We're Not Supposed To Read This

Before Watchmen: Nite Owl 1-4
DC Comics
J. Michael Straczynski, writer
Andy Kubert, artist
***mature content warning***

There was a lot of hoopla following the announcement that DC Comics was going to return to the Watchmen well and publish a set of prequel comics featuring the Watchmen characters. I honestly don't know from the things I read at the time that there was all that much controversy, really; just a lot of people voiced their opinions about whether it was right or wrong of DC to go ahead with the project after original Watchmen writer Alan Moore said he was opposed to there being more content.

My opinion, for what that's worth (no more and no less than anyone else's), is why not? No one can force Alan Moore to write more content with the Watchmen characters if he doesn't want to. But he doesn't own these characters, and therefore can't stop DC from doing whatever it wants with its own characters. Moore's entitled to his opinion about whether they should. He's even entitled to voice that opinion to anyone who will listen. But he can't prevent the creation of new content, and so far as I know, didn't try to beyond voicing his own opinion.

Would going back to that particular well result in good comics that would make money? That's a completely separate question. Two questions actually, and neither one can be answered with any certainty until after the comics are published. That's the biggest reason I held my opinion until now.

I didn't buy most of the new Before Watchmen miniseries DC published; I just didn't care about more information on some of the characters like Ozymandias or the Comedian. But I did have a curiosity about a few of the characters and creators involved with this project. Obviously, Nite Owl was one of them. And I have to say this IS a good story. Did it have to be told? No, but it doesn't contradict anything in the original series, and it DOES build and expand on some of what was in the original.

For instance, Rorschach is seen several times in the original Watchmen series carrying a sign that reads, "The End Is Nigh." It doesn't really matter to that series where the sign came from, but this series reveals that little tidbit and gives the sign a back story much like the giant penny or the robot dinosaur Batman keeps in the Batcave.

Rorschach and several of the other Watchmen characters play roles in this tale, but of course, the focus of this series is Nite Owl, and we learn quite a bit about his back story, as well -- things like the early partnership of Nite Owl and Rorschach and the passing of the torch between Hollis Mason, the golden-age Nite Owl, and Dan Dreiberg, the modern Nite Owl.

The story begins with Dreiberg as a youth and Mason as an aging costumed hero. We learn more about Dreiberg's past and the events that shape his life. He sees the original Nite Owl as both a father figure and hero, and quickly tracks down the hero's secret identity. The young man's initiative, drive and personal story convince Mason to take Dreiberg under his wing and train the young man. Mason sees Dreiberg as more than just a potential sidekick, however; the older hero is looking for a successor.

Dreiberg's debut as the new Nite Owl draws the attention of Rorschach, and the two decide to form a partnership that proves very successful at first. Later, however, the differences in style and intensity of the two heroes causes some problems and finally, a split. We also see the back story and development of one of Nite Owl's "rouges" along the way through a case that further helps define both Nite Owl and Rorschach for the future.

All in all, this was a very good series, and I'm glad I bought it.

Making It Personal

Nightwing 15
DC Comics
Kyle Higgins, writer
Eddy Barrows, artist

The last couple issues of Nightwing have mentioned the ongoing "Death of the Family" story line carrying the Joker through all of the Bat-books, but with this issue, Nightwing enters the crossover event with both feet. Over in Batman, the Clown Prince of Crime has said that he knows each of the Bat-family's true identities. To prove it, he has begun targeting people around each of them in their daily lives. This has already caused some friction between Batman and the rest of his group, but the continuing attacks take the focus off that animosity and redirect each of the heroes' ire back at the Joker.

In Nightwing's case, Joker is targeting current and former members of Haly's Circus, the childhood home of young aerialist Dick Grayson, and currently the business Dick recently acquired and is trying to revitalize.

We only see the now-faceless Joker in a few panels in this issue, but Barrows does a good job of imitating the Joker's new look from the pages of Batman. And the rest of what we see and read is sufficiently ghastly to fit right in with the rest of this grisly crossover.

Somebody's Gonna Get A Beatin'

Indestructible Hulk 2
Marvel Now
Mark Waid, writer
Leinil Yu, artist

I'm one of those readers who felt that Tony Stark/Iron Man had a lot to answer for after the events of Civil War a few years ago. Since that time, I've been happy to see some instances where some of Tony's friends have taken him to task for some of his decisions and his hubris during those events. This book falls into that category.

Maria Hill, director of S.H.I.E.L.D., has taken Bruce Banner up on his offer from the first issue: S.H.I.E.L.D. supplies Banner with a lab, staff and materials so he can create things to benefit mankind and ensure that he is remembered for more than the destruction caused by his green alter ego. In exchange, Banner allows S.H.I.E.L.D. to point him in a useful direction when he inevitably hulks out again. While not 100 percent convinced of the overall benefits, Hill is taking advantage of the offer in light of there being no other workable solutions to the Hulk problem. For his part, Bruce Banner is making the most of his deal, already having developed a few new bits of hardware and setting a goal for himself to complete work on at least one new invention each week.

Enter Iron Man at the outset of this issue, barging into the S.H.I.E.L.D. base where Banner is currently located and demanding that Hill turn over whatever technology or whichever super-villain she is using to mind-control Banner. Hill explains that isn't the case, but Iron Man insists on investigating the situation for himself. Tony and Bruce share a mathematical joke to lighten the mood of the meeting, and Bruce does what he can to assure Tony that this plan is for the best. But it is also obvious that the two men have an underlying animosity/rivalry going on. Tony is clearly impressed by some of what Bruce has already accomplished but refuses to acknowledge that out loud. And Bruce has anticipated Tony's interference and expects the metal-clad Avenger to try to end the arrangement. You just know all of that tension is going to result in a superhero smackdown! But don't worry, fans of each character have their moments to be proud of in what ensues.

In fact, my only complaint with this book so far is the art -- just not a fan of Leinil Yu's work, especially on this title. I absolutely hate the way he draws faces here: the drawings are so detailed, you can't see the faces for all of the linework.

"No, it's not linear." But that's OK!

Elephantmen Vol. 5: Devilish Functions
Image Comics
Richard Starkings, writer
Axel Medellin and Shaky Kane, artists
***mature content warning***

In the pilot episode of "Star Trek: Deep Space 9," Cmdr. Benjamin Sisko encounters a new species that does not experience time as humans do. They exist in all moments at once, making words like "tomorrow," "yesterday" and "later" have no meaning for them. At first, it is very hard for Sisko to communicate with these beings, let alone understand them, or they him, because of the differences in the perception of time. As understanding begins, Sisko tells the aliens that human existence is linear, people move from one moment to the next, always forward. The aliens counter his explanation by pointing out how he revisits his mistakes in his own mind, reliving the past over and over, jumping from point in time to point in time, almost at random.

Elephantmen follows a similar storytelling model. Starkings does not give his readers a narrative that moves from one day to the next in chronological order. The flashback is a familiar storytelling device which can interrupt the linear flow of a story to provide useful past information in the middle of a narrative, but Starkings takes his storytelling even further away from what typically happens.

All of the core events in this latest huge trade collection of Elephantmen happen more or less after the core events of the previous trades. Bodies of some characters killed more than a dozen issues ago are discovered, and investigations into the deaths are begun. Someone new is stalking and slaying Elephantmen for their ivory. And yet a third set of murders is happening where the victims are not just killed, but butchered and marked with a message of "No Mercy." Along with the drama of these various killings, there are also developments in the personal relationships between the various main characters. Mixed in with all of this, there are a couple diversionary stories that deal with a new hallucinogenic drug on the streets of Los Angeles. Amid all of this, sometimes large scenes, sometimes entire chapters, might be dropped in that have little or nothing to do with the current ongoing storyline at first glance. Sometimes these events might have happened hundreds or more years ago, or might never have happened at all, instead proving to be mere flights of fancy. But Starkings and crew craft this narrative in such a way that all that bouncing around works and makes sense.

Many stories that bounce around as much as this one often does have a tendency to lose readers with the various transitions. The whole starts to lose cohesion and becomes nonsense after a while. But I'm not having that issue with this book at all. In fact, it is one of the things I enjoy about the book.

Early on in my enjoyment of Elephantmen, I read or heard an interview with Starkings where he said something about it not mattering in what order someone reads these books. I found that statement baffling at the time. How can it not matter? Surely the books are best read in the proper order. I've read enough now to know that really isn't so. Part of what makes that possible is the obvious care Starkings has used mapping out the big picture events in this universe he has created, which then allows him to bounce around inserting facts here and there to enhance the current storyline. It also helps that any and all references to past events are exhaustingly footnoted throughout.

Bless The Little Children For They Have Saved It

Daredevil by Mark Waid Vol. 2 tpb
Marvel Comics
Mark Waid, writer
Paolo Rivera, Emma Rios, Kano and Khoi Pham, artists

The appeal for this series dropped off a little bit with this second trade collection of Mark Waid's run on Daredevil. I reviewed the first collection here, and really enjoyed it. It was a fast-paced, fun adventure book and a terrific read.

The first story in this collection continues that very high standard of excellence. There's a little bit of foreshadowing that will tie in to a later tale pitting DD against the Mole Man. But the bulk of Daredevil No. 7 features blind attorney Matt Murdock continuing an annual tradition of taking a class of blind children on a field trip. A sudden severe snowstorm throws a monkey wrench in the group's plans, and Daredevil is left to rescue them when their bus crashes. Problem is, Daredevil is injured in the crash, losing blood, and truly blind as the effects of the storm dampen his usually heightened senses of hearing, smell and touch.

The next issue in this collection is where things start to go awry. Daredevil makes a guest appearance in Amazing Spider-Man No. 677 and the "team-up" continues in Daredevil No. 8. Spider-Man serves little purpose in the story except as the means to bring Daredevil and the sometime cat burglar Black Cat together, but a plot twist at the end of the story reveals a motivation for the pair to cross paths without Spidey's involvement. That just makes the rest of the story seem like a pointless detour. To make matters worse, the art on the Amazing Spider-Man portion of the two-parter isn't up to the level of the rest of this collection. I'm not familiar with Emma Rios' work from other books, but she just doesn't seem to pull it off for this reader. The art isn't bad, exactly, but "off" somehow. And I absolutely hate how she changes Spider-Man's eye lenses in every panel to convey facial expressions. Some artists can pull that kind of thing off well, allowing the readers to suspend disbelief that the mask really moves, squints, etc. For Rios' pages, it just seems like she can't draw Spidey's lenses very well.

Issues 9 and 10 of Daredevil are the Mole Man confrontation hinted at earlier. This wasn't a bad tale, just not one I cared overly much for as the Mole Man has his minions steal bodies from a cemetery, and Daredevil tries to determine why. And finally, this volume also includes Daredevil No. 10.1, which returns to the plot from the end of the first trade collection where Daredevil is holding five criminal empires at bay because he has possession of an artifact that contains all of their secrets, and they naturally want it back.

All in all, this isn't a bad collection, but it's not as good as the first trade was. That first story makes up for the rest, however, so I'm still gonna recommend you check this trade out.

Chuck Dixon, Man Of Action

The Lone Ranger: Snake of Iron 1-4
Dynamite Entertainment
Chuck Dixon, writer
Esteve Polls, artist

Wow!

Chuck Dixon has written a ton of comics. Some I've read. Many I haven't. Of the ones I haven't, it was usually because I had no interest in the subject matter. Because of the ones I have, I have liked them all.

I'm guessing here that the reason this four-issue story was made a miniseries was because Dixon is not the writer of the regular Lone Ranger title; Ande Parks is doing a wonderful job writing that book. However, if Parks ever needed a break, Dixon could likely slip right in and take over. Even the look of this mini matches the main title because regular series artist Esteve Polls turns in his usual spectacular job on these pages.

This mini also offers up two stories in one as it opens with the Lone Ranger and Tonto separated. Tonto has traveled north to take care of some business while the Ranger has remained in the southern plains. The two are both headed to Texas to meet back up, Tonto by rail and the Ranger via Silver.

Taking another cue from the main series, this book does not shy away from the poor treatment of many Native American tribes by government officials. Some younger Kiowa braves defy their chief and begin raiding homesteaders. They have been particularly stirred up by the many sightings of a Spirit Horse, a huge beast whose return foretells a great change. The Lone Ranger happens upon a small band of Kiowas attacking a rancher and his son. After saving the lives of the two whites, the Ranger convinces the braves to take him back to their chief, who explains their reasons for leaving the reservations in Oklahoma. The Ranger promises to look into the mysterious Spirit Horse sightings if the tribe will stop attacking settlers. Along the way, he runs across some profiteers who are encouraging the Kiowa unrest and enlists the aid of a traveling journalist from Chicago and a garrison of soldiers from Fort Griffin. Oh, and he solves the mystery of the Spirit Horse in a most unexpected fashion.

Meanwhile, the train Tonto is riding on is ambushed and derailed by what appear to be renegade Comanches. Tonto's fellow passengers are an odd collection of characters trying to hold off the attackers and stay alive in the bitter cold wilderness. Some step up to the challenge and try to help save as many lives as possible. Others seem to be interested only in saving their own necks. One passenger in particular knows the real reason the Comanches are after the train, but even once this deceit is uncovered, there is little that Tonto or the others can do to defuse the situation. In a desperate ploy, Tonto frees his mount, Scout, from the stable car and sends the pinto to find the Lone Ranger for help. Then Tonto returns to the task of trying to keep as many on both sides of the conflict alive as possible for as long as possible.

All in all, this book was a great read filled with action and spotlighting both characters as equal partners in their cause of justice. That's comics worth reading, Kiddie Cops!

All Ages With A Message

Petey
Baboon Books
Jeff Kilpatrick, writer and artist

The simple title and the interesting picture of the turtle on the cover caught my eye, but I knew nothing else about it. Now that I've read it, I don't know what I was expecting, but I don't think this was it. But what it is isn't bad.

Petey is a little turtle who isn't very popular and often gets picked on in his neighborhood. On top of that, he doesn't get much relief at home; his parents fight a lot. So Petey decides to run away from home and travel to Love City. But despite the name of the city, Petey doesn't find what he's looking for there, either. In fact, what he does find is very realistic and more than just a little scary.

That might seem like a pretty weighty topic, but Jeff Kilpatrick handles both the art and writing in such a way that this story really is appropriate for all ages. So rest assured, there is a happy ending for this little turtle. And at the end of the story, there is a Petey pin-up gallery and information about the Children's Crisis Treatment Center in Philadelphia, PA.

This was definitely a good purchase!

The Best Of The Bunch

My World And Welcome To It
Baboon Books
Richard John Marcej, writer and artist

This little gem was a free bonus sent along with an order from Baboon Books. The other items I'd ordered weren't bad, I'd even be interested in reading more from some of the creators, but the other books just didn't grab me as much as I'd hoped. This book, however, contains 22 examples of Richard Marcej's daily illustrated blog where he draws a comic about something from that day in his life. Some of the subjects involve his daily routine. Others involve strange things he witnessed or overheard or did. It was a fun read filled with humor and a lot of dedication if Marcej really produces one of these illustrated journal entries each and every day. Kudos to him for that dedication, and more kudos for the fact that the cartoons are very readable and entertaining. I plan to start checking out his blog.

*****************

Short post today, but I also have a brief bit of housekeeping. Today's will be the last Sunday post, at least for a while. My family has undergone some changes in the past few weeks which have made it a bit harder to find time to generate posts three times a week. I'm hoping that will be temporary; but for now, I'm returning to the original Tuesday/Friday schedule for new posts. Not a major change, but wanted to let the faithful know up front.

See ya on Tuesday, Kiddie Cops!

Give It Time; It Gets Better

Alter Egos (2012)
Attic Light Films, Cloud 9 Film Partners and Off Hollywood Pictures
Jordan Galland, writer, director
Kris Lemche, Brooke Nevin, Joey Kern, stars

The first scene of this film grabs your attention as we see someone dragging a body down a pier to a boat. Then the scene switches to earlier that same day, and the film seems to fall apart.

We see a hero in a powder blue and white costume with an "F" on his chest. Soon we will learn that the "F" stands for Fridge, short for Refrigerator, his superhero code name since he can generate cold and ice. But our first image of Fridge is of him sleeping in his costume. Fridge has a lot of hang-ups and insecurities, all fully on display as he goes about his day, eventually heading out to meet up with fellow hero, C-Thru, who can see through walls.

The film begins very slowly and proceeds very slowly. The only thing it does quickly is seem to be filled with little more than cliches. Fridge is about to break up with his girlfriend because she likes Fridge more than she likes him in his civilian identity. Unbeknownst to Fridge, C-Thru seems to have some sinister alternate agenda for their team-up, and is holding a super villain hostage in a motel room where the two heroes meet up. Along the way, we also get a lot of background on the world these characters inhabit: Quite a few people have powers and the heroes' exploits used to be subsidized by the government for the good of society. But all of the major villains have been captured and incarcerated, and now the general public sees little need for the heroes or for the feds to continue paying them. In fact, many average folks seem to look unkindly on superheroes, viewing them as elitist snobs. It doesn't seem like a very nice reality, and while they have their charms, neither Fridge nor C-Thru are especially heroic or likable from what we see.

As C-Thru's motivations finally begin to dawn on Fridge, the movie takes a bit of a turn. It still moves along slowly, but a brighter point starts to become apparent to viewers who have made it this far. I stayed with the movie at first because I was curious where it was going. Despite his pathetic hang-ups, I found myself hoping Fridge would figure out that his friend is setting him up. Then once things go really off the rails concerning C-Thru's true motives, both heroes prove themselves a little more worthy of the title. By the end, I really kind of enjoyed this film and wouldn't be averse to watching it again sometime.

If you haven't seen it, I'd recommend checking it out while keeping expectations realistic.

This Is What Graphic Storytelling Should Be

Scene of the Crime Deluxe Edition hardcover
Image Comics
Ed Brubaker, writer
Michael Lark and Sean Phillips, artists

You'll care about these characters -- they're that well written -- but don't get too attached because many of them won't make it through the stories alive.

I like a lot of what Ed Brubaker produces. He tends to bring out the best in the superheroes he writes, but he truly shines writing everyday people. One of the first series where I really took notice of his work in particular was DC Comics' Gotham Central. That series, with just a very few cameo exceptions, left out the superheroes in favor of focusing on the detectives in Batman's hometown, and Brubaker and co-writer Greg Rucka wrote those folks well.

From there, I signed on for Brubaker's Criminal run with Sean Phillips at Marvel Icon. Here the focus was on criminals, but in a world without superpowers. These are everyday lowlifes -- bank robbers, con artists and ne'er-do-wells. In this series, I found myself feeling sympathy for, and even cheering on, many of the hard-luck cases who filled the pages of Criminal.

All of that is what led me to this Scene of the Crime hardcover. The miniseries by this name is not Ed Brubaker's first comics work, but it is his first work for DC Comics, originally under the Vertigo imprint. The main mystery presented here, "A Little Piece of Goodnight," was intended to be the second case in an ongoing comic series, Brubaker explains in the text piece at the end of the volume. Instead, the editors chose to lead with this tale, and before it was concluded, the ongoing became a series of minis, then just the one story.

The only exception was a short story titled "God and Sinners: A Scene of the Crime Christmas Mystery" which was written for a Vertigo anthology book that printed a few months before Scene of the Crime No. 1 debuted. It is the only other story published to date featuring the main characters in the Scene of the Crime universe -- young private detective Jack Herriman; his uncle, Knut Herriman, a semi-retired, semi-famous crime-scene photographer; and Knut's girlfriend, Molly -- and it is also included in this volume.

The fact that these two stories are the only Scene of the Crime tales to see print so far is one of the many crimes detailed in this book. Jack not only gets to the bottom of the main mystery in "Goodnight," but readers are also treated to much of Jack's own back story and motivations, something Brubaker says he planned to reveal over the course of the ongoing series, little tidbits at a time. It is good that he knew the series wasn't going to be able to continue and could rework all of Jack's story into this single tale. Jack's personal story is every bit as interesting as the missing person case he is hired to solve and the larger plot his investigations uncover along the way.

Once again, Brubaker has crafted an incredible narrative that leaves me wanting more of the same. There is little one can say about a book to more highly recommend it than that. And this tale is also beautifully, grittily illustrated by Lark and Phillips, two frequent collaborators of Brubaker's.