Got the HC from the local library. This is a collection of a 6 issue miniseries by Billy Tucci.
This is the true story of the 141st infantry being surrounded and cut off. Obviously Rock and his grunts from Easy were not really there, but their presence does not change the tone of this story; nor do the appearance of a few other recognizable faces.
That being said, I find that this book would have almost been better not having those characters involved at all...but I fully understand the reasoning behind the decision.
The story is riviting, and one can imagine that Rock or any of the men he has with him might actually get the final shot that they all expect at any moment. Each of the crew of Easy get's a moment here...but again, not at the detriment of the story itself. SureShot is the one who, in my opinion, gets the biggest chance to shine...even though a lot of what he does is off "camera." This story, more than most I've read, shows the horros of war and the toll that it took on those that fought under the American Flag. Including the Japanese regiment that is part of the story.
The writing is very well paced...even when it seems to slow in places...it amps right back up again. The artwork is beautiful, even if it does make identifying some of Easy a little more difficult than when Joe Kubert draws them.
Very well done book, and highly recommended for those that love War Stories.
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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I don't collect any Radical Comics right now--does anyone here? I'm curious what their output is like.
One thing I did pick up was a $1.00 of Mata Hari, which is actually a preview of the first 20 or so pages of the upcoming graphic novel (for $1.00 I'll buy almost anything). Mata Hari, of course, being the infamous actress spy of WWI, and one of the infamous people in the last century.
It was pretty good! Good enough in fact, to make me totally curious about Mata Hari and want to learn more about her life on my own. Story-telling seemed to click by both writer & artists, and the content was fascinating.
Pretty bold choice for a practically unknown independent comic book company.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid: I don't collect any Radical Comics right now--does anyone here? I'm curious what their output is like.
The first two issues of "Driver for the Dead" have been excellent... not the type of book I'd normally pick up, but I got a preview copy at Comic Con and liked what I saw... beautiful art and compelling story for fans of voodoo and zombies...
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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Yet another issue of Deathstroke's merry band of sociopaths this month of October. This time around they're getting paid to bust somebody out of Arkham Asylum, while at the same time Deathstroke is looking for somebody else. After months somebody is finally looking into Ryan Choi's "disappearance", Ray Palmer. Roy is once again high and has to be quietly restrained by Cheshire so as to not try and slit Deathstroke's throat, or the Joker's, or anyone else's for that matter. Tattooed Man dwells on his dead son. Cinder wants to murder an Arkham inhabitant named Nursery Crime. Osiris kills the asylum guard who got them in and is responsible for all the inmates getting free. And then Deathstroke finally finds who he is looking for... a young woman named Allegra Garcia, before Batman intervenes. ... Again with the children. For the last three issues of Titans that's all it seems to involve and no one seems to be bothered by it. *The death of Lian Harper, Roy's daughter by undeserving witch Cheshire. *Children being kidnapped and harvested as the main ingredient for a designer drug called Bliss. *The death of Tattooed Man's son at the hands of Slipknot. *The introduction, or mention, of a villain named Nursery Crime, who apparently has a history with both Cinder AND little children. *The introduction of Allegra Garcia, who appears to be twelve or thirteen years old, wearing an inhibitor collar and stuck in a cell with words and crude images scrawled on her wall. Scared out of her mind and possibly deadly. Wait, it's Arkham. Yeah, she's deadly.
What is with DC in thinking that children make for good drama? It's sadistic, vicious, and all too easy. Children are probably reading this comic right now. I mean, they know who Titans are, and they know who Deathstroke is? Is this what they need? Even if the story isn't aimed at them, it's still disgusting and done for no other reason then to try and incite petty drama and darkness. In terms of the reveal of Allegra Garcia, chances are she might actually be the new member who Eric Wallace hinted at. And from the looks of things it's a "you don't know what she is" cliche going on here. Everybody had assumed the new member might be Rose. Still, chances are she might be.
Tattooed Man and Cinder finally get a bit on initiative as Tattooed Man dwells on his son's death and wonders what kind of a man he's becoming now that he's become involved in the death of Ryan Choi, and it's implied that Nursery Crime has had a history with Cinder, whose backstory implies she's suffered at the ends of molestation and sexual abuse when she was younger.
Someone FINALLY makes an effort into looking for Ryan Choi after he's been "missing" for months.
Roy's been a... member of Titans for three issues, and in each issue he's been high. His first words are "let's do this" with a rather bloodthirsty look on his face, and while talking with Cheshire she has to control him from wanting to slit Slade's throat. Then he mentions he could do the Joker's. We find out from the way he is seeing THREE Cheshire's that, yes, he is high.
Osiris is slowly turning more into Superboy-Prime rather than Black Adam Jr. as I have stated before, with him dwelling on whether or not to kill a security guard to help Isis. Then decides he NEEDS to. And when the guard unlocks the cells just before he dies, Osiris decides not to help his teammates, to teach them that it wasn't a good idea to make fun of him.
Speaking of, the asylum cells have been open for five seconds, and alright most of the patients have their gear. Zsasz has a knife, Mr. Freeze has his gun, hell, Firefly has a got a tank of either gasoline of kerosene and a match! What the heck?!
I figured that DC was beginning to get desperate with this title when the solicits read that Brightest Day fans should tune in for the Osiris tie-in element, the only BD solicit I could think of that asked fans to tune in. And the element? Three or four pages of Osiris deciding to kill the security guard.
The issue ends once again with the team being overwhelmed by a giant group against, just like it did in the last two-part storyarc. Joy.
-------------------- I want to be hated by lies - Bring Back Lian Harper
posted
^ That book sounds like everything I hate about comics at the moment. I don't know how anyone could enjoy that type of content. Especially in a book called Titans. I have little doubt a lot of it is editorially-mandated though. DC's current editorial leadership is the worst in the company's history IMO. They need a massive shake-up there STAT.
From: Australia | Registered: Dec 2003
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Surprisingly, I don't even want this book burned. NO book deserves that.
But I wouldn't mind if ever issue of this, Rise, and Cry for Justice were rounded up, along with the original art and scripts and notes, and put inside the basement of a church in a small town which is going to be flooded to make an artificial lake.
-------------------- I want to be hated by lies - Bring Back Lian Harper
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RE: Titans. I generally avoid even reading reviews of it; Sarky's latest reminds me why--what an awesome series.
Meanwhile, I recently read a comic I enjoyed quite a bit: The Sixth Gun by Oni Press. I picked this up on a whim and am glad I did, as I'll likely complete the series. It takes place in the Old West but with a mystical/horror element as well. The story centers around a mystical six-shooter and hints at an interesting history behind it. There are pinkertons, ghosts, a leading man with ambiguous morals and lots of mystery.
The writing by Cullen Bunn is very tight and packs a lot in the first issue, and the art by Brian Hurtt is dynamic, exciting and very well suited to the genre. He draws great horror-type scenes, and also great western scenes. His art feels like it'd be perfect for Jonah Hex.
Solid buy.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Something more positive. Knight & Squire #1.
With the continuing flow of darkness, depravity, and dead children in some DC Comics, another bright spot has opened up in this long-needed miniseries about the British Batman and Robin, Knight and Squire.
The first of the series opens into a pub called The Time In A Bottle, which is a neutral ground for Britain's many superheroes, villains, rogues, and adventurers. Besides the Knight and his plucky sidekick, the Squire, we meet the likes:
*Jarvis Poker, the British Joker, a "cover version" of the Joker who admires his style but at the same time can't bring himself to commit any ACTUAL crimes. Not very tasteful, in his opinion. *The Shrike (or rather, the British Shrike), a new costumed player who has yet to decide if he wants to be a hero or a villain. *Faceoff, an implied "heavy duty" hero and homosexual. *Captain Cornwall and Cornwall Boy, said to be descendants of Merlin with ties to his brand of "land magic". Always at each other's throats. *Heroes such as Salt of the Earth, the Milkman, Rush Hour I, II, and III, Captain Moondust. *Villains such as Death Dinosaur, Blind Fury, Stone Cold Luke, and the Dark Druid.
However, in Britain, they have with them a sense of moderation, unlike the American heroes who go to big extremes in their field of superheroics. You're either a paragon of justice or a filthy murderer.
Now, one might be a bit consumed by the use of British slang and lingo, but this issue offers a perfect example of how superheroics work in England, rather than slowly revealing it. The ones who steal the show this issue are Knight, Squire, Shrike, and Jarvis, as most of the reveal behind the Time In A Bottle's history and the history of Britain's superheroics is explained to the Shrike by Squire.
The artist feels the issue with dozens of original, and as of yet, unnamed villains and heroes inhabiting said Pub, my personal favorite being Death Dinosaur.
The story as a whole reads at times like a Monty Python sketch about superheroes, or a superhero comic about Monty Python. Does that sound right? Either way, this gives the Knight and Squire a chance to shine outside of Batman or Justice League comics, as for years Grant Morrison has been slowly revealing bits about their history to his readers.
-------------------- I want to be hated by lies - Bring Back Lian Harper
posted
^I can't wait to pick up Knight & Squire #1!
Today I also read a comic that was accidently put in my pull-pile, and I left it there, Spawn #199. I used to be a Spawn reader for a longtime when it debuted in the 90's--I still have issues #1 - 80. At that point, I realized I had no idea why I was still collecting and dropped the title, as there was little I liked about it anymore. I'm a huge fan of McFarlane's artwork, but the storyline for Spawn wasn't my cup of tea. I'm now collecting Haunt by McFarlane and the immensely talented Robert Kirkman, so for the first time in years, I'm collecting a McFarlane comic again. Very recently, my CBS accidentally put #199 in my pile, I decided I'd leave it in there and see how Spawn was doing all these long years later since I've been enjoying Haunt.
I'll tell you it wasn't bad by any means...it just wasn't quite what I'm looking for right now. There is a new Spawn from the one I know, and while I recognize Sam & Twitch, I have no pull to the characters. I also feel like this is a pretty similar story to Spawn when I dropped it 12 years ago--basically not much of a story at all but scheming demons and angels using Spawn to create Armageddon.
Something that was a plus and made me feel okay with having made the purchase was the artwork. It was Eric Larsen's pencils with McFarlane inks. Larsen has never been a favorite of mine, but I do like his layouts. McFarlane, meanwhile, is one of my favorite inkers, so seeing his embellishments on Larsen's work made for a really cool mix. I liked it a lot. They're not the regular creative team, just a one-off combo, so it was cool that I got this issue in particular. I always kind of lump them together anyway because they were the big Spider-Man artists who left to co-form Image with the other 5.
It's funny that I bought an issue of Spawn. Not only did I read it long ago, I used to have a good friend "kind of" into comics that would only read Spawn and Batman. Spawn was just so popular in the 90's. Nowadays, I don't know anyone (online or in person) who collects it.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Codename: Sailor V is, in a way, the prologue to the Sailor Moon series created by Naoko Takeuchi, and sets the stage for the main series.
It’s the story of Minako (Mina) Aino, a junior high school student who finds a talking white cat with a crescent moon mark on his forehead named Artemis, who tells her that she is really a soldier of love and justice. Minako learns that she’s the reincarnation of the princess of Venus, and she’s given the equipment and ability to transform into a sailor-suited soldier of justice, Codename: Sailor V. However, Minako has no interest in wanting to be a soldier of justice and is happy just being a normal guy and a fan of idols. Artemis has to put up with her laziness and deals with training a less-than-ideal soldier, and reports to a never-seen “Boss” through a command center .
From those of you who ever watched Sailor Moon, you’ll remember the mentions made of Sailor V, a mysterious, masked heroine who had her own video game, comics, and an anime coming out. It later turned out that Sailor V was actually Sailor Venus, and had awoken earlier than the other Sailor Soldiers. Sailor V has drastically different powers from Sailor Venus, as well as a drastically different costume.
The villains of Codename: Sailor V are a group called the Dark Agency. Under the lead of a mysterious figure called Danburite, the Dark Agency is constantly trying to take over the world, steal energy, and rake in cash. How do they do it? Idols. Pretty much every enemy and agent they use serve as beautiful, gifted idols for the public to fawn over. The Dark Agency makes constant attempts at stealing energy through music, television, video games, cosmetics, travel, and even through selling fattening chocolates and endorsing a weight-loss program around Valentine’s Day. The Dark Agency, however, turns out to be a sublet of the Dark Kingdom, the main villains of the first Sailor Moon story arc.
Minako usually finds out about them because she’s such a fan girl. However, she usually gets prevented from actually participating in any live events or concerts and thus misses out on the general brainwashing attempt, only to learn what’s going on a while later. It’s because she’s such a fan girl that herself and Artemis learn what the Dark Agency is up to.
The supporting cast besides Minako and Artemis are Minako’s best friend, Hikaru, who bears a resemblance to Ami Mizuno (Amy, Sailor Mercury) and Amano Gurikazu, a geek who Minako considers an annoyance yet has large knowledge of current idols (who bears a resemblance to Umino/Melvin from Sailor Moon). Others outside of school are Minako’s overbearing mother, who usually scolds her daughter for her pop culture interests yet she herself winds up a victim due to her hypocrisy. There’s also the police superintendent Natsuna Sakurada who is a closet V fan but has to pretend to be against her, and disgruntled young officer Toshi Wakagi who usually suffers because of V.
There are various cameos and mentions to the regular series in Sailor V. In fact, the boy who runs the arcade Minako frequents is actually a reoccurring character from Sailor Moon, Motoki Furuhata, and it is suggested that Natsuna is somehow related to Haruna Sakurada, Sailor Moon’s junior high teacher.
It’s actually kind of weird to read Codename: Sailor V, for the somewhat ditzy and hyperactive way that Minako is portrayed. As someone who started watching Sailor Moon with the episode where Sailor Jupiter was introduced, I’m more used to the more serious depiction of Minako than to her fan girlish persona. To me, it’s as if she suffered a stroke which caused a severe personality upheaval.
However, this offers a rare chance to demonstrate a Sailor Moon character’s development and history before the series started. I was lucky to find this online at mangafox.com.
posted
I've been able to do quite a bit of comic book reading in the last 2 days and so figured I'd catch up on several reviews I wanted to do, including several here in Random Review Corner--1 new one, and 3 comics I've already reviewed here and so figured I'd continue to use this thread to update. So forgive the next four consecutive posts!
quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid: I did read Scarlet tonight, and was very glad to have found a copy after one CBS I visited had sold out. I think this did very well sales-wise and I’m thrilled for Alex Maleev who deserves tons of $$ for his awesome work over the years.
My feeling after reading #1 is I really want to see where this is going and learn more about Scarlet, so in that regard, Bendis & Maleev succeeded in getting me to at least pick up #2 and probably #3 and from there, possibly hook me permanently. I found that while the nuts & bolts of the plot aren’t all that original, the characterization of Scarlet was very intriguing and drew me right in.
Bendis was able to flex his writing muscles less in terms of plot and more in terms of structure and narrative with this story, and in that regard, I liked it quite a bit. Sometimes that is enough to get me really interested, because it makes a comic book stand out. The breaking of the fourth wall was entertaining and made me sit up and take notice; in the interview in the back of the book, Bendis compares it to John Cusack in High Fidelity and I think that’s a good comparison. It didn’t take me out of the story and actually made me get more into the story as I felt I was getting to know Scarlet better.
The other really cool narrative device was the three page sequence that really kicks off the story where several panels act as a summery of Scarlet’s life: ‘Birth’, ‘First Shit’, First Fight’, and so on. I thought it was effective in being amusing/funny while also being very original.
The best part of the issue for me though was the Alex Maleev artwork, as I really love it. I was super-disappointed that Spider-Woman ended and can now let those feelings rest as I’m getting a new dose of Maleev. He really seems to be going all out here as well, as it retains the grittiness of Daredevil that made me a fan, but it also seems more beautiful. Maybe its Scarlet’s subtle attractiveness or the energy of the issue, but it felt more panoramic in a way. Hard to explain what I mean, but I think this was a great artist doing some of his greatest work ever.
I expect the story will get better as time goes on (not that it was bad, it just wasn’t spectacular), but in the meantime, the artwork is gorgeous enough to make me feel satisfied with the purchase.
I read Scarlett #2 and was left with the same impressions of the first issue. It's a very well-done, interesting series and I'm curious to see where it's going. What differentiates it is the story-telling methods Bendis and Maleev are choosing to use and that makes it a refreshing read.
The story itself is pretty solid so far even though #2 didn't quite advance the plot as far as I would have hoped. I'm not sure if a nation-wide revolution is where this comic is really going or if that is just hype I've read elsewhere, but if so, I'm still not seeing how the comic can get there even quasi-realistically. But then again, I may be completely wrong on whether that is where it really is going.
Maleev's artwork is a wonder to behold. The artwork, combined with the unique style of story-telling have earned Scarlett a permanent place on my pull list for now.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
At the risk of quoting myself too many times, I figured I'd keep it going so my impressions overtime are apparent.
quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid:
quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid: Okay LW, I've got a random review for you, and specifically for Lardy. I picked up Astonishing Spider-Man & Wolverine by Marvel Comics the other day despite initially reading the solicitation and thinking it would get a HARD Pass. The reason is really that who in the world needs another Wolverine comic, or another Wolverine/Spider-Man comic? Well, as a major Spider-Man fan, after a little while, I started to think, maybe I actually do.
Then I saw Comic Book Resources gave an incredibly rare 5 out of 5 stars in its review of #1 which made me stand up and take notice. I shouldn't have been surprised: artwork is by Adam Kubert, who I have always loved and the writing is by Jason Aaron, who has been getting a shower of praise from Lardy, myself and the general comic book critic community for a long time. Aaron is the man, and this thread is chalk-full of reviews of comics Lardy has picked up based on his name.
My general reaction was: this is a pretty groovy Spidey/Wolvie story! I'm pretty glad I got it, and I'll definitely get the next two issues (making it highly likely I'll complete the six issue mini). The premise caught me totally off-guard, as I was expecting a street-level type story with ninjas or gangsters, which is kind of the stereotypical team-up these two heroes have. WRONG. We've got time travel, dinosaurs and pure superheroey goodness from the get-go. I can not only dig it, but I was feelin' super-fly about it.
Kubert's artwork is terrific and as a longtime fan who loved his Ka-Zar and Hulk in the Savage Lad stories, I was pleased as pie to see Kubert doing dinosaurs, cavemen, volcanos and all other manner of visual treats. (Spoiler that might influence you: the tale is *not* in the Savage Land).
But the real treat was the writing. Aaron is renowned for his seriousness and grittiness in Scalped but here he shows he can be a completely different writer when he wants to be. The story is serious, but there is a certain amount of fun to the plot. Aaron also just nails Spider-Man's voice, something many writers struggle with. He's funny, he's ironic, he's self-referential, but he's also brilliant, courageous and moral. I'm suddenly wishing he was writing some Amazing Spider-Man stories!
Aaron's real dynamic is the Logan/Peter relationship which he gets very well. These two aren't exactly pals and get under each other's skin quite a bit. They don't hate each other (like the forceful Batman & Superman hate each other nonsense of the late 80's/90's), but they really don't enjoy being around one another. And it makes for all kinds of awkward, tension-filled scenarios that Aaron loads with great dialogue.
I think this was a solid buy. Any Spider-Man fans looking for a Spidey fix but hating the current ASM, this might be for you. It also is a distinctly superhero story with sci-fi overtones.
One disclaimer I'd add though is this isn't exactly the most earth-shattering story of the year in terms of sense of importance, so I don't to overstate it. It fits within the category of 'terrific little yarn but in the grand scheme of things relatively unimportant to the larger mythos', which are types of stories I enjoy quite a bit (unless the maturing friendship between Peter and Logan counts as important to you).
Reading the second issue of this miniseries, I found it just a little bit less good than the first issue, mainly because the actual plot seems to be moving along very slowly. Readers considering this series should keep that in mind.
Making the comic still a very worthwhile buy is the characterization by writer Jason Aaron, who really seems to nail both Peter and Logan with every panel. He also brings out what makes them so likable while ignoring some of the more cliche characteristics of both.
I wouldn't be surprised if this one day became an ongoing Marvel title. (Marvel Team-Up with two of every five issues focusing on Wolverine & Spidey isn't a bad idea, with the other 3 of 5 focusing on under-used characters IMO). If it was with this creative team, I'd buy it.
Astonishing Wolverine / Spider-Man continues to be a highly entertaining read with excellent writing and beautiful artwork and I'm glad I've stuck it out. I've finished #3 and since this is a 6 issue series, I'm committed to getting the whole thing. I suspect this will make an awesome trade once it's complete.
There are several very strong points to the series, particularly the Kubert artwork and the science-fiction bent in plot that is a nice change of pace for Logan especially, as well as Peter (whose sci-fi is usually more grounded; this is more Marvel Team-Up 'off the wall' sci-fi). But the strongest part of this series is how well Jason Aaron gets and understands both Spider-Man and Wolverine. He writes them incredibly well! His Spider-Man is perfect and he writes Wolverine in a way that showcases the characters depth and doesn't even come close to the parody of the original character he often is portrayed as.
Anyone wishing there was a fun superhero story for Wolverine and Spider-Man that has high stakes and a tight plot but isn't mired in tragedy and "grim & gritty"--do yourself a favor and buy this trade when its available.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid: Okay, I stopped by my back-up CBS today to get some Lone Ranger back issues and made an impulse buy where I totally succumbed to the nostalgia of my youth. I actually went and picked up Shadowhawk #1 by Image Comics.
I know what you're thinking: Cobie, are you crazy? But hold, faithful, lurker! You may have seen me speak of this before but when I was 12-14, and Image Comics was just starting, Shadowhawk was my favorite! When my father decided we were canceling all Image Comics after like the 3rd or 4th month, I pleaded my case and was able to keep both Shadowhawk and Spawn. I've always had a soft spot for Shadowhawk ever since. It was my gritty comic of my youth.
So, where does that leave me now? Well, the premise is the original Shadowhawk is back, after dying 10 years ago (after having AIDS when that was a serious new thing for comics). The premise itself is enough to excite me.
The execution, on the other hand, was merely "okay". Not bad, mind you, but not anything really spectacular. Putting aside any rose-colored memories of the original series I may have, this new relaunch is by all new comers on the creative team whom I don't know, with Jim Valentino overseeing things. My problem is they basically write Shadowhawk as a Frank Miller Daredevil type in terms of grittiness while the artwork is a bit more superhero-y than I would have liked. They bring the question up right in the comic: is he superhero or vigilante? I'd like them to decide and go with it.
Much too much time was spent with Shadowhawk fighting a super-villain. This is a #1--I need the supporting cast laid out and I need the entire spirit of the series established. That was a negative. How they are going to get this together since he's 'back from the dead' is beyond me but I hope they do.
They also need to remind me and show new readers what makes Shadowhawk different from Daredevil or Batman or other vigilantes. A black superhero isn't that rare anymore and I don't think he has AIDS now, so what makes him different? Let's get into that.
On the plus side, the artwork was very good, and I'm reminded why I like the characters look so much.
I'm also curious on whether they can resolve the back from the dead bit in a cool way. I'd like to see a real restoration of a cast and secret identity--if they can accomplish that, it'd be a big bonus.
Also on the plus side is that this really is the original Shadowhawk who is a no-nonsense badass. I hated when the next Shadowhawk was a young kid who was enthusiastic and naive and it basically made me stop collecting. Invincible already has that covered. The idea of a Daredevil that has crossed the line and keeps crossing it, while knowing he's done so and hating himself for it--that's a bit more intriguing to me. I'm hoping we get more of that.
I'm willing to give this series another 2 issues on nostalgia alone, which is something I wouldn't afford many other comics, even DC and Marvels. They need to win me over, and then I'll make a decision. I *want* to like this series because I have a soft spot for the character. But he's no Spider-Man or Legion, meaning I won't buy his series just 'cuz. I need a solid delivery every issue story-wise and art-wise.
So after reading #2 I can say that this was a definite improvement for Shadowhawk. Like I said, some nostalgia for the character makes me really want to like the title, but the series is going ot have to really earn it every step of the way. #2 was certainly good enough to get me to check out #3.
That being said, I'm hoping for continued improvement as we go and the creative team to find their footing. The art here was very good and the writing better, but I felt like it could have just been a little tighter. The dialogue could have been a hair smoother.
What I really liked was when a superhero who knew the previous second ShadowHawk (there was the original, then a second, now the original again) shows up, ShadowHawk brushes her off in a pretty harsh way. It's a clear separation from the superheroics of the last version, which I felt were very bland, and the gritty, crime-comic oriented first/now version. I hope that continues as this is a title that definitely works better as a vigilante / mystery man rather than a superhero.
I think the chalk-outline serial killer is an interesting subplot and the cat-thief at the close of the issue getting caught at the crime scene is a good twist. After the first issue, I admit I was a bit dissapointed. Now after the second I'm feeling a lot better about it. We'll see what the third brings.
Well, I finally did get around to reading #3 of Shadowhawk and my impression of the comic is...it just isn't anything very good. It's not terrible, or even 'bad', but it isn't great, or even 'good'. It's just okay. I like this character a lot, but if this was a host of other characters I would be dropping it without a second thought. I think three issues is enough time for any series to get it's footing and grab the reader and this hasn't done so.
The problem lies in both the writing and artwork. It feels very raw and very flat. There isn't anything striking about it.
I think #3 was my final issue. Unless I'm in the CBS looking for anything to buy to tide me over until my next big run, I don't really have much of a reason to continue. It's too bad--if Valentino was the actual artist, that would probably be enough to keep me around a little longer.
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
One of the big announcements coming from the smaller publishers in recent months has been the team-up between BOOM! Studios and Stan Lee's POW! Entertainment to create three new superhero titles. I'm slightly skeptical about more superhero comics entering this market unless they are hands-down excellent, but figured all three would be worth a try. Of course quite a lot would depend on the actual creative teams as it's obvious Stan's involvement is limited (though he'll probably take all the credit like he's done his whole career--but that's a conversation for somewhere else ).
Soldier Zero was the first to come out, about a veteran from Afghanistan confined to a wheelchair and trying to move on with his life before a meteor hits that will ultimate give him a supehero power set and armor to make him Soldier Zero. If that's vague, it's because that's all we get in #1...it's only part of the origin and there isn't much action. Of course, a big part is the awkwardness for the soldier trying to get by in a wheelchair and how uncomfortable other people are around him.
This last bit is interesting though a little 'on the nose' in delivery, but that's part & parcel for a Stan Lee comic so it isn't surprising. It also fits with the old Marvel 'tragic hero' angle. I think in premise it's a good one and something I'd like to see more. But 6 or so pages of it is a bit much; this should have been condensed throughout the issue so we could get a full origin here.
Paul Cornell, who I'm just becoming familiar with in Action Comics and Knight & Squire, is handling the writing and the dialogue is very good. The plotting, as a I mention above, is a bit slow and vague so far.
Javier Pina provides the artwork and does a nice job. My problem is it isn't anything spectacular because it doesn't feel very detailed; the backgrounds are almost completely empty in every panel. That always smells like a rush job to me where corners were cut and as some LWers may know, I *hate* that.
I'd give this a solid C+ / B- and at this point, I'm unsure whether I'll get #2. I certainly will try the other 2 comics though. Is anyone else going to pick any of these up?
From: If you don't want my peaches, honey... | Registered: Sep 2003
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