Comic Review – Unknown Soldier #11, Herogasm #04 and Batman And Robin #03

My reviews of “Unknown Soldier” are, yes, getting a little repetitive. The writing is exceptional, the lettering is brilliant, the artwork is poor, the colouring is amateur. In fact, artist Alberto Ponticelli seems to be unable to draw faces now, as well. The guy Jack Lee Howl calls has a face that — well, more accurately, he doesn’t have a face, just a bunch of poorly-arranged lines that would make Rob Liefeld proud. And now that I’ve gotten to the point of comparing Ponticelli’s art to Liefeld, I think continuing to bash it is useless. Suffice to say, it’s bad, and colorist Oscar Celestini doesn’t help — in fact, he makes it worse. Now. To the good bits.

The “Easy Kill” arc is dealing with a complicated moral choice that is even harder for someone like Lwanga Moses, a killer with a split personality, to face (get it? “Face”? Moses “facing” a oh forget it). On the previous issue, Moses was convinced not to kill Margaret Wells. Thanks to a beautifully-written speech by his wife Sera, he realized whatever good the death of Wells could bring would still be temporary, cheap and extremely bad PR (“Look! We kill famous actresses here! Help us out!”). However, Moses’ employers do not share this opinion, and he decides to team-up with CIA agent and professional loser Jack Lee Howl to prevent the assassination of Wells.

The relationship between Howl and Moses is one of this issue’s highlights. Both men know perfectly well they’re using each other to achieve their own ends, and when Howl tries to help Moses pull himself together, he does so clearly with his own interests in mind. In fact, this is one of the several moments where Clem Robins’ lettering shines. On the panel where Moses says “I’ve done some very bad things”, Ponticelli’s art goes for an awkward pose and an overly sad expression comparable to this one:

Robins compensates for this exaggeration by decreasing the font’s size, making it look like Moses is not only speaking in a low tone of voice, but also more to himself than to anyone. Hard to tell whether this decrease in font size was Robins’ call or Dysart’s, but it’s still very well-done nonetheless, and the lettering on the rest of the issue is typically very good.

Dysart also dedicates several pages to Sera and her difficulty in dealing with the discovery that Moses had an ex-fiancée, and that she and her father want to attend the Lwanga benefit dinner. Dysart’s writing is sensitive and develops her character immensely in a single issue — which, as usual, ends with an elegant sequence of panels and the title of the arc on the final page. And I must be fair — the first panel of the final page is a rare example of Ponticelli doing a decent job.

“Herogasm #04″, which at first seemed to be just Ennis sitting back and taking the piss out of superheroes for the sake of laughs, reveals a deeper storyline about what happened in nine-eleven in this book’s universe. And Ennis narrates it with his typical skill and excellent dialogue. The flashback that happens inside a brothel and that puts Agent Lucero in an awkward situation (to say the least) is priceless, and the whole sequence inside the situation room is very well-written.

The surprise here is John McCrea and Keith Burns, whose artwork got miles better all of a sudden. Achieving a good balance between cartoonish and realistic, they get the narrative right and especially, they get president Dakota Bob perfectly, nailing his confident face and iron will. I also like the shadowing, something McCrea, no matter what style he uses, has always been very talented with. Tony Avina’s coloring is also very inspired and detailed, going above “efficient”, which is the adjective I commonly use to describe it, and Simon Bowland’s lettering has shown equal improvement — it was already competent, and now it has moments of brilliance here and there, like in the moment Agent Lucero says something with several pauses, or a pilot begs Norad to let him carry out an order.

And finally… “Batman And Robin #3″. I will stop reviewing this book. Because, really, I don’t know why I’m still doing it. I hate Morrison’s take on Batman, and this issue has a villain called Pyg that goes “oink oink oink”. Enough. I’ll simply never like this book and my reviews will be biased because I hate the “Batman” run that bred this book in the first place. So, I stop.

(Quitely’s art is notably far from its usual quality, though)

(and the coloring AAAGH STOP REVIEWING)

Comic Review – Batman And Robin #02, Gravel #12, Crossed #06 and The Boys #32

Batman And Robin #02

Written by Grant Morrison

Art by Frank Quitely

Colours by Alex Sinclair

Lettering by Patrick Brosseau

Published by DC Comics

In a nutshell: this sequel to Morrison’s horrendous run on Batman is just as forgettable, with annoying characters and a tone that feels too much like “All-Star Superman” instead of a Dark Knight story.

I was prepared to give Morrison another chance to shine writing anything related to Batman, even though this story contains something I consider a flaw in the character: Robin. Batman as a loner is much more interesting and coherent than having a brightly-coloured kid as a partner.

And when Morrison’s Robin is the most annoying kid in the recent history of comics, you cannot make me like this fucking book.

The story is… well, after not acting according to plan while trying to stop an attack on a police station performed by tipically Morrison-esque characters (a guy with his head on fire, a hugely fat lady and… clones), Robin decides he won’t be Robin anymore. No, there’s nothing to distinguish this from all the million other similar plots in any narrative medium you care to name. And this isn’t even motivated by a good reason, just by Robin’s immense arrogance that keeps making me wish he gets in the way of a wrecking ball. And meanwhile Nightwing/The New Batman keeps moping about how he sucks as Batman and blah-blah-blah. Of all the ways this story could have been handled, this is the most predictable and generic.

Not to mention Morrison still can’t decide on the tone — this Batman feels more like Silver Age Batman, not the Batman that should exist today — the one seen on mature, complex pieces of work like Azzarello’s “Joker”. And Morrison’s eccentric dialogue and characters just contribute to make this book look as far as possible from the dark, gothic Gotham City I’ve come to love and that has always held great appeal for me. And yet another problem Morrison hasn’t bothered to fix: Batman and Robin continue to show super-human strength, like the moment where Robin is thrown against a wall and cracks it with ridiculous force, instead of the wall cracking his spine.

And the usually reliable Frank Quitely provides a sketchy, confusing artwork that is especially flawed in the unclear action scenes. None of the beautiful clean lines and great narrative seen on “All-Star Superman”, just muddled, lacklustre work. All of which is made even worse by Alex Sinclair’s coloring, which invests in a varied, bright palette that has nothing to do at all with Batman or Gotham City — but, well, when the writer himself is doing his best to get away from that as much as possible, can I blame the colourist for following his lead?

I guess not. This book’s problem really is Morrison, which just proves to me every month he’s the most overrated comic writer in the industry. And this book, on its second issue, is turning out to be even worse than the pathetic run that originated it.

Gravel #12

Story by Warren Ellis

Written by Warren Ellis and Mike Wolfer

Art by Mike Wolfer

Colours by Juanmar

Lettering by Avatar Press

Published by Avatar Press

In a nutshell: even though it’s clearly following a formula since issue one, it’s still an entertaining and occasionally creative read.

The first seven issues consisted in William Gravel murdering the members of the Minor Seven, usually one per issue. And as the formula for a first, opening arc, that was more than acceptable, especially since it was written with wit, charm and Gravel’s typical anti-hero charisma. But now, on this second arc, Gravel is once again murdering someone per issue, in this case, members of the MAJOR Seven — while recruiting people for his own team of magicians, which is a welcome addition to a plot that is quickly wearing out.

With Avatar Press, Warren Ellis has done the exact opposite of what Garth Ennis has done — instead of using the publisher’s exceptional creative freedom to develop his ideas as much as possible, his stories for Avatar have been more like half-developed, if enjoyable, ideas. Only “Doktor Sleepless” shows more depth, since “Wolfskin”, “Blackgas” and “Black Summer” present some good concepts that are never explored to their full potential.

And William Gravel is a great character who hasn’t yet reached his climax. He’s smart, tough and a bastard, but still not fully-rounded as a character, possibly to keep him unpredictable — which also keeps him distant from the reader. He’s intriguing to follow, but his decisions rarely, if ever, impact on me.

Mike Wolfer, however, does his best to add whatever depth he can to the protagonist, and in this issue he succeeds via a conversation he has with one of the Major Seven, who outwits Gravel using only words and no violence. And while this conversation was planned by Warren Ellis, since he developed the story, the details are likely Wolfer’s, and his dialogue is interesting without trying to be too witty — a problem Ellis has and that constantly deprives his dialogue of character voice, although this has been much less present in his recent work.

As the artist, Wolfer delivers the same solid, consistent artwork I’ve come to expect from him, always narratively clear, elegant and with an immediately recognizable style. I especially like the one with the snakes. And Juanmar’s colours complete his work well, getting the color palette and the overall tone right.

What “Gravel” needs is a more complex, interesting story that goes beyond one guy per issue getting killed. This is a formula that has gotten old but that, for now, is still kept alive by Wolfer’s writing and some of Ellis’ concepts.

Crossed #06

Written by Garth Ennis

Art by Jacen Burrows

Colours by Juanmar

Lettering by Avatar Press

Published by Avatar Press

In a nutshell: like the last issue, Ennis continues to add depth to his characters, now that the horrendous world that was left after the Crossed came has already been established emphatically. Another brilliant issue.

The previous episode was disarming, but to me probably less than most people, since I have been reading Garth Ennis for years and can already see there’s much more subtlety and depth to him as a writer than at first glance. Focusing on the way nature goes on despite humanity going down the shitter, the last issue was interesting and brilliant in showing how oblivious the world is to human suffering — and the spread with the wolves was beautiful and yet melancholic in symbolizing exactly that. Ennis also took the opportunity to start adding more depth to his characters, something he was doing to a smaller degree as he portrayed the world overrun by the Crossed — and now that we’re past half of this series’ duration (nine issues), Ennis replaces our morbid curiosity in watching the apocalypse with a genuine concern regarding the main characters — something I already felt, but it’s stronger now.

Elegantly telling the backstories of two characters while moving the plot forward, Ennis resumes the violence from previous issues for the narrative’s sake, as he tells what happened to Kittrick and Geoff. And while Kittrick’s story is simply traumatic, Geoff’s verges on comedy as he reveals something about himself that came unexpectedly. But mind you, it VERGES on comedy, something Ennis never allows unintentionally, and it comes as a good narrative surprise in reminding us the existence of the Crossed does not make all the other humans saints.

Jacen Burrows’ art is as beautiful as ever, with brilliant perspective, characterization and some lighting work that Burrows doesn’t usually use but doesn’t disappoint when it’s required. Juanmar’s colours are moody and appropriate, establishing the tone well, resulting in a comic that excels both narratively and visually.

And it promises a ferocious climax. Knowing Ennis, he’ll make us care about the characters as much as possible before showing us their merciless fates.

The Boys #32

Written by Garth Ennis

Art by Carlos Ezquerra

Inks by Hector Ezquerra

Colours by Tony Avina

Lettering by Simon Bowland

Published by Dynamite Entertainment

In a nutshell: an intense, explosive issue that, unlike previous ones, is focused on action and shows “The Boys” in a moment of extreme vulnerability, starting to explore the careful build-up from the previous thirty-one episodes. Ezquerra, however, isn’t up to the task.

In a complete turn of events, the member of The Boys I least expected to get beaten half to death got beaten half to death. With The Female in a hospital, the rest of the team goes to see her and find out they’re not in a hospital — she was taken to a place that could be turned into a trap. And meanwhile, Starlight deals with her new “uniform”, which is small enough to be easily stuffed in your pocket.

But Starlight is just Ennis balancing the progression of the plot, since the obvious focus is The Boys falling into a trap. It’s ironic that Ennis dislikes superheroes so much and yet can write amazing action scenes with them — a shining example being the moment the windows explode due to a sonic boom, which builds up to the following page where the fight starts.

But the real focus of this issue is truly Billy Butcher, whose dangerous nature is portrayed as strongly as ever. While Hughie is becoming less and less capable of dealing with all the violence of the world he’s gotten into, Butcher is growing angrier at the people around him and, especially, at his targets. And it’s made clear that while he’s a super-human, his killing methods are still very much human, as exemplified by the use of a belt. The action scene that dominates most of this issue is brilliantly written and shocking due to being unexpected.

However, the efficient Carlos Ezquerra (inked by Hector Ezquerra) is not efficient enough for something like this. He’s a poor artist regarding action scenes, and while he does try hard here, he doesn’t come even close to the sense of impact and danger that Darick Robertson would be capable of conveying with his artwork. However, the scenes are clear and Ennis’ writing makes up for Ezquerra’s artistic shortcomings — except on the panel where we see Butcher using the belt, which needed much more power and less action lines. But the panel showing Butcher taking off the belt in order to use it deserves credit for its good use of shadows. If there’s one artist who should be replacing Robertson, that would be Steve Dillon. Avina’s colours, fortunately, haven’t lost any of their usual quality, doing their best to enrich the artist’s work, and Simon Bowland’s lettering is noticeably more intense than normal, as can be seen on the moment Starlight yells at two guys.

Tense and impactful, “The Boys #32″ is a brilliant way to start the second half of this exceptional ongoing. It’s a shame Robertson can’t keep up, since this episode would have hugely benefited from his artwork.

Comic Review SPECIAL EDITION – Final Crisis #6

SUPERMAN is following BRAINIAC 5 around something he thinks is a HYPERSPACE, because not even GRANT MORRISON knows where the fuck they ARE.

BRAINIAC 5: Hurry, Superman! I calculate we have exactly 72.4 seconds before time breaks down and this sentence becomes meaningless!

SUPERMAN: Wow, that line of dialogue is so horrible I’m tempted to wait.

BRAINIAC 5: And this issue barely started. But we digress! Follow me!

They walk past a bunch of rooms seemingly designed by DAVID LYNCH on CRACK and come to a halt in front of a MACHINE.

BRAINIAC 5: Behold, the plot devic–I mean, the MIRACLE MACHINE! A machine that turns thoughts into things! I trust you to handle it, since you’re always so good with this alternate dimension stuff.

SUPERMAN: What? Seriously?

BRAINIAC 5: I’d try to make some sense of it, but we’re about to cut to another scen –

CUT TO:

The JUSTICE LEAGUE SATELLITE THINGIE.

BLACK CANARY: We need to get Ray back to Earth!

RICHARDS: Yes. We know.

BLACK CANARY: But the reader doesn’t! (continues to vomit expositional dialogue)

A ship full of ANTI-LIFE HENCHMEN spots them.

BLACK CANARY: Oh no!

CUT TO:

A battle on SOME CITY OR WHATEVER. Evil MARY MARVEL is beating the SHIT out of SUPERGIRL with the power of her OBNOXIOUS LIGHTNING-SHAPED CLEAVAGE.

EVIL MARY MARVEL: Hahaha! I’m really EVIL. I need to say that in case the black uniform, red hair and scowling expression aren’t enough.

BLACK ADAM: Expositional dialogue… expositional dialogue… uuurkk… expositional…

MARY MARVEL KICKS HIS FACE for no good REASON.

EVIL MARY MARVEL: HAHAHA I’m SO EVIL! (has massive orgasm)

Meanwhile, a HUMANOID TIGER is beating the shit out of another HUMANOID TIGER whose only difference to THE BEAST from the X-MEN is that he’s not BLUE.

We soon return to EVIL MARY MARVEL, who is headlocked by CAPTAIN MARVEL.

CAPTAIN MARVEL: I might be able to turn us both back to our human form!

SUPERGIRL: That’s it, TELL her your masterplan, you fucking MORON.

He succeeds nevertheless. The BEAST — I mean, the TIGER claws the OTHER TIGER’s guts out. He becomes the king of the HUMANOID TIGERS or something. We don’t GIVE A SHIT.

CUT TO:

Some CASTLE.

NO IDEA WHO THAT CHARACTER IS: These tattoos on our heads are alphabets from the New Gods!

ANOTHER UNKNOWN CHARACTER: WHAT? I didn’t even know there were NEW Gods, leave alone they have a fucking alphabet!

NO IDEA WHO THAT CHARACTER IS: Well, it protects us against the ANTI-LIFE or something.

WHOEVER THE FUCK: Sonny Sumo, Motherboxxx told me…

SONNY SUMO: Wait, who the fuck is Motherboxxx? A superhero pornstar?

More expositional dialogue ensues.

CUT TO:

The JUSTICE LEAGUE SATELLITE THINGIE. The GREEN ARROW, controlled by the ANTI-LIFE, has apparently overpowered the good guys.

GREEN ARROW: Submit to the ANTI-LIFE. Let us put this BOBA FETT helmet on your head and start reciting “all is one in Darkseid”.

BLACK CANARY: No! Ollie! You must fight this!

GREEN ARROW continues to say REALLY EVIL THINGS.

BLACK CANARY: Fuck this! Gravity OFF!

Everyone starts flying around and fighting in ZERO GRAVITY and somewhere on the planet STEPHEN HAWKING suffers a MASSIVE HEART ATTACK out of the sheer STUPIDITY of this.

CUT TO:

I have NO IDEA what happens in this scene. It has the ATOM in it. And another ATOM. Who the fuck cares.

CUT TO:

Somewhere with a red sky. LEX LUTHOR and SIVANA are watching SOMEONE DIE.

LIBRA: You betrayed us, Luthor.

LUTHOR: Sivana, quick! Press the “plot twist” button!

SIVANA does, and LUTHOR blasts the SHIT OUT OF LIBRA.

SIVANA: I don’t think he died.

LUTHOR: What? I just obliterated him.

SIVANA: This is the DC Universe, remember? Jason Voorhees is a pussy compared to anyone here.

CUT TO:

The FLASHES are talking to each other with dialogue so inane it spoofs itself.

CUT TO:

DARKSEID’S LAIR. Batman walks in from… somewhere.

DARKSEID: Batman. I expected you to show up, which makes you wonder why I tried to brainwash you at all.

BATMAN: Darkseid. I made a vow never to use guns, but in your case I’ll make an exception. This is some kind of magical bullet or whatever. It will kill you.

BATMAN shoots at point blank and manages to hit DARKSEID on the fucking SHOULDER.

BATMAN: Mmm. Maybe I should have spent some time on the target range.

LASERS shoot out of DARKSEID’S EYES and BATMAN just fucking STANDS THERE LIKE AN IDIOT until he’s KILLED.

CUT TO:

A battle in SOME CITY.

SUPERGIRL: What’s wrong? We all look different…

CAPTAIN MARVEL: It’s Doug Mahnke drawing us now.

SUPERGIRL: Who is doing the artwork on this fucking thing after all?

JIMMY OLSEN: The eunuch dwarves of Middle-Earth for all we know. (presses his watch)

SUPERMAN shows up and BLOWS SHIT UP. Issue ends with BATMAN’S CHARRED CORPSE on his ARMS.

We still don’t GIVE A SHIT.

Comic Review – The Walking Dead #56, Punisher: Warzone #3, Unknown Soldier #3, Doktor Sleepless #10 and Batman #683

(issue 56 of “Preacher” has the same kind of cover. Coincidence or homage?)

The Walking Dead #56

Written by Robert Kirkman

Art by Charlie Adlard

Gray Tones by Cliff Rathburn

Lettering by Rus Wooton

Published by Image Comics

In a nutshell: Kirkman seems to find some ground and adds an interesting subplot to what has been a terribly irregular arc. Adlard’s art and Cliffburn’s tones are as efficient as usual.

Again, I’m hoping this issue means Robert Kirkman finally found a subplot that can get this title moving again. Recently, the writer has used unlikely coincidences and events to do so, almost reducing the characters to stereotypes. In this issue, however, he introduces a new, tense problem that not only is character-driven, but also original – something difficult for an ongoing series that’s almost at sixty issues, equivalent to, not counting the delays, five years of publishing.

In the previous episode, Maggie hanged herself. I questioned the probability of Maggie actually doing that and filed it under “shock value”, but in this issue, Kirkman builds an excellent scene around the event, which serves as a base to the aforementioned tense subplot. It’s refreshing to see Rick being himself for the first time in a long time, as Michonne put it. Also, Kirkman shrouds Maggie’s decision in mystery, which indicates he has a plausible explanation (I hope) for what she did. I will say no more about this or about Maggie, because I’m coming very close to revealing a spoiler around which the first scene depends in order to be appropriately striking.

What’s important is Abraham, the new character Kirkman introduced and who seems straight out of “Gears of War”: big, manly and blunt, he’s clearly a control freak who likes to believe nobody knows as much about the situation than he does. Therefore, his face when he turns out to be so horribly wrong in a certain moment is, to Charlie Adlard’s credit, perfect. And to Kirkman’s credit, so is his behavior for the rest of the issue, right up until the final page that summarizes basically what’s wrong with the character.

Pretty much nailing the characterization and dialogue this time, Kirkman also gets the pacing right – unlike the previous issue, which was a disappointingly quick read on top of being a mediocre one as well. So once again, I repeat: I hope the writer keeps it up this time, going back to the character-driven style that made all the issues up to #51 must-reads.

As for Charlie Adlard, his art continues as consistent and narratively excellent as usual, but I did notice some carelessness. An almost hilarious example is when Rick is confronting Abraham and his gun is holstered on the right side of his waist – and Rick doesn’t have a right hand, which would make for a quite funny scene if a zombie happened to show up. But when Rick is walking away in the same scene, the holster is back on the left side. Aside from that, facial expressions and panel composition are as professional as I’ve come to expect from Adlard, and Cliff Rathburn’s grey tones cleans everything up nicely. Rus Wooton’s lettering keeps the same high standards from previous issues.

“The Walking Dead #56″ is a good read, but it doesn’t convince me the next issue will be as good. I am, however, reassured.

(couldn’t find issue three’s cover on Google Images, so that’s  issue one’s)

Punisher: Warzone #3

Written by Garth Ennis

Art by Steve Dillon

Colors by Matt Hollingsworth

(I think I just squealed out of sheer awesome – it’s the “Preacher” team!)

Lettering by VC’s Cory Petit

Published by Marvel Knights

In a nutshell: Ennis, Dillon and Hollingsworth. Do I really need to say more?

This mini-series came as a complete surprise to me. I had no idea Ennis and Dillon were briefly returning to their darkly hilarious Marvel Knights’ Punisher ongoing. For a second, I thought it was a half-assed adaptation of the film until I saw their names on the cover, and Matt Hollingsworth to boot. Obviously, I smiled like an idiot at that sight. Although I most definitely prefer the Max version of the character, Ennis’ previous Punisher was still one of the best dark comedy ongoings in the industry – I’ll never, ever forget the classic scene Frank Castle runs over Wolverine with a steamroller (“This’ll do the trick”), or uses Spider-Man as a human shield against The Russian (who, by the way, has a huge pair of tits in that very scene).

So to see a sequel to the classic Punisher maxisseries that pretty much ressurrected the character from his disastrous “Angelic Avenger” portrayal is really satisfying, especially when it (sort of) brings back a great villain: Ma Gnucci. In the previous issues, Frank saw the return of the wretched bitch, whom he had crippled – leaving only a head and a torso, but still alive – and posteriorly kicked into a mansion on fire, watching until he was sure she’d died. So it came as a bit of a surprise when, in the first issue, she appeared in a Gnucci reunion. Once again proving why he’s the best Punisher writer ever, Ennis promptly made Frank bazooka the fuck out of her and everyone around her, killing her instantly – Frank Castle was never one to let surprise cloud his judgement. But apparently, she had been seen again another location afterwards. Confused, Castle tries to get to the bottom of this as he works with an informant who’s undercover in the Gnucci family in exchange for his life when the job’s done. Meanwhile, the son of aristocrat vigilante Elite is determined to carry on his father’s work: assassinating the Punisher.

Establishing the light, cruelly funny tone of the book right in the first page that recollects everything that happened up to this point, Ennis is clearly just having fun here doing his trip down memory lane, and he’s ever so happy to let us in on the ride. The dialogue is sharp as you’d expect from him and the characterizations are, as usual, the story’s main strenght – since The Punisher himself is not exactly the deepest guy in the world, the supporting characters need to be interesting so we’ll care about the story. Case in point, the undercover agent Frank’s using, Schitti, is immediately likable – and the nagging doubt on whether the Punisher will let him live or not is always present. While the unforgettable lieutenant Martin Soap is not present, the lesbian detective Von Richthofen is, and her personal struggles with her bissexual girlfriend is one of the book’s highlights. The new Elite is as funny as the previous one, and his captions are priceless in their spoiled little aristocratic rants. It’s impressive how Ennis easily goes back to the style of his MK Punisher series, which ended about five years ago.

And then we have Steve Dillon, a brilliant artist whose style I’ve come to nearly worship. Some say his characters all look alike, but that’s just pointless nitpicking – if you pay attention, most artists who don’t use reference have characters that look alike – even the phenomenal John Cassaday suffers from this. What really matters about Dillon’s art is the perfect visual narrative – clear angles, excellent facial expressions, an immediate compatibility with Ennis’ writing. I thought he was severely underestimated for his “Wolverine: Origins” work – he was one of the few good things in that title. Also, I always liked Dillon’s clean lines. In this mini-series, he’s particularly inspired and comfortable with the action scenes and especially, the humor.

Finally, Matt Hollingsworth, a hugely talented color artist who is clearly satisfied to be working with Dillon again. Notice how he nails the lighting in the graveyard scene, and the blur he adds when someone shoots in order to simulate the gun’s recoil. Dillon, too, gets Castle’s shooting stance perfectly – it’s not easy to draw a machinegun shooting stance due to it’s complex nature: butt of the gun on shoulder, one hand on the trigger, the other on the grip, eyes lined up with ironsights – tricky. But he does it. I’m just unsure whether it’s correct to close one eye while shooting – I hear it’s wrong not to aim with both eyes open.

Entertaining and nostalgic, “Punisher: Warzone #3″ is a fun trip. When it comes to me – as must know by now – the more Ennis, the better. And it’s weekly, too.

(couldn’t find issue three’s cover, would you believe. So that one is… dunno. One of the covers.)

Unknown Soldier #3

Written by Joshua Dysart

Art by Alberto Ponticelli

Colors by Oscar Celestini

Lettering by Clem Robins

Published by DC\Vertigo

In a nutshell: One of the best single issues of 2008. Holy SHIT.

“Unknown Soldier #3″ can already be considered one of the best single issues of 2008.  Despite Alberto Ponticelli’s weak artwork, the narrative is strong and relentless, not afraid of showing children being murdered and the complex nature of Uganda’s war. It dissects the nature of the country’s violence via the eyes of an apparently psychotic man, Lwanga Moses – the new Unknown Soldier.

In this issue, Moses fails to pull the trigger when necessary and is captured by the L.R.A. (Lord’s Resistance Army) and sees, up close, how disgusting and rotten it all is when he meets with the leader of the particular cell he’s been captured by – a man who casually says he’s a friend of Jesus Christ, but sees no problem in brainwashing children and using them as soldiers – or little girls as wives for these soldiers. It’s, at the same time, painful to witness how Moses is starting to depend on the dark side of his personality – the one who, so far inexplicably, guides him in battle. Reaching a perfect balance, Dysart exposes the rotten nature of religion while he shows some of the goodness it may inspire, like sister Sharon’s struggle to save the children.

But his story isn’t mere propaganda – it’s strongly based and written, with excellent dialogue and brilliant use of violence to cause necessary shock. And the last page is heartbreaking, even in Ponticelli’s under-developed pencils, for what it portrays alone.

Ponticelli is, as already mentioned, lost. His narrative is comprehensible, but his lines are sketchy and indecisive, without the necessary weight a story like this requires. Colorist Oscar Celestini gets the tones right, but his simplistic palette doesn’t help Ponticelli’s art in the slightest – this is a book someone like Goran Parlov would be immensely comfortable drawing, and I hope the next arc brings a better-suited artist to handle it.

Brave and poignant, “Unknown Soldier #3″ establishes Joshua Dysart as a very, very promising graphic novellist. If this arc continues on this path, it will even surpass Ennis’ Unknown Soldier mini-series – and that is pretty much the highest compliment I can offer.

Doktor Sleepless #10

Written by Warren Ellis

Art by Ivan Rodriguez

Colors by Andrew Dalhouse

Published by Avatar Press

In a nutshell: Even if Warren Ellis hasn’t been as sharp as usual, Dok Sleepless continues to be an intriguing and well-written ongoing – especially in this excellent issue.

In order to build the mythology around his titular character, Warren Ellis (aka Internet Jesus, Love Swami and other nicknames used by the people on his criminally fun social network) has taken a step back from the protagonist and is now portraying Heavenside, the city he lives in – or haunts, depending on who you are. As he does that, he also builds the central mystery of the book: who the fuck IS Doktor Sleepless? Is he good? Is he evil? What’s his ultimate plan? Who’s he using?

In issue #10, we are introduced to Alex Singer, a dirty-mouthed detective who mantains an unpolite (but playful) relationship with her superior – a subtle touch in characterization that adds to the characters’ individuality, an aspect I’ve been giving Ellis shit about in my reviews of late, saying his characters sound too much like the man himself (check out his Astonishing X-Men run, for an example). So it’s nice to see people who seem less like Ellis’ creations and more like… well, people. This detective in particular ends up with Dr. Albert Cannon, who just attempted to shank a reporter called Sarah Berlin. As she interrogates him, she finds out surprising truths about the man – and a final, horrible truth surrounding him and the captain of the police, the all-powerful Preston Stoker – so powerful, in fact, he can afford to talk about himself in the third person without being called on it.

The dialogue is priceless this time around. I especially like when a policeman says Cannon has been getting treatment for his burns, Alex asks what kind of treatment and he answers “Pointing and laughing, mostly”. But the winning line is most definitely when Alex asks Cannon: “You were going to stab Sarah Berlin with the same knife you used to stab Gregory Shale. Why?” and he replies “Well, it was the only knife I had”. THIS is the Warren Ellis I love reading. Clever and sharp without losing sight of characterization. A especially brilliant moment is when a character slaps another – something that comes unexpectedly and conveys the gravity of the situation.

Ivan Rodriguez improves with each issue. His visual narrative is stylish and his characters have interesting design. In an issue that consists mostly of indoor settngs, he captures the feel just right, choosing good angles and shadowing to keep the scene interesting, as if the dialogue alone wasn’t enough. Andrew Dalhouse’s coloring is appropriate and pretty.

Intriguing and well-written, “Doktor Sleepless #10″ raises the standards of this series. It’s not a great ongoing yet, but most definitely a solid one.

Okay, okay. I’ll behave.

Batman #683

Written by (sigh) Grant Morrison

Art by Lee Garb -- oh, c’mon.

“Soul-killing shells”. I admired the structure of the previous issue, but this one is just more of the same with absolutely horrible, expositional dialogue and it hammers the same point: Batman is awesome. He’s the strongest, the smartest, he thinks of EVERYTHING yeah yeah I know. Anyway, I’m glad it’s over. Morrison’s run was a fucking disaster for the character – all it added of new sucked, with the only exception being the Joker’s new visual, which is interesting and less goofy.

I’m not going to waste any more time saying the same things I’ve been saying for the last five reviews or so.

Comic Review – Crossed #02, The Boys #25 and Batman #682

Crossed #02

Written by Garth Ennis

Art by Jacen Burrows

Colors by Juanmar

Published by Avatar Press

In a nutshell: realistic, ruthless and brave, it pushes the boundaries of the genre with its fully intelligent but utterly psychotic “zombies” while never forgetting the human factor and the little subtle narrative nuances.

One of the many reasons I consider Avatar the best comics publisher in the industry today is that they give full creative freedom to the writers. It’s wonderful to see talented people like Warren Ellis and Garth Ennis being given room to fully develop their concepts however the fuck they want to, and it’s stuff like this that makes a book like “Crossed” possible. After all, it’s about creatures that go far beyond the mere label of zombie. They THINK, they SCHEME, they do everything in their power to kill people in the most horrible, evil way possible – they even turn on themselves from time to time, as this issue implies, simply to satisfy their overwhelming need to hurt. They’re fascinating and much more threatening than the typical zombie – which makes the small group of humans followed by this issue more vulnerable to our eyes.

Always a master in developing his characters (especially through dialogue), Ennis writes scenes that are powerful in their simplicity, being capable of conveying feelings in a single panel, like the moment Stan offers Cindy’s son a piggyback ride, or when Stan and his friend desperately try to make “fuck you” sound as shocking and rude as it did before the crossed appeared. And it’s touching to see Stan smile, almost amused, when he sees the crossed doing something that brings a fun memory back to his mind – even if it’s the crossed doing it.

Cindy is captivating due to the wall she builds around herself – and the characters acknowledge this (“Minimal use of personal pronouns”, one of them says). But that is counterbalanced by her son, who she tries to protect in every way possible – to the point of prohibiting people to curse in front of him, even as the world around him goes to hell. The characters are compelling and human, which just makes it sadder when the crossed manage to get to them somehow.

At the same time, Ennis never holds back when it comes to portraying the world around them – be it via flashbacks or present events. There’s a particularly striking moment involving a car parking lot, that is almost morbidly poetic. There’s quite a lot of blood and guts, which not only is more than appropriate for a story like this – they’re well-balanced with the narrative in order to paint a truly depressing, suffocating picture of post-apocalypse. And intriguing, too: after all, what ARE the crossed?

Jacen Burrows’ art- suitably colored by Juanmar with dark, melancholic tones – is superb as usual. I’d go as far as to rival his visual narrative with Steve Dillon’s, and that’s the greatest compliment I can offer an illustrator in that aspect. In the other aspects, he also does exceedingly well. His facial expressions are spot-on (the crossed always look raving mad) and the violence is realistic even when completely explicit – a good example would be a headshot that, instead of blowing the whole back of the head out, blows a simple hole – and it isn’t less shocking because of that. Burrows is especially talented with backgrounds and perspective – never failing to place the characters in a proper environment.

“Crossed #02″ is another excellent issue of the series. I always wanted to read a zombie story by Garth Ennis, and I’m glad he’s not limiting himself to the conventions of the genre.

The Boys #25

Written by Garth Ennis

Art by Darick Robertson

Colors by Tony Avina

Lettering by Simon Bowland

Published by Dynamite Entertainment

In a nutshell: funny, entertaining and relatively rich, it keeps the high standard of the series.

A word people don’t use to describe Garth Ennis is “subtle”. Except for me, of course. Just pay attention to the conversation this issue starts with. Notice how the man from Vought-American and the other character thank the waiter all the time. These are men who are clearly complete bastards – and yet, they thank a waiter for every drink he brings them. What immediately sprang to my mind was “bullshitters”. No need for an entire scene to prove this point – just a line of dialogue.

After that intriguing conversation (which serves as foreshadowing), we are better introduced to Goldolkin’s G-Men – and Garth Ennis went wild with his satire. I absolutely love his version of Wolverine (“GONNA!”) and Professor Henry McCoy (known here as “Critter”). But these spoofs take a backseat to the story, fortunately, and it’s nice to see Hughie in action, planting the bugs like the professional he’s quickly becoming. Always compelling, he also shares the reactions of the reader – like his bewilderment at seeing his “mates” entertaining themselves in front of a home theather. I also like how the Female got a panel of her own, hanging upside-down, which made me wonder – why was the “camera” focused on her? More foreshadowing, possibly. I love that. Also, notice how Frenchie can give Butcher a sitrep simply by glancing at The Female’s reactions, and you’ll see how smoothly they work together.

We also get more insight on Mother’s Milk and his new friend, Roger. Especially, on how Mother’s Milk got involved with the Boys in the first place (“His war turned into my war.”). And, of course, Monkey makes a fantastic appearance that builds up to an absolutely perfect final page.

Darick Robertson’s art is brilliantly sharp. Putting special effort on facial expressions (Butcher’s face in the last page is magnificent), Robertson emphasizes the humor and the nuances, always using little hints and touches to further develop the characters (notice Hughie’s eyebrows, constantly arched in surprised, as opposed to the rest of the Boys, who are way more experienced). Tony Avina’s coloring once again fails to disappoint, and Simon Bowland’s lettering is efficient – maybe because there’s no Legend in this issue (that font size thing does bother me).

An excellent week for a Garth Ennis fan like myself.

Batman #682

Written by Grant Morrison

Art by Lee Garbett

Inked by Trevor Scott

Colors by Guy Major

Lettering by Jared K. Fletcher

Published by DC Comics

In a nutshell: a surprisingly good – yes, I said GOOD – issue. Sadly, it comes after a world of shit consisting of pretty much all the previous ones.

Considering the things I say against Grant Morrison in this blog, you’d think he raped my childhood hamster or something. But no, my opinion toward Morrison is sincere  – as a writer, he is incredibly overrated. But ocasionally, I see a true hint of brilliance – like in the good “WE3″, or the haunting “Arkham Asylum” (which, sadly, suffered from a poor ending – with the glorious exception of Joker’s final line. Something like: “There will always be a place for you here.”). And I’m more than happy to acknowledge when I think a writer does a good job – I take no pleasure in hating a person’s work.

In this issue, we follow Batman in a dreamlike, disjointed plot spanning his career as the dark knight. While this could be a complete mess, Morrison manages to keep it fluid and interesting – and there’s a particular line of dialogue that’s simply brilliant, when Alfred wonders what would have happened if nothing had flown through the window in the night Bruce Wayne decided to become Batman (let’s just say it involves a curtain). It’s comfortably nostalgic to read this issue, and the revelation in the ending – while a bit predictable – points toward an interesting new direction that will – hopefully – redeem a bit of Morrison’s horrible run on the character. There’s some typical Morrison bullshit here and there – like the ridiculously pretentious dialogue the villains insist in uttering as though they’re reciting Shakespeare – but this time, the writer strikes the right tone.

There’s also a small moment that’s almost poetic – when we see Thomas Wayne telling Bruce that a “grinning mental patient” poisoned the water reservoir because there was no-one to stop him. This illustrates one of the most interesting ironies in Batman’s history: that Batman doesn’t know that, if he had never existed, neither would the Joker. As Alan Moore brilliantly showed us in “The Killing Joke”, Batman was vital to create his own nemesis. And to this day, Batman doesn’t know that – an ignorance that this scene cleverly portrays.

The art is narratively effective, even if it’s miles below Tony Daniel’s work. I would have liked to see Daniel illustrating an actual good script by Morrison, but unfortunately that’s not the case, so here’s hoping the next script will keep up the quality of this one – which is not mind-blowing, but it’s definitely above-average. Still, the art has some good moments (like the double splash-page that starts this issue) and Guy Major’s coloring is typically excellent.

I’m glad to read a good piece of work by Morrison – as crazy as that might sound coming from me.

Comic Review – Batman #681, The Walking Dead #55 and Unknown Soldier #2

(Shame to see such a beautiful cover wasted on this piss-poor issue)

Batman #681

Written by Grant Morrison

Art by Tony Daniel

Inks by Sandu Florea

Colors by Guy Major

Letters by Jared K. Fletcher

Published by DC Comics

In a nutshell: superb art, fucking disastrous script.

One of the things that makes Batman such a fascinating character is that he’s human. He’s got no superpowers, just highly-trained body and mind. He’s not capable of lifting a car or running at lightspeed. All that he’s capable of doing, he had to practice to exhaustion, and still he’s limited by his own humanity, making him vulnerable and therefore more interesting.

And here’s Grant Morrison’s Batman benchpressing his way out of a coffin buried beneath six hundred pounds of loose soil (after casually getting rid of a straitjacket and dealing with the locks) and switching two cups full of liquid in the time it takes for one to blink. So, as far as I’m concerned, Morrison can stick his version of Batman up his self-important arse.

Apparently, it wasn’t enough that the plot sucked. I mean, a villain who claims to be Batman’s father? Seriously? Has Morrison reached a point where he’s getting inspiration from Star Wars to write BATMAN? And as if THAT wasn’t enough, the Black Glove – as the villain calls himself -, is one of these sophisticated villains who talks as if he has a theather audience in front of him, making sure every line of dialogue is solemn and – most importantly – staggeringly stupid.

The Joker at least shines for a small moment, when he uses a “box” to metaphor Batman’s methods, but Morrison proceeds to drop Joker from the plot in the most ridiculous, casual way possible – the one character who was actually interesting in “Batman RIP”. Well, at least the writer didn’t KILL Joker as I feared he would.

Problem is, Morrison kills Batman – not the character, but his essence. Not even Frank Miller – known for his badass heroes and for having gone completely nuts recently – has gone as far as Morrison has in this issue (at least not that I know of): Batman simply pushes his way out of a coffin. Just like that. And the writer makes SURE to add this line, just to make it all more absurd: “Benchpressing a pine coffin lid through 600 pounds of loose soil that’s filling your mouth, crushing your lungs flat and shredding your dehydrated muscles? That’s harder. But far from impossible.” Sure. One can also breathe in space if he concentrates hard enough, you know. Morrison should have gone further and added, “BECAUSE I’M THE GODDAMN BATMAN”. And this is far from being the only example of “super-batman” in this issue: apparently, Bruce Wayne is also capable of carrying antidotes to all the poisons in the world in his chest pocket, and switching two cups full of liquid… in the time… it takes… for one… to blink… for fuck’s… sake. And to think Morrison constantly mocks Miller – well, I’m sorry to break it to you, Grant: as crazy as he is now, Miller has been more important to comics than YOU will ever be. So stop talking out of your arse and let the man do his Batman vs. Al Qaeda book – who knows, it might turn out – against all odds, I have to admit – to be truly interesting. As unlikely as that sounds.

All right, all right – I don’t really BELIEVE a book called “Holy Terror, Batman!” will mean Frank Miller’s return to form. Quite the contrary, actually. But fuck it, the point is Morrison has no room to talk about Miller judging from this ridiculous issue. Moving on…

While Morrison’s busy jerking off to himself, Tony Daniel really does a great job in the art. Helped by Sandu Florea’s meticulous inking and Guy Major’s excellent color scheme (I like the black, white and red in the flashbacks, even if the flashbacks themselves are ridiculous), Daniel nails most facial expressions and the characters. Jezebel Jet is truly beautiful (WAY more beautiful than Andy Kubert’s version) and the Joker always looks raving mad. Daniel’s only fault is on the pages Batman shows up in a big panel, since the artist insists on making his cape billow around him unrealistically – instead of looking badass, it actually looks pretty funny, like there’s a fan blowing right behind Batman.

It’s sad to see such a great character having his greatest aspects anally raped by a writer who considers himself more talented than he actually is. The more I read Grant Morrison’s work, the more convinced I am he’s the most overrated creator of his generation.

(An uninspired cover to an uninspired issue)

The Walking Dead #55

Written by Robert Kirkman

Art by Charlie Adlard

Grey Tones by Cliff Rathburn

Letters by Rus Wooton

Published by Image Comics

In a nutshell: too many pages wasted with bullshit we already knew, and a cliffhanger that manages to lack any impact due to how obvious it is a cheap attempt to shock.

About a fourth of this issue revolves around a dream Rick has, in which he feels guilty for failing to protect his family. After that, more than a fourth of it revolves around Rick talking on the phone with his dead wife, who he feels guilty for not having been able to protect.

Yes. Alright. I fucking get it.

How much longer is Kirkman going to hammer this into our minds? “Rick feels guilty, Rick feels guilty, Rick feels really fucking guilty”, yes yes we know time to see how the other characters are doing. However, Kirkman neglects the other characters, which is why the final page is completely unexpected, but not in a good way. Instead of feeling like something truly sad, it feels like Kirkman’s desperate to cause some shock on the reader, and simply flushes a character down the toilet out of nowhere. The one new thing this issue adds is a zombie that is weak and apparently sick – nothing mind-blowing in the slightest.

Even the dialogue Rick has with his dead wife – usually interesting – turns out to be just more of the same. “You’re dead, right? You’re not real blah blah blah”. That’s been so used in recent issues that her death is losing its impact. In fact, this whole series is starting to decline horribly. I already mentioned the ridiculous coincidences in previous episodes, and while issue 54 gave me a glimpse of how great Walking Dead usually is, this one just tripped and fell face down in dogshit. It’s a quick read, and most of it is wasted with obvious plot elements that have been developed enough already. Which is not to say there aren’t some good lines (“I guess I’ve convinced myself” is the one clever moment in Rick’s conversation with his wife), but overall it’s mediocre.

Charlie Adlard’s art is efficient as usual, with the same great visual narrative and shadowing. In fact, it’s the only thing besides the title that makes me remember I’m reading a “The Walking Dead” issue at all. Cliff Rathburn’s grey tones, similarly, are good and Rus Wooton’s lettering is clear and sharp.

I truly hope this series gets back up. I didn’t read fifty excellent issues just to be let down now.

(Shame to see such a great issue with this absolutely horrible cover)

Unknown Soldier #2

Written by Joshua Dysart

Art by Alberto Ponticelli

Colors by Oscar Celestini

Lettering by Clem Robins

Published by DC/Vertigo

In a nutshell: Warren Ellis sums it up perfectly on the cover of this issue: “This is an immensely brave, ruthless and intelligent piece of work. You need to read it.” I second that.

This is what I want to see in comics. Mature writing that packs a truly good punch about something revelant. Garth Ennis – a writer that, as you probably know by now, I can’t praise enough – wrote a phenomenal mini-series long ago called “Unknown Soldier” – about a nameless, faceless soldier who single-handedly kept alive everything that was wrong with the USA from World War Two to present days. Now, it’s up to Joshua Dysart to bring the character back, lived by a different protagonist and in a different setting: Northern Uganda.

In the previous issue, main character Lwanga Moses lost it and carved up his own face trying to shut up a voice he kept hearing in his head and that made him brutally kill armed children. Now, under the care of a nun and with his face completely bandaged, he tries to understand what turned him into a murderer out of nowhere – and how to go back to his wife, Sera, who’s in a village far from him unaware of what happened. But while that’s the main plot, Dysart cleverly deviates from it in order to introduce the environment where it happens. The scene in which kids find an unconscious Lwanga Moses is incredibly uneasy – not only due to the ever-disturbing sight of a child with a machinegun, but also to how he uses it to intimidate his friends. And this issue brings one of the most powerful lines I’ve had the pleasure of reading in comics as of late: when Lwanga listens to a kid telling him how she got a scar and lost her sister, he thinks “I can never get over the ‘matter-of-fact’ way children in the North tell their stories.” In fact, dialogue is something Joshua Dysart seems to be talented with (“I’m a lover sans frontieres, baby”).

While Dysart nails the nature of the place this story happens in, he also treats the Unknown Soldier with the necessary respect and fascination – dedicating half of a page to a panel where we see Lwanga Moses’ bandaged face for the first time. There’s also a good deal of mystery – who is the voice in Moses’ head? And what are the flashbacks he glimpses?

Alberto Ponticelli’s art is far from being as good as Killian Plunkett’s (from Ennis’ mini-series), but it’s still efficient and clear. A little too sketchy for its own good, but certainly sharper than in the previous issue, wherein Lwanga Moses’ destroyed face was drawn in such a simplified way it lost most of its impact. Oscar Celestini’s colors also lack a more complex scheme, but they work. And Clem Robins’ lettering is flawless – it’s really hard to criticize the guy who lettered “Preacher”.

“Unknown Soldier #2″ is powerful, promising and highly recommended. Vertigo is easily the greatest comics imprint of all-time, and I’m glad to be reading it again after a long time (although I hear Andy Diggle’s run on Hellblazer is being really good – I might check it out).

Comics Review – Batman #680, No Hero #1 and Doktor Sleepless #9

Batman #680

Written by Grant Morrison

Art by Tony Daniel, inked by Sandu Florea

Colors by Guy Major

In a nutshell: a very pretty trainwreck.

There is no doubt this is the best issue of Batman R.I.P. yet, nor there is any doubt that it’s still weak. Unfortunately, Morrison didn’t see how ridiculous the entire idea was: a Batman dressed like Robin acting like an imbecile with extra-dimensional IMPS as his conscience. R.I.P. has failed to come up with an unpredictable twist so far. Really, guess who betrays Batman in the end. Not to mention that twat Damian – Batman’s ohgodithurtstowritethis SON – returns in this issue.

Jezebel is in danger, and Batman needs to invade the Black Glove’s mansion in order to save her and put an end to all this. In there, the Joker (or something like him) awaits.

One of the few things I liked about Morrison’s run was a redesign of the Joker, one of my favorite villains. At first, I liked his even more disfigured face and new clothes, but now Morrison’s trying to hard to turn him into Sweeney Todd – and in this issue, he has some of the worst lines he was ever forced to say. Aside from mentioning “Holmes and Moriarty, Sylvester and Tweety” and other references to allude to his conflict with Batman (when the fuck did The Joker become rational and culture-aware like this?), he also says:

“No, Batman, that’s just wikipedia.”

SERIOUSLY. Now this has to be the most pathetic pop culture reference ever seen in a comic book, especially considering WHO utters it. And it’s ridiculous how the Joker can be rational when talking to Batman, but out of nowhere he decides to slice his own tongue in half. The Black Glove continues to be a unintentionally hilarious villain, with his pompous talk and good manners that resemble about a thousand other villains and buttfucks originality.

Morrison is lost when it comes to parallel narratives as well. We get a single panel of Le Bossu wandering down a corridor saying “look at what he did to my face”, only to return to the other narrative without any clarifications at all. And it’s a small panel, tucked among others, for no other reason than adding a desperate cliffhanger.

And as I already mentioned, the betrayal at the end is as surprising as finding out Batman is Bruce Wayne. “No shit”, I said when I saw it.

Fortunately, Tony Daniel’s superb artwork makes up for Morrison’s mediocre script. His style looks like a beautiful mixture of Jim Lee and Andy Kubert. His Joker is simply perfect, and you can almost forgive his hideous lines when you look at his eyes and his smile. And even if the panel where the betrayal is revealed is not surprising at all, the expression on the betrayer’s face is impeccable. With flawless inks by Sandu Florea, Daniel seems to know what he’s doing better than Morrison himself, and Guy Major’s colors add a disturbing aura to the whole thing.

Just a shame Morrison is not up to the extremely talented art team, and screws up with a plot that relies solely on shock value (“LOOK I AM SLICING MY TONGUE!!”) and two fucking colors.

Let’s see if a truly shocking twist shows up in the next and final issue. Also, if somehow Morrison decides to kill the Joker to add more shock value, it’ll be proved he’s a self-indulgent, arrogant writer who believes his run was such a masterpiece he could kill a character like the Joker in the end of it. I say this because the way the Joker is slicing his own body all the time, he won’t survive for too long.

NO HERO #1

Written by Warren Ellis

Art by Juan Jose Ryp

Colors by Digikore Studios

In a nutshell: more of the same.

It’s funny that, when working at a publisher that gives complete creative freedom, Warren Ellis chooses to hit the same note of “superheroes in the real world”. I sat back and enjoyed “Black Summer” despite an unsurprising ending, but now I can’t help feeling that, despite different plot elements, “No Hero” is just more of the same. While Garth Ennis is exploring Avatar’s creative freedom to write the kind of stories he couldn’t in other publishers (a western, a tale about the anti-christ, a zombie story), Ellis seems to still be interested in the superhero genre, and his other projects – with the exception of Doktor Sleepless – are flat and uncompelling, like the first issue of Anna Mercury.

Not that Ellis has suddenly lost his appeal or anything – he’s an absolutely brilliant writer. I’m a fan of his work, which is why I’m being so exigent. So far I haven’t seen a truly original comic by Ellis in Avatar except for Wolfskin, which should have more issues. The Warren Ellis I know and love is in Crécy, it’s partly in Doktor Sleepless. Because Warren Ellis is not conventional, and this is what “No Hero” is shaping up to be.

“No Hero” tries to establish vigilantism as part of the United States’ history, and Carrick Masterson as one of its most influential figures, the leader of The Frontline. That’s when Joshua Carver, an aspiring superhero, does his best to get Masterson’s attention, by patrolling the streets at night and violently disposing of muggers and rapists.

It looks like this book wants to be not about heroes or villains, but the grey area in between them. But the things seen in this first issue make the following ones very predictable. I’ll make some guesses, see if they come true: Carrick Masterson will turn out to be a man capable of anything, who’ll introduce Joshua Carver to the Frontline and then disappoint Carver with his lack of morals. Carver himself will be the naive idealist guy who learns a lesson in how the world really is. The green-haired girl will either be his love interest or Masterson’s right hand.

Juan Jose Ryp’s art is gorgeous as usual, oozing detail. His narrative storytelling and facial expressions, though, could still use some more effort, since neither of which have any subtlety. And why is it that every time Carver hits someone, what looks like sand explodes from the spot he hit? Is his power to cover everyone in sand or something, or has Digikore Studios fucked up the colors, which are far from having the same brilliance of Greg Waller or Mark Sweeney?

All in all, “No Hero” is, so far, a conventional superhero story. I’m still waiting to be surprised by a truly original concept. When it comes to “superheroes” in a historical setting, Garth Ennis is already doing that in “The Boys”.

Doktor Sleepless #9

Written by Warren Ellis

Art by Ivan Rodriguez

Colors by Andrew Dalhouse

In a nutshell: despite a lack of character voice, “Book Two” starts off intriguing and powerful.

Another thing I think has become a problem to Warren Ellis is the concept of character voice: make all your characters unique, and not extensions of yourself. And this is something that curses the first pages of this issue, when the new protagonist, a culture blogger, types up a blog entry and her writing style is incredibly llke Ellis’ writing style – I know because I receive his Bad Signal e-mails and I read his blog. I particularly highlight this bit: “Jesus, it looks awful. Like someone chopped some meat off a hobo, dipped it in cigarette ash and rubbed it all over everything.”

But when she gets off the train and walks around post-Doktor Sleepless Heavenside, the story becomes intriguing once again. The Doktor himself never appears in this issue, just the supporting characters. It’s a good way to set up what’s coming next, and to surround him in an aura of mistery and danger. Also, the blogger becomes more interesting as the story progresses, with the introduction of a new character who calls himself “Big. On account of my huge cock.”

Ivan Rodriguez’s art is getting better and better every issue. His lines are more firm, his shadows are less sketchy, and his visual narrative is, as usual, excellent. His portrayal of Heavenside truly LOOKS like someone chopped some meat off a hobo, dipped it in cigarette ash and rubbed it over everything. And that’s a compliment. Andrew Dalhouse’s colors are pretty and also clever: notice how he colors the blogger in brighter tones, to set her apart from Heavenside’s grayish environments.

“Doktor Sleepless #9″ is off to a good start. I just hope Ellis can stop adding his sarcasm and his cynism to all his characters as he’s been doing of late.

Comic Review – The Punisher #62, The Walking Dead #52, All-Star Superman #12 and oh dear God All Star Batman and Robin #10

Cut the half smile, Dave Johnson, and we’ve got a good cover here.

The Punisher #62

Written by Gregg Hurwitz

Art by Laurence Campbell

Colors by Lee Loughridge

In a nutshell: a vast improvement over the previous issue. The plot becomes more interesting and Hurwitz proves he’s got his own vision of the Punisher, and it’s a promising one.

I have to say I had little hope this arc would improve after its weak debut, but I couldn’t be happier to see that I was wrong. What at first seemed like a run-of-the-mill storyline reveals itself to be deeper and more interesting, something The Punisher would be happy to work on. Now that Frank Castle is in the small border city of Tierra Rota, in Mexico, he tries to help the locals find out who are the people that are kidnapping women and dumping them days later with their backs stitched and eyes removed, and why.

Hurwitz’s narrative is much better, fast-paced but not too much. His version of Frank Castle differs from Ennis’ on some points: Hurwitz’s Castle is constantly seeing his family and he’s got a very dry sense of humor. He’s psychologically less balanced then Ennis’ version, which more or less justifies his impulsiveness on the final pages of this issue. But unlike Matt Fraction, Hurwitz doesn’t push it, keeping his Punisher believable and intriguing. Also, he preserves two things from Ennis’ run: Castle’s brutality and the way he doesn’t back away from sex – which he sees as a relief from his constant state of anger.

The dialogue is also good, with some dry moments of humor – like a character’s response when Castle asks him if he has any medical expertise. Hurwitz also cleverly uses the dialogue to explain the plot without any obvious exposition – and the kidnappers’ methods are truly terrifying. There’s also a drug addict who steals every scene he’s in and we’re introduced to two of the villains – neither of them very remarkable or original, but they don’t appear much so it’s early to judge.

Laurence Campbell’s art is a mix of Daniel Zezelj and Sean Phillips – without the mediocrity and absurd lack of detail of the former but also without the good visual narrative of the latter. Some pages had to be read twice so I could truly understand what was going on – but Campbell nails some moments, like the final page. He just needs to make what’s going on clearer, and adding more detail to his art would be a good start. Lee Loughridge’s colors convey the mood very well and the tones he uses are very-well chosen. And Cory Petit’s lettering, as usual, gives no reason at all for complaints. Dave Johnson’s cover is way better than the previous, but the Punisher’s slight smile holds it back from true greatness.

All in all, a vast improvement. I’m not expecting Ennis-quality from this new run on The Punisher – that would be unfair with the new talent on board. If they do their best to give their readers good stories, I’ll be happy – and this one is on the right path for now.

GUESS WHO’S BACK

The Walking Dead #52

Written by Robert Kirkman

Art by Charlie Adlard

Grey Tones by Cliff Rathburn

In a nutshell: far from the brilliance of the previous issue and a quick read, but still holds as a great character-driven narrative despite a convenient deus ex machina and an unlikely cliffhanger.

It’s hard to describe the story of this issue – as it is with all issues of this series – because the story moves on depending on its characters. So anything I say could be a spoiler.

Kirkman is revealing an annoying tendency for unecessary splash pages that take up precious space from the story and make it a quicker read than it should be. And their epicness only make the moments they portray more awkward: one of them is a deus ex machina in which a character is brought back with an exaggerated “bang” – and the others – a double splash page followed by a splash page (!) – show two characters returning as well. So three characters find Rick and Carl in the middle of nowhere in the same issue. Talk about fucking coincidence. This lack of subtlety is not usual of Kirkman, considering it’s exactly how humane the characters are carefully portrayed as that makes them so compelling. Fortunately, the relationship between Carl and Rick continues to be well-developed, including a moment when he whispers something into Rick’s ear.

Charlie Adlard’s art is still excellent, with good use of shadows and efficient visual narrative. Adlard can work both with dialogue-driven scenes and action, with special mention for the splash pages, which are at least eye-candy. Cliff Rathburn’s grey tones are well-placed and make Adlard’s already great art even clearer, as usual.

A quick issue in which too many coincidences happen, but still a good read. Here’s hoping Kirkman can spin something out of this.

Damn good cover, Frank.

All-Star Superman #12

Written by Grant Morrison

Art by Frank Quitely

Inking and Colors by Jamie Grant

In a nutshell: This is the Superman I like reading. This is the Morrison I like reading.

I’m seeing this series being compared to Watchmen already. Of course, it had to be IGN doing the comparison, but still, what the fuck? Yes, “All-Star Superman” is a great homage to the silver-age of Superman comics. Yes, it’s compelling and fun. Yes, it’s got a huge heart. No, it doesn’t have the sheer brilliance and complex plot of “Watchmen”, so when you are done fondling Morrison’s balls like you always do, IGN reviewers, I’ll take you guys seriously.

Aniway. Beneath all the overconfidence and self-indulgence that ruins most of what Morrison writes, there is true talent. All Morrison needs to do is stop with his annoying tendency for wacky plots and ridiculous concepts (check out the zur-ehn-aar thing in his Batman run – actually, don’t). Fortunately, that tendency suits this series perfectly. In this final chapter, Superman and Luthor have a physical and mind duel as the sun slowly starts fading.

What I like about Grant Morrison’s Superman is that, unlike Frank Miller’s Superman, Kal-El is actually intelligent and a kind of God. He uses his powers to create amazing things, and Morrison’s imagination is truly vast for the things Superman comes up with. And since I mentioned Frank Miller, I’d like to tell him to go fuck himself – just didn’t want to miss the opportunity, and I’ll expand on that on the next review.

Frank Quitely’s art is beautiful, with stunning visual narrative and excellent facial expressions as always. Luthor’s face when he looks down upon a fallen Clark Kent (on the page with the title) is truly perfect. Their entire fight is masterfully illustrated by Quitely. And the last page in which Kal-El appears is magnificent, thanks also to Jamie Grant’s brilliant coloring. His colorful style was hugely important to make “All-Star Superman” the great comic it was.

This is the “Superman” I like reading. This is the Morrison I like reading. If only he could suit his writing style to every specific project he does, I’d be one of his many fans. But since everything else he’s doing right now I either hate (Batman) or am not impressed with (Final Crisis), I don’t consider him a good writer just yet. But giving credit where credit is due – “All-Star Superman” was a hell of a fun comic with a huge damn heart.

Batman: Grrrrrrrrrrr.

Robin: Hehehehe

Subtlety: ?

All-Star-Goddamn-Batman-and-Fucking Robin #10

Written by goddamn Frank Miller

Art by fucking Jim Lee

Colors by damn Alex Sinclair

In a nutshell: goddamn awful.

ABRIDGED SCRIPT FOR ALL-STAR BATMAN AND ROBIN #10

BY ANDRE NAVARRO FRANK MILLER

OPEN with a BIG DAMN SPLASH PAGE of JAMES GORDON lighting a cigarette with Gotham’s beautiful goddamn skyline as background. He’s… somewhere next to the sea and where Batman can be standing under with Robin.

CAPTION: Captain James Gordon.

CAPTION: He’s got a mustache.

CAPTION: He smokes a cigar.

CAPTION: He’s goddamn COOL.

GORDON: I am now going to talk about completely unrelated subjects to the vigilante standing right below me on this dock (NOTE: ah yes, Jim, a dock would be good!) instead of simply delivering the note I’m supposed to be delivering to him – as if he’s slightly interested in my monologue or as if I’m stupid enough to think he is. (endless stream of words, one in three are “damn”) There. Now I’ll say this note is not worth anybody’s time despite having just wasted a lot of it blabbering.

GORDON drops the note and walks away.

BIG PANEL. Now I mean BIG… no, TWO big panels! Squeeze the third in somewhere. BATMAN has the note on his hand (see how cleverly he communicates with Gordon, Jim?). Also, he’s grimacing. Robin is smiling to himself, despite having lost his family days ago. He’s in the old Robin uniform – the one with no pants and that is totally AWESOME, it goes so well with Batman’s grim costume.

BATMAN (grimacing HARD): You’re right, cop. Not worth your time. Not worth a damn to ani –

ROBIN: He’s gone, who are you talking to?

BATMAN (grimacing HARDER): Shut up.

BATMAN and ROBIN hop around the city, subways and etc. on REALLY BIG GODDAMN PANELS. They find CATWOMAN all fucked-up with her costume ripped off and all bloody. But still SEXY.

Now, BATGIRL! Note to letterer: I want all the excessive amount of swearwords I’ll use for this scene being censored in black. I think it’s VERY funny.

BATGIRL rides a skate and beats the shit out of a bunch of bad guys.

BATGIRL: I’m the fucking Batgirl!

(note from Andre: I’m serious. She actually says that in the book.)

She notices she left the injured bad guys to the mercy of a furious crowd, so she turns back to try and convince everyone to give peace a chance. A guy hits her in the jaw while pronouncing several curses. A cop arrives and puts handcuffs on her. Of course, an actual cop would worry about stopping the angry mob from killing the bad guys FIRST, but I’ve wasted too many pages with splashes already, so no time for that.

Now, BLACK CANARY. NOTHING AT ALL will happen at this sequence, Jim, it’s just her blabbering in captions about her — well, about something and using very Irish terms like “my own sweet self” and “damn”. I’ll give you plenty of excuses to draw her tits in detail.

BLACK CANARY: Blahblahblahblah my own sweet damn self blahblahblahblah

Back to GORDON. He’s in the hospital, because his wife crashed her car. The doctor is telling him how bad she is.

DOCTOR: Well, captain, she broke her ribs, one of them has punctured a lung, her face is smashed, one eye is gone, she’s got seven car parts stuck all over her body, but this is a Frank Miller comic so she should be okay in three weeks tops.

MERKEL: Captain! Your daughter has been arrested!

GORDON and BARBARA in some room. BIG panel.

CAPTION (GORDON): I want to hit her. But a guy already came close to breaking her jaw today. I’m not even mad at her because she’s being so damn BRAVE about the whole thing. “The whole thing” being dressing up in tights and punching adults while riding a skate, but still.

BARBARA: (more curses to be censored because that joke is still VERY FUNNY)

GORDON: That was wrong, Barbara.

BARBARA: Dad, why don’t you call the woman you cheated on my mom with? I’m sure that’ll help you stay sane.

GORDON on a room talking on a phone. SPLASH PAGE.

CAPTION: I have no idea how my little angel knows about this woman. Maybe I should have asked her BEFORE I came here to call her, but aniway.

TO BE GODDAMN CONTINUED…

Ah yes: fuck you, Frank Miller. Just… fuck you.