Eric picked Action Comics #868 as the best book he read this week because it finally felt like something noticeable is going on in the Superman Universe. We also discuss Fantastic Four #559, Secret Invasion #5, Booster Gold #11 and more. We finish off the show with our review of Star Wars The Clone Wars. Did we think this was worth releasing in the theaters? Listen and find out!
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Written by Geoff Johns
Pencils by Gary Frank
Inks by Jon Sibal
Colors by Brad Anderson
Look to the sky...
I, like many others out there, have always preferred other icons such as Batman over Superman. I always felt that Superman wasn't totally relatable. That's not to say I didn't believe in Superman as an icon and inspiration. I just felt that writers tended to tell better stories with other characters. With the exception of a few trades and story arcs (Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow) I just couldn't find an ongoing series that I felt did service to Big Blue. Kingdom Come, New Frontier, and the JLA seemed to be where Superman belonged, among the company of other brightly clad demigods, not on his own handling a man who played with large toys and an imp with the voice of Gilbert Gottfried (points for those in the know). I'm happy to admit that I have finally been proven wrong.
We live in a Superman renaissance right now with Action Comics and Superman getting major attention and overhauls. Geoff Johns has, like he's done for so many other titles, made Superman relevant to his own world. It's redundant to go on about boiling Superman down to his roots or how Johns has a knack for bringing a magic to the characters he writes so I won't go on and on about it. We all know it. What I personally like about our recent version of Supes is he's brimming with personality. When he's written in stories like Kingdom Come, while I look up to him, I'm also a little wary of him. In this book, the comment I made earlier about relatability goes out the window (other than the alien stuff). His interactions and motivations are clearly displayed and fit much better than what I've seen before.
Another key to a good Superman story is a good villain. Other than Lex Luthor, Brainiac has always been a very threatening presence in these books. In Action Comics, he's down right chilling. As we now know, we've never truly seen the real Brainiac until today. While his ship reeked of the matrix, the idea of what our villain does is terrifying. Also, we now have a Brainiac that isn't destroyed with a few super punches. HE'S A BIG SCARY DUDE! The hint at his hand in the destruction of Krypton left with an "OHHHH S***" moment.
Gary Franks art is perfect. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it! I have gravitated more and more towards realistic art as I've grown older with one of my favorite artists being Rags Morales. Frank comes from the same school in that his characters are realistically proportioned and where real clothes, not garments applied by spray-paint. This is very apparent in the way Kara is depicted in this issue. Standing next to Cat, its nice to see Kara not displayed as over developed jail bait. Also, Brainiac is terrifying. The cold, dead gaze in his eyes makes me almost hear a monotone dead voice emanating from him. The site of his ship showing up over Metropolis sent chills down my spine and I was left with the same emotion as the rest of the citizens, wondering "where's Superman?"
I haven't bought a Superman monthly since the early 90s and I'm so happy to have the most iconic hero finally get the respect he deserves in the title that started all of this. "They can be a great people, Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you… my only son. " Go get em big guy!
I chose Spider-man Loves Mary Jane as the best thing that I read this week because it was just a breath of fresh air with all these other serious comics around. Eric gives his R.I.P. updates with reviews of Robin, Nightwing, Dectective comics and more. We finish off the show with our thoughts of the new DC games, Mortal Kombat vs DC and DC Universe online.
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Written by Terry Moore
Art by Craig Rousseau
Colors by Guilliem Mari
Letters by Dave Sharpe
Now this was a treat
I've heard good things about the Spider-man loves Mary jane book but just haven't taken the time to check it out. I've really been trying to pick up new things lately and when I saw that Terry Moore was writing this issue I just had to pick it up and I'm really glad that I did.
This book take place out of continuity and it just a fun look at the Midtown high gang and the high-jinks that they get up to. I've referred to Saved By The Bell various times in the podcast and that's what this book felt like, it was just a little teen drama with our familiar Spider-man characters and I loved it. Everyone's involved and it's great to see things from Mary jane's point of view. He doesn't like Gwen because she's insecure about who Gwen is and when Peter comes around, you can just tell her heart's a flutterin'
One thing that I really loved about this book is that Peter Parker is truly a nerd. Moore makes the statement that Peter is taking all IB classes which is something that Peter would be involved in and more importantly Craig Rousseau truly draws Peter as a short, skinny, frail looking boy and I cannot remember the last time he was presented that way.
I've heard a lot of positive things about Terry Moore so I was looking forward to picking this up and I was impressed. I don't plan on reading Strangers in Paradise(just doesn't seem like my kind of book) but I hope he plans to stay on this title and after this issue I am definitely adding this to my box.
With so much going on in this week like time bullets and Skrulls, a crazy Batman and Hulk fighting the god of thunder, this was just a breath of fresh air and I enjoyed every minute of it.
Eric chose Northlanders#8 as the book of the week because it's a story that he followed from start to finish and it paid off. We also discuss JSA Annual, Green Lantern, Thor, Wolverine and more. We finish the show out with an in depth look at Y:the last man and a review of Soul Calibur 4.
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Written by Brian Wood
Art by Davide Gianfelice
Letters by Travis Lanham
After reading the conclusion to Brian Wood's epic viking tale this week I thought it was very different from what I've read from him before (mainly stories within DEMO). The main character of Sven was introduced in this story as a gigantic asshole who was mainly out for what he felt was owed to him. Svens story follows many standard beats of the hero's journey. Through Svens trials he has become a more rounded and mature character. What I enjoyed though was how Sven always felt like an outsider amongst his own people. While his travels early in life left him separated since he'd seen more civilized portions of the world, he'd rejected the world he was born into. Now with the finale of the story, we see that Sven has matured to the point of caring for his people however still rejecting their ways. In the end, his decisions reflect this in both his born duties and his heart.
While good, the series had some odd writing beats. Wood characterized the inhabitants of this old world as speaking in a modern way, i.e. cursing like sailors. While I'm not sure how historically accurate this is, it was just jarring every time it happened. However, this story wasn't about historical accuracy, it was about characterization. Wood finishes Svens story by jumping into the future and showing how he spends his remaining years after his trials at home. In the end, Svens growth and maturity were more in line with the character driven stories that I had expected from Wood making me reassess my earlier assumption. Balanced with equal bits comedy, tragedy, and action, this book always made for a compelling read.
Gianfelices art in this book was great. The northern islands not only looked desolate but felt cold and forbidding. There was a grime on these pages that wouldn't wash off. Alternately, other locales like Constantinople were shimmering and bright. Battles were fierce and crowded and the sweeping vistas and cliffs gave a grand scale to the setting. Gianfelice has definitely made a fan out of me.
In the end, Northlanders was an entertaining series which offered much in the way of action, romance, and tragedy. In the vein of the old myths and Arthurian legends, Northlanders adds a contemporary spin that makes for a compelling story.
I picked Avengers:The Initiative #15 as the best book that I read this week because it gave us a new and fresh look at the Secret Invasion and this continues to be one of the more consistently solid book at Marvel. Er also discuss Robin, Green Lantern Corps, Two-Face Year One and more. After seeing the trailer for Watchmen, I finally sat down and read the book and Eric and I discuss what we think of Alan Moore's masterpiece and we finish off the show with all the new and crazy news coming out of this year's Comic-Con.
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