Legion World Forums LEGION COMPANION Dr. Gym'll's Cultural Rarities Vertigo Title Review (R.I.P.)

No, it wasn't preachy, but it made you care, nonetheless. Foremost, it was an excellent, gripping story with with involving characters. All with some heartwrenching, unpredictable twists. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of it! In the end what more could you ask for in a book?

Thanks for the reviews ... I've been wondering about this one

So I've been catching up on some Vertigo comics before DC unleashes far too many comics at once. And in recent months, one Vertigo comic in particular has made the jump from "most promissing new series" to "current classic, high-quality series head and shoulders above the rest". I'm talking about the amazing American Vampire.

We've thrown a lot of praise at this comic in this thread and all of that remains true. From a story-telling perspective, the writing, art and characterization is as good as it gets in comic books these days. I feel that the latest stories set in WWII--both the main ongoing in the Pacific and the tie-in miniseries "Survival of the Fittest" in Europe--have taken the series to a new level, putting it on par with Y: the Last Man, Fables, Sandman, and all the other great Vertigo series of the past. Yes, it really is that good.

It's a rare thing when a series consistently combines mystery / suspense, pure adreniline filled action and a major dose of true horror; yet AV does that every issue. Both of the current storylines truly are scary as all hell. There are some damn frightening moments each issue.

I'm loving the Pacific theater story because we get to see Skinner, Pearl and Henry (all three of whom have become some of the most fully realized characters in comics already). But the story in Germany with the shift in focus to a new character and previously supporting-role only character is equally fantastic.

Quite simply, this is the best vampire story I've read since Salem's Lot; which coincidently, is what I consider the single greatest vampire story of all time (yes, including Stoker's Dracula).

I also read the latest issue of Unwritten which is spending some time moving the overall larger story-arc forward, which is what is really needed at this point. Solicitations for upcoming months reveal we are going to get a plethora of answers revealed at long last, and I'm glad to hear it. I think we've hit that point where answers need to be given, things need to be made clearer and the story needs to transition to something of a penultimate act.

As Tommy & co. focus on flashback's to Wilson Taylor's life and an awesome new character introduced, we get a bit of a side story that delves into a narrative about comic books, pulp fiction and other early "American" forms of story-telling at the beginning of the last century. Since Unwritten is absolutely a book that discusses and explores 'writing' as a concept, this was a topic that had to come up eventually. I admit that at first I was a little hesitant because I feel like I've recently read several great stories that were more about discussing comics as a medium than the actual story within (Image's "Bulletproof Coffin" being one of the best). However, the delivery has been quite good so far. There are certainly several poignant points of view made that clicked for me.

I also enjoy the idea of a famous pulp writer from the 1930's being a woman using a psuedonym. Wilson and her discussing the Shadow and Doc Savage as those pulps were then coming out is interesting and lets the reader feel for the briefest of moments what it might have been like to live during a time when original pulp stories were coming right off the newstands.

Overall, I'm still enjoying Unwritten immensely. I sometimes forget about it when I'm thinking about all the other great Vertigo titles like Fables, American Vampire and Scalped, but I also end up enjoying the latest issues when I get around to them. Its maintained its experimental personality and that's kept things surprising and interesting.

Cobester, as fellow mods on Gym'll's, I think it's past time we gave AmVamp its own thread, eh? I mean, fuck, Severed's got IT'S own thread, and it just came out!

Agreed!

(sometimes I feel like I start too many threads here, so I'd be glad if the honors went to you!)

Awright, but you asked for it...

I just finished Air, volume 4 (the final volume). It was a fascinating story, and my first thought on finishing it was that I have to go back and reread it from the beginning.

As an adventure story, it's pretty straight-forward, lots of variety and well-paced. However, the ideas behind the story often seemed just beyond my grasp - all that stuff about symbols and Quezecoatl. I guess I'll never be a hyperpract.

This isn't a condemnation by any means: it's rare to find a comic/graphic novel that makes you think this much and introduces ideas you hadn't considered before.

Whatever G. Willow Wilson may write in the future will certainly attract my attention. (I haven't read her relaunch of Mystic yet.)

^ I've been meaning to read Air for a while. Once I finally finish my Young Liars, Scalped and Y: The Last Man trades I think that one will be next.

Still collecting Scalped trades, eh, Blacula? Good to hear! Wasn't sure if you were still following it due to your displeasure with the character of Red Crow.

Also, def review Young Liars when you read them! Perhaps the most out there series (in an awesome way) of the last 10 years!

I still need to get Air vol 3&4 and can't wait for it. Utterly fantastic series.

Lard Lad: The writing/art in the first three Scalped TPBs was definitely good enough that I could overlook my annoyance with Red Crow and buy the rest (though I haven't actually had time to read them yet). I think I might wait until the series is finished and then start reading it again from the beginning. I find some of these finite Vertigo series' read better that way.

Cobalt Kid: I read the first TPB of Young Liars a while ago and was blown away by how crazy it was. Literally every issue ended in the most out-there shock or cliff-hanger. I definitely enjoyed it but decided I would leave reading the rest until I had time to properly enjoy them all. I'll start that series again soon too and definitely do a review.

I look forward to reading your thoughts when you catch up on Scalped, Blac!

Speaking of Scalped, I read Scalped #51 recently, the first part of the "Knuckle Up" arc (this arc being the penultimate 5-parter of the series with another to follow that brings the book to a close with issue 60).

We're almost ready to turn out the lights on one of the greatest books running, and the opener to this arc definitely feels like that's the case. Red Crow is suddenly looking to clean up the Prairie Rose reservation and is making some enemies in the process. Dash and another injured party look to exact some revenge on someone they they feel has it coming. And overall characters seem to be converging. Plus, the issue ends with one character's most loyal ally apparently preparing for a shocking betrayal!

This is Aaron and Guera's masterpiece, and I'm stoked to see where it ends up, even as I dread only having 9 issues left to savor. The writing and art are topnotch in such a way that I think these creators should go down as one of the classic writer/artist combos. I never knew how much I needed a crime noir comic set on an Indian reservation until I discovered Scalped!

Simply put, I think Scalped is arguably the best series on the stands right now, and I strongly encourage anyone who has thought about trying it or who likes noirish entertainment with a heavy dose of character to do yourself a favor and TRY IT OUT, ALREADY!

As Vertigo begins to consolidate its line a bit, one of the titles I’ve been collecting, House of Mystery is coming to an end. I’m actually pleased to see this happening, as even though I’ve enjoyed HoM over the years, it’s always been my least favorite of the Vertigo titles and I’ve considered dropping it several times. What’s stopped me from doing so is the fact that I like the story-within-a-story aspect to it, which made it so different.

Yet, as the series progressed, one of the most jarring things was the bigger picture mythology became increasingly confusing and complex without any real resolution to it. It had gotten so unwieldy that it didn’t really make any sense and I realized I wasn’t really caring if it did anymore. Matt Sturges was forced with #41 to wrap up the storyline and I’m glad the deadline was there, because at least he was able to finish things up and put a bow around it. I’ll never know if this was his original intention but I appreciate the closure and am ready to move on.

There is an issue #42 to come with three short stories that I’ll probably pick up, including one by Fables’ Bill Willingham and one by former HoS writer Steven T. Seagle. As I said, I like the super-weird short story aspect of it all.

Undoubtedly, this series was getting the axe from me as my pull list is growing in light of such incredible independent and creator owned now coming out, plus DC’s DCnU titles being much better than I originally thought. Still, I don’t regret buying it because every few issues had some real moments of pure brilliance.

Also, the Vertigo comics are running a preview for Marzi, an OGN written by someone who was a child in the Ukraine during the Chernobyl meltdown and grew up right after. The preview pages are rife with tension and anxiety and I really enjoyed them! I may pick this up.

Re: Scalped # 52.

Lots of really cool stuff happened, but best of all--

THE NUNCHUKS ARE BACK, BABY!!!

Hellblazer #285 - "The Devil's Trenchcoat" keeps rolling along as things start to come together (as well as getting messier). John tries to track down the forces Gemma made a deal with, while the Trenchcoat claims new victims and makes its way to new York and eventually to the same mafia family that has John in its sites after the botched curse form the previous issue. I liked the description of the coat as a lightning rod for all the garbage magic around John, and that without it he's vulnerable to a lot of things he wasn't before.

Fans of the Unwritten are probably like me right now and flipping over the awesomeness that is coming these next few months. We got a taste of it with the latest issue, as Tommy & company start getting real answers for the first time all series. The 3+ year build-up actually works to great effect here because I'm anxiously awaiting each little tidbit that Carey delivers, and so far he's not letting me down on the promise of more info.

Plus, seeing Tommy start coming into his own in his understanding of the magic is also nice to see.

Hellblazer Annual 2011 was easily my book of the week. What a great stand alone story that echos Milligan's tone in the main series. If anyone's interested in what the main series is like these days this is a perfect entry point.

John's called back to Liverpool to investigate the disappearance of his childhood friend 40 years ago. It quickly becomes apparent that he was the victim of "Suicide Bridge", a phantom structure that still calls out to children today. Things go bad, as usual, and John struggles to try and save the lost souls the bridge harbors, but John's also struggling for redemption as there's a reason his friend ended up at the bridge, and we're reminded why it's never safe to be a friend of Constantine.

Hellblazer # 286 The Devil's Trenchcoat concludes with John confronting the hitman wearing his coat, while also dealing with Gemma's messy bargain and the ever encroaching presence of his Father-in-Law. An emotional ending as Gemma is able to manipulate John for a change due to his own guilt and sets up the next arc in which John will return to Hell to bargain for his lost sister. Great stuff.

I did think the 286 wrapped up a bit too quickly, I was expecting a full on new story arc where John goes to New York and the entire mafia are after him.

can't wait for John to go to Hell and see him interact with his sister !

I'll have to pick up the Hellblazer Annual, I skipped it on the shelves because it wasn't drawn by Camuncoli ...

Unwritten has now entered a phase where I think its reaching the heights of other past Vertigo greats, such as Sandman, Y: the Last Man, Fables and others. The most recent issues have been so fantastic that the series has gradually rose to the top of my reading pile each month.

Carey & Gross are weaving an incredibly complex series here. I think perhaps only Sandman the level of depth that Unwritten has, in terms of analyzing the idea of 'stories'.

The other ongoing Vertigo series I'm collecting right now, Fables and American Vampire, are fantastic, and this is not only right there alongside them, but an arguement could be made that it is better even. (And wow, only three Vertigo series right now? I guess that will change with all the new launches coming up).

^ At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I'll reiterate again how damn good Unwritten has gotten in the last few months. It's suddenly emerged as a comic I want at the very top of my pile every month.

Meanwhile, I see Vertigo is launching (4) new series in the next month or so. They all look interesting in their own ways and I will hopefully try most of them out. Certainly Saucer County looks good, and I'll naturally pick up Fairest for a few issues because of the Fables tie-in. Anyone else plan to pick up some of these?

Also, anyone collecting Spaceman? I didn't continue after #1 because it just didn't seem like it was for me. I'm curious if anyone kept going and what their thoughts are.

I bought the first two issues and decided not to continue. The first didn't do much for me. The second almost hooked me, but I decided not enough. I think that if Azzarello didn't have that annoying feaux-futuristic dialogue in it, it'd be much better actually. Oh well. Reviewers aren't exactly lavishing praise on it at the websites I trust, so I don't think it's just me.

I'm way behind on Scalped! I'm hoping to put in a big trade order sometime soon since I've got so many things I want to catch-up on or check out.

Especially with it coming to an end soon, I'm thinking of just picking up all the trades I'm missing and then grabbing the last 1 or 2 once they're out.

I'm not much of a TPB person at all, but I have to admit there's a certain level of enjoyability in sitting down with a nice thick six issues of Scalped to sink my teeth into at one clip.