Comics Candy: October 2009

I confess, I haven’t read Buffy comics for a long while. And I wasn’t much of a fan when I did. The TV series, sure, I love it to bits, enduringly so, but the comics just never managed to capture that effortless magic of the Joss Whedon helmed show. So I approached Buffy the Vampire Slayer #28 (Dark Horse) with some trepidation… and curiosity.

It hadn’t escaped my attention that Whedon himself had, post Buffy season seven, taken a more active role and TV writer Jane Espenson was currently writing the comic, so I was more inclined to delve. A neat story so far (hallelujah!) brought me up to speed, but I was then confronted with what can only be described as a lull in the proceedings; a talky, rather ponderous 360-degree around Buffy and her supporting cast.

But, lo and behold, it was rather good, proving that, in capable hands, a 22-page comic doesn’t necessarily need to devote two-thirds of that space to action. I found myself immersed in the characters all over again, and intrigued enough to maybe backtrack and see what I’ve missed.

The only downside is the art, which — while proficient, clean and clear — makes the majority of the cast (Buffy, Willow, Xander et al) look like 10-year-olds! Giles… maybe 15! It brought to mind those Claremont-penned X-Men specials with the adult cast re-imagined as their baby equivalents. I hated those and I’m not much fonder of this strange artistic regression of the Buffy cast. Otherwise, recommended!

Keeping my selections in a supernatural vein I took a look-see at Hellblazer #259 (DC/Vertigo), another series I hadn’t troubled for a shameful while. I was mostly attracted by the refreshingly restrained Simon Bisley art. Of late, I’ve found Bisley’s art to be verging on parody (of itself), so this for me, even at a quick in-store glance, heralded a massive return to form.

The art managed, simultaneously, to be both recognisably Bisley and yet marvellously old school sequential. The eye knew where to go, the storytelling was sharp and clear, and the characters less stylistically exaggerated. And yet that edgy, unsettling Bisley hyper-reality was there too, a combination that pulled me all the way through a very decent story by Peter Milligan, who - on this showing - writes a very faithful (but not slavishly so) John Constantine & Co. I may just be getting back that Hellblazer state of mind.

Marvel Zombies Return #1 (Marvel), however, felt like a joke that’s been stretched too thin. The first Marvel Zombies was great, an irresistible and irreverent treasure, the second series was also fun. But after that the law of diminishing returns really starts to kick in, and this fifth (maybe sixth if you count the collection of the original Marvel zombie stories from Ultimate FF et al) helping is a parody of a parody of the parody.

Aping the hallowed halls of 60s Marveldom in its presentation, with the gross-out zombie stuff layered on top, it seems to me an over-rich confection, one that, while filling, ultimately fails to satisfy. I guess there comes a point when the novelty of seeing core Marvel heroes and villains messily eviscerated just palls.

Mark Millar on the other hand knows how to heap on the guts and carnage and craft an involving story. Giant Size Wolverine: Old Man Logan #1 (Marvel) is just a treat from start to finish.

For a start, it’s simply luscious to look at. It’s the first comic for a long while where I felt, having finished reading, the need to go back to the start and simply relish the visuals. Steve McNiven should be applauded. It’s a bravura showing, and whereas with Captain America Reborn last month I felt the spreads and splash pages were random and rather superfluous, here they are used to telling effect.

The story is simple, a new spin on Unforgiven and a clutch of other iconic westerns, but the joy is in the staging Millar employs, the sheer invention in every vengeful set piece. I loved the overall economy of the issue, up to and including the decision not to use sound effects. A corker, and my comic of month!

And while we’re on the subject of Mark Millar, I’ve got to mention Kick-Ass #7 (Icon/Marvel). I love this series. It feeds the reader exactly what they want, in a totally unrestrained, unrestricted and almost pornographic fashion, while subtly teasing the very obsessions that makes them/us (I include myself in this catchment) pick the book up month in, month out. It’s comics without a code, and I guess that’s the point. Marvellous!

I realise this is all, with the exception of Buffy and Marvel Zombies, starting to look a bit Brit-centric, but hey… why stop now? I also thoroughly enjoyed the War of Kings: Who Will Rule? one-shot (Marvel) and Ultimate Armor Wars #1 (Marvel). Writers Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning have, practically single-handedly, revamped the entire Marvel (cosmic) universe restoring it to its former, Starlin-era, glory. And what’s more they’ve done it with a cast of characters few people have previously cared much about (Rocket Raccoon for pity’s sake!).

From Nova to Guardians of the Galaxy to War of Kings, Abnett and Lanning have shaped an intricate saga that captivates, excites and intrigues. And the War of Kings: Who Will Rule? one-shot is a neatly timed and entirely accessible jumping-on point.

Ultimate Armor Wars is fun too. Warren Ellis’s dialog never seems forced or false, and yet leaps off the page at you. Though not much happens, it’s a nice set up issue and I really like this Ultimate incarnation of Tony Stark, right down to the wall mural depicting him as Michelangelo’s Adam receiving the gift of life from God. Priceless!

While we’re extolling the virtues of Brit writers, full marks to Grant Morrison for crafting something quite so linear and comprehensible as Batman and Robin #4 (DC).

Sure, there’s some trademark Morrison weirdness afoot, like the introduction of enigmatic masked crime expert/author Oberon Sexton, but largely this is a nice straightforward and engaging dip into the Batman mythos, featuring the Red Hood (who may or may not be much resurrected former Robin Jason Todd).

I honestly don’t think Morrison’s script is best served by Philip Tan’s artwork, but maybe I’m just spoiled by the lovely clean Frank Quitely art in previous issues. All in all, though, well worth the price of admission and one of the best Bat-books out there.

A couple of interesting oddities to round out this month’s column: Thulsa Doom #1 (Dynamite) and Underground #1 (Image). In both cases my appetite was whetted rather than sated (and maybe that’s a good thing).

Thulsa Doom, the nemesis of Kull the Conqueror in many of the Robert E. Howard stories, sees the sorcerer/slave on a quest to find some mysterious (lost) item or other and (post-destruction of Atlantis) fighting off restless demon creatures and eviscerating a bunch of barbarian slave-drivers. Artwise, erect nipples abound and muscles duly ripple, and if sword and sorcery’s your bag, this is well worth a dip.

A very different kettle of fish is Underground, which eschews any kind of exaggerated bodywork in favour of slice of life drama and character-driven narrative. The point of contention here is a series of caves, and should they/shouldn’t they be made available to the general public as a tourist attraction. Sounds highly un-dramatic, but writer/creator Jeff Parker involves us both in the main character, feisty park ranger Wesley Fischer, and the local community.

I can’t say I felt exactly compelled to buy issue #2, but something slightly indefinable about Underground gets, well, under your skin. Certainly, titles like Underground deserve my/your support, simply because they’re willing not to just apply the same tired old comic book conventions and actually try something a bit different.