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This week's digest:
Steve Rogers: CAPTAIN AMERICA #454 Writer: Mark Waid Here's what I thought... "I have been wanting to write CAPTAIN AMERICA every day of my life since I was twelve years old," Mark Waid reveals in this issue's letter column space, which is devoted to Waid's and Garney's acknowledgements and farewells (kudos to Editorial for allowing them this courtesy). It shows. And it's almost beside the point. Many writers have a great deal of affection and admiration for, and identification with, certain characters-- perhaps not to the extent that Mark outlines in his closing essay (which provides lots more autobiographical information than I think I've ever seen from him, and therefore which, I suspect, must have been damn hard for a relatively private person to write), but the love is there. However, it's the rare writer who can transmute that love, that joy, into a book which will make the readers care about the character as much as the writer does. And when you come right down to it, that's what counts-- have we, the readers, cared about Cap these last eleven issues as much as Waid has? How much of his personal enthusiasm has he been able to impart? With what impressions of the character do we come away? I don't know that I've ever attached myself to any character the way Mark has to Cap. I've said repeatedly in Usenet discussions how I tend to follow writers, not characters; how anything I may feel for a character is almost always a direct result of whether I think the writer has done his or her job. I'd be hard-pressed to admit I cared that much about Captain America before Waid took over chronicling his adventures-- I mean, don't get me wrong, he's a nifty character and all, for many of the reasons Mark mentions in his essay, but I never got that worked up about him (or any other comic book character, really), and I have no desire to even look at the "awesome new 'Age of Cap'" discussed in (presumably) Bob Harras' closing paragraph. But for 11 issues, I've cared. Waid has managed to convey the sense of inspired improvisation, of Making Do against the odds, that defines Cap for him, and I'm very grateful. This run's a definite keeper. The final issue wraps up some loose ends involving Sharon Carter and that gold coin containing all the information in Cap's brain (courtesy of the Machinesmith in the "Man Without a Country" storyline just ended). We open on Sharon attempting to pawn said coin (which she apparently pocketed last issue - smart gal) to X12, the dictator of the godforsaken country of Tap-Kwai. We know she's not really betraying Cap, that she has some overall assassination plan up her sleeve, but Rogers 'cycles in just in the nick of time (I can't say enough about both Waid's and Garney's contributions to the roller-coaster plotting of this run, it's the closest I've seen yet to action-movie pacing) to, as it turns out, save her from being shot in the back of the head (an imminent she doesn't appear to notice). Sharon is furious-- "You tanked my entire plan!" Cap confronts her, and we never do find out what the plan was, except we know Sharon prefers to work discreetly and not call attention to herself. Rogers, though, has usually hidden in plain sight, and heck, his plans are almost always successful. Not sure if there's a lesson in there. In any case, they're now being chased, and Cap heads straight for the waterfront. Where he has alternative transport waiting. Nice. Terrific first scene - this run has had some of the best opening scenes I can ever remember reading. So Cap and Sharon find themselves slogging through the paddies about 15-20 miles from the rendezvous he'd arranged to get her out of the country, and she suddenly falls, which brings on a sort of post- traumatic stress attack. A little awkward, I felt, but a necessary segue into her discussion of the political situation of Tap-Kwai, and her reasons for being there. She detours him to a little shack in the middle of a prison camp - the shack in which she was formerly imprisoned for eight months after being cut off from SHIELD. She explains she came to think of her cell as "sanctuary. From all the pawing guards... from the other prisoners who never stopped begging me for strength and comfort... from everybody who wanted a piece of me." It's the closest thing she has to home, she feels. And Steve is livid. He takes her by the shoulders and practically yells at her (we don't see it in the lettering, but we do in his expression) that "the only true sanctuary you have is in here," pointing to her head, her own mind. Very nice. She pretends not to buy it, and to belittle it as armchair psychology, but we know better (well, it is sort of this issue's theme). Sharon starts running again, and suddenly realizes Cap's not with her. He's gone to free the political prisoners. She's incredulous, claiming things have to be done her way, they can't get the dissidents to safety in time, and besides, "they're so fried, they don't even remember what freedom is-- what home is." She's one to talk. And this is where my heart really went out to the poor woman, still trapped in the cell of her past because she doesn't have (or doesn't yet accept) that sanctuary within herself to break free of it. I like to think, had the Waid/Garney run been allowed to continue, that she would have found that strength. In any case, Cap, Sharon and the freed prisoners run towards the rendezvous - the SHIELD helicarrier, which beams all the prisoners safely aboard. But Sharon won't go. She can't. "The helicarrier's no sanctuary for me!" She knows she'll always be watched-- at least, she's not prepared to accept any other beliefs. She returns the real memory-coin to Cap (the one she held up before was, of course, a fake) and they part - with mutual friendship and respect and a really, really lovely ending as we see them salute one another. Bravissimo. And as nice as the story is, and as much as it clears up some things and makes one think and speculate about others, I must confess I still liked the farewell text page best. While I chuckled at the parting shot thanking Mark Gruenwald "for creating a far smoother and more congenial transition [into the present run] than I have any intention of offering," I think my favorite part of Waid's essay was his confession that Cap, as a character, is "always three steps ahead of me. More often than not, writing Captain America has been a frantic race to keep pace with the man as he torpedoes through the plot... with little time or patience for his chronicler." I maintain that one is never a better writer than when one is completely zoned and letting the characters write the story, rather than trying to manipulate the characters. Both Waid's and Garney's essays were a pleasure to read, and I hope we get to see more pairings of this duo soon. Thanks, guys. I had a ball reading this. So, what did y'all think? ONSLAUGHT: X-MEN Story: Scott Lobdell and Mark Waid Here's what I thought... I'm not sure you want to know what I thought. Well, okay, if you insist. The first thing I thought was, what an overall sloppy piece of work. The art certainly isn't up to Kubert's brother's standards in the last couple issues of X-MEN; there were panels where I absolutely winced at how the faces were drawn. Maybe those panels were the "art" assist ones, but I've learned better than to assume anything where X-books-by-committee have been concerned lately. And look at the footnote boxes - how bad is that? You can't even read most of them. Someone goofed. Well, a lot of someones goofed. As for the story... well, let's just say oil and water don't mix that well. I hit on that while threw this book aside for awhile in favor of making a salad, because I felt like taking a knife to something and chopping veggies seemed like a relatively pacifist alternative. And I make this homemade dressing with oil, vinegar, water and a few spices, but it doesn't taste right unless you shake the cruet vigorously. Sometimes this story's to taste - for example, I like the overall idea of Onslaught being a combination of Xavier's dark tendencies and Magneto's mind, and the way he keeps referring to Xavier as "he" then correcting himself - but most of the time you just have to shake your head too vigorously before things blend the way they're supposed to, and it's not worth it. Save your four bucks. Read the other 'net synopses of this plot, but for God's sake don't bother buying the book. Too many awkward thought balloons and captions, too many panels that are really pinups, female characters with faces drawn (when they're drawn at all) like little winsome girls but costumes ripped in too-strategic places, male characters with perpetual grimaces, redundancies all over the place... Yeah, there are some good moments. Onslaught disguising himself as Franklin Richards' "invisible" friend Li'l Charlie (way stupid name) wasn't badly done. The opening pages leading to the credits were okay. I liked the coloring on the psionic energy. Iceman's nab of Onslaught in the control room was nice. Onslaught psyching out Cable was interesting. But overall, 'tain't worth it, McGee. Too many cooks spoil this broth beyond edibility. One to skip. So, what did y'all think? SUPERMAN #114 Writers: Tom Peyer and Mark Waid Here's what I thought... Swan Watch first: Pages 7-12. Lotsa Supes. Boy, that hair sure gets shorter real quickly when Swan pencils him, doesn't it? :) This is the week for Swan cameos, by the way - he does five pages in THE POWER OF SHAZAM! as well. Manoman, what a neat final panel on page 11... Again, relatively jarring to go from non-Swan to Swan to non-Swan, but on my first read I was concentrating more on the story anyway. There are some unbelievably clunky passages herein. I don't recall when I've seen worse expository thought balloons from Waid or Peyer than the ones on page 4. Brainiac (in Supes' body) explaining things to himself on page 7 is also pretty Silver Age tacky, especially considering his "experiment" on pp 1-2 is so well done. And pray tell, what does happen to poor Milton Fine when Brainiac's stuffed back into his head? (Although I do like the fact that the mind-reversal was accomplished pretty much two-thirds of the way through the book, and it didn't spell the end of the battle.) Onward, though. I'm glad I read Chas' seizures correctly - they were indeed a result of a chemical imbalance. And I'm bowled over that I guessed wrong about the mind/body duality thing - that Chas' brain wasn't in fact (as even Superman thought) in Fine's/Brainiac's body, but co-inhabiting Superman's so Brainiac could use Chas' "expertise" on Superman as a resource to fool folks. On the other hand, I don't want to think too much about how Brainiac could hold the population of a whole city in his sway and not prevent a second mind-- the mind of a frightened boy, no less-- from taking over the body he was supposed to be controlling directly (although, to be fair, pp. 1-2 gives us a hint as to how this might work, as Brainiac is easily distracted by Deep Thoughts...). Anyway, we're given a relatively plausible origin for Chas' Superman delusion (an abusive past caused him to desire invulnerability), Chas' supreme moment of heroism, Superman (in Chas' body) using his brains, an interesting fight scene as Brainiac points out his time in Supes' body has given him intimate knowledge of the Man of Steel's physiology and how to battle him to greatest effect, and a hokey but sweet wrap-up. Not a terrible story arc, all in all, but I found this installment a bit weak despite the payoff. So, what did y'all think? THE POWER OF SHAZAM! #17 Writer: Jerry Ordway Here's what I thought... Well, this issue's Wormspeak in the letters column says it all. Thanks to Decoder Dave van Domelen for providing the translation: "EARTHLINGS. OUR SURVIVING BROTHER WILL MAKE YOU PAY! WEEEE WILLLL BEEEE AAVVVENNNGED!" Tee hee. So that means, as we knew he would, Captain Marvel defeats the rest of the Venusian worm population, with not a moment to spare. I do think it's rather cool, though, that the worms can speak to us from the great beyond... But I'm getting ahead of myself. When we last left CM, it seemed all was lost and he was in the worms' thrall. This issue we find out it was all a ploy, thanks to his quick-thinking Mother Box. I still don't know how she works, but I guess it's enough to know that she does. CM employs her to free Sivana too, scoops up the astronauts and hightails it for the Freya, where he releases Sivana's son and the "French-babe" (I dunno, that doesn't sound like something CM would say) Chantal from their control as well. As CM prepares to Boom Tube the other three to safety back on Earth, Sivana fills us all in on the backstory of how this situation came to be (with a winking "Don't blame me if those worms get to us while I elucidate..."). After five very nice Swan pages (during which I lost count of how many times Sivana mentions that he hates the Big Red Cheese - heh), CM lets his enemy stay behind and help him defeat the worms, the astronauts are Boom Tubed back, Sivana directs CM to destroy the console and then escapes himself (of course) using his "trans-vec" device... and it's up to CM to stop the worms cold. Which is just what he does, as Mother Box sacrifices herself to send CM and the worms out into deep space... where CM just floats there... This means the worm inside Ebenezer Batson's mind is the only one left, and we still don't know what happened to Sinclair, although we get an intriguing three panels of that featuring Captain Mary. All will, presumably, be revealed next time. Aside from Sivana's over-the-top bluster, I thought this a rather mediocre issue, but that may be because I tend to be more interested in Mary than Billy in general. The whole Venusian storyline seemed a tad lackluster for my tastes, but I think younger kids will enjoy the heck out of it. Recommended for preteens; adults will have to take their chances, I guess. So, what did y'all think? Here's what I thought... Captain Marvel in "Playing with Fire" Writer: Jerry Ordway Well, considering this Captain Marvel is Mary, and it's being written by Ordway (who cocreated the other hero in the story, Gangbuster), I knew it was going to be a good read. And it was. I enjoyed the part Mary played in this, and although I would have liked to have seen her get more "screen time" I understood why she couldn't, as things needed to be set up. The good guys and bad guys were pretty well defined, it all seems kind of poignantly pointless at the end (as so much in life does), and there's a real sense of tragedy that permeates throughout. Well crafted, and the art was top-notch as well. Firestorm in "Chasing the Clouds Away" Writer: Robert L. Washington III I thought this was a rather ordinary story about recovering from alcoholism, but it really could have been about any recovering alcoholic. There was nothing that really connected this for me with Firestorm specifically. A quiet tale, disturbing in places, that would read well with any number of characters. Kind of a clichéd ending, though. Fire and Cruiser in "Snow Crash" Writer: Chris Claremont A really stellar team at work here - don't know Leonardi that well, but I like the work of most of the others listed above - and there were parts I really liked, especially Bea and Nicholas exchanging stories of their (rather parallel) childhoods. Well plotted tale of two people whose powers aren't up to their usual level trying to get through a harsh night in the wake of an auto accident. At first I didn't agree with Claremont's choice to do that somewhat flowery scene with Tora, but on second read I quite like it, and it fits the circumstances well, leaving things rather vague as to what really happened during Bea's fevered concussion. Not a bad outing, all in all. Nothing that really struck me as awful, and some very good art throughout-- well, at least the first and third story, I think DuBurke is a bit too stylized for me. Recommended. So, what did y'all think? STARMAN #21 Writer: James Robinson Here's what I thought... Aside from the very funny Archie Goodwin joke on page 4 (wherein I'm sure many readers find out for the first time that STARMAN's editor actually does have a legitimate literary namesake), most of this is quite grim and serious in tone, as Robinson takes us away from the superhero mentality and deep into the sensibility of mystery men. Ordinarily this really wouldn't be my cuppa, as I'm not terribly big on the mystery genre, but it really is fascinating reading. Murder suspects aplenty, many with damn fine motives, a slip of the tongue here and there... ripping stuff. And as a good friend of mine is into airships, I liked this aspect of the story as well, especially considering some of the real-life dirty dealings he's told me that actually occur in that industry. We also get a nice scene of Jack in philosophical mode, thinking about growing older and how he fears aging and being forgotten. The irony of all this, of course, is that heroes such as Wesley Dodds are not forgotten, by people like Matt Wagner and James Robinson who are giving them their due. Jack quotes Shakespeare's line about "the moment we're born we begin dying," but of course the reverse is equally true, that the moment we're born we begin living. And Jack certainly has plenty of that ahead of him (as do, I hope, we all). I also enjoyed Wesley Dodds' and Dian Belmont's quiet investigations of other suspects. One always has to be careful when inserting too many "talky" scenes into a graphic art form, but Harris & co. do a nice job varying angles, colors, etc. to keep our interest. And it's a nice way of showing how vital Dodds and Belmont still are, in terms of the things they're still able to accomplish, albeit a bit more quietly than in their heyday. I think my favorite scene takes place en route to the compound of the murder victim's former partner, Warren Gayle, wherein Jack and Wesley discuss Jack's father Ted (about whom Wesley has just dream) and the exhilerating thrill of being a hero. At one point Dian asks a pointed question: "is that all you want out of life, Jack? To be like your father? A hero?" And as they arrive at their destination, we never do find out what one thing Jack wants, but we suspect it has something to do with not fading away. And the culmination of that scene for me is when Wesley loans Jack his gas mask. Nice. Very touching. All this and the obligatory cliffhanger with Jack lying there, downed by taser fire from Gayle's goons. Tune in in 30, kiddies. So, what did y'all think? DEATH: THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE #3 Writer: Neil Gaiman Here's what I thought... I found this issue dealt a little more with the nature of love than the nature of death (upper or lower case "d," take your pick), which was fine with me, you can never explore the nature of love too much as far as I'm concerned. As many readers have figured out, Foxglove's lover Hazel made a bargain of sorts with Death, in the hopes of saving the life of her son Alvie, who'd apparently suffered crib-death. For reasons of her own, some having to do with having met Hazel in a sort-of previous incarnation during Foxglove's first performance (was this in the first miniseries? I can't remember), Death grants her this boon. And now the consequences must be faced. Fox has enough presence of mind to finally remember how to access Death's realm, especially once she recalls the necessary sigil. She's accompanied by Boris, who promised her late manager Larry he'd look after her, and Vito, her beard-escort at the movie premiere she'd just attended. They meet up with Larry at the outskirts of the foothills leading to Death's realm, and he advises them to hurry. Great job by Buckingham and Hollingsworth depicting the shadow of Larry's late daughter Marianne. (In fact, artistically I thought this issue was well worth waiting for.) On their way to Hazel, Fox tells her companions how she chose her stage name. While awaiting their arrival, Hazel and Death discuss the fairness and balance of life-- pretty standard stuff, which I thought a little clichéd compared to some of Gaiman's other work. But then Hazel tells a story of happier times and a special moment she and Fox shared, and this was a wonderful little tale, the upshot of which is that Fox didn't have the same memory of this incredible moment that Hazel did-- that she, in fact, didn't remember it at all. Selective memory about special occasions; boy, can I identify with that one. Hazel then confesses to Death that she loves her. I'm not sure what answer she was looking for, but I thought this conversation played out well. I think it's the best part of the issue, in fact. The lovers reunited, Hazel reminds Fox that the story about Alvie having died and her making a deal with Death-- that Alvie gets to live, but soon all of them have to face Death and one has to make a choice to stay. Boris doesn't get it - "So, what, there's some kind of cosmic balance here...?" "No," Death reminds him. "Everybody eventually dies." Good point! The deal was struck, Death reveals, for sentimental reasons alone, basically because she felt like it. Wonderful. Terrific way of humanizing that which can't really be humanized. But something's been bothering Fox. She confesses she doesn't believe she loves Hazel any more. And intelligent, wonderful Hazel knows Fox better than she knows herself, and says so. After all, if Fox didn't love Hazel, why follow her into Death's realm? Thus reconciled, it's time for a healthy dose of skepticism from Boris, who mocks the idea of Death being "some cute Gothette." Hee. Death, for her part, agrees with him. She's only one aspect of who and what death is. Vito's not sure what to believe, other than he doesn't want to be there. And then it's decision time. Who will stay? Vito? Please. Fox? She volunteers, but that'd break up the reunion. The only logical choice was always Boris, who promised Larry he'd take care of Fox, and who can't let her die because it would mean failing at his job. He also recommends Fox get the hell out of the business. And she does. And two years later, she and Hazel and Alvie are, to all appearances, a happy family, travelling around the country (now that Hazel's learnt now to drive) and chuckling at Weekly World News stories about the missing Foxglove. And it's all a rather dreamlike state to Fox, but "then I think, so what's new?" As James Robinson reminds us over in STARMAN, quoting Shakespeare, we begin dying the day we're born. As I don't think folks need to be reminded, we also begin living. So, what did y'all think? SEEKERS INTO THE MYSTERY #7 Writer/Creator: J.M. DeMatteis Here's what I thought... Well, the Magician (whose resemblance to DeMatteis' spiritual inspiration, Meher Baba, Roeberg insists in this issue's lettercol only has "a hint of validity"-- yeah, like I have a "hint" of femininity) doesn't appear all that much herein, except in backstory, so the preachiness is mercifully limited to homilies like "...and he walked into the sunlight. No, he didn't walk into it. He became it." How many of us knew those last three words were coming before we turned the page? That said, the story has another major problem, which I'll tackle anon. It begins okay, though, most of it having to do with angels. Or Vorlons. I can never keep those two straight. The title is from a lovely song called "All Through the Night" which Lucas Hart's mother used to sing to him, and I used to sing to myself before I went to sleep. Lucas/DeMatteis only quotes the first verse, but I always liked the second one better, the one that starts with "While the moon her watch is keeping" and ends "Soft and drowsy hours are creeping/hill and vale in slumber sleeping/I my loving vigil keeping/All through the night." Of course, since that verse concerns plain old human compassion rather than extrahuman intervention, I suppose it wouldn't quite fit the nature of the tale. The angel Lucas has just encountered reveals to him that s/he has many names. "What-- what should I call you?" he gasps? The easy answer is Ishmael, but I'd go with Kosh. :) Apparently Friend (as s/he prefers to be named) is of a different race, or spiritual level or something, than the alien creatures who apparently abducted Lucas' daughter Aimee. As they travel astrally, or bodily or whatever, Friend is as surprised as the reader that Lucas can still be shocked by what's going on. And this was what started to annoyed me most about this issue. By this point you think he'd be somewhat used to this. And geez, but the man has such a mouth on him! It's just vocabulary, Friend, get over it. They talk a little more about Grace. You know, 'twas Grace that brought him safe thus far, and Grace will lead him home. In this case, with a huge thump, as Friend lets go and he plummets back down to his personal hell. Which winds up being the floor at the foot of the stairs in the Tattmore house, where he's greeted by the Elmira Gulch-like sister Marilyn. Angels are complete "bullshit" to her, even though her sister Dorothy is a true believer (the reason Lucas is there in the first place, as DeMatteis reminds us in one panel of elegant exposition). Lucas confronts them both-- again, despite everything (how stupid does DeMatteis really need to make Lucas here? I mean, isn't this stretching credulity, or incredulity, a wee bit?), Lucas decides to blame the sisters for his daughter's disappearance. Well, apparently the purpose his disbelief and lashing out serves is to launch Dorothy into a backstory of how she and Marilyn (who's seen the angel but is apparently in worse denial than Lucas) came to know the angel and the Magician. A very delightfully told tale, with wonderful fantasy images to match - this is the kind of thing that makes me drool over Zulli's artwork. He's really perfect for this type of story. And Eyring's colors shine. As Dorothy retreats into memory, Marilyn takes matters into her own hands and leads Lucas to a rendezvous point of sorts, in order to recover Aimee. We get another page of present-day Lucas insisting he knows how far-fetched this all is. I'm really getting impatient at this point. We know it's a story. We know DeMatteis wants us to believe there's more wonder than fiction in it. We also know that we're reading a comic book, and there's only so far we're prepared to suspend our disbelief to get into an imaginary story. I for one don't like being constantly yanked out of it by the author's thinly-disguised voice. Anyway, Lucas gets beamed aboard the little grey folks' vessel. The male greys have exactly the same faces and clothing but are of different heights. The female greys are in positions of servitude and look and dress comlpetely alike as well. Can we have a little more imagination here, please? If people on Earth come in all shapes and colors and sizes, why can't people from other planets/dimensions/whatever? One of the male greys mindspeaks to Lucas that Aimee's okay, touches him on the forehead with its/his glowing finger and says "ET Phone Home." No, just kidding, wanted to see if you were paying attention. It/He has basically given Lucas the traditional Mark of Protection here, I guess. The grey men then take him to a room in which he apparently sees something overwhelmingly wonderful, which I'm sorry but I don't understand what's the big deal besides it being pretty art, so it had no emotional impact on me the way it does on Lucas. Apparently this is supposed to be the culmination of "raining grace." We see other grey men surrounding this-- let's just call it the "phenomenon"-- working some sort of instrumentation, but aside from that your guess is as good as mine. Which is probably a shame, as I'm sure page 21 was designed to make Some Significant Point or other, and it was simply lost on me. Lucas and Aimee reunite, she tells him that the grey men are her "people" and he finally puts two and two together at the point where the rest of us are ready to graduate to differential calculus. I was surprised to find out the presumed ruler of the grey council was Delenn-- no no, just kidding again. It's Charlie, looking way too much like Yul Brynner. I'm sure the next words out of his mouth, after "Greetings, Earthling!" (admittedly a very funny way to end this issue) will be "Shall we dance?" but there's no way of knowing for sure. Next issue they go "Through the Looking Glass." Bet you anything DeMatteis doesn't do a single chess metaphor. Hope he doesn't send ol' Dodgson spinning around in his grave too much. The Alice books are among my very favorites, I intend to be quite picky about this if the occasion warrants. Great art, but a story that's starting to suffer under the weight of redundancies and a sense of the author pleading for us to believe. You want us to believe, don't repeatedly beg our attention and indulgence-- just tell the story. So, what did y'all think? Creator/Writer: Dean Motter Here's what I thought... Having gotten most of the Firesignian-like puns and deco homages out of the way last issue, Motter concentrates this time around on plot development, and there's certainly a lot of it. As with any good mystery, everyone appears guilty of something, most characters' motives are in question, and there are at least two people of mystery whom we see a lot but don't know any better at the end of this issue than the start. Moreover, there's this strange pseudo-anthropoligical narrative that winds its way through the story, pretty much about how it's a jungle out there. I could have done without this device, which I found distracting and borderline pretentious. Especially as we're never sure who's narrating. I figure it's someone at the Elbow Room cafe, but I'm not sure who. Maybe Monique, the lady in red? Maybe the turbaned guy? Maybe the GA Sandman wanna-be? This is so way unclear. The disparate plots are starting to come together, though. Cosmo's former girlfriend, whose name I forget and which isn't mentioned once in this story, tries to help the man with the briefcase cuffed to his hand remember his past. Those diabolical Frenchmen, Micasa and Sucasa, plot to steal the briefcase. Big Lil's gang dreads breaking the news to her that they haven't gotten the case. Bonnie Bergman (whose last name I'm presuming is a nod to Firesign founding member Peter Bergman) checks out the Cast Iron Beach compound, only to discover the residential area long since closed-- it's now, in fact, Big Lil's hideout. One of Lil's men directs her to the Promethean Arms, advising her to look for work there. And Cosmo Topper awakens from being conked on the head last issue to find a devil's head mask beside him. Hmm... Back at the Arms, Bonnie has to contend with Bazil, the robot concierge of the hotel, and many Fawlty Towers in-jokes ensue concering the Manual Unit ("what do you expect? He's from Barcelona!"). And it sounds like BB may have landed herself a job after all. Big Lil arrives at the cafe and smacks one of her guys for doing some Electrocaine on the job (great scene of him getting, er, buzzed). All the players (except Cosmo) are now gathered in one place. The GA Sandman wanna be incompetently sets off a smoke bomb, general pandemonium ensues, and I have no idea what happens in this scene. Cosmo's Former Gal and Amnesia Guy visit a professor friend of hers, and we finally see Cosmo hanging around outside the prof's window as he (the prof) concludes that the metal in Amnesia Guy's case is "quite possibly not of this Earth." Cue theramin music. Then cue Lil's entrance. Uh-oh... I adored the Cleese homage, and would have liked a lighter touch here and there, although there is enough slapstick to keep things moving and interesting. I wish I could get into the mystery aspect a bit more, but I'm mostly stringing along looking for the references. A pleasant read, but I liked the first issue better. And not enough far shots of the city itself to satisfy me artistically. So, what did y'all think? HEROES #3 Writer: Matt Wayne Here's what I thought... Great issue, with one major caveat. But I'll get to that in a moment. Matt's pacing is so much better than I thought it was last issue. And boy, is it quick! This issue kinda just flew by for me. And Iota is quickly becoming my absolute favorite character. I mean, first of all, how could I not like a character who goes around calling everyone "sweetie" and "dear?" This is like Elayne Dialogue 101! :) But she's a nice complex character; I'm not sure she doesn't intend to continue being "an international thief and an international hero." Donner and Blitzen were a lot of fun as well. I love how they play with their relationship, Donner wanting to be discreet and Blitzen just plunging on ahead (this must be a general speedster characteristic). The constructive ways in which Donner takes out her anger are also very pleasing to see. Starlight I'm still trying to figure out-- is there a reason Blitzen suddenly pulls back and respectfully refers to her as "Ma'am"? And she seems to work well with a team, even to the point of letting Static teach her a thing or two about F-4 trajectories. I'm afraid I'm still rather clueless about Payback, but I liked his matter-of-factness. In fact, there was only one thing that struck me as very off-- the point at which Static finds out that Donner and Blitzen are lovers. Now I know this will sound twee and cliche, but one of Virgil Hawkins' best friends is gay. Rick and Virgil have been through a lot together. We've seen this character have a great deal of respect for gays. I cannot picture him coming back, even in smartass mode, with a remark like "Can I watch sometime?" This just rang so wrong to me. (Not to mention I didn't think the thot-pictogram here worked either.) That's really the only sour note in the issue, though. Everything else was terrific. Donner's remarks about Mount Rushmore and the Washington Monument... Starlight's whimsical ejection of Static... Iota's former life as "Mrs. Wellington-Smythe" (??)... the Chrysler Building (my favorite building in this whole city, tremendously overused in comics but I don't care)... Blitzen casually getting Static's handle wrong, and her quick solution to the mugging problem... Iota's remark about keeping the GMC (probably my favorite piece of dialogue in the whole issue, next to "way too patriarchal!")... the caption about the "racially-motivated beating" (heh)... the very funny ABC News press conference... Fun art as usual by ChrisCross, very dynamic and easy to follow. This was a delight, through and through. I have really high hopes for the rest of this title's run; shame it's only a mini. Great job, guys. So, what did y'all think? SCARLET THUNDER #3 Writer: Dan Vado Here's what I thought... This got a lot grimmer in places, as we open in Warsaw in 1939 with Nazi warplanes and a woman on the run from them. Unfortunately, Betty (as we later find is her name) doesn't have super-speed, and relies on luck and care to evade German troops for four years. As 1943 begins, we find Mercury Project guinea pigs Adam Garrison and Jason Pine still at each other's throats verbally. Their relationship seems to have grown more complex since the ending of issue #2-- it's no longer a simple rivalry, it's more a love/hate kind of thing, with the hate showing far more than the love. Jason (aka Blue Streak) seems a lot more knowledgeable about the war than Adam (Red Bolt), who can't understand why Mercury is dead aborning ("Things were going so well... I've lost count of how many war bonds I've sold!"). General Sprang gives the speedsters a new assignment-- check out reports of Nazi atrocities (aka concentration camps). Privately, he gives Jason their second, true assignment-- assassinate Hitler. (Well, we already know they won't succeed, but the how and why still intrigue me.) Jason, having had prior combat experience, takes the lead, which irks Adam considerably. Not only that, but Adam hates submarines (although I don't think that's the only reason he's sweating). And finding out about the assassination plans does not sit well with him. Meanwhile, Betty's found out and almost arrested, when what should she see but Der Fuhrer's Face itself. The guard mistakes her dumbfoundedness as a sort of groupie fixation on Hitler (this did exist, BTW, a lot of German women even wrote Hitler love letters) and lets her go with a warning. This puts the idea of assassinating the German leader into her head. This leads into what I thought was the most interesting scene, and a sequence my husband Steve hated because of what he thought was an abrupt sea change in personality. Adam's reluctance to kill is revealed as guilt over a past death of a sergeant of a platoon in which both men served. It's an uncharacteristically touching moment, and served (at least to me) to outline that there's more underneath the surface animosity than we've been privy too. Both these gentlemen have been through a lot, and can acknowledge this history even amid their usual sniping at one another. As the speedsters near their destination, Betty is determined to get the Fuhrer, but the sonic boom tips off the guards, who see her with the knife and shoot her. Fortunately, Blue saves her; unfortunately, Red didn't listen to Jason's instructions and is wounded. For his part, Jason's figured out the Germans were tipped off-- by Martin, who has indeed become a mad Nazi scientist. I was so hoping this wouldn't be the case, but one can't have everything, I suppose. And as we leave our heroes in peril, Martin introduces them to his newest creation... Well paced, lots of good character development, snappy dialogue, and all the players are identified (which reviewers like me really appreciate). I liked the art in most places, but I think Hitler's drawn as being a little too muscular and bulky, when considerable footage exists showing him as the short, miserable little cretin he was. I think it's positively criminal that this book only sells 2500 copies; it deserves easily ten times those sales. Highly recommended. So, what did y'all think? ESPERS #2 Writer/Publisher: James Hudnall Here's what I thought... James was right in his response to reviews of issue #1. Horn's art is getting a lot more defined and refined. His backgrounds are nice and detailed, he uses photo reference well, and he's starting to physically differentiate the characters more. I still haven't seen too many women display that amount of cleavage in real life, but it's not very cheesecakey, so I just chalk that up to Horn's personal preferences. As for the writing, it's a real pleasure to read about a group of people who know their abilities but don't grandstand about them. The powers the Espers possess are used sparingly (i.e., only when they need to, as they have no desire to call attention to themselves) and matter-of-factly. The story is easy to follow, even if I can't always keep all the players straight (no fault of Hudnall's, I'm just not familiar enough yet with this large cast). Ian in particular intrigues me; I want to learn more about shifting into Quicktime (and Roxanne does a nice lettering job on his and Sky's first-person narrative captions). I'm very hooked on this series, and suspect I'll also quite like THE AGE OF HEROES when it premieres, from the little snippet Hudnall and artist John Ridgway provide us in this issue. Looks like a neat little fantasy book. So, what did y'all think? SKELETON KEY #11 by Andi Watson Here's what I thought... Tamsin and Kitsune, probably my favorite duo since Raquel and Darnice over in ICON, manage to rescue Yale from Oni's residence, at the same time vanquishing Tammy's encorcled racoon backpack (and recovering Tamsin's inhaler, much to her relief) and regaining the Skeleton Key to enable them to travel back home! A great action issue, but extremely humorous as well-- Tammy's still mock-preggers from taking the wrong medicine from the Super-Deformed Chinese Circus Acrobats (don't ask, just get the back issues), and as she and Kitsune search through Oni's creepy mansion she utters probably my favorite line of any comic this week: "Hmm. I can literally feel my character being built as I speak." The art on this book continues to improve, and it's cleaner and more defined than ever. Watson's sound effects and lettering are quite good as well. He might want to vary his panel structure a bit more, but when it's this easy to follow the story I'm not complaining. Lots of great humorous touches (including Tammy actually kissing a sleeping Yale, then getting ragged out by Kitsune... and Kit's transformation into a fox was well done too) and, as I say, a friendship that's a delight to read. I can hardly wait for the next issue! So, what did y'all think? AKIKO #3 by Mark Crilley Here's what I thought... My CompuServe Conference buddy outdoes himself again. So far this delightful comic has concentrated more on plot than character, so we were due for some major development in the latter area, and we get it in spades here. Gax's resourcefulness against the Crusher robot leads things off, followed by Spuckler's pluck and bravado against the dread Jaggasaur. Gotta hand it to Crilley, he does great dinosaurs! And that panel on page 12 when the Jag' actually spews fire, trapping Spuckler-- that's one of the nicest panels I've seen in a long while. Great effect, and I'd love to know how Mark did it. Even Poog and Mr. Beeba develop a little-- Beeba finds his spine, and Poog is able to somehow communicate with Akiko to help Spuckler. This is also a great sequence, their unspoken contact with one another. And Akiko herself shows quite a bit more emotion, most of it anger, than we've seen from her before. Her tirade produces unexpected but pleasant results-- the denizens of Sky Cove hear her say the name "Alia Rellapor" (the person who's kidnapped the prince Akiko is out to rescue) and run in fear, thinking she's Alia. Hee. All's well that ends until next issue's adventure, and a month is way too long to wait. This continues to be one of my favorite books on the market, and I recommend it without hesitation to kids of all ages but most especially young girls. So, what did y'all think? STARCHILD: CROSSROADS #3 by James Owen Here's what I thought... While I love Owen's art, I'm still finding it near impossible to keep all the characters straight, because they all have the same sort of style to the way they're drawn-- large noses, lots of eyebrow (and other) hair, the same sort of smiles and other facial reactions. But there are only a few to keep track of this time, so it's not that bad, and I was able to follow the story with only minor distraction. What we have here is your basic con-- guy comes into a bar, claiming to be Rip Van Winkle, identity true enough. Tells a story which is nothing like What Really Happened, and this is very hilarious as we see the flashback actions contradict caption after caption of narrative. Makes himself out to be quite the heroic figure, and the inn's denizens are having none of it. Another guy, elfin in stature, waits outside counting off the minutes until he's needed. Saunters into the bar just as the regulars are going to beat up on the first guy, and corroborates Van Winkle's story. Van Winkle gets away with murder, or in this case lots of free ginger ale. Pays the little guy, and makes plans to meet him at the next tavern. A very cute bit, well paced with truly inspired moments here and there. Nothing we haven't seen before, although we've not seen it in quite this context. One of Owen's more accessible issues (really only one in-joke referring to a past issue), and recommended as a nice introduction to the series. So, what did y'all think? [These reviews are reprinted with permission from the rec.arts.comics Usenet newsgroups and are copyright 1996 Elayne Wechsler-Chaput <firehead@panix.com>, who'd have given a lot to be a fly on the wall at the Acclaim/Valiant meetings which took place about 20 minutes away from her and which just about all her favorite writers attended. Hmm, I should probably practice for next time... "candy gram... land shark..."] |
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