12/07/11

ACTION COMICS #4—There are those who complain and kvetch that Morrison has followed up his absolutely mind-blowing ALL-STAR SUPERMAN with a rebooted younger character who’s much more of a pugilistic Socialist type of fella than the fair and wise icon who shows us all how to do what’s right by example. And I see where they’re coming from. The first couple of issues were pretty jarring for me, as well. But in this issue, when confronted with a giant tank-robot rampaging through the streets of Metropolis, our brash protagonist does not, cannot, fly circles around him or blast him with heat vision or super-breath or any of the dozens of other powers that have blossomed out of his seven decades of continuity. All he’s got is the old “faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound” powers set. So, what does our boy do? He picks up a WGBS news truck and chunks it at the tank. It was just a couple of panels at the top of the page, not even laid out to be that big of a deal, but in a single action, it perfectly encapsulates how far back Morrison has dialed the character and I, for one, can’t wait to see what the bruiser does next in the name of what he perceives to be the American Way. Occupy Metropolis.

O.M.A.C. #4—This one might be the best issue yet, a simple lesson in interdependence. Giffen continues to channel the raw Kirby dynamic and Didio’s shutting down his detractors with a script that’s a perfect tonal complement. Great fun. Looking forward to the brawl next month.

ANIMAL MAN #4 & SWAMP THING #4—We can totally get by with a single review here as, with symphonic precision, Snyder & Lemire drop the revelations and make explicit what anybody who’s been reading these two back-to-back since the first week of September should have been suspecting. These guys are fighting different fronts of the same battle. I mean, Red and Green? These two writers have been playing games, weaving this together since the start, we’ve got the Parliament of Limbs in ANIMAL MAN and the Parliament of Trees over in SWAMP THING, but what’s really got me scratching my head is how Snyder is going to thread in the Parliament of Owls over in Capullo’s Gotham. Because it isn’t like that’s a coincidence, hey ya? Overall, just a really cool effect, knocking these back in singles on the front lines, seeing the threads start to tighten up, everything coming together. Great news to hear that Pugh’s coming back over to draw or paint the Bakers, that dude is the real deal. And, really, Foreman is a tough follow, they had to get somebody insane. Meanwhile, over in SWAMP THING, Marco Rudy does a beautiful job of pinchhitting for Yanick Paquette while he hunkers down and tries to devise new ways to outflank J.H. Williams III by means of flowing layout. He’s got his work cut out for him, but has certainly been rising to the challenge, thus far. Reading all of these books in one go, man, just so grateful. Head over heels for DC’s new first week.

STORMWATCH #4—All right, yeah, clearly old Adam One is not in it for the long haul. Which is fine with me. This was Midnighter’s issue, running point against The Attack of the Crazed Lost City. Weird reboot moment, him cupping Apollo’s face, “Do you trust me?” You’re married, guys! You were . . .

THE BOYS #61—I guess it’s a good thing that that seriously ominous cover didn’t take place within these pages? This is nothing less than another slab of homestretch goodness from Ennis and the lads. Hughie’s still bitching, the Butcher’s still cutting wise about stabbing people to death, and in the eleventh hour, we get The Sensational Character Find of 2011, Muzzeltov. Truly, one for the ages.

X-FACTOR #228—No follow-up on the wedding night cliffhanger, just right back over the edge with it, by way of a different path, L O S T-style. Curse you, David! Kirk and company continue to provide top-flight work as we get a confirmation about what we’ve been suspecting about Guido all along and the writer hawks some Minimates. I wonder what everybody knows so much about that won’t be in-book until #230, really pleased the spoilers haven’t made their way in this direction. Just two more months to go, I guess.

BEST OF WEEK: THE DEFENDERS #1—Even better than I dared hope for. I was honestly considering tradewaiting this instead of signing on for another $4 Marvel single, but I loved Fraction’s Dr. Strange short in the .1 thing, so figured I’d at least give the first issue a shot. So glad I did. This right here is the introduction of the Fraction Casanova Crazy into the 616. You heard it here first, True Believers! I get why he reins it in over there with Stark. Wish he’d brought this out a bit more over on UNCANNY (instead of just confining it to #512). But here, amidst this convergence of weird coincidence breaking through to end the world, this is the perfect place for Fraction to fan the freaky, and I have a feeling he’s barely getting started. The Dodsons and Oback provide a lunatic counterpoint with lush smooth lines that scream Mainstream Superhero and belie all the scratchy bizarre menace unfolding with every page. I like how Doctor Strange is kind of an egotistical, grad-student-banging piece of shit. I love Danny Rand reading MARVELMAN (I mean, the line of the week, hands down, is "The older I get, the more life seems to be the stupid, frustrating stuff that gets in the way of YOU and reading comics."). But my favorite part has to be the non-sequiter footers. After that initial jolt/blurb for #4 (which is a hilarious thing to do on the third page of your first issue), they start back in innocuously enough with the old tried-and-true CONTINUED ON AFTER NEXT PAGE and you just think, cool, channeling the 70s, yeah man, go, but then the bottom drops out with SHUT THE ENGINES DOWN and, my favorite, EVERYONE YOU LOVE DIES. Wha—? This is immediately one of my favorite Marvel titles, and you know they’re just scratching the surface. BRING ON THE MADNESS.