The Manga Curmudgeon

Spending too much on comics, then talking too much about them

From the stack: ASTONISHING X-MEN 2

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Warning: comments below contain spoilers.

As Cyclops’s squad rushes to defuse a high-society hostage situation, a prominent geneticist announces a cure for the X-gene. Both events highlight interpersonal tensions among the X-Men.

Writer Joss Whedon’s never made any secret of his fondness for Kitty Pryde, so it wasn’t a surprise when she was added to the cast of AXM. What is surprising to me is how much Kitty adds to the title, functioning as a wonderful gateway character. Kitty has been out of the X-family for some time, and she’s finding her footing as she reacts to how much things have changed. It’s a very organic way to provide exposition on the state of affairs at Xavier’s while providing insight into characters; Kitty is struggling to match up her memories of the X-Men with who they are now.

A cure for mutation isn’t exactly a ground-breaking idea, but I don’t think the development is intended to do that. It’s less about the development than its impact. As demonstrated in the discussion of the student body’s reaction, every individual mutant would react differently to the news. The same applies for the team, resulting in some tense exchanges. The best of these is between Kitty and Emma Frost, who Kitty remembers clearly as a ruthless adversary.

The book makes a very interesting use of continuity. It’s not continuity in the sense of references to specific events; it’s an evocation of the personal and emotional consequences of those events. History is useful for how it’s shaped the characters.

Art by John Cassaday is predictably splendid, from the dramatic hostage rescue scenes to the quieter, interpersonal moments. I still think his costume designs for Beast and Cyclops are ridiculous, though. Nice basket, Hank.

From the stack: THE LOSERS 13

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Warning: the comments below contain spoilers.

The Losers follow up on a lead in Qatar, but they’re sidetracked by local strife involving terrorists, the CIA, and the Qatari government. They’re presented with an offer they can’t refuse to intercede between two of those factions for the benefit of the third, but it may be too late.

The action movie rolls on, and I mean that in the best possible sense. The pace of events, from car chases to subplots to backroom deals, never flags. At the same time, writer Andy Diggle manages to humanize not only the principle characters but also the people they meet along the way. From the sleek and menacing Qatari adviser to the greasy CIA minion, ever character is distinct.

And, like a good action movie, there are plenty of laughs. They come in different flavors, too, from the “I can’t believe I just saw that” arrival of a tank to an absolutely hilarious sequence where the leads try to communicate in a bugged office. Then there’s Stegler, the agent tracking the losers. It’s hard to tell what he objects to more, the local office’s repellent mission or their disorganization. Priceless stuff.

This really is a terrific title. Try it.

From the stack: QUEEN AND COUNTRY 25

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Warning: the comments below contain spoilers.

For their 25th issue, the Queen and Country Players proudly present a staged reading of Carrie Fisher’s Postcards from the Edge.

Tara Chace takes a bit of time off to visit her mother, much to the chagrin of both. See, Tara finds her mother gratingly self-indulgent and immature. Mumsy is marrying a man half her age, much to Tara’s consternation.

There isn’t much balance between the opposing forces, really. Mother Chace seems like a decent enough broad — a little selfish, but living the way she pleases with available means. Tara’s criticisms seem sulky and misplaced; her mother seems to have a much more reasonable grasp of the situation.

So, the consequence is that Tara spends most of the double-sized issue being a pouty brat, threatening her mother’s fiancé and snarling at her mother. And what are we meant to learn from this? Did Tara go into service to avoid the horrible fate of becoming like her mother? Is Tara punishing her mother by constructing a life that doesn’t make her happy or fulfilled?

It’s always risky when a piece of serial fiction strays from its formula. QUEEN AND COUNTRY has always been more of a procedural than a character study, though the reader can learn a great deal about the cast while watching them work. When a procedural sinks deeper into the personal lives of its cast, it should be for a concrete purpose. After a couple of readings, I’m still not clear what writer Greg Rucka had in mind with this outing.

As a final note, I really can’t stand the un-translated dialogue in this book. Tara is obviously the point-of-view character, the access point, and it would be more sensible for the reader to be able to understand what she does. (If she runs across conversation in a language she doesn’t know, fine. That would be fair enough.) The use of extensive, un-translated passages in this issue seemed pretentious, and while I could figure out what was happening in context, they took me out of the story.

Hopefully, things will be back to business next issue. Then, maybe in issue 50, they can do a riff on One True Thing.

From the stack: AVENGERS 84

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Warning: the comments below contain spoilers.

Let’s see, we’ve got a pair of mislaid panties, snide references to testicular cancer, clumsy romantic “banter”, a woman making out with someone dressed exactly like her father and cousin did, and an Avenger upset to the point of vomiting. Not content with incoherent plotting that shoves the title characters to the very margin of their own book, writer Chuck Austen has added a bracing dash of tastelessness to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

Some of the Avengers travel to the Middle East to intercede in the Invaders’ efforts to unseat a local dictator. The team has learned that the Invaders were the brainchild of the Red Skull, though the Avengers who first got that news – Ant-Man and Falcon – are mysteriously absent from this issue.

The highly volatile situation is made more so by internal tensions in the team. Hawkeye and the Wasp have embarked on an affair, causing significant intestinal distress for Wasp’s lover, Hank Pym. Despite Cap’s admonishments to set personal issues aside on missions, Clint and Jan flirt and pout in a manner rarely seen outside of a junior high cafeteria.

Perhaps to counterbalance all this levity, Austen scripts a good Cap/bad Cap smackdown punctuated with profound philosophical discussion of just what it means to be the Sentinel of Liberty. The exchange would be agonizing if it weren’t so laughable. It’s too overblown and one-sided to pass for gravitas.

While the Avengers demonstrate their usual level of incompetence – Hawkeye keeps misfiring, Wasp demands that an adversary rescue She-Hulk, etc. – it can’t be part of an authorial effort to make their opponents look any better. The Invaders don’t seem to have much of an attention span, abandoning what they’re doing (wholesale destruction of property, mostly) to chat with the Avengers or deriding their leader, U.S. Agent. And none of the heroes present can do anything to prevent a murder that happens right in front of them.

See? You don’t need to focus on contradictions to long-standing characterizations to think the book is crap. You need only look to the panties.

From the stack: WONDER WOMAN 205

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Warning: the comments below contain spoilers.

Investigating a murder that took place outside her embassy, Diana tracks a suspect to Veronica Cale’s corporate headquarters. She runs afoul of Dr. Psycho, and mayhem ensues.

Writer Greg Rucka makes a very convincing case for Dr. Psycho as a significant adversary for Wonder Woman. They’re such wonderful foils. Diana is a physical paragon, beautiful and strong; Psycho is frail and ugly. Diana is forthright and compassionate; Psycho uses illusion to prey on human weakness. Diana protects innocents; Psycho tortures them.

Art by Drew Johnson couldn’t be better, honestly. From creepy resurrections scenes of a mythological monster to pandemonium in an office complex, he has great versatility. He also works to make characters distinct, with different body types, faces, and body language. The are some nice little visual touches, too, like Circe casually blindfolding herself before Medousa rises.

If there’s a flaw, it’s Veronica Cale. She’s the would-be architect of misfortune for Diana, but her motivations are frankly pitiful. From what we’ve seen so far (and she’s been featured for Rucka’s entire run), her grudge against Diana is nothing more than clichéd female jealousy. She derisively calls Wonder Woman “the super-model” and pegs her as a fraud without really articulating why she feels that way. (And anyone who resorted to blackmail to fund their education shouldn’t be tossing “fraud” around as a pejorative.)

Still, it’s a strong title, and the art truly is spectacular. If Rucka can make his antagonist seem like more of a threat and less like the girl who didn’t get head cheerleader, the book could be even stronger.

From the stack: CATWOMAN 32

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Warning: the comments below contain spoilers.

This issue offers the title character a bit of a respite after recent events. (It also offers readers a respite from the “sexy” art of Paul Gulacy in the person of most excellent guest artist Sean Phillips.) After a losing battle with a dangerous psychopath and month of imprisonment with a hidden race of cat worshippers (don’t ask), Selina returns to Gotham.

It’s a “day in the life” issue, which is always welcome, especially when the cast is as well-written as this one. Ed Brubaker offers quiet insights into the lives of his characters. The conversations between Holly and Karon and Slam and his son ring true, providing some sense of what happened while Selina was away but also moving their individual emotional arcs forward.

And Brubaker doesn’t forget that the title has a lead. So often, books feature a strong lead and an underdeveloped supporting cast. Less often, there’s an engaging supporting cast that overshadows a bland lead. This book strikes a nice balance; what we learn about Selina’s friends and associates teaches us a lot about her, too. And she gets plenty of her own moments.

Ultimately, it’s a pretty good day for Selina, as she spends it with Batman… or Bruce Wayne… or whoever it is who lives in between those two personas. A combination of relief (that Selina’s alive) and surprise (that he’s so relieved) make the Dark Knight a lot more vulnerable than normal, and it’s a very attractive look for him, I must say. Selina agrees, and the Bat and the Cat let down their defenses to enjoy each other’s company.

Phillips is a perfect choice for this stand-alone issue, capturing both the gritty Gotham neighborhood and the sympathetic people who live there. If tits and torment drove you off this title, this would be a nice opportunity to pay a one-issue visit. (Gulacy is back next month.)

From the stack: TEEN TITANS 12

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Warning: the comments below contain spoilers.

How can a title with “teen” in it be this gruesome? In the space of an issue, we have the antagonist vomiting up part of a Titan that he’d recently bit off, and a brainwashed girl gouging out her own eye to prove to daddy that she’s worthy of his scumbag legacy. Beyond being visually revolting, both are nakedly misogynistic.

This title must be aimed at least partly at the audience of the animated series. You know, the one that airs as part of Cartoon Network’s after-school programming block and as part of the WB’s Saturday morning line-up? The casts of both are largely the same, as is the setting, but the similarities end there.

Most different, obviously, is tone. Despite the purported premise of the comic – young heroes hanging out and training on the weekends – the book is rarely lighthearted. Titans are injured brutally and often, and adolescent identity issues have life-threatening consequences. While the cartoon can address some dark subject matter and there’s genuine peril in the threats the Titans face, it’s anything but grim.

Not to go all Helen Lovejoy from “The Simpsons,” but I think DC should be a bit more careful with this title. I can understand their desire to capitalize on television success, but that seems destined to backfire if the comic is so much darker and more brutal than the cartoon.

From the stack: FLASH 211

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Warning: the comments below contain spoilers.

If you didn’t get enough male bonding and legacy hero worship in JSA 62, not to worry. Writer Geoff Johns is flogging the same themes here.

A brutal assault from Gorilla Grodd and some stroking from Nightwing convince the Flash that a museum in his honor and public adoration are good things. Hero-worship inspires people, you see, and it also gives the Flash a nice little buzz when he’s out of costume, eavesdropping on citizens as they praise him. It’s another step in settling Wally West into the Barry Allen status quo of hometown hero with secret identity intact.

I have to wonder about the selection of Grodd for this particular arc. Trashing the Flash Museum seems somewhat beneath him. I’ve always thought of Grodd as move of a strategist and long-term thinker, and there doesn’t seem to be any useful end in this for him. It’s a temper tantrum, and lots of knuckle-draggers are out there to fill the same function.

Since this is a Geoff Johns comic, we get one of his standard story endings. It’s flavor type two, “ironic twist,” as opposed to type one, “life-threatening cliffhanger.” Just after Wally fully embraces the benefits of secrecy, it turns around to bite him. Oops!

Novel approaches

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Based on the roaring success of New York Times Best Selling Author Brad Meltzer ™, comic publishers are snatching up hot authors to bring fresh voices to the super-hero genre. Here are some projects in development:

ENDURING REALM, by Ian McEwan: The Booker Prize-winning author of such novels as Atonement and Amsterdam takes a probing look Captain Britain. A child of privilege, Brian Braddock struggles to define his role as protector of the realm as he contends with the malaise of middle age. Can an amulet or sword shield Great Britain from a crumbling monarchy, the complications of multi-nationalism, and socioeconomic schism? Are power, wealth, and an eternally young bride enough to see a man through a crisis of confidence, or will drink rule the day? And what of his complex and disturbing relationship with Captain America? A probing study by one of the world’s greatest living writers.

LIFE OF PIEFACE, by Yann Martel: A bizarre sequence of events leaves Tom Kalmaku drifting in space in a green force bubble with a hodgepodge of hostile aliens. But it’s a spiritual journey as much as it is one of survival. Kalmaku finds his most fundamental beliefs challenged as the motley band of castaways forges an uneasy alliance against external forces. But will Pieface’s inner struggles overwhelm him along the way?

J’ONN J’ONZZ’S DIARY, by Helen Fielding. “Quantity of Oreos consumed: 1.6 rows of family-sized tray. Number of times checked Justice League communicator for messages: 27.” As the last survivor of his race, the Martian Manhunter brings new meaning to the term “singleton”! He’s a powerful, highly respected super-hero. So why does he always end up spending Friday nights with Red Tornado, Snapper Carr, and the Atom? J’onn resolves to change all that, but can an alien widower navigate the choppy waters of the DC dating pool?

Me link pretty one day

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Thanks to all the folks who have linked my ramblings to their own blogs, casting their own credibility into question. (Just kidding.)

I’m still working on my links section, but if you’d like your site or blog added to the list, let me know.