Comic Reviews 12/16/11

REVIEWS

The comics reviewed are chosen by David not by That's Entertainment management
or staff. The opinions expressed are his alone. If you have an opposing view you
are welcome to respond to David directly by Email at the address above.


Title: AFRICAN AMERICAN CLASSICS: GRAPHIC CLASSICS Vol. 22
Publisher: Eureka Productions
Editors: Tom Pomplun and Lance Tooks
Writers: Various
Artists: Various
Cover Artists: Afua Richardson & Jimmie Robinson
Price (USD): $17.95
Release Date: December 2011
Genre: Anthology of adaptations of black authors by contemporary black artists




As the promotional material states this volumes contains stories and poems of
tragedy, humor, hope and inspiration. It is unique in that the creators are
almost exclusively black. The source material comes from the earliest African
American authors and poets. By early I mean they date from the 1890s through
1930. This is a splendid mixture of genres from the perspective of people we can
only relate to through their words. Fortunately Eureka as usual has matched up
these works with some great artists and adaptors with Pomplun and Tooks taking
on some of the chores themselves. There are twenty three stories and poems in
all, each with its own special charm. The highlight for me was the opening story
called "Two Americans" by Florence Lewis Bentley, adapted by Alex Simmons,
illustrated by Trevor Von Eeden and colored by Adrian Johnson. This story from
1921 tells of American soldiers in France during WWI. The liberated village
cheers as they enter and they also get their first look at black Americans, whom
they cheer with equal enthusiasm. But the war is hardly over and the Americans
move to the front. Days later the fighting seems to have gotten closer to the
town and a makeshift hospital is set up there. Days later one black soldier
comes staggering in to house with a white comrade strapped to his back. They are
both badly wounded. The black man is first to gain strength enough to talk and
has a tale to tell. They are both from the same town in Georgia but the
circumstances there made them enemies. It is a touching story of loss, bitter
hatred and in the end redemption. Another story called "On Being Crazy" by
W.E.B. Du Bois adapted by Tom Pomplun and illustrated by Kyle Baker follows a
black man after the turn of the century as he does things not accepted by the
whites. Wherever he goes - a restaurant, a music recital, a hotel, and a train -
there are white people telling him he is not wanted, that he is trying to force
social equality. He replies he is not - he is hungry, he likes music, he wants
to ride. Then he meets a white man on a road who crosses to the other side, into
the mud, rather than walk on the same side as a n****r. The dialogue that
follows is more of the same but more direct as to the differing points of view
and ends by answering the question in the story title. There is much more, too
much to detail. Entries by Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Paul Laurence
Dunbar, Alice Dunbar Nelson, Jean Toomer, Claude McCay, Frances Harper and
Charles Chestnutt with illustrations and adaptations by Alex Simmons,
Christopher Priest, Mat Johnson, Afua Richardson, Milton Knight, Jeremy Love and
Lance Tooks. There are tales of witchcraft, finding out what is worth striving
for in life and even the story of Cleopatra told with a great bit of humor. It
is a great collection well worth the price. The craft of the authors and artists
shine through in nearly every entry. This volume in one of the best in the
series.

Title: THE DEFENDERS
Issue Number: 1
Title Story: I Hate Myself and Want to Die
Title Arc: Breaker of Worlds
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Matt Fraction
Artist: Terry Dodson
Inker: Rachel Dodson
Colors: Sonia Oback
Letters: Clayton Cowles
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero



This story takes place after the episode shown in POINT ONE but stands alone as
far as understanding what is going on. I believe some of the events as seen by
Dr. Strange in POINT ONE will play out later in the story. For now this is the
beginning and it is the gathering of the heroes that will be the Defenders. It
begins with the Incredible Hulk, Bruce Banner - the green one, coming to Doctor
Strange for help. He knows that Nul, the Breaker of Worlds (see FEAR ITSELF), is
at large in the world. So do we from the opening two pages. He needs for the
Doctor to rid the Earth of the scourge but cannot risk getting anywhere near Nul
himself. So, in typical super hero team book fashion the recruiting begins and
soon Namor, the Silver Surfer, the She Hulk - the red one, Betty Ross and Iron
Fist are along for the ride. The fun of this first issue is the gathering
together of these characters and the dialogue that ensues. Betty has some great
one-liners and Danny Rand does pretty well too. They are just starting out on
their quest and the last few pages are full of surprises. This issue serves the
purpose in a manner I prefer - that is, the story is told from the beginning
rather than starting mid battle and filling us in with flashbacks later. There
is some intrigue midway and it builds to a dangerous situation at the close.
Next issue promises to get to the meat of the plot and so far it is getting
there fine. The art is very appealing as well. So far so good.

Title: VOLTRON
Issue Number: 1
Title Story: The Sixth Pilot
Title Arc: This Is Voltron
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Writer: Brandon Thomas
Artist: Ariel Padilla
Colors: Marcelo Pinto
Letters: Marshall Dillon
Cover Artist: Alex Ross/Sean Chen/Wagner Reis
Price (USD): $??
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Science Fiction/Cartoon adaptation



I have memories of watching VOLTRON cartoons with my kids so I decided to sample
this comic. If you don't know Voltron is a giant "defender of the universe"
robot. Well, it is not really a robot. It is really a combination of five
different space ships that look like lions each with its own pilot and those
ships can be joined together to form the big robot. Four of them are the arms
and legs and the other is the torso and head. The action takes place on Earth in
New York in the year 2124. As we join in it seems Voltron is fighting a giant
beast or alien of his size in the streets and everyone else is scrambling to
stay out of the way of the destruction. Meanwhile a bunch of smaller versions of
the alien are attacking on the streets. Curiously, the Voltron pilots are not in
the robot but fighting on the streets themselves. It is there we are introduced
to Keith - the leader from the black lion, Hunk the yellow lion, Lance the red
lion, Pidge the green lion and Princess Allura the blue lion. While they are
holding their own fighting back the man-sized enemy Voltron appears to be no
match for the bigger ones when a second one shows up. He mentions the name
Zarkon who is apparently behind it all. Then we flash back to 2012 where a
Doctor Zarkon has a clandestine meeting with the president on a matter of
national and even world security. The prez is enlisting Zarkon in exchange for
the safety of his family. How it all ties together with the happenings more than
100 years later is not revealed. I don't really care for stories that start mid-
battle and then reveal more as the story progresses but that is how this one is
structured. There is really not enough here to decide whether this will be a
compelling story. We meet the good guys, have a lot of battle scenes, a
mysterious connection to the past and then it ends for now. I am half and half
on the art. The line work and coloring are decent and the characters are well
defined. The flashback is set off nicely with brown tones while the main story
is a mix of brightly colored foreground and two tone backgrounds. But the action
between the giant combatants is confusing at best. Most of the panels are shots
of the combatants that are too close up. Some you see an arm of one and a
portion of a body of the other. This happens panel after panel leaving the
reader straining to figure out what he is looking at. For that reason I cannot
give Padilla and all positive rating. So, this one is a mixed review. The story
may become more compelling but the structure of the layouts needs work. This
title may draw interest from those of us who loved the cartoon or had the toys.
If you are one of them your opinion may be different.
Title: BATWING
Issue Number: 4
Title Story: Better at Terrible Things
Publisher: DC
Writer: Judd Winick
Artist: Chris Cross
Inker: Ryan Winn
Colors: Brian Reber
Letters: Carlos Mangual
Cover Artist: Ben Oliver
Price (USD): $2.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero



This is not one of the New 52 I have been following and I believe the character
was introduced in BATMAN INCORPORATED prior to the relaunch. Since the cover
blurb said it is an origin issue I decided to sample it. David Zavimbe is
Batwing, the Batman of Africa. He is currently hunting down Massacre who tried
to kill Batwing and has taken his latest victim Dawnfire of The Kingdom. She is
the third victim of Massacre and Batwing vows to stop him from killing the last
of The Kingdom. As he ponders his next move we flashback ten years to his origin
story. David and his brother Isaac have been recruited into the army of warlord
General Ayo Keita. They are favored by the general for their speed and
dexterity. They are exceptional soldiers. But this is an ugly war. Keita is on a
quest for power using the civil war as his tool to get it. The young boys learn
eventually that Keita's mission is taking them down the path that will force
them to make hard decisions. Do they follow orders know matter what the
consequences? Do they really believe in the cause at all costs or will they draw
the line at some point? There is a critical point in the story when one of them
makes a choice which changes both their fates forever. Since this is the story
of David's origin we see how the events changed him on the path that will
eventually have him become a fighter for the right thing, though he will always
have a dark past in his memories. I enjoyed this story very much. While there
are elements of the current arc sprinkled in it is truly a stand-alone story of
what made David choose the course he has taken. The art is very dynamic with
excellent coloring. I may just have to go back to the first three issues to see
the bigger picture.

Title: VALEN THE OUTCAST
Issue Number: 1
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Creator: Ross Richie
Writer: Michael Allen Nelson
Artist: Matteo Scalera
Colors: Archie Van Buren
Letters: Ed "Duke" Dukeshire
Cover Artist: Various
Price (USD): $1.00
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Sword and Sorcery



This story begins in the kingdom of Oakhaven where King Brand and his men have
been outflanked in battle with their enemies. The opposing army is composed of
demons of some sort and as fortunes would have it the king is captured and
mortally wounded. As he is confronted by the leader of the dark forces he is
ever defiant and learns that the evil one is not after his lands but something
else. The scene shifts to the future where we find Brand has been plagued by the
power of the Necromancer. His soul is gone and he is now among the undead. But
another has helped him sever the bond so that he can act on his own and
hopefully regain his soul. Valen's plan is to go to Wraithendal past the armies
to find the Necromancer. The female Zjanna who helped him break the spell vows
not to help him anymore but events later will change her mind. He seeks
alternate passage to the goal he seeks and when a rogue refuses to help he is
approached by another that promises to help. By the end of the chapter there is
betrayal, another battle and finally an uneasy alliance that will aid Valen on
his quest. This is a basic set up for things to come. The main characters are in
place though we have only begun to see how powerful the Necromancer Korrus Null
can be. The last panels reveal his next strategy in his master plan. The art is
a bit dark to suit the subject matter. The line work and detail are very
accomplished as is the coloring. This seems to be a better than average tale of
this genre with a less muddled plot than most that can often bog things down. At
only a buck for the first issue it is worth taking a look.

Title: VILLAINS FOR HIRE
Issue Number: 1 (of 4)
Title Story: Knight Takes King
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Artist: Renato Arlem
Colors: Jay David Ramos
Letters: Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist: Rodolfo Migliari
Price (USD): $2.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Villains



We saw the prologue to this series earlier in VILLAINS FOR HIRE #0.1. That was
pretty much the end of the current run of HEROES FOR HIRE with a brief sequence
at the end leading into this mini-series. The premise now is that the Purple
Man, who can control people with his pheromone power, is determined to build a
criminal empire using a vast network of criminal contacts and powered villains.
He was really upset to learn that Misty Knight stole his concept with her Heroes
for Hire organization but is determined to make the same idea work with bad guys
instead. He is acting as "Control" on this first mission and also has a female
called Headhunter doing his technical and recruitment work. His first team has
Avalanche with his seismic powers, Death Stalker a female with a touch of death,
Scourge an assassin with a new person wearing the mask and the Shocker with his
vibro-shock gauntlets. With Shocker providing the first element of the plan to
blank out power in certain sections of New York they force an armored car to
change its route over a bridge that Avalanche has studied in detail. He uses his
power to collapse part of the bridge causing the truck to land on a barge they
have waiting to make off with their objective inside. The surprise of this story
is the fact that they are suddenly attacked not by heroes but other villains.
There is another group consisting of Tiger Shark the genetic hybrid, Bombshell a
world class acrobat and explosives expert, Crossfire a black ops elite marksman
with cybernetic implants and Nightshade a technical expert and robotics expert.
It seems these guys are after the same thing. This is a solid powers versus
powers story with more than one turn of events and surprises along the way. As
you would expect Purple man is even more enraged that someone else would
challenge him at this game. He now has a new goal - find out who is controlling
these villains and get rid of them. If you haven't read any of the hype his new
competitor may be a nice surprise to you. And it is apparent that this second
set of villains does not know who their "control" is, only that they will be
paid well for their services. This is a fun comic with lots of neat characters
and fast moving action. The art really carries it all well and the plot leaves
us waiting for more. If we can't have HEROES FOR HIRE right now this is a good
alternate.

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Last week's trivia question:
Who painted the covers for the Innovation series VAMPIRE LESTAT?
It was John Bolton and the winner is Stu Cathell.

Here was your no prize question:

Who was the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest?Junko Tabei is a Japanese mountain-climber, who became the first woman to reach
the summit of Mount Everest on May 16, 1975.

THIS WEEK'S TRIVIA QUESTION:
Where did Blue Devil make his 1st appearance? (EXACT TITLE NAME)

Here is your no prize question:
Who invented electric Christmas lights?

Folks, you never know who among the readers is knowledgeable about the question
so don't hesitate to send in an answer - even days after it appears.