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I Read Comics
Oct. 26th, 2013 10:12 amHaven't went to wild lately- sticking to the usual. However...
Captain America: Living Legend (Marvel)- written by Andy Diggle- I like Diggle quite a bit and thought I would pick up the first issue of this four-part miniseries- a long-delayed comic originally planned for a 2011 release to coincide with the movie.
It's a tale that brings in classic World War 2 history, the space race, a certain amount of sci-fi, and as I said, Diggle. It also has some amazing art as painted by Adi Granov.
That said, I go through two phases in comics buying- 1) where I buy everything that interests me and 2) where I try to save some money and only buy the titles that I really, really like. Unfortunately for Marvel, i am closer to the latter right now than the former.
The book is beautiful and there seems to be a lot of potential here, but the first issue doesn't quite fully deliver on it. It doesn't leave much of an impact in terms of memorable scenes, dialogue, or even plot points. I will probably end up passing, though I am not 100% sure.
Velvet (Image) - written by Ed Brubaker- Like Diggle, Brubaker is another writer who may not fall in my must-read-and-buy-everything-he-does category, but is high on my list.
I've read Brubaker before- his first major work, the Vertigo release Prez:Smells Like Teenage President really didn't work for me, but subsequent work on Catwoman, Gotham Central, Captain America and Daredevil particularly impressed.
Brubaker has also made quite a name for himself writing non-superhero stories, specifically his Image title Fatale. Fatale is one of the most successful (and there may be only a handful) non-superhero comics (Okay, i guess it's The Walking Dead and then everything else). Unfortunately, like many, I missed out on Fatale.
I wanted to make sure I picked up Velvet.
It's pretty good. I don't know that I was prepared for it. I can't think of any comic quite like it. Greg Rucka is one of the few mainstream writers who would be in the same ballpark- with the detective books like Stumptown and going full LeCarre with the spy comic Queen and Country. But these takes like Brubaker's Batman work are grounded in a reality found in procedural detective shows.
Garth Ennis has done pulp noir, and his Fury:My War Gone By miniseries was excellent and it sure brought a Steve Canyon-style story with plenty of sex and violence. However, that story was way more cartoon-ish than what Velvet delivers.
So Brubaker has given us a nice espinage thriller that delivers both the espionage part and the thriller part. It's certainly more pulp-ish in its delivery than what some people may want, but with Steve Epting doing the art, it succeeds where it intends. It's James Bond imagined as a cool female super-spy stuck in a Mad Men world.
Very cool.
For the scholars, Marvel includes a history of the spy novel extending from the first spy story ever written on to James Fenimore Cooper and Kim up through Deighton and Tom Clancy.
Hot dialogue, charismatic lead character, and a nice little unexpected ending that helps develop some backstory. Recommended.
Captain America: Living Legend (Marvel)- written by Andy Diggle- I like Diggle quite a bit and thought I would pick up the first issue of this four-part miniseries- a long-delayed comic originally planned for a 2011 release to coincide with the movie.
It's a tale that brings in classic World War 2 history, the space race, a certain amount of sci-fi, and as I said, Diggle. It also has some amazing art as painted by Adi Granov.
That said, I go through two phases in comics buying- 1) where I buy everything that interests me and 2) where I try to save some money and only buy the titles that I really, really like. Unfortunately for Marvel, i am closer to the latter right now than the former.
The book is beautiful and there seems to be a lot of potential here, but the first issue doesn't quite fully deliver on it. It doesn't leave much of an impact in terms of memorable scenes, dialogue, or even plot points. I will probably end up passing, though I am not 100% sure.
Velvet (Image) - written by Ed Brubaker- Like Diggle, Brubaker is another writer who may not fall in my must-read-and-buy-everything-he-does category, but is high on my list.
I've read Brubaker before- his first major work, the Vertigo release Prez:Smells Like Teenage President really didn't work for me, but subsequent work on Catwoman, Gotham Central, Captain America and Daredevil particularly impressed.
Brubaker has also made quite a name for himself writing non-superhero stories, specifically his Image title Fatale. Fatale is one of the most successful (and there may be only a handful) non-superhero comics (Okay, i guess it's The Walking Dead and then everything else). Unfortunately, like many, I missed out on Fatale.
I wanted to make sure I picked up Velvet.
It's pretty good. I don't know that I was prepared for it. I can't think of any comic quite like it. Greg Rucka is one of the few mainstream writers who would be in the same ballpark- with the detective books like Stumptown and going full LeCarre with the spy comic Queen and Country. But these takes like Brubaker's Batman work are grounded in a reality found in procedural detective shows.
Garth Ennis has done pulp noir, and his Fury:My War Gone By miniseries was excellent and it sure brought a Steve Canyon-style story with plenty of sex and violence. However, that story was way more cartoon-ish than what Velvet delivers.
So Brubaker has given us a nice espinage thriller that delivers both the espionage part and the thriller part. It's certainly more pulp-ish in its delivery than what some people may want, but with Steve Epting doing the art, it succeeds where it intends. It's James Bond imagined as a cool female super-spy stuck in a Mad Men world.
Very cool.
For the scholars, Marvel includes a history of the spy novel extending from the first spy story ever written on to James Fenimore Cooper and Kim up through Deighton and Tom Clancy.
Hot dialogue, charismatic lead character, and a nice little unexpected ending that helps develop some backstory. Recommended.
