There was lots of sneaking around going on in this week’s comics. And since the alternative is to consider the thick-as-flies Identity Crisis references in some of DC’s books, I’m happy to have the espionage theme to work with.
(Comments contain spoilers.)
Black Widow (Marvel) concludes with its sixth issue, resolving some of the mini’s major plot elements while (somewhat surprisingly) leaving things open for a promised sequel by writer Richard K. Morgan. This is an “everything you know is wrong” story, which normally isn’t to my taste. But Black Widow is an excellent choice for this kind of tale. Morgan re-imagines Natasha’s origins in a way that’s both creative and logical. At the same time, he paints a much more violent and ruthless portrait of the Widow, while implying that this is the character that’s been there all along, modulating her behavior to suit her spandex surroundings. It hasn’t been a perfect mini, what with Natasha condemning marketing assaults on womanhood while stuffing herself into a bustier, but the good stuff has outweighed the more iffy elements. (Am I the only one who’s kind of enjoying the recent trend of playing Nick Fury as a manipulative bastard?) I’m looking forward to the second volume.
What’s Legion of Super-Heroes 3 (DC) doing in a survey of sneakiness? Writer Mark Waid starts building dissent in the ranks in this issue. It seems like there isn’t as much unanimity of purpose to the youth movement as there’s been in previous incarnations. Given the strong and distinct personalities Waid is establishing, this makes perfect sense and sets up a nice subplot to drive things along. He also manages to give Triplicate Girl a fascinating character make-over, letting her abilities inform her identity in clever, creative ways as he did with Dream Girl last issue. Artist Barry Kitson does a nice job with the subtler character moments, which is good to see. I’ve found his work technically proficient but a bit cold in the past, so this is a promising development.
The Pickytarian does a splendid job talking about Losers 21 (DC/Vertigo), particularly the work of artist Jock, so go there and read it. I would just add that I’m finding this arc a little hard to follow. This title seems like it would work better for me in trade paperback format, without the lapsed time between issues. (Details get lost in my tiny, sieve-like brain over the intervening weeks.) It’s undeniably good stuff, but it seems stronger in big chunks. We’ll see.
Mystique (Marvel) wrapped up its 24-issue run this week, and I’ll miss this book. Writer Sean McKeever has done a nice job using a morally ambiguous character as a versatile protagonist. There are plenty of twists in this concluding chapter, and some of them seem to stem from events earlier in the run (which I didn’t read). Slight clarity issues aside, the story has a lot of momentum and surprise. McKeever also manages to put Mystique back where the series found her, informed by the events of the title but in an entirely usable state for other writers. (I can’t resist giving extra points for being a good citizen of a shared fictional universe.) This was one of the throng of mutant titles that seemed to have real potential and a distinct point of view. Too bad it didn’t make it.
I hate it when writers don’t respect my need for denial. I’ve been convincing myself that Sleeper (DC/Wildstorm) exists in its own little world and I don’t really need to know anything about comics I haven’t read and don’t plan to read. So when Ed Brubaker plops someone named Grifter smack in the middle of Sleeper 9, I get irked that my pristine reading enjoyment is marred by some too-kewl 1990s gunslinger. Brubaker gives readers information about who Grifter is, but the character’s presence is still a distraction. Either Brubaker’s character work on Grifter is fairly minimalist, or Grifter just isn’t very interesting. Grifter’s presence serves a narrative purpose, providing a useful distraction to allow the regular cast to engage in sneaky maneuvering. At the same time, it serves as a different kind of distraction for readers who viewed the book as a self-contained reading experience. (Maybe it’s just me and I’m annoyed out of all proportion.) Anyway, the issue ends with a nicely ambiguous twist that moves things forward, as it almost always does. Many readers are disappointed that this title will be ending, but I think it’s the kind of story that begs for closure. I’m looking forward to seeing how Brubaker and artist Sean Phillips wrap things up.