quick takes 9/13 and 9/20/06
Uncanny X-Men #478...Billy Tan really is an ideal artist for the X-Men. And I wouldn't have guessed it, but Ed Brubaker is pretty much an ideal writer for the X-Men, too. Tan is drawing perfectly in the modern McNiven/Finch style (I have no idea who invented it), but also providing great retro costumes and character designs; Darwin looks like something straight out of 70s X-Men. The story manages to tip its hat to both current Marvel continuity and past X-Men continuity; this is actually the first time I remember someone referencing Grant Morrison's run, but then I did sort of skim through a lot of issues when Austen was writing it. Right now this feels like Brubaker is going to make a major change to the Shi'ar Empire, which would be good storytelling, as it is an essential part of the X-Men mythos that has been allowed to languish for an awful long time. Good.Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters #1...This came out a long time ago, but I just managed to get a copy recently. I really like the art, which looks sort of like what Norman Rockwell might have done if he drew superhero comics; that seems completely appropriate considering how ancient most of these characters are. But there's a wild disconnect between the cutesy nature of characters like Doll Man and the Human Bomb and how they're being used here; I've never seen anything quite like it. Palmiotti and Gray are not natural dialogue writers, but the oddness and amorality of the superhero team really makes it an interesting take. Good.
Moon Knight #5...It takes a certain amount of chutzpah to have your hero fly his plane into the side of a building, but it's not like you don't understand why he's doing it, and it's not like we're supposed to be rooting for it, exactly. The visual is certainly striking; you really get a sense of Moon Knight's desperation. This remains a compelling story of a badly damaged man fighting a bunch of losers and pretty much embarrassing himself at every turn. Not exactly your traditional superhero comic. The great art bumps it up to something between good and excellent; I may have to create a new category.
Annihilation #2...Well, I can't say that the horde of supervillains that shows up in this issue does much to distinguish itself from any other generic team of super bad guys, but Drax and Nova are still very compelling protagonists; you get the feeling that Drax, in particular, is going to do something surprising before this story is through. Giffen does a great job of writing Drax as a guy who's operating on some kind of alien, incomprehensible moral code. And Drax's companion is just as weird, the kind of character Gail Simone comes up with all the time. If only the art were better than serviceable. Good.
Blade #1...Definitely not my favorite genre or character, so it says something that I sort of liked this one. For one thing, it's very cool that Spider-Man actually does get turned into a vampire. Chaykin's art is just terrific for horror comics; everything looks extra grimy but also quite clear, sort of like Richard Corben. On the other hand, it's vampires, who are always sort of boring. The ending could potentially set up something interesting or something cliche; we'll see. OK.
X-Factor #11...Aw, the shocking ending from last issue turns out not to be so shocking after all. I guess it's for the best; I always sort of liked Guido. But I feel uneasy about retconning Madrox's origin, and so far one more ancient Machiavellian villain isn't moving me. On the other hand, these are still great characters handled by a writer who knows them well. Good.
Birds of Prey #98...No one writing today is creating more interesting villains than Gail Simone, and here she goes again with a nemesis for Huntress. The "new Batgirl" storyline makes an unexpected turn, too. I like the way Raiz draws Black Canary; he makes her look real. Excellent.
Civil War #4...Many, many unexpected twists and turns. Basically, this whole series is crammed with unexpected twists and turns. They sat down and said, "You know the ending of The Usual Suspects? With that great twist? Can we just do a whole miniseries like that?" And Mark Millar was like, sure, whatever, just show me the money. Of course, I had to go out and buy it the second it was available. Why? Because I wanted to see what twists and turns there would be in this issue. What can you do. Art is beautiful, but please, man, draw as fast as you can...
posted by Mr. Blasphemy @ 1:26 PM
0 comments
