Premise: What would happen if East St. Louis decided to secede from the United States of America?
This is a scathingly funny and thought-provoking graphic novel that skewers race relations, foreign policy, and the fractious nature of the African-American community. It asks tough questions and does not provide easy answers. Filmmaker Reginald Hudlin ("House Party", "Boomerang" ) drew upon his experiences growing up in East St. Louis while co-writing this book with "Boondocks" creator and noted raconteur Aaron McGruder. The infinitely talented Kyle Baker tones down his exaggerated style a notch and delivers some of the best art of his career.
Recommended for: Fans of The Boondocks or The Daily Show.
Not Recommended for: habitual listeners of conservative talk radio.
28 December 2005
24 December 2005
We'll call it a Holiday vacation...
My computer died a few weeks ago, and my access to the net has been limited, so the updates haven't been as regular as I'd like them to be. I apologize and will update when I can.
07 December 2005
Autobiographix
This graphic novel features numerous comic-book creators telling personal anecdotes, ranging from the humorous (legendary cartoonist Sergio Aragones illustrates the time he met Richard Nixon), to the unsettling (Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba recall an encounter with a gang during their trip to Paris). Some of the stories are poignant (revered creator Will Eisner talks about his first professional rejection), some are cute (Bill Morrison's remembers his childhood obsession with Batman), and some are educational (Matt Wagner depicts his method of making Chicken Parmesan); but all of them are entertaining, and make for a fascinating look into the minds of various comic-book creators.
(This book was originally published in 2003. A sequel is forthcoming; check here for details.)
Recommended For: people who enjoy hearing people tell personal anecdotes at parties; people who listen to the audio commentaries or watch the "making-of" featurettes on DVDs.
Not Recommended For: people who read comics purely for their escapism value.
(This book was originally published in 2003. A sequel is forthcoming; check here for details.)
Recommended For: people who enjoy hearing people tell personal anecdotes at parties; people who listen to the audio commentaries or watch the "making-of" featurettes on DVDs.
Not Recommended For: people who read comics purely for their escapism value.
12 November 2005
Fables vol. 1 - "Legends in Exile"
Premise: After being forcibly driven from their homeland, various characters from classic fairy tales adjust to their new lives in modern-day New York.
Fables is an excellent gateway comic because everyone already knows the main characters. Just about everyone has heard of Snow White, Prince Charming, and the Big Bad Wolf. Of course, they may be a little surprised to find that Snow White has become a cynical workaholic, Prince Charming is a philanderer with three failed marriages (to Snow, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella) under his belt, and that the Big Bad Wolf is now the sheriff of Fabletown (the neighborhood where all of the fables secretly live among the normals).
Writer Bill Willingham has put together an imaginative series that speaks to the reader's inner child and jaded, embittered adult simultaneously. Pencillers Lan Medina and Mark Buckingham (among others) render a world that is equally magical and grounded in reality. And the painted covers by James Jean are simply stunning (DC/Vertigo were wise to include them in each volume).
Recommended for: anyone who ever had fairy tales read to them as a child; fans of Into The Woods, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and/or Wicked.
Not recommended for: people who only know these characters from their Disney cartoons.
Fables is an excellent gateway comic because everyone already knows the main characters. Just about everyone has heard of Snow White, Prince Charming, and the Big Bad Wolf. Of course, they may be a little surprised to find that Snow White has become a cynical workaholic, Prince Charming is a philanderer with three failed marriages (to Snow, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella) under his belt, and that the Big Bad Wolf is now the sheriff of Fabletown (the neighborhood where all of the fables secretly live among the normals).
Writer Bill Willingham has put together an imaginative series that speaks to the reader's inner child and jaded, embittered adult simultaneously. Pencillers Lan Medina and Mark Buckingham (among others) render a world that is equally magical and grounded in reality. And the painted covers by James Jean are simply stunning (DC/Vertigo were wise to include them in each volume).
Recommended for: anyone who ever had fairy tales read to them as a child; fans of Into The Woods, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and/or Wicked.
Not recommended for: people who only know these characters from their Disney cartoons.
10 November 2005
Marvel Team-Up #14
Premise: Invincible is accidentally transported into the Marvel Universe and lands in the middle of a fight between Spider-Man and Dr. Octopus. Hilarity ensues.
There are numerous reasons for me to recommend this issue:
There are numerous reasons for me to recommend this issue:
- It is accessible to new readers.
- It is literally an all-ages comic (wholesome enough for kids, but witty and engaging enough for adults).
- It will hopefully introduce Invincible (the most interesting new hero to come along in a long time) to a wider audience.
- It is laugh-out-loud funny.
Day of Vengeance
Premise: Can a band of second-string mystical heroes prevent two spirits of vengeance from wiping magic from the face of the Earth?
In a previous post, I talked a little bit about Infinite Crisis. To further fuel the spark of interest among comics fans, DC published four miniseries which would help to set the events of Infinite Crisis into motion, but could be appreciated on their own merits. One of the series was called Day of Vengeance.
The story itself is a good one. Writer Bill Willingham does an excellent job of putting the readers inside the heads of some obscure heroes as they embark on what feels like a suicide mission, and he gets bonus points for making a silly character like Detective Chimp relevant to a modern audience. Penciller Justianino is equally adept at rendering both large-scale battles (two giant characters fighting over the city) and small scale scenes (a dingy other-dimensional tavern, a suburban, middle class home). If this book consisted of only the story, I would heartily recommend it.
Much like a special-edition DVD, the extras are where this book really shines. In addition to the story, the book includes the covers from the original comics, some pages from Justianino's sketchbook, text pieces that introduce the backstory and the heroes to new readers, and a bonus story reprinted from the Superman comics. This story (written by Judd Winick and pencilled by Ian Churchill) helps to establish one of the villains of Day of Vengeance and features an extended fistfight between Superman and Captain Marvel (Shazam!), which is always fun.
Recommended for: fans of Buffy, Lord of the Rings, and/or The Seven Samurai; people who always root for the underdog.
Not recommended for: people who absolutely refuse to take any story with a talking chimp seriously.
In a previous post, I talked a little bit about Infinite Crisis. To further fuel the spark of interest among comics fans, DC published four miniseries which would help to set the events of Infinite Crisis into motion, but could be appreciated on their own merits. One of the series was called Day of Vengeance.
The story itself is a good one. Writer Bill Willingham does an excellent job of putting the readers inside the heads of some obscure heroes as they embark on what feels like a suicide mission, and he gets bonus points for making a silly character like Detective Chimp relevant to a modern audience. Penciller Justianino is equally adept at rendering both large-scale battles (two giant characters fighting over the city) and small scale scenes (a dingy other-dimensional tavern, a suburban, middle class home). If this book consisted of only the story, I would heartily recommend it.
Much like a special-edition DVD, the extras are where this book really shines. In addition to the story, the book includes the covers from the original comics, some pages from Justianino's sketchbook, text pieces that introduce the backstory and the heroes to new readers, and a bonus story reprinted from the Superman comics. This story (written by Judd Winick and pencilled by Ian Churchill) helps to establish one of the villains of Day of Vengeance and features an extended fistfight between Superman and Captain Marvel (Shazam!), which is always fun.
Recommended for: fans of Buffy, Lord of the Rings, and/or The Seven Samurai; people who always root for the underdog.
Not recommended for: people who absolutely refuse to take any story with a talking chimp seriously.
22 October 2005
Plastic Man: On The Lam!
Premise: Plastic Man's former life as a criminal comes back to haunt him, and hilarity ensues.
Plastic Man has been around since the 1940's. He fades into obscurity every few years, only to bounce back into the public consciousness and delight a new generation of fans. He is currently enjoying newfound popularity as member of the Justice League of America. Positive fan reaction to his appearances inspired DC Comics to give him his own series, written and drawn by acclaimed comics creator Kyle Baker.
The most important element of a Plastic Man comic is humor, and Baker knows how to deliver the laughs. This book is packed with inspired sight gags and clever one-liners. The art is done in a very cartoony style, which works well for the character. It's zany, wacky, and completely over-the-top, which is exactly how a Plastic Man comic is supposed to be.
Recommended For: fans of The Incredibles, The Mask, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Ren & Stimpy, or old Looney Toons cartoons.
Not Recommended For: people who don't enjoy slapstick comedy.
Plastic Man has been around since the 1940's. He fades into obscurity every few years, only to bounce back into the public consciousness and delight a new generation of fans. He is currently enjoying newfound popularity as member of the Justice League of America. Positive fan reaction to his appearances inspired DC Comics to give him his own series, written and drawn by acclaimed comics creator Kyle Baker.
The most important element of a Plastic Man comic is humor, and Baker knows how to deliver the laughs. This book is packed with inspired sight gags and clever one-liners. The art is done in a very cartoony style, which works well for the character. It's zany, wacky, and completely over-the-top, which is exactly how a Plastic Man comic is supposed to be.
Recommended For: fans of The Incredibles, The Mask, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Ren & Stimpy, or old Looney Toons cartoons.
Not Recommended For: people who don't enjoy slapstick comedy.
21 October 2005
A Brief History of Aquaman
After last night's episode of Smallville, I was inspired to write an entry about Aquaman and how he is a vastly underrated character. While researching, I ran across an article by Alan Kistler on the Monitor Duty blog which does a more thorough job explaining the character than I could do, so I'll just direct you to that.
19 October 2005
Batman: Strange Apparitions
Premise: Even after facing radioactive mosters, mad scientists, cold-blooded assassins, and the Joker, Batman faces the biggest threat of his career: love.
Much like Superman, Batman has undergone numerous changes since his debut in 1939. In his first appearances, he was a vicious vigilante who killed criminals in cold blood. In the 50's & 60's, he was a smiling do-gooder who often duked it out with outlandish villians on giant typewriters. Today, he is a tortured soul who is as dangerous to his friends as he is to his enemies.
Personally, I prefer the Batman of the 1970's. As a response to the campy TV show starring Adam West, the creators of the time returned Batman to his roots as the Dark Knight. They made him more intense and more serious than he was in the previous decade, but he still carried fantastic gadgets and acted like a true hero (Grant Morrison referred to this period of Batman as "James Bond in a cape").
Batman: Strange Apparitions contains a series of stories from this period (1977-78, to be precise). Despite some purple prose and a tenuous grasp of science, writer Steve Englehart delivered engrossing and atmospheric scripts that were quite sophisticated for the time. Marshall Rogers (penciller) & Terry Austin (inker) provided clean, dynamic art that serves the action-packed moments just as well as it does the quiet, dramatic ones.
Many fans consider Englehart, Rogers & Austin's works to be the "definitive" Batman. It would be safe to assume that the people who worked on Batman: The Animated Series would be among those fans, since two of the stories in this book were later adapted for television (including the infamous "Laughing Fish" episode).
Recommended For: fans of Superfriends, Justice League, or any of the Batman films (particularly Tim Burton's 1989 version); people who watch soap operas; film noir afficionados.
Not Recommended For: people who couldn't care less about Batman as a character; people turned off by the 70's aesthetic (all the women have feathered hair, all the men are wearing leisure suits); science majors.
Much like Superman, Batman has undergone numerous changes since his debut in 1939. In his first appearances, he was a vicious vigilante who killed criminals in cold blood. In the 50's & 60's, he was a smiling do-gooder who often duked it out with outlandish villians on giant typewriters. Today, he is a tortured soul who is as dangerous to his friends as he is to his enemies.
Personally, I prefer the Batman of the 1970's. As a response to the campy TV show starring Adam West, the creators of the time returned Batman to his roots as the Dark Knight. They made him more intense and more serious than he was in the previous decade, but he still carried fantastic gadgets and acted like a true hero (Grant Morrison referred to this period of Batman as "James Bond in a cape").
Batman: Strange Apparitions contains a series of stories from this period (1977-78, to be precise). Despite some purple prose and a tenuous grasp of science, writer Steve Englehart delivered engrossing and atmospheric scripts that were quite sophisticated for the time. Marshall Rogers (penciller) & Terry Austin (inker) provided clean, dynamic art that serves the action-packed moments just as well as it does the quiet, dramatic ones.
Many fans consider Englehart, Rogers & Austin's works to be the "definitive" Batman. It would be safe to assume that the people who worked on Batman: The Animated Series would be among those fans, since two of the stories in this book were later adapted for television (including the infamous "Laughing Fish" episode).
Recommended For: fans of Superfriends, Justice League, or any of the Batman films (particularly Tim Burton's 1989 version); people who watch soap operas; film noir afficionados.
Not Recommended For: people who couldn't care less about Batman as a character; people turned off by the 70's aesthetic (all the women have feathered hair, all the men are wearing leisure suits); science majors.
18 October 2005
The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius
Premise: A 10-year-old inventor and his best friend get into all sorts of surreal adventures.
I can honestly say that no comic series has ever made me laugh harder than Barry Ween. Writer/Artist Judd Winick packs each volume (to date, there are four) with bizarre plots, madcap sight gags, pop-culture references, and lowbrow humor (the latter comes primarily from Barry's sidekick, Jeremy). There is also the occasional poignant moment (usually involving Barry's classmate Sara) that never feels out of place, even among all of the mayhem.
Recommended For: Fans of Kevin Smith films, South Park, Dexter's Laboratory, and/or Family Guy; fans of off-color humor in general.
Not Recommended For: people who are offended by profanity.
I can honestly say that no comic series has ever made me laugh harder than Barry Ween. Writer/Artist Judd Winick packs each volume (to date, there are four) with bizarre plots, madcap sight gags, pop-culture references, and lowbrow humor (the latter comes primarily from Barry's sidekick, Jeremy). There is also the occasional poignant moment (usually involving Barry's classmate Sara) that never feels out of place, even among all of the mayhem.
Recommended For: Fans of Kevin Smith films, South Park, Dexter's Laboratory, and/or Family Guy; fans of off-color humor in general.
Not Recommended For: people who are offended by profanity.
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