wants the Legionnaires to get them out for use against the Sun-Eater. Eep. Gotta say, though, great "Let's go, Legionnaires!" action shot. Very Silver Agey and all that. Well, someone's scheme is working well, as we see Tharok of Zadron (the only one still at large) on the planet Gohan, happy to be imminently reunited with his fellow malevolents, courtesy of... ...is there any question it's Winema, probably having doctored the viewscreen behind Jan anticipating the possibility (however remote) of a memory reading and putting into place a Plan B to eliminate her daughter's supposed killers? Well, we'll see, I guess. Next issue - Roger Stern! Yay! So, what did y'all think? Steve Rogers: CAPTAIN AMERICA #449 Writer: Mark Waid Here's what I thought... First of all, two pencillers and three inkers (even when one of the pencillers inks himself) usually makes for an uneven-looking comic. 'Nuff said about the art - except for the fact that I still really like the background blurring technique. Regular readers of these reviews (if I may be so presumptuous as to assume there are any) know that I'm in love with the idea of Process, especially from the point of view of the writer (as I tend to be much weaker with the visual aspects of graphic storytelling). I sometimes like to imagine what must be going through the writer's head during a certain point in a script. And a wicked little imp in my brain has postulated that, right around the end of page 8, when the Who Is Sharon Carter storyline is suddenly interrupted by the Mandatory Pointless Crossover of the Month, this particular writer started banging his head against his computer screen, screaming, "Why, why, why?" Of course, that's just my imp's take on the subject. <g> Now, modern comics are, by nature, a collaborative effort. But there's a world of difference between willing and enthusiastic collaboration and, as someone once defined it to me, Comics By Committee. It's near impossible to feature smooth transitions and, heck, just get on with telling your own damn story once the word comes down from on high that there's been A Meeting and you and your character are suddenly drafted into the latest version of "I know! Let's put on a show! My father has this great barn that we could use..." So, a review of the first eight pages, then the last fourteen. We start out ruthless and brutal, which is probably not good news for the Sharon Carter fans out there who want to see her all sweet and Romita-like. Welcome to the '90s. I have no emotional investment in this character, so I'm still reserving judgement. But I did think it a bit much for her to dangle a suit in mid-air outside SHIELD HQ like that just to get him to tell her something he prolly doesn't know anyway. And forgive my lack of knowledge of current Marvel goings-on again - SHIELD HQ is a giant dirigible? Uh, guess so. Anyway, Rogers disagrees with Carter's efforts, rescues the exec and shuts the portal with his shield. He tells her (and so do I) to lay off the extreme manifestations of her anger - he's pissed too, but at least he's in control over his emotions, as any good agent would be. Tsk, Sharon. Steve proposes they find Nick Fury and ask whassup. The Contessa greets them with the bad news that it ain't possible (unless they wanna contact Dr. Strange and have a seance or something). This time for sure, Rocky! "No one comes back from the dead." The looks on Cap's and Sharon's faces in the wordless panel that follows are worth the price of admission alone. "You want information?" the Contessa as much as says. "Heck with that, buddy, so do I" - and SHIELD agents with big guns suddenly surround Sharon. Welcome home, kiddo. She prepares to lash out again, but Cap restrains her, and catches a few flies with honey rather than vinegar. The Contessa calls off the squad, implicitly promising/threatening to keep an eye on Sharon henceforth. And we find out nothing new - because, hey kids, it's Pointless Crossover Time! And, as well as Mark writes his mandatory assignment, if Marvel thinks I'm gonna buy the rest of this fiasco they're sadly mistaken. I buy my books for the writers first; the characters are a very distant second, especially characters in a universe in which I have minimal interest much of the time. To digress a moment: Given the events of this past week - and heck, even the Lee/Liefeld outsourcing deal - we all know how much more pointless all this becomes anyway. But until things unravel even more in the books themselves, we just have to take it one story at a time. These things were written a few months back, after all. Well, to the xover plotline, then. Cap and Sharon are walking along the Brooklyn Bridge, no doubt headed towards his place in the Heights (somehow I can't see Rogers holing up in Fort Greene), when this force field descends over Manhattan, effectively cutting Cap off from Sharon (she's apparently just on the Brooklyn side of the span, while he's still on the Manhattan end) and suddenly siphoning off all technology-based power in the City. (Oh, and Nitpicky Note to the writer and/or editor: Cap's exclamation "It's as if someone flipped a switch and turned off New York City!" isn't factually correct - Brooklyn, over which the field is not apparently sitting, is technically a part of NYC, as are the other "outer boros" of Queens, Staten Island - at least for the moment - and the Bronx. A minor quibble, but we here in NYC tend to be sensitive to such things, and given the fact that Marvel is a NY-based company the folks there ought to be equally aware of this.) Cap goes looking for the culprits, trying to calm matters along the way. He directs pedestrian traffic, now that the cars are stalled, and dives into the Hudson (in an absolutely *gorgeous* page - I love the determined look on his face) to rescue the crew of a downed chopper (so the force field extends into the air too? Hope SHIELD HQ got out of range in time). Said culprits are agents of ZODIAC (is this an acronym for something?), seeking with their Transformers to channel all of Manhattan's energy into the force field (and, apparently, their weapons), turning the city black and thereby "severing the stars' influence over our lives." Huh? You know, whenever I want to sever the stars' influence over my life, I turn off the TV. The ZODIAC killers have no compunction about offing one of their own (the guy who 'fesses up to Cap, natch), and Cap escapes amidst a hail of bullets. He reasons he'll have to call in the Avengers to help out on this one, but his Identicard tech isn't even working. Always thought those ID thingies should be magic-based, myself. :) Anyway, looks like he'll have to run the distance to Avengers Mansion, thinking along the way of all the people trapped in subways and elevators. You know, as a daily subway commuter, this is just the kind of thing I want sticking in my brain - thanks a whole heap, Mark. :) Jarvis has bad news for Cap - all the Avengers are away at the moment, but if you leave your cries for help at the beep... "This is really poor timing," Cap sighs. Ain't it always the case? He apologizes to Jarvis for kicking him inside to safety and slamming the door after him, but he needed that boost upward that apparently only a soft human body could give him. <g> Traversing rooftops and skirting ZODIAC goons with acrobatic ease, he jumps downward, counting floors backwards (nicely done, dynamic scene), and crashes in on the pad of... Well, they tell me it's Thor. But it could be Fabio. I'm confused. "Thor's" hammer ain't workin', like it seems to imply it works in the ad page for this very crossover found right before this scene. You know, if it ain't magic, you probably shouldn't have this, like, yellow glow emanating from it. The ZODIAC killers move in to surround Cap, "Thor" and this woman who's supposedly the Enchantress, but doesn't seem to know what pants are for. :) Eek, get me out of this crossover. See you next month, when the nonsense is over. So, what did y'all think? TALES OF THE MARVELS: INNER DEMONS Writer: Marino Nicieza * all gone, I believe, in this week's "Marvelcution" purge Here's what I thought... Alcoholism is a tough subject to pull off without sounding preachy or movie-of-the-weekish. You have to know just how much to downplay it in favor of other story goals and plot points, and just how much to emphasize it to make it obvious that you're not trivializing it. I think Mariano Nicieza pulls it off fairly well. There are places in this book that feel as though he pads the story of John Mahoney to draw it out to make those 44 pages and $5.95 price tag, but more often than not he simply tells the story. John's a Skid Row alcoholic who used to be a pilot. As we meet him, he's just gone on a bender after a month off the wagon, and is witnessing his first superhero battle (the FF versus Miracle Man - geez, kinda looks like a big orange Hulk with a fin, doesn't he?). Man, them things are worse than the DTs. He struggles to escape, and runs into -- the Old Man. That's what he and the other flophouse residents call their mysterious friend with the amnesia and the ever-calm demeanor. He doesn't look old, mind you (he actually looks like Leonard Nimoy on vacation), but there's "just something about him... an old soul," according to one. (This must be the week for old souls - we meet another in Vertigo's SEEKERS INTO THE MYSTERY...) Next morning at the flophouse, John grumbles through a hangover, the Old Man drinks copious amounts of water for reasons none of them can fathom, and regular denizen Mary tries to listen to the preacher at the mission go through his proto-AA speech. John's not buying it, except that the words start seeping into his brain anyway, forcing him to remember his own downward path despite attempts at denial. The thing he still won't cotton to is when the preacher starts talking about looking out for one another: "I say," he responds, "it's always best to look out for number one. If ya don't, no one will!... Talk is easy, just never give anything away for free." As if on cue, the flophouse door is suddenly broken down by a couple thugs calling themselves the Enforcers. They're working for a guy by the name of Norman Osborne, looking to take over all the real estate on the block - and willing to send his goons to pound the stuffing out of any place that won't sell. The Old Man springs into action, as if made for the fight. John can't believe he's lifting a finger to help others, and finally pulls him downstairs into the boiler room, an Enforcer hard on their heels. The Old Man turns to face him -- -- lifts the entire boiler up, and throws it at the goon, while John looks on incredulously, whispering to himself, "...wh -- what are you?" Pipes burst, and the Old Man freaks out. John takes his hand and leads him outside. They later rejoin the others by the waterfront (nobody wants to take a chance on heading back to the flophouse), where the Old Man stays as far away from the Hudson as he can manage, and John finally confronts him with the fear that's been nagging at him all night. And the Old Man turns the tables. "This is not about me, John. This is about you... your inner strength." John denies it. "What demons're you hiding?" he insists. The response: "My past is a blur. I'm not hiding anything. I just don't remember. Unlike you, John, I don't drown myself in intoxicants to forget my past." Ouch. With friends like that, etc. etc. Anyway, he's right, John knows he's right, but John's still pissed, and an argument (apparently their first) ensues. They quickly part company. Miserable and not wanting to admit anything to himself, John wanders the streets, meaning to pawn the shell ring given him by the Old Man (who is now in possession of his pilot's wings, which John threw away in anger) and comes upon an old Sub-Mariner comic in a trashcan. He suddenly puts two and two together, and now knows as much as the readers. He also spies the Human Torch buzzing about in the skies, and remembers the time when he was able to fly (his plane, natch) without the aid of booze. Very nicely played scene - from the argument on through to the discovery of the comic. Meanwhile, the Old Man has found a street lamp for the night, and accepts five dollars from a generous passer-by whom even I recognize as Tony Stark. He uses the money to buy John some hooch as an attempt at reconciliation. They meet up, and John decides to make some hard decisions based on his knowledge - does he help the Old Man regain his memories (possibly becoming a dangerous Marvel in the process) or retain their friendship? He opts for the latter, and another decision is made - he smashes the bottle against an alley wall and decides to quit for good. 'Course, there's still the problem of the Enforcers moving in on the neighborhood. John reasons the best way to deal with Osborne and his ilk is to destroy their wrecking machines - and Old Man Namor's super strength is just the ticket. This doesn't sit well with the bad guys, who vow to find those responsible. Osborne figures a Marvel is behind the sabotage, and of course there are fingerprints all over the place. John panics, and decides to return to the wrecking site to try to remove the prints. On the way, he bumps into Johnny Storm, fresh from his latest break with the FF and looking for a place to crash, but he doesn't have time to show him around. He arrives at the site - only to be met by Osborne and the Enforcers, who proceed to beat him bloody and senseless. At least he gets to spit in Osborne's face, as the spit travels in the weirdest arc since the Single Bullet Theory. Guess he was real pissed that Osborne somehow knew his name when he hadn't introduced himself at all and had no ID on him. (This page features the only major writing and art gaffes in the entire book, I think, so that's not bad.) Mahoney's grim determination plays in captions as we check back in at the flophouse, where Johnny Storm reads Mahoney's Sub-Mariner comic, is introduced to the Old Man, puts two and two together, burns off some of the Old Man's facial hair and -- voila! Leonard Nimoy's back from vacation and ready to do another Star Trek cameo! The Torch has other plans, though - he flames on, picks up Namor and drops him into the ocean to regain his memory. Meanwhile, John Mahoney has regained consciousness, miraculously, and stumbles back to the flophouse - only to find the Old Man gone. The other residents fill him in, and he goes to find the no-longer-amnesiac Submariner, whom he still considers a friend. Namor's only slightly less pissed at Mahoney than he seems to be at the rest of humanity, and demands John return his Atlantean seal of governorship (the ring, remember?), saying, "The man you knew no longer exists... if he truly ever did." Namor thinks to scare John by dangling him high above the city -- but he actually fulfills John's dream again. "I'm flying!" John exclaims ecstatically, having thought he'd never see life from that height again. Gorgeous two-page spread. John gives Namor back his ring. Namor returns John's pilot's wings - and his dignity. John goes on to preach temperance. Lovely ending. Beautiful art - not up to Alex Ross level, but close. Excellent coloring job. Personally I thought it was worth the six bucks, but your mileage may very. So, what did y'all think? Writer/Creator: J.M. DeMatteis Here's what I thought... In reviewing the first issue of this series, I expressed trepidation, despite my usual fondness for the way Marc DeMatteis tells these stories, at the way Lucas, our protagonist, kind of glossed over his relationship with his wife and daughter and, to an extent, even his girlfriend. A lot of players were introduced, but they all seemed rather peripheral, and this disappointed me. DeMatteis usually peppers his work with all kinds of interesting characters of varying depth. Well, I needn't have worried. I sometimes forget that this is a writer who tends to like setting mood before interaction. It's not my preferred way of storytelling - mainly because I don't think I do it very well, I prefer to write, and read, mood simultaneous with interaction - but he has a knack for it. And so, in this issue, we're introduced in greater measure to Lucas' ex-wife Jennifer and daughter Aimee. But first we get that strange opening page of the woman dancing, an exact replica (near as I can tell) of the opening page of issue #1. Again I ask, what's the point? I didn't get the "it's raining grace" bit the first time, and I fail to see the need to show it twice with still no explanation. When the payoff comes, it's bound to be a letdown. Anyway, our story picks up nicely, the first scene also echoing the premiere issue, as Lucas talks more about his childhood dreams of flying. We're treated to his musings about Peter Pan (I can relate, I wanted to be Wendy like forever when I was a kid)... dissolving into his current out-of-body experience with the enigmatic Charlie. Alas, it's destined not to last, and Lucas tumbles back awake, unable to retain the sensation in the midst of his nausea. On the other hand, he suddenly feels - happy. Despite all his problems (detailed in the previous issue but given nice expositional treatment here for latecomers) he sings in the shower, and even decides to confront Charlie in the park. Of course, this is Real-Life Charlie, not Dream-Spirit Charlie, the the homeless crazy pisses on Lucas' shoes (ah, there's that missing sound effect from this month's RAY <g>) and skips away. Lucas decides to talk things out with Jennifer. Despite their troubled marriage (more nice exposition - this is really the issue to pick up if you want to get into the how's and why's of what's going on in the book), they're so used to being together that they still function well as each other's confidant. And daughter Aimee has a way of centering herself, and those around her, that makes her seem like an old soul, "a window into the past." Of course, none of that matters on this particular day, as the present-day Lucas-Narrator looks in on the 1987 Lucas being a butthead and getting thrown out of Jennifer's house. Good for her. "And that's when I started having trouble breathing." Lucas somehow finds the strength, amidst the feeling of "a blow torch shooting straight up from my belly to my chest," to get himself to a hospital. The doctor can't find anything wrong, but gives him a happy-shot which makes him see characters from Disney's Fantasia and Alice in Wonderland - whee! Doesn't last long enough, though, as Lucas soon perceives knives sticking out of his stomach, from the inside. Yes, it's that awful inner demon again, trying to do that Alien thang. Good old faithful Rhonda arrives just in time, takes charge (nobody knew she had it in her) and demands Lucas receive more medication for his obvious pain. He gets it, and slips into a dream state... He sees the Knife Demon hovering over him. The demon is suddenly chased away by God's Janitor. Okay, I should explain - this is the character from DeMatteis' brilliant epic MOONSHADOW. The mostly silent, somewhat Latino-looking fellow with the long hair and Roman nose and bushy mustache and crystalline eyes - if you've read that series, you know the one I'm talking about. I've kind of always referred to him as God's Janitor, after a similar character in the play "Steamroom." Dream-Spirit Lucas is confused, and GJ doesn't answer him, but Charlie does. And Charlie takes Lucas' hand and flies, as GJ sits on the hospital rooftop whispering, "Second to the right, and straight on till--" amidst absolutely stupendous light and swirly coloring... ...and they're in Heaven! Or at least Lucas' perception of same, which includes angels that look suspiciously like extraterrestrials. We, of course, know them as the Vorlons. <g> "Winged grace. Enfleshed ecstasy. How strange and wonderful. And how utterly, incomprehensibly... familiar." Yes, as The Firesign Theatre would say, "He's Been There, and you probably don't even know where you are." (I must confess, EVERYTHING YOU KNOW IS WRONG is my personal soundtrack for this book.) As he embraces the beings (including Charlie) and the light around him, Lucas suddenly finds himself... eight years old again! Happy, carefree and, what's more, the prime target audience for a Mark Waid comic! :) His joy is boundless as he realizes he's back on Earth, and back in time, and it's more real than it was the first time around. He quickly runs to his old home, knowing all the memories he'll find there, flings open the door to discover -- The Knife Demon, bigger and meaner than ever and snarling, "Surpriiiiiiise!" Eee. I think this issue is a great deal stronger than the first one, retaining DeMatteis' terrific sense of wonder and awe as well as his wry sense of humor. Highly recommended, and I hope he can keep things at this level. So, what did y'all think? ICON #34 Writer/Head Honcho: Dwayne McDuffie Here's what I thought... Every so often someone asks me who my favorite superhero is. In the past I've had to think awhile before muttering something like "Oh, I guess one or another of the Female Furies, but I don't really follow characters per se, I follow writers..." Well, allow me to amend that once and for all. I guess I've known it for awhile, but I will state now, officially, that my favorite superhero character in all of comics is Raquel "Rocket" Ervin. And I've been waiting for this issue a long, long time - much longer than the three months everyone else has waited. :) ICON #34 (which, can we all finally admit, is about Rocket, not Icon?) picks up the "Trial of Earth" storyline from #31. We open on Justice Moon, where Raquel is composed and ready to testify on the Earth's behalf. She starts reciting school essay-style (which I'm afraid I don't buy at all, as I've always thought Raquel much smarter and more creative than "Why The Earth Shouldn't Be Destroyed"), before the Arnus II doppelganger stops her (thank goodness) and asks her to start again at the beginning. And we're treated to Raquel's memory of how it all began - the robbery, the discovery that her friends' intended victim was pretty much invulnerable and could fly, and how afterwards, "all I could think about was... what a crappy life I was probably going to have - and the sudden possibility of flight. That's when I invented Icon." Let's all remember that, folks - this whole thing has been Raquel's idea. I don't know that most people give her nearly enough credit. Well, Arnus II doesn't - he scoffs at the idea that Icon and Rocket have been successful. "From what I have witnessed," he pontificates, "the Earth is a world that does not even see to the needs of its aged, its young, its ill and its weak. This is the absolute minimum expected of a civilized culture." From your mouth to our world leaders' ears, blue guy. Rocket ain't takin' this one standing still. She charges Arnus, demanding to know what gives his so-called civilization the right to pass judgement on hers. Well, violence is certainly the way to convince him - not. And here's the kicker, and I had a feeling this was coming: See, they don't want to destroy the Earth. No, it's a cookbook! :) No, sorry, I'll be good, it's not that at all. As the magistrate explains, the task at hand is to "determine Earth's fate" - of which destruction happens not to be on the agenda. What is on the agenda is stopping this aggressive species which persists on making war against the Cooperative, the union of planets (with which Justice Moon, etc. is affiliated) which has been at peace for 4000 "cycles." The reason for the peace? The luxury of unlimited energy, coupled with the discovery of the Maker (think "replicator which doesn't break down every other Trek episode" - remember Rocket's amusing encounter with it from #31?). After all, when "anyone could have anything they wanted in any quantity," including "reconstituted" lives, it kinda takes away the incentive to make war against each other. Well, you'd think so. But there's these sentients called the Yoongar who just like to make war for the hell of it. The Cooperative can't fathom it, but Rocket has it figured. "They sound like men. Men don't compete for stuff. Competition is a game. Stuff is how men keep score." Geez, sweetheart, let's all stereotype an entire gender, shall we? :) In any case, it's an incisive statement (once you add qualifiers like "some" which don't make it read nearly as well), and even Icon has to smile at the way Raquel cuts to the heart of the matter. So the deal is, the Yoongar have used Maker technology to expand their war game to include buzzing the Earth. Now the Cooperative have to decide if they're going to reconstruct the planet after destruction a la the Hitchhiker's Guide books, defend Earth with their own defense forces, or (Icon's suggestion) just move the big blue ball a few light years over ("it's not as difficult as you might think" - why, it's just a jump to the left... and then a step to the riiiiight...) None of these choices sits very well with Raquel, who devises a plan of her own after the hearing has ended. Back in her guest quarters, she makes use of the Information Tool to find out more about the Yoongar. She tells the Tool she wants to talk with the head of the fleet; her request is misinterpreted, and the Tool opens a Transmat and 'ports her on the ship. Where she's suddenly surrounded by members of the only advanced sentient race that's hostile for the fun of it. I'm hoping her first words to them will be "Take me to your mothers," but somehow I don't think so. But whatever she does, I'm sure it'll be brilliant. After all, she's Rocket - my favorite superhero. Well worth the 3-month wait. Witty writing, gorgeous pencils and inks, clever plot turns - everything an Icon issue should be. Looking forward to the resolution and seeing Raquel back on Earth, but this is a lot of fun in the meantime. Men who keep score, you get an "A+" on this one. So, what did y'all think? DOOR MAN #1 Writer: Mike Leonard Here's what I thought... The premise of this book sounded too cool to pass up when we saw it in Previews - a time-traveling therapist named Janus de Nile (okay, the name's a bit too cutesy, but heck, roll with it) visits people at moments of extreme crisis, when repressed secrets from their past have actually gained enough power to manifest themselves physically into evil entities called Arcanum, and tries to talk them through their crises by taking them back through their own lives to rediscover the truth, destroying the Arcanum and saving themselves and their loved ones in the process. Sort of regression therapy times infinity. Then I get this lovely E-mail from Mike Leonard asking if I could please review the book, which he had no way of knowing I was going to do anyway. Mike, ya done good. Janus will remind you a great deal of many characters you've seen in DC's Vertigo line. Think Kid Eternity ten years down the line. We open on a scene in what, for all we know, exists in his private universe - his home in the Outlands, on a world of two suns. He tells us he's a god (although he still hopes to be human - we assume the "again"), and we have no reason to disbelieve him. We see him waking from sleep (he sleeps just for the hell of it, for "research," not because he needs to), eating (again just 'cause he feels like it), and dressing to go to work, stepping through his front door and "into nothingness... a place that doesn't now, never has, and never will exist." Now, y'all know time travel stuff makes my head hurt - but in a good way. Feel the ache start in me, folks. First stop: Leonardo da Vinci. Thank goodness Salai is nowhere in sight. :) They chat a bit, then Janus has to leave. "I do promise to return, so he can paint me, and I already know I will, as 'La Janus' proudly hangs in my home." Ouch ouch ouch, oh dear, not again... "I had to take care to remove my glasses when around him, as it will be another five years before he creates them for me." Ow! God, I love this stuff. Janus walks through the Nothingness again trying to pick out today's list of Folks to Help, and chooses our first tableau, "Brothers and Sisters." He appears in a house where a man, Kenneth, holds his brother Danny's fiancee, Rita, at gunpoint, egged on by a malevolent shadow with female form (for some reason the Arcanum, at least in this issue, all appear as female, although fairly androgynous females - and Janus refers to each Arcanum creature as "it") who keeps turning her hands into guns, as Danny tries to calm his brother down. Janus speaks telepathically to Danny - "Tell him to come clean... that you won't be angry with him for telling the truth." Turns out the suppressed truth that created this particular Arcanum was that Ken and Rita had a brief fling five years back. Unfortunately, Rita doesn't confess it all, and Ken adds fuel to his anger and her guilt by revealing that Rita slept around with a whole mess of other guys after him. This plot point didn't sit well with me at all - I mean, yeah, I guess there are women like this in the real world, but we hear about Rita's subsequent infidelities through Ken's slanted view. It just made me feel kinda skeevy. And apparently it empowers the Arcanum enough to actually attack Dan, rendering him a paraplegic. Ick. An interesting choice on Leonard's part, showing us Janus' failure before any successes. After some soul-searching, Janus steps into the first part of "Identical," a storyline which will be continued in DoorMan #2. We see twin sisters, Tracy and Stacy, waking up in different cities to very different lives (nice use by Lyle of parallel panels featuring almost identical actions), then follow the married one, Tracy, as she takes a shower (park your prurient interest at the door, gents, Lyle's women are not only drawn realistically but the scene is arranged so we don't see below Tracy's shoulders) and an Arcanum moves in, parroting her actions and feeding her thoughts. It follows her to the bathroom mirror, mocking her looks, sowing doubt and suspicion. It even goes so far as to spray some perfume on Tracy's husband's clothes in order to make her believe he's cheating on her - isn't that a little below the belt? I thought the point was that Arcanum feed off insecurities, not create them. Anyway, Tracy's about going nuts when the Arcanum's through with her, and we slip with her into a high school flashback dream involving a prank Tracy's friend Annie played on her, and Tracy's payback. This flashback intercuts with the adult twins talking on the phone, as Tracy reveals her suspicions and tells Stacy about the Arcanum ("this - I dunno, voice, I guess"). When Tracy's husband Glenn returns that evening, the Arcanum's back and goading her once more. She winds up in the bathroom, preparing to slash her face with a razor blade, when Glenn walks in and stops her. Stacy flies out ot be with her sister. They talk, they realize more phone calls have been made to each other than either remembers doing, and then out pops the Arcanum, in the back seat of Tracy's car. They flee the car, only to run into Janus. He sees the Arcanum is using both of them as hosts, and whisks them back in time to their own high school - to be continued. I'm hooked. As I say, I love the premise. I think the people Janus encounters might be fleshed out a little more, but it's hard to do in a format that exists to treat them as the sum total of their secrets. Then again, in a way we're all a sum total of our secrets, so I can't truly fault Mike his methods. We don't actually see Janus use his time travel abilities on his "patients" until the last page (for the record, page 45 - yep, a 45-page book for three bucks, beat that), but I suspect this ability will come into play more in future issues. The characters are drawn to realistic proportions - the art is really well done, and fits the writing quite nicely. Definitely my recommendation of the week. So, what did y'all think? CYBER FROG #1 Harris Comics Preview
edition Writer/Artist: Ethan Van Sciver Here's what I thought... I'm not sure what Harris editorial assistant Seth Biederman was thinking when he sent this to me. That I'd review it favorably? That even bad press is good? Man, I don't know where to begin with this baby. Some folks would opine I need go no further than to say it's from Harris, and leave it at that - but hey, AKIKO is from Sirius and I like that, so you can't always judge a book by its company. Okay, you can in this case. I really wanted to do this review in an altered state of consciousness but, try as I might, I couldn't turn myself into a 13-year-old, emotionally immature male - what I must conclude is the book's apparent target audience - so instead I will be: CYBER-REVIEWER #1 (in a series; collect 'em all)!!!! Yes, I crouch behind my keyboard, in my most derivative Spider-Man pose possible, atop the roof of my imagination, looking down on - a nasty opening scene. Stereotypical thugs holding an anatomically impossible woman at gunpoint. The horror, the horror! Her balloon breasts barely hold up her gown! Her waist is almost imperceptible! She's somebody's wet dream, but not mine! There Will Be Violence Done Tonight! I swoop into it along with our ultraviolent hero. Hey, Cyber Frog's not only a stupid name having nothing at all to do with computers, he's also a So Kewl You Could Just Pee character! Yes, he has no regard for scumful human life, including his own. All women are "chicks" - and you can't blame him, they're sure drawn that way. And he doesn't stop at breaking backs like ShadowHawk, oh no - he glorifies in decapitation! Oh goody! "Look alive," he shouts, "it's raining death!" OH BOY, GIMME SOME OF THAT! And Cyber-Reviewer cackles with glee as the first six pages of this preview go up in pretty yellow flames over her trashcan. As Spider-Man's thoroughly unlikeable and pointlessly violent ripoff somehow leaps through mid-air with all visible means of catapulting himself way, way in the background, Cyber-Reviewer goes to the window and looks out at the pretty snow. Wow, weather report says we'll have at least a foot. Better drag out those boots again. Cyber-Reviewer returns to find Ben Riley. You thought Ben Reilly was bad? Well, you haven't met Ben Riley. "He's a humanitarian. He eats humans." Especially mall rats. And we get to see him do it, in grisly detail! Yes, Cyber- Reviewer reasons, with great power comes great idiocy. And how else can you get a villain even more reprehensible than our "hero" than by making him a cannibal who slaughters INNOCENTS - I mean, even Froggie steers clear of INNOCENTS, right? Who knows? Who CARES? Cyber-Reviewer doesn't. She's oblivious. She goes to the window once more to check the snow, and revel in her inner peace. Ah, so blankety, so comforting, so winter wonderland-ish... She's in too good a mood to scoff at the fourth-wall breaking newscaster that Froggie watches on a tee-vee that doesn't exist, in a literary device that fails utterly, drowning in its own self-mockery (pretty much like the rest of this book). She wanders through her house, stopping to play with the cats, oblivious to Froggy's murky and badly-told origin (he has a Froggy Sense, only it's called a "Homing Sense" - and he suddenly discovers he has boot thrusters, how convenient! oh, spare me). Cyber-Reviewer returns briefly for the subplot to "meet Heather Swain, everybody." Or impossible body, take your pick. "Now put your toungues [interesting alternate spelling] back in your slimy mouths, she's only sixteen." Cyber-Reviewer powers up: "First of all, Van Sciver, slimy is as slimy does, and you don't see me drooling my pencil lovingly over a shape that doesn't exist in real life outside of an imagination obviously devoid of experience with actual women, let alone 16-year-old girls." Well, you know this CHICK is going to DIE HORRIBLY, only NOT YET, 'cause she kicks Ben Riley in the BALLS - come on, everybody laugh! "Let's have a general sigh of sympathy for poor Ben from our male readers." Van Slimy, Cyber-Reviewer scoffs once more that you even pretend to believe you're going to have female readers! Watch those pretty yellow flames as they engulf this preview! Gaze wonderingly out on peaceful, snow-capped Brooklyn! Join Cyber-Reviewer on her next adventure, won't you? We promise, nary a Harris comic in sight! So, given that this was all off the cuff and unpolished, what did y'all think? Do I have what it takes to be a super-reviewer-hero in this grim and gritty cyber-world? Uh, hmm, maybe you shouldn't answer that. STEELE DESTINIES #4 Writers: Andrew Vaughan and Mike Weed Here's what I thought... A definite improvement over the past few issues. The captions are clearer and more concise, they actually fill the reader in on what's going on (in an adventure involving time travel, this is essential if one is to keep the characters, dates and places straight - never be afraid of too much exposition with this kind of tale, guys), the women are still a little busty (which kind of disappoints me, as female artists always have tools like their own reflections on which to draw for accurate anatomy) but Turner varies near and far shots and angles nicely, and I'm almost to the point where I can tell some of the characters apart. :) Let me see if I can get the gist of what's happening - the three Steele siblings have been flung into different times. Daniel is somewhere in the early 14th century. Daniel has been helping a native village which now finds itself terrorized by a demon - a creature also misplaced in time by the same alien device that transported Daniel out of the 20th century. The demon demands to be sent home - Daniel doesn't know how the time portals work. He wants to get home too, despite the fact that he's fallen in love with native Moki - whom his "rival" Kwahu also loves (Daniel, on the other hand, is sort of treated like a myth come to life). Cut to brother Alex, who has figured out a little of how the time portals work. He tricks a bunch of Teknophage-type creatures into seeking peace instead of human sacrifice, steps on a portal and locates Daniel, on the verge (with Kwahu) of being offed by the demon. Fortunately, Alex packs a powerful piece of tech, and its bye-bye bad guy. The brothers reunite, Daniel wishes Kwahu well with Moik, and Alex sends Daniel back to the cave in Texas where it all started -- -- but for some reason he's not returned as well. He reasons there must be a time paradox somewhere - you know, not being able to have two of himself in the same place at the same time, or something like that. This is where my synapses usually break down. Anyway, Alex finally ports out to a time/place that "looks right," where he's almost immediately captured by a woman named Pava. Oops. Meanwhile, sister Cynthia has her own problems - she's being held captive on the planet Gnillod (present time, way different place). Cort Matthews (forgive me, guys, I forget who he is) helps her break free of the Gnillodian demons (it was one of theirs bugging Daniel earlier in the book), and she pounds on a nearby door, presses a button and -- poof. She steps out to Somewhere Else, face to face with a warrior woman with a bloodied sword and, um, a pet dinosaur or something. To be continued. I'm having fun with the title, even though I'm not following it all yet. I think the art and captioning could be a bit clearer, as I stated above, but I think the team is starting to live up to their potential. If time travel adventure stories are your kind of thing, you'll probably like this. So, what did y'all think? [These reviews are reprinted and distributed, with permission, from the Usenet rec.arts.comics newsgroups, and are copyright 1996 Elayne Wechsler-Chaput, whose main reaction to the "Marvelcution," massive layoffs at AT&T, three-weeks-and-counting mandatory "furlough" for federal employees, etc. is to make damn sure she keeps her day job. And to watch her back when writing reviews at work...] |
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