December 18: Chris Allen's super-sized Best of 2003 Spectacular is still being assembled, but will be along early next week -- look for it on Tuesday, December 23.
December 11, 2003
“Karm ur slich veght maf oboul lenmin ig ocom setfai balauser prum mbele sansas meigy filk mu rulus chibichun garabjak yi fanatejul.
”
--Uigvn Sstpels, from VAOMSWOAP PF.
As I write this, the end of the year is pressing upon me, and I feel like I have a lot I need to cover in these last few weeks. First, I’ve been talking about Gilbert Hernandez’s PALOMAR for a month, so it’s finally time to review it, as well as BUTTON MAN, ROSE & THORN #1; ALTERNATE REALITIES; PLASTIC MAN #1; 21 DOWN and this ECLIPSE & VEGA thing.
But first, some letters, starting with one from “APK”:
“Your retailer "Bitem!" made me want to stop and write you. I live just
outside of NYC up in Yonkers and it makes for a problem. I can't get to a
really great shop like Jim Hanley's Universe of Midtown Comics often enough
to buy things I want while they are in stock, but the only store near me is
perfectly horrible.
"Understand, this place won't carry Oni books, because they are ‘Indy’ and
therefore ‘small press’ and not worth their time. They hardly carry
Vertigo and so on. They sell the Big Two and some Image and Dark Horse.
"So what can I do?
"Well, I order from Midtown Comics’ web site, which is a great thing, and it actually offers discounts on ordering. I don't have to worry about getting to a shop, etc.
"I see more and more people moving that way as well, and smaller stores
falling by the wayside when they forget that prime rule of business - you
have to compete. Comic shops seem to have dropped the ball on that one, at
least many of them. Real shame.
"Thanks for the column, as always,
-APK”
As with any storefront business, there are good and bad ones, and I can only speak from my own perspective, but even here in San Diego, home of the largest comics (and other pop culture) convention in the world, there are just a few good shops in the entire county. For a good-sized city with what one may presume is a passing interest in comics, that’s pathetic. I stick with my shop because I can go there on my lunch hour, and I get a good discount. I know what I want, which is good, because no one working there seems to even like comics, though I’m sure they could tell me plenty about Heroclix. It’s not that I think I’m the typical customer—I have friends who would drive fifty miles or more to a good shop—but I think I’m representative of a lot of customers. What works for one shop—like discounts—may not be necessary for another, if, say, the service, atmosphere and expertise add enough value to a customer, but the fact is that the stores that can even afford the rental space for atmosphere—stores that don’t have to share walls with the sub shop and nail salon on either side—are exceptions.
Also have a funny and, for obvious reasons, anonymous comment from a retailer I know (not my retailer), about the less-than-exciting news about Marvel revamping ALPHA FLIGHT for a year at most:
“As a retailer, it's *much easier* for me to go 'subs only' [subscription only—ED.] on a crappy new ALPHA FLIGHT series (see also, ANT MAN, SUPERMAN: THE KANSAS SIGHTING, et al.) than it is to figure out just how to pull back on, say, JLA when Joe Fucking Kelly starts writing it. There are some books I simply *can't* get rid of. I haven't sold a single goddamn issue of ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN since I opened my store. Literally. Seriously, not one. And yet, I keep ordering that one rack copy because I'll look like a tool if I don't carry the three regular monthly Superman books. So, I for one, am grateful when they pull this with books I can simply *not order* in perfectly good conscience.”
I didn’t run that to make Joe’s Kelly or Casey (if he’s still writing ADVENTURES) look bad, but because I thought it was an interesting insight into one of the challenges of being a retailer. Would one single, big SUPERMAN monthly, priced at, say $3.50 or so, sell better than the four others combined, based on the fact more retailers could feel comfortable in ordering them? I dunno, but it does highlight the burden the big publishers put on the retailer to order lots of unsaleable product just to appear to be a professional, well-stocked store. Or, to look at it another way, if no one is asking for ADVENTURES, then who does this retailer think would take him for a “tool”? Why not send a message to DC by ignoring the book? If someone does see the other titles but not ADVENTURES, chances are decent he will ask about it, and the retailer can then either score him one from another shop and look like a good guy, or start ordering it again.
Finally, I have some commentary about THE INCAL, which I reviewed last week. Let’s start with reader Gary Sherman of Montreal, Canada:
“In all the comments on the Incal series from Humanoids I have never really seen any discussion of two major issues which I think are quite important to any analysis on the quality and impact of THE INCAL.
“First, there is the fact that while the series is being issued in chronological order, it's actually not the order in which the series should be read.
“As you already know, the INCAL series you just reviewed is in fact a prequel to the actual INCAL story. It was called AVANT L’INCAL (BEFORE THE INCAL) in its original French. I loved both series and have the original editions from Marvel's Epic line as well as the French albums.
“I do have a problem with the fact that Humanoids decided to publish them in America in chronological order. This is a lot like George Lucas' attempts to resequence the Star Wars movies for future generations. He actually seems to want our kids to grow up starting with PHANTOM MENACE and moving on to STAR WARS as the fourth film. Anyone who does this will lose out on the main charms of STAR WARS and THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (not to mention the fact that the prequels all suck).
“The actual Moebius INCAL story flies off on more spiritual and metaphysical tangents and I think there will be a disconnect for people who start and enjoy the first two parts of the INCAL before going on to the next two parts. In fact Moebius and Jodorowsky have already started the next phase of the INCAL story (APRES L’INCAL) which picks up after the last of the Janjetov stories. Unfortunately the first volume of APRES L’INCAL lacked the depth and originality of the first two series and it may be decades before this third series is concluded, if ever.”
I’m going to break in here to note that Gary goes on to criticize the muted palette of the computer coloring used on the Humanoids U.S. comics of THE INCAL, which is apparently quite unlike the much brighter color scheme of the original versions. Not having seen them, I can’t comment other than to say that the coloring works well on the remastered version, but I can see how experiencing it first with its original coloring would affect how one enjoys the newer one. As far as the sequencing of the trades, it is in fact quite a bit like what’s happened to STAR WARS, but really, doesn’t it make sense to do it chronologically in regards to the events of the story? Ultimately, the Moebius stuff will hold up or it won’t, and you can’t really blame it on it now being called Volume 3. Now, back to Gary (who does recognize Humanoids probably coloring in this way to look similar to METABARONS) for something I kind of wondered a little about but didn’t comment on in the review, the censorship of this remastered version:
“The censorship on hand in the Janjetov issues was also a little troublesome but understandable. Jodorowsky has a very perverse imagination and his images might be a little too disturbing for the teenage American readers who are reading these issues. A good illustration is in the opening pages of the first issue of the Janjetov series. In the original version, the cruel and sadistic aristos are pissing on the suiciders and bums. In the Humanoids version they are spraying them with hoses. It's a small distinction but the original version is far more in line with the writer's goal of showing the brutal cruelty of the upper class. Along with all nudity being covered up there are a ton more examples of this type of censorship throughout the issues. As I said, I understand Humanoids' motivations, but I feel it is a disservice to the author's vision.”
Again, I haven’t seen the original, but it sounds like it would be an even stronger work. My initial thought when Gary mentioned this is that it made little sense for Humanoids to make these changes, since I don’t think there really are teenage readers, and this stuff would make the book more appealing to them, anyway, if they exist. But rather than leave it at that, I asked Justin Connolly, Humanoids Group’s Director, U.S. Operations for his take. It should be noted I paraphrased Gary’s comments to him, though it looks like he got the gist:
“With regard to the number issue on the Incals, we've thought about how to
present the next one, the Moebius original, and are working with our new PR
people on the best way and don't have a final decision. Which means,
nothing really to announce yet for another few weeks. Sorry the reader
doesn't like how we did it. It seemed like a good idea at the time.
”We asked Janjetov to cover up the genitals in the first INCALS in the US
because we originally released them as comics (like THE METABARONS) and
there is no way to do that, have any nudity and still be in the front of the
store. We won't be doing any more comics on The Incal, only trades, so
there will be no covering up in the future.”
I’ll close by observing that all this can be taken by you, dear reader, as a cautionary tale about the misunderstandings that can occur when genitals are covered. But seriously, it is true that being a comic, and without any kind of warning about the content inside, it makes sense for Humanoids to, er, cover themselves and soften some content that could easily get into children’s hands. I mean, INCAL might have been racked right before JUGHEAD in some shops.
Let’s get to the reviews.
First Issues
PLASTIC MAN #1 by Kyle Baker. DC Comics. $2.50
Whether it’s to his credit or not will be up to the reader to decide, but in this new series Baker delivers a true all-ages book, eschewing sarcasm, social commentary, pop culture gags and other elements familiar in his work to focus on Silly Symphonies slapstick, but that’s not a bad thing. This issue, which retells his origin and brings his criminal past back to haunt him, is pure fluff, but very attractive fluff, with a sure line and vivid coloring similar to the contemporary programs on Cartoon Network. Baker seems to take an easy and less interesting approach to the layouts than one might expect, with a series of simple pages of stacked, rectangular panels or simple four-to-six panel grids, rather than taking inspiration from creator Jack Cole’s unhinged storytelling brilliance. Fun but instantly forgettable, though how much time does one need to think about Plastic Man, anyway?
ROSE & THORN #1 by Gail Simone, Adriana Melo and Dan Green. DC Comics. $2.95
On Sale December 17th
Gail Simone tackles this piece of DC property management with a good amount of sincerity and enthusiasm, though the book is not without flaws. Rhosyn (you have to accept some unnatural sounding names in this miniseries) is forced to live in an institution for disturbed young women to deal with the uncontrollable rage she feels after witnessing her parents’ murder. A sinister doctor takes an interest in her treatment, the premise being that Rhosyn will have to leave the raging part of her personality behind—sectioned off—if she is ever to go home again. Dangerous advice, since the doctor (drawn to look like Ian McKellen) is forcing her to have multiple personalities for an as yet undisclosed purpose.
Rhosyn’s only connection to the outside world is her uncle and a detective, both of whom are presumably looking into the murder of her parents. We see the two again years later during another one of Rhosyn’s visits, and it’s hard to tell if the detective has to be present for the visit to comply with some sort of court order, if he and the uncle are lovers, or what. Probably just plot convenience. There has been a little progress in the case, with the murderers believed to be members of some organization known as The 100, but there is still an annoying, possibly meaningful lack of concern on either the uncle’s or detective’s part. We’re apparently heading in the direction of Rose, as she now calls herself, letting the Thorn side take over in order to find and destroy The 100.
All well and good, and it’s fairly interesting so far, but the brittle art is not going to excite anybody, and Simone needs to flesh out Rose more, as she’s setting up two different personalities for the character and hasn’t established one yet. Also, the institutional setting is malnourished, with Rose and just two other patients (the weak friend and the tough psycho chick) waiting around all this time with no lives of their own. Aren’t there any other patients? Hasn’t the psycho made any progress, or learned to get along with the other two? Presumably, the story will soon take us completely out of the institution setting, but it’s a shame more wasn’t done with it beyond girls-in-prison-movie clichés.
Floppy Moppers
ECLIPSE & VEGA #2 by Saul Colt and Christopher M. Eisert. SSS Comics. $2.95
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The small press publisher attempting to successfully market superhero comics faces great hurdles to success. There are many such comics from established publishers like Marvel, DC and Image, and with established, even beloved, characters and rich histories. The small press superhero comic, then, had better be special, with not just professional-quality writing and art but a unique point of view—a hook.
This book has none of these things. Is it the worst comic ever? Not at all, and in terms of plot, which involves one of the heroines being mind-controlled by a villain, it meets the minimum standards found in average superhero comics from the big publishers. But the writing is exposition-heavy, crude, unfunny and at times hard to understand. And that’s if you can get past the ugly, salacious, overly rendered and anatomically clueless artwork, or the fact it seems largely to be a promotional vehicle for the writer’s business (the villain is named Packaging Man?). The pencils must be pretty tight, however, because even with three different inkers the art is of a uniform crumminess. In one panel, the artist’s idea of clever composition is to position one heroine in the background, with the other heroine’s entire silhouetted, costumed breast in the foreground, sort of a mammographer’s-eye-view. Aside from a garish but competent drawn (not photorealistic) Greg Horn cover, there are no redeeming qualities to this book.
ALTERNATE REALITIES by Sal Cipriano and Various. Cactus Fusion. $3.00
The cover has the right idea, going for the elegant, stark contrast of red and black, the small mangaesque image promising sophisticated genre work inside. And with the first story, Jason Lex’s “Subtraction,” the book makes a small downpayment on that promise. It’s a downbeat story of a former superhero who regrets hanging it up, and with stylized computer art that somehow looks great in black and white, Lex pumps some air in that balding old superhero tire. Good script, too, in morose first person narration that has nuance and depth you won’t see in many similar attempts from bigger name talents. Lex is a star in the making.
Cipriano, who writes many of the stories, fumbles with the Western pastiche “Kate’s Story,” about a female Pony Express rider who shoots a man who’s stolen the evidence she was riding to deliver in order to convict the man’s boss. The Corey Zayatz/Marco DiLeonardo art is close to professional, though overly detailed to the point of distraction, and the silent sequence near the end doesn’t come off at all. Cipriano seems to have done some research on the time period, but the dialogue is at times too modern, and it seems too frequently lewd, even for outlaws. And this makes for a sleazy feel to the story that can’t be shaken off at the awkward end, when the reader finds this was supposed to be an inspiring story about what women accomplished in those days. If that was the angle, Cipriano should have focused more on Kate besides just having her fight and shoot.
Brien Cardello’s “My Favorite Inside Source” depicts a rape victim holding a gun on her tormentor when he regains consciousness. Will she kill him? Call the police? Talk him to death? She’s now in control, she’s better than him, we get it. The dialogue feels like someone trying to sound smarter than they are, it’s too wordy, and the poor art can’t prop it up.
Cipriano returns with “Inversion,” a poorly realized piece of punk rock, role reversal sci-fi that wastes the talents of artist Becky (DEMO) Cloonan, who has to draw too many panels per page, so that the result is utter confusion, and by “Reclaiming Soul” I honestly had enough young-man-railing-against-cruel-world narration, even if it was disguised as a faerie story. Vanessa Satone’s art is cute, but I saw those pointy ears and my head started to turn off.
Dick Troutman has an “Outfitters”story in here, where the rafting team has to retrieve a ducky for their boss that they know is probably from a rival rafting company. It’s a very well drawn little adventure story that actually packs some cinematic thrills in its few pages. I have no idea what Caleb Gerard was going for in “The Struggle,” but the pretentious narration, in unbelievably large, ugly computer lettering, kills whatever might have been interesting in this heist standoff/shootout story, if DiLeonardo could draw. “The Void,” by Cipriano and Joseph Milazzo, is visually off-putting, with soulless computer fonts and any use of a comma verboten. “Inside & Under” finds artist John Greiner doing some interesting art on a trite story with zipatone and a smart arrangement of captions, but he needs a finer line in places. And Cipriano closes the book out with “Obsolete,” illustrated by Andy MacDonald in a Whilce Portacio style so cluttered with detail and rain effects that it’s a headache to try to figure out what’s going on. The promise of the Lex story at the beginning is not fulfilled by the rest of the material, which is heavy on genre imitation or earnestness but light on ideas and clear storytelling.
Graphic Novels and Trade Paperbacks
BUTTON MAN by John Wagner and Arthur Ranson. Rebellion. $27.95
Harry Exton is a former soldier, then mercenary, and lately he’s been giving civilian life a try. But not for long, as an old friend lets him know about his current gig as a “button man,” a paid assassin with an unseen patron—a “voice”—who sends him out to kill one of the other voices’ assassins. Whichever button man wins makes his voice and himself a lot of money, and it’s a new kick for the voices, who are jaded old rich English men, mostly.
Harry takes the job, and things are fine for a while. He’s not one to show his emotions, but there must be some satisfaction in a job well done, even a deadly job. The problem is that he is too old to be taking orders, especially from some rich man he can’t see and doesn’t know, so the seeds of Harry’s discontent bloom quickly. He wants out. And of course, there is no out, in this game, unless he’s able to outsmart the voice and the killers set against him.
This is just the kind of story Warren Ellis would like to have written: tight, terse, British and pulling no punches with its unglamorous depictions of violence. Wagner is one of the most influential comics writers of the past 30 years, and this story is constructed like a Swiss watch, with exceptional, densely detailed art by Ranson, newly recolored for this edition. An engrossing movie on paper with excellent production values from the newly launched line of Rebellion graphic novels.
21 DOWN: THE CONDUIT by Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray and Jesus Saiz. Wildstorm/DC Comics. $19.95
Some of the most interesting superhero comics in the past few years have elements of other genres, and in this case we have a healthy dose of X-FILES government conspiracy and the paranormal. Preston Kills has the unenviable ability to see someone’s death when he touches them, part of some sort of childhood abduction/alteration by a mysterious man named Herod, who returns to kill those he’s changed on their twenty-first birthday.
Knowing he’s only got a year left to live, Preston is quite naturally a depressive type, having no one in his life but a detective brother who uses him to solve homicides, and a friend who more properly fills the role of loving brother. Seeking answers, he contacts a website relating to his condition, whereupon he is soon visited by the platinum blonde femme fatale Mickey Rinaldi. She’s been tracking genetically enhanced “genies” like Preston, hoping to find Herod and, we learn, her captive daughter. Though Preston is a good character, a nice blend of youthful self-involvement, cynicism and lust with the foundation for selfless heroism poking through, Mickey is the scene-stealer, outrageously flirtatious and manipulative but with a heart underneath the tough talking veneer. Working from Adam Hughes character designs, Saiz’ art is clean, not flashy, but he does an excellent job drawing every facial expression asked of him, which is absolutely necessary in a mood-intensive, talky book like this.
The trade is a good start, as it resolves some of the key conflicts but keeps the Herod story intriguing but far from over. One bad habit the writers fall prey to occasionally is ironically mentioned by Garth Ennis in his Introduction as something they don’t do, which is to have characters blurt out their essence in a single page. Okay, maybe it takes a couple pages, but an important moment between Preston and his brother Rob comes off clumsily with on-the-nose lines like, “I guess I’ve been sealing myself off from the world. Dad was the same way. Fact is, I’m jealous.” Mickey similarly unburdens herself like Preston pulled the string in her back. It’s a good book, but needs some diligent effort to make it an essential one.
PALOMAR by Gilbert Hernandez. Fantagraphics Books. $39.95
In this massive collection of the “Heartbreak Soup” stories Hernandez has been doing in LOVE AND ROCKETS the past twenty years, we find everything readers look for in quality novels and films. One need look no further for evidence that comics can be significant; can be multi-layered; can use a variety of sophisticated storytelling techniques to convey what it means to be human.
From the first Palomar stories, in the “Sopa de Gran Pena” and “Act of Contrition” sections, it is clear that while Hernandez has an interest in the magical realism of authors like Garcia-Marquez, he is more interested in the magic and limitless variations and surprises of human behavior. At least a dozen characters are introduced in short order, from the slim, good-hearted Heraclio (the reader’s access point to this village and its people) to little busybody Carmen to Luba, the force of nature whose will and lust cannot be denied, the personification of human self-interest and resilience. Palomar is a town always controlled by powerful women; both literally, as in the stout Sheriff Chelo who keeps everyone in line (and enforces a strict hem length on the other women), and figuratively, as characters like Tipin Tipin, Jesus and Martin el Loco are slaves to their yearnings. Similar afflictions would strike the raging bisexual con man Israel later, as he is obsessed with his missing sister, and even Heraclio develops a drinking problem due to the political protest suicide of firebrand Tonantzin, whom he never even liked when she was alive.
Despite the short tempers and raging lusts of many of the citizens, Palomar always remains, though occasionally endangered by outside elements such as a condescending, manipulative photojournalist in “An American in Palomar,” a vengeful bruja (witch) whose dead baby’s skull is stolen in “Duck Feet” or the simultaneous threats of a monkey rampage and a serial killer on the loose in “Human Diastrophism,” This last story—at epic length—is the most complex tale in the book, blending the lurid, nail-biting thrills of the murder spree with doomed romance, political fanaticism, unbridled passion, stoner slapstick, blooming teenaged lesbianism, and even the heartbreak of Luba’s selfish, furiously poor parenting, and its effects on her children, as seen below:
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By the time of “Farewell, My Palomar,” Hernandez seems dissatisfied or at least less interested in the longer form story, and becomes more conservative in his visuals, sometimes increasing panel count in order to get more story into fewer pages. Short character studies like “Pipo” and “Carmen” pack more characterization than most twenty-two page comics. It’s truly amazing how a story of one page can add another dimension to a character, and one never feels they’ve come to the end of the character’s possibilities or capacity for change or surpise. The careful study and hard work Hernandez has put into his beautiful art is obvious, from the appealingly Ditkoesque style of the early stories through the thicker, more confident line through the rest, incorporating elements and techniques from Alex Toth, John Romita, John Buscema, ARCHIE COMICS and others. Despite the advances of decades of aging, most characters remain recognizable. But as impressive as the art is, Hernandez’ real accomplishment is his ability to observe and record human behavior, and his compassion. Bad mothers, seducers, liars and cheats and murderers—he loves them all for the contributions their personalities make to the fabric of life in his town. His ability to depict all manner of people with all manner of flaws, weaknesses and internal or external deformities with depth, tolerance and an endless curiosity is his greatest achievement, and the reason readers will be enjoying and studying these stories for many years to come.
Next Week: My Favorite Comics of 2003—with lots of snarky comments as well, plus NECRONAUTS; STRANGE EMBRACE; HELLBOY: THE CONQUEROR WORM and more.
Now I’ll leave you with the usual bit of column-closing eye candy, this time from BUTTON MAN, illustrated and colored by Arthur Ranson. So far I’ve been using single images but I thought this three-panel sequence are particularly nice.
If you would like a comic or graphic novel reviewed, send to:
1451 River Crest Rd.
San Marcos, CA 92078
Chris Allen has written for Comic Book Galaxy, NinthArt and PopImage.
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