Comic Reviews- April and May

Chrononauts #1 – written by Mark Millar (Image)- Millar continues to crank out hit after hit. I don’t necessarily have a problem with it, and Hollywood seems to open their wallets for him, it could be worse. Millar has made comments (I possibly am misrepresenting here, but don’t intend to) that people shouldn’t complain about the days Stan Lee cranked out story after story, and new character after new character, and Millar just wants to follow in that tradition.

In this case, it’s time travel. This book has gotten a lot of five star reviews. For me, I don’t see it as one of his better works. Time travels stories can be tricky, but Millar doesn’t seem to bring much originality to it (at least not yet). Millar is often profane and hilarious, but here he seems to be stretching abit.

Most will know Sean Murphy from his Punk Rock Jesus work, and this similarly gives a Vertigo-ish vibe. I am fine with it, though the visuals don’t grab like some of Millar’s other contributors. 

That said, Millar even on a downnote, still puts the best books on the stands, and I am going to stick with it to the end. Good, not great.

Convergence #0- written by Dan Jurgens and Jeff King (DC)- Convergence was a big event in the DC Universe, interacting with all of the major titles. I don’t read many DC that much anymore and this is why. This is a multi-universe event featuring Superman and Braniac and spilling out over everything.

Fans will say it is going back to classic characters, but the story is confusing and neither feels like the realism of Marvel or the groundbreaking work done by Image and the indies. It doesn’t feel like a jumping on point for newbies (which it is supposed to be). Nor if DC is trying to make this a “Big Event” kind of splash, does this really feel like that. I did read #0 but surprisingly did not pick up ay subsequent issues.

Injection #1 –written by Warren Ellis (Image)-  it’s always a good thing to have something new from Ellis on the shelves. It’s hard to get a grasp on Injection based on the first issue. Sci-fi, thriller, horror,… umm British, team dynamic, magic. Invisibles/Planetary type stuff maybe? Ellis is masterful as always. The dialogue is sharp. Characters are distinct and memorable. It’s all helped out by incredible art and colorwork by Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire (I don’t know Shalvey’s name off the top of my head, but I know Bellaire is typically great)

 

You don’t get a lot of explanation on issue 1. This may deter a lot of people. It’s Ellis’s storytelling purpose though. He’s going to get there. Indeed, that is the only minor complaint here, and this is not Moon Knight. It’s not Ellis’s intention to reveal all in the first issue. Overall, this is off to a great start. It will be interesting to see where it goes from here.

 

Jupiter’s Circle #1- written by Mark Millar (Image)- This is ostensibly a prequel to Millar’s Jupiter’s Legacy, which was a pretty good book, that sort of did a twist on the Classic Superhero kids and figured that the children of Superman, Wonder Woman, et al would be Paris Hiltons and Kardashians if they existed today. In this book, Millar goes back to the 50s to tell the story of those heroes.

 

In which case, this is a perfect Millar book- in that issue 1 will get you hooked or will absolutely abhor it. 

For starters, I think selecting artist Wilfredo Torres is inspired. It gives the book the perfect vibe- epic Blockbustr movie-style storytelling with a mix of Dick Tracy-ish inspired vibe.

What will offend most people is that Millar takes these comic archetypes and plows into James Ellroy-ish territory. These are manly men. They are young, strong, and good-looking, but like the other heroes of the day, they are also the Johnnie Rays and Rock Hudsons of their day. If you know what I mean.

It’s not all about secret lives in the bedroom though. Millar brings in other elements of the time that pop up in Ellroy-ish noir- there’s J Edgar and the FBI, the Space Race and Golden Age comics. Personally, I liked this one a lot and am curious to see where it goes. But this is very much the Millarwork that most people who hate Millar will be turned off by.