Fangirl Fridays

San Diego, here I come

I'm leaving for California on Monday morning, and I'm really excited to be covering the San Diego Comic Con for New Rage Order. Never been to Cali, never been to the SD Con. Swimsuit is ready, nice stack o' papers for various comic booky things ready, interviews with talented-types booked, kitty-care arrangements still not solid.

Measured chaos in Casa Del Superheroine. But excitement too.

Yes, I realize I'm the same person who blogged something under the title "Goodbye To Comics" about nine months ago.

It's so funny, years ago I tried so hard to color within the lines, to plan my comic career out in detail, do everything that people said I needed to do in order to "make it." But everything I've truly gotten of value -- the gig I have now, this blog, you wonderful readers, and especially my Mr. G. -- I've got by just being my true self and rolling with it.

And that's what I'm going to do in my San Diego coverage.

Of course, for all the scheduled interviews and whatnot, the coolest stuff will probably be spontaneous, slice-of-life, etc. Just like that wonderful "Hogan Knows Best" show on VH1.


A lot of damn comics

Impending major trip not withstanding, this week in comics almost killed my bank account:

Purchased:
Legion Of Monsters: Morbius
Legion of the Superheroes In The 31st Century #4
All Flash #1
Justice League Of America #11
Amazing Spider-Girl #10
Captain America #28
World War Hulk #2
Avengers: The Initiatve #4
Super-Villain Team Up #1
The Order #1
Mystic Arcana: The Black Knight
Thunderbolts: Desperate Measures
Giant-Size Marvel Adventures The Avengers #1
Avengers Classic #2
Annihiliation Conquest: Quasar #1
Alter Ego Magazine #70

Yes, a stack so high even the clerk at the comic shop raised an eyebrow; though I explained I was purchasing for two. Luckily the tastes of me and Significant Other overlap to some extent, though sadly not when it comes to "Archie" & Rob Zombie movies.


All-Flash #1: An Assessment


1. The cover is unfortunate. Not a knock on Sienkiewicz's art, it's just that it's a moody piece with a terrible photoshoppy "cosmic" background. Would have done much better to use the splash page of the actual issue.

2. Karl Kerschl's art -- with the assistance of the very-talented Hories -- is excellent.

3. Karl Kerschl's art is only in 10 pages of this book.

4. This issue is like an archeological dig through the last days of the just-ended "Bart" series to see what went wrong and how they scrambled to fix it. The individual segments, in terms of art & story, just don't mesh at all. Some segments look like they were ear-marked for "Flash" #s 14 & 15, and were carved out of the scripts & married to the new Wally storyline.

5. Am I the only one whose heart doesn't leap for the requisite joy and wonder at the sight of Flash's bouncing "Incredibles"-like children in their cute superhero costumes? It feels like when they added those twins towards the end of "Growing Pains."

6. For all of Inertia's villainy, the way Wally handled things smacks of too much sadism and doesn't seem fit his characterization.

7. I was really under the impression that All-Flash #1 was the start of the new series. How many other readers are under that impression, only to find that the "old" series is going to continue with issue #231? How confusing is this?

8. I realize that the shot of Batman's outfit jumping out of the ring is supposed to be intriguing, but it's too vague and I'm more like "wha?"

9. The long and short of it is, the Waid run with Wally West sold solid and the book was never the same since; so they're just starting it up all over again, speed-brats in tow, as if the intervening years never happened. I can think of worse things than to go back to something that worked -- as long as it works. And for all of Mark Waid's skill as a writer, I don't think this book can survive without top-notch art like Kerschl's.


The Latest Outrages

Dark Horse Comics took the heat off of DC & Marvel with their "Gor" Omnibus. From the sales copy:

"Part science fiction, part adventure novel, the stories in the world of Gor would unfold to show Tarl Cabot's growth from a novice to a man whose fate might determine the course of every man, woman, and child on Gor."

Nowhere in the copy can I find reference to the fact that within this stirring Joseph Campbell-eque narrative of the hero's journey are slave women chained to beds with rings in their noses--and loving it, might I add.

Dammit, it's time to adapt Anne Rice's "Sleeping Beauty" trilogy. Somebody call Marvel.

Then of course we have the fury over "Showcase Presents Batgirl," which depicts the caped crusadress (probably not a real word, but I'd use it in "Scrabble") powdering her face while the boys do all the heavy lifting.

I'm not offended per se by the cover, just bewildered at the poor quality of it. It's a trace of a splash page from an old comic, and a charmless one at that. Surely, there could have been a better option, from an aethestic and ethical viewpoint.

However, I don't fault overt sexism for the cover. I think it was just kinda dumb and uninspired. Perhaps time constraints was another issue, considering these books were all solicited without the original cover art.

Bleh.


Is "The Wraith" from Marvel's "Annihilation Conquest" Really "Rom?"


Look, if this bit of craziness actually turns out to be true, let it be known that I didn't get any inside info on it, it's just the latest bit of fanboy buzz.

Besides, I think the book could only score more readers if it really was Rom. Who owns the rights to Rom, anyway?

Bring back "Crystar."


Oh, Boy!

In the latest "Countdown," Jimmy Olsen sews his own costume to become "Mr. Action!" Donna and Jason hang out with "Bob The Monitor!" Those slaphappy jokesters Trickster & Piper get out of another scrape by the skin of their teeth! And Don Rickles makes an appearance!


No, that's not true. Don Rickles isn't in this book. :-(


"Final Crisis"

Are we there yet?


...and that's a wrap! :-)

Occasional Reviews:

"Annihilation" Vs. "Sinestro Corps"

Spoilers

"Annihilation Conquest: Prologue" & "Sinestro Corps" pretty much set out to do the same thing: establish the framework of a comic book sci-fi epic and get readers to buy all the tie-ins and spin-offs. The level to which both have succeeded in said mission is the focus of this review.

The books take distinctly different approaches to storytelling. "Annihilation" is a classic science-fiction narrative, with careful world-building and development of political intrigue. "Sinestro Corps" is an unabashed love-fest of both the Green Lantern mythos and the pencil-shavings from the recent "Infinite Crisis." Which approach one prefers depends a lot on the fan.

Basically, if you are not familiar with the Green Lantern Corps, you may find this book a little confusing. The book is fun and full of those exaggerated moments of four-color sturm und drang (my new $10 phrase) that have made "World War Hulk" such a hit. But it also assumes a lot.

"Sinestro Corps" assumes you know all about Hal's troubles, that you know who Parallax is, that you know who "evil Superboy" and "evil Superman robot" are, that you know and care that Kyle's ma was sick, and that you know that the big guy on the last page of the book (the "big reveal") is not Chemo, as I assumed, or the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man or whomever.


On the other hand, I approached "Annihilation Conquest" with zed knowledge of the previous "Annihilation" series or the characters. I mean, at least I knew who Hal Jordan was -- who the hell is this Quill guy?

But "Annihilation Conquest" walks you through its universe as if every reader was new, as if every reader was as damn clueless as I was. And the result is that by the last page I was on-board to buy most (not all) of the "Annihilation" tie-in books. To actually get me to show any interest in purchasing "Star Lord" -- freakin' STAR LORD! That takes a lot.

I don't think you can get two more different writers than "Sinestro's" Geoff Johns and "Annihilation's" Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning. Johns is writing for the fans, for all those who followed "Infinite Crisis" & "52." Abnett & Lanning are writing classic sci-fi stuff; as they did with "Legion," they carefully build their worlds.

In the end, I chose to follow "Annihilation" through and to assume a wait-and-see stance on future "Green Lantern" books. But if you are specifically a DC fan, I could see how "Sinestro" could get you pumped; it out-Countdowns "Countdown."

As an aside, there is a really strong central female character in "Annihilation" and "Sinestro" is more or less a boy's club until (I assume) crazy mating Star Sapphire flies on the scene. Though I'm expecting a psychedelic girlfriend-in-refrigerator flashback to torment Kyle.

Fan Feedback On
"The Lesbian Scene"
In "Annihilation: Conquest"

On the Newsarama forums...

"Wow, a lesbian scene with lame porno-esque dialogue. "I like it when you watch my back." Poor taste IMO."

"Does anyone think that DC and Marvel are really over doing the lesbian couple thing?
Moondragon & New Quasar (was Moondragon shown as a lesbian before this pairing?)
Thunder & Grace in Outsiders
Scandal & Knockout in Secret Six
I have nothing against lesbian couples (nor am I a tongue wagging lech over them), but it almost seems like they are using lesbian couples as a "safe" way to handle gay relationships in comics."

"How is it poor taste? The characters have been clearly established previously as lesbians, and the dialogue is only lame or porno-esque if you read that into it. Taken at face value, it reads as normal, couple conversation for superheroes. She might just as well be saying "I like it when you make scrambled eggs," or, "I like it when you take the day off with me." Except in their world, what they do is watch each others' back, because they're fighting hordes of angry, malevolent aliens."

"I agree with with your last line a lot about it being the "safe way." Like, you really don't see a lot gay male couples ( Young Avengers, and Ultimate X-men, and some others being an exception). I would like to see all varieties of couples and sexualities in comics...it adds texture and substance, makes people that much more interesting, and appealing to a bigger audience. I like how Chuck Austen handled Northstar and Icemans friendship, and Northstar and the nurse Annie (i think was her name) in Uncanny X-men a bunch of years ago, I really enjoyed those scenes., and thought they added a lot in the book."

"WHO complains about attractively drawn lesbians. ..seriously. thats like saying "i dont like oxygen, or pizza" or other such beautiful things."

A few notes:

"lame porno-esque dialogue" -- oh, come on. You can totally see Black Canary saying that to Green Arrow and vice-versa.

"they are using lesbian couples as a safe way to handle gay relationships in comics" -- well...yes. But you have to start somewhere.

"you really don't see a lot gay male couples"(in comics) -- this is true.

"WHO complains about attractively drawn lesbians. ..seriously. thats like saying "i dont like oxygen, or pizza" or other such beautiful things." -- oy, vey.

with thanks to David the G. who virtually puts posts like this together for me with space enough for me to give it my rant.