Comics: 2-27-08

ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL #4
Plot: Joss Whedon & Brian Lynch
Writer: Brian Lynch
Illustrator: Franco Urru
Colorist: Jason Jensen
Letterer: Robbie Robbins
Editor: Chris Ryall

Every issue of After The Fall so far has successfully added new information and, with this issue, re-introduced the entire main cast. There have been surprises and shocks, twists and turns, and everything is coming to a head quickly. There's no decompression here and this feels more like an old school comic book than a padded-for-the-trades title. But something is not clicking.

That something is the art.

Franco Urru may be a solid penciler, but he is definitely not a solid inker. His figures are ill-defined, doughy, and lack any type of emotion. He's a competent enough storyteller but his characters do not emote and, in some cases, don't even have proper faces. It's ugly, distracting, and a major detriment to the title. Honestly, Rob Liefeld would almost be preferable because even though he is a horrible storyteller and has no grasp on anatomy, at least his characters have a kind of structure and energy behind them. Liefeld's work has a completely misguided passion behind it that at least resonates so strongly that it causes outright disgust and laughter. Nothing comes through from Urru's work. No passion, no emotion, not even the urge for me to mock it. It's simply bad. I mean, look at the preview for next month's issue. "The Gang's All Here." Illyria, Angel, Spike, Connor, Gunn and Lorne I recognize. I assume the guy in sunglasses (?) is Wesley. The two females have to be Gwen and Werewolf Lady, although I would hardly consider them part of the gang and they aren't even that distinguishable from each other. And then there's...Xander? Matthew Perry? Jon Stewart? Seriously, who is this guy?

The story, as I said, is okay so far. I like that things are moving along quickly; this issue feels more like #7 than #4. The arrival of Groo is...well, who really wanted to see him again? It feels more like he's there because this is a comic and producers don't have to convince the actor to return (although I doubt it would be hard to pull him away from whatever romance novel cover he's posing for). Whatever, it's an okay development.

I just read that issues #6-8 will feature different artists, including John Byrne. Hopefully Urru won't come back.

MY SCORE: 7.8/10


KICK-ASS #1
"Issue One"
Writer: Mark Millar
Penciler: John Romita Jr.
Inker: Tom Palmer
Colorist: Dean White
Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos
Alternate Cover: Steve McNiven
Cover Inks: Klaus Janson
Editor: John Barber
Editorial Assistant: Michael Horowitz
Production: Anthony Dial & Irene Lee
SVP of Business Affiars & Talent Management: David Bogart
Created By: Mark Millar & John Romita Jr.

Between this and the surprise of X-Men: Legacy, this was Romita Wednesday. For a first issue featuring a completely original character and world, Kick-Ass kicked my ass. I am immediately invested in the lead character, I'm totally hooked to the next issue by the cliffhanger, and I can't wait to find out how he gets into the predicament that opens the book. I felt sympathy for Dave when it was revealed that his mother died of a non-revengeable aneurysm. I love that Dave's dad is a good man who loves his son and not a stereotypical abusive absentee. All of the nerd trappings and the lovingly drawn pictures at the top make the horror of what happens to Dave at the end of the issue even more gripping. I'm a little bit in love with this issue.

The art is a true standout. Romita Jr. is detailed, dynamic, and one of the best storytellers in comic history. Dean White's colors go well with Romita's art, giving it a both realistic and nostalgic tone. The palette is soft, reminding me almost of A Christmas Story in a way. It's warm and inviting, and then horrific. Awesomely done.

A lot depends on issue #2, I guess. If it can keep up at least half of the momentum, it'll be a must-buy. For now, it's a darn fine start.

MY SCORE: 9.2/10


NEW WARRIORS v.4 #9
"Thrashed part 1"
Writer: Kevin Grevioux
Penciler: Paco Medina
Inker: Juan Vlasco
Colorist: Marte Gracia
Letterer: VC's Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist: Nic Klein
Production: Paul Acerios
Editor: Daniel Ketchum
Executive Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor in Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley

Jubilee gets a new costume. And is called variations of Jubilee throughout the issue. But I assume she's still Wondra. Come on, a title like New Warriors where the entire cast is almost interchangeable does not need to start changing costumes and, apparently, codenames! We haven't even learned the old ones! Surely it wouldn't be hard for Marvel to slap some character IDs on the recap page. They do it for Young Avengers Presents and this book has twice as many characters. I'm starting to get the hang of it. Even though I can't tell you the codenames to anyone on the cover aside from Night Thrasher and Jubilee/Wondra, I can at least figure out who the rest of them used to be. Except for the black guy whose sister died. Still don't know who he is.

Geez. That's a problem.

Thankfully the art is back in the capable hands of Paco Medina. He has a distinct style and is finally on a book that seems to match his talents for drawing flashy heroics, a talent wasted back in his New X-Men: Academy X days. Grevioux is finally letting his "Night Thrasher is sneaky" subplot boil over to satisfying results. I like that it's Jubilee calling him out on it to Chamber, er, Jono, er, whatever his new code name is. They do have history and Chamber's confiding in Jubilee is a great touch. I'm also happy that a non-X-book (even if the book stars 100% former X-Men) acknowledges Destiny's diaries and then realizes that Jubilee could see through it. Continuity, good.

The action in the issue is pointless; Alpha-Clan is unknown to me and the fight between them amounts to "let us pass" and "no." As a way to show how manipulative Night Thrasher is, it works. As a part of the story I should care about as a reader, not so much at all.

An okay issue. It is beyond ludicrous that none of the characters are identifiable and this book is, so far, surviving on really good art and the mystery with Night Thrasher. That isn't going to be enough for much longer.

MY SCORE: 7.8/10


SHE-HULK v.2 #26
"The Whole Hero Thing conclusion"
Writer: Peter David

Penciler: Shawn Moll with Val Semeiks

Inker: Victor Olazaba

Coloring: Avalon’s Rob Ro

Lettering: Dave Sharpe

Cover Artists: Greg Land, Jay Leisten and Rainier Beredo

Production: Paul Acerios

Assistant Editor: Thomas Brennan

Editor: Stephen Wacker

Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada

Publisher: Dan Buckley

I've started reviewing comics at Comixfan, so from time to time I'll link to that site for the review. This is one of those times. Link! Odds are I'll repost the entire review with my own 1-10 rating next week when it's not so topical.


ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #119
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Penciler: Stuart Immonen
Inker: Wade Von Grawbadger
Colorist: Justin Ponsor
Letterer: VC's Cory Petit
Cover: Stuart Immonen & Richard Isanove
Production: Irene Lee
Assistant Editor: Lauren Sankovitch
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Senior Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor in Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley

Another fun issue of Ultimate Spider-Man, which has become more of a joy to read with Stuart Immonen's fresh take on the series. There's no new ground being broke here, just more of the same with characters you've come to really enjoy. While "more of the same" may sound bad, it's actually a good thing considering the rest of the Marvel and Ultimate universes are being gobbled up by big events. Liz's reaction to being a mutant (maybe) is the freak-out we actually don't see all that often. I'm trying to think, but most stories I can recall feature most mutants already having had their powers for enough time to either be comfortable with them or depressed. It's rare that we see the eruption of power and the confusing rush of emotions that follow. This is one of the few times where, as a reader, I think Peter Parker is a little bit nuts. We get to see how he really thinks and his own motivations come through when he basically tells Liz that she has to be a superhero now. It's actually a lot more simple than that, and I agree with Liz. She doesn't have to be a hero (she does have to go to school, so I don't agree with all of it). Iceman's immature asides are also hilarious, especially the bit with Spidey pointing out Iceman's huge ice trail. The end would have worked better if it wasn't completely spoiled by the cover; still, Immonen's Magneto is an imposing figure indeed.

Good issue. Immonen is still making this title fun.

MY SCORE: 8.3/10


X-MEN: LEGACY #208
"From Genesis To Revelations"
Writer: Mike Carey
Pencilers: John Romita Jr. & Scot Eaton

Inkers: Klaus Janson & John Dell

Colorists: Christina Strain & Frank D'Armata

Assistant Editor: Will Panzo

Editor: Nick Lowe

Executive Editor: Axel Alonso

Editor in Chief: Joe Quesada

Publisher: Dan Buckley

This comic surprised me completely. John Romita Jr. My favorite penciler in all of comicdom making a return to the X-Men universe after 15 years (which is coincidentally how long I've been collecting X-Men comics). Romita was the first regular artist I associated with the X-Men and to see his art on the first page without knowing about his involvement prior made my inner fanboy giggle. If the premise of your retitled X-Men book is a trip down the secret parts of Xavier's brain and the X-Men's history, no other currently working artist can do it BUT Romita Jr. He has drawn the X-Men to amazing results twice and is one of the biggest names in the industry. And, unlike John Byrne, his art is just as powerful now as it was in his x-days. The giant collages of X-Men past and present are so beautiful, I want to frame them and put them in my living room (sorry, roomie). Scot Eaton's art is good as well and provides a nice contrast to the "mindscape" art.

Since the biggest selling point on this issue is the art, I will talk about the coloring next. D'Armata has gotten plenty of high profile gigs despite being one of the most annoying colorists in recent memory. Every one of Eaton's characters are impossibly shiny, looking like they just lubed themselves up. It's unnatractive at best. Also, it's pretty obvious that Exodus is some non-white ethnicity (his wiki entry states that he has fuschia skin, which I never knew was on purpose), but he is colored almost purple in this issue which is completely against his past colorations. It's extreme. He has been colored white or the same color as the Native American characters in previous appearances and to all of a sudden look like a victim of Willy Wonka's factory is jarring. Christina Strain, the gorgeous colorist for Runaways, does some breathtaking work with Romita's images.

For a premise change, this one is interesting. The title change is justified and I'm excited about where this is going. Maybe it was just seeing Moira MacTaggert alive with all of her fiery Scottish passion. Maybe it was seeing Xavier defending his questionable idea of making a mutant army. Maybe it was seeing Cyclops' role as brilliant tactitian and uncapable leader restated this month like the last issue of Uncanny. Mike Carey knows his mythos and I'm excited to see what else he digs up.

The notion that Exodus would save Xavier to preserve a mutant champion when they most need him is far-fetched in theory but in line with Exodus' history. He's never been outright evil, more a follower and a proponent of the survival of mutants. I could see him overcoming the obvious ideological differences he has with Xavier to save him. Plus, there's always the reasoning that Xavier is way more dangerous as a martyr. Carey doesn't explain how Exodus and Karima survived apparently dying during Messiah Complex. I know we should rarely believe that a character has died, but this issue flashes back to that battle and Exodus looks just fine. Very inconsistent and, um, that should have been addressed.

It seems like the fallout from Messiah Complex is a big nothing. All of the books are out now save Cable and every one of them seems to be low key and self contained. I'm fine with this since we're not rushing headlong into the next event. Bold new direction with Romita Jr.? I'm on board.

MY SCORE: 8.9/10