Review- VELVET VOL. 1: BEFORE THE LIVING END

VELVET VOL. 1: BEFORE THE LIVING END (Image, 2014; Softcover)

Collects Velvet #1-5 (cover dates October, 2013- May, 2014)

Writer: Ed Brubaker

Artist: Steve Epting

Colorist: Elizabeth Breitweiser

Some creators hit a high mark and then go on autopilot, phoning in respectable if unremarkable work that is the result of money and success. Ed Brubaker seems to be going in the opposite direction. The more success and money he gets, the bolder he gets. Sleeper was good but Incognito was stronger. Criminal was better than both, and Fatale buried them all. Velvet is every bit as good as Fatale, and in some ways it is even better.

Brubaker is no stranger to spies and espionage (see his entire Captain America run). This series is about Velvet Templeton, something of a spy's spy. She has fooled spies into thinking that she is a simple secretary until her cover is blown and friends and colleagues start turning up dead. This is white-knuckled, sophisticated adult reading high on action and low on humor.

Steve Epting's artwork has also continually improved, which is really saying something. Elizabeth Breitweiser's coloring is breathtaking, some of the best that I have ever seen. I am admittedly more of a flat color kind of guy since the bells and whistles often become a distraction, but Breitweiser practices tasteful application of the benefits of modern computer coloring. Things look vintage and fresh at the same time. The artwork and coloring work together and create the perfect mood. 

This is the type of comic book that would appeal to people who may not like comics. If you know someone who is into James Bond or other hard-edged spy stories then this book would make a good gift. I read tons of comic books and it is hard to impress me, but Velvet has impressed me. A lot. Vol. 2 will be out within the next few months. I'm really looking forward to it.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Image makes the nicest trade paperbacks these days. Solid.

Paper stock: Thick matte coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Thick laminated cardstock.

Review- INCREDIBLE HULK: CROSSROADS

INCREDIBLE HULK: CROSSROADS (Marvel, 2013; Softcover)

Collects The Incredible Hulk Annual #13, The Incredible Hulk #301-313, and Alpha Flight # 29 (cover dates November, 1984- December, 1985)

Writer: Bill Mantlo

Artists: Pencilers- Sal Buscema, Alan Kupperburg, Bret Blevins, and Mike Mignola

Inkers- Gerry Talaoc and Al Williamson

Bill Mantlo's run on this title has to be one of the most underrated runs of the 1980s. I'm not kidding. Aside from #312 and 313 (which I bought when they originally came out- more on that later) these comics were all new to me, and they are all great. Mantlo's writing may seem overly wordy to modern reader sensibilities but bear with it, kids. He crams an arc's worth of characterization into every single issue and there is one helluva payoff at the end of the day, nearly 1200 pages across these three books later.

The Hulk has been banished to the Crossroads by Doctor Strange in an attempt to save both the Earth and the Hulk. Due to Nightmare's interference, Bruce Banner's intellect was squashed and the Hulk became a truly mindless beast. When Strange intervened Banner essentially committed suicide of the id, allowing a mindless Hulk to wander through the Crossroads, which is a nexus to different worlds and dimensions. Strange implanted a fail safe spell in the Hulk's mind so that if the mindless Hulk became discontented he would be transported back to the Crossroads, free to pick a new world until he found one that made him happy.

The Hulk encounters foes of all types in this dimension. Worlds where all of his strength is useless, as he is the weakest being (#302-303). Worlds where a symbiotic creature attaches itself to the Hulk and learns to dream (Annual #13). He befriends an entity called the Puffball Collective which is trapped in the Crossroads and unable to enter any of the worlds. There is a ton of development with that entity, and it ends up helping the Hulk before revealing it/their hand. The N'Garai appear in the finale, and that battle is pretty darn cool.

Yes, the N'Gari were clearly "inspired" by the movie Alien.

As if all of this isn't enough, the remnants of Bruce Banner's psyche begin to reemerge as three personalities called The Triad (#308). Glow, a star-like creature that is Banner's intellect; Guardian, Banner's survival instinct; and Goblin, his anger, basically the devil on his soldier. These three personalities helped the Hulk when he was mindless but were of course invisible to everyone else. That's right, kids, years before the show Herman's Head set the world on fire for the fledgling Fox Network Bill Mantlo paved the road for it with this title. This is some pretty heady stuff and predates many so-called sophisticated comics. Their origin wasn't revealed until #312, which I bought as 12 year old sucker because it was a Secret Wars II tie-in. It was dry for my tastes back then, even though I enjoyed the artwork of the then-unknown Mike Mignola, who would go on to great success with Hellboy.

Herman's Head. I was one of the 20 people who watched when it originally aired, largely because my family was too poor to have cable and the Internet didn't exist.

I was suckered into buying #313 because it tied into Alpha Flight #29. AF was one of my favorite titles in 1985, and series writer/artist John Byrne was going over to The Incredible Hulk while Mantlo/Mignola/Talaoc were going over to Alpha Flight. The Beyonder set a chain of events in #312 which led to the end of AF #28 (which took place at the same time as #313) and beginning of #29. The whole thing ends with a bang, literally. It was a pretty clever way to tie up Mantlo's run as well as welcome Byrne to his ill-fated but highly advised run.

I was harsh about Gerry Talaoc's inking in my review for the previous volume, Regression. I stand by that critique, as his work in that book was substandard. He really shines here, though, having figured out how to compliment Sal Buscema's pencils perfectly. He also works well with a young Mike Mignola.

Bill Mantlo is a great writer who did what many comic book writers fail to do. Take a character, put that character through their paces, break things, and then carefully put everything back together the way that you found it. He put his stamp on the character without disowning what came before or making it impossible to follow without adhering to his take. Genius. It makes me sad that he still suffers from injuries sustained in a hit and run accident many years ago and is in assisted living. Hopefully royalties from reprints like this help him out. He is a writer whose work has always hit the mark and deserved a better fate than what he got. The driver who crippled him was never caught.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I love love love these thick chunky books! 400-500 pages is the sweet spot for me. I am sucker for complete chunks of a title. DC would do well to emulate this with their '60s-80s material. I would probably buy them all. Kill me now.

Linework and Color restoration: The film is in great shape and the color palette is faithful to the original publications. If there are variances they are minor enough that they don't bother me, so they likely wouldn't bother you since I tend to skew pretty anal about this sort of thing.

Paper stock: The same awesome matte coated stock found in softcover Masterworks, Epic books, and Classic line trade paperbacks. My favorite!

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Thick lamination on the cardstock cover.

Review- CALIBAN

CALIBAN (Avatar Press, 2015; Softcover)

Collects Caliban #1-7 (cover dates March, 2014- February, 2015)

Writer: Garth Ennis

Artists: Penciler- Facundo Percio; Inker- Sebastian Carrol

Colorist: Hernan Cabrera

I plowed through this book one night and initially thought Been there done that. I liked it better when it was called Alien. Then I thought about that for a minute. After all, what was Alien but a bold reinterpretation of The Thing From Another World and Invasion Of The Body Snatchers wrapped up in then-cutting edge special effects and H.R. Geiger's brilliant designs?

Having said that, much of this is similar to Alien. Crew of Earth astronauts on a voyage in space working for a company. Crew encounters a strange craft, albeit the way that this crew encounters the craft is different from how the crew of the Nostromo encountered their problem. The gist is the same, though, as there in an alien being who takes over a few different people, one at a time.

This was good enough but didn't bowl me over. There were some interesting ideas presented and the execution was decent. If you are young enough to not know about Alien then this might rock your world.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 3 out of 5.

The OCD zone

Paper stock: Thick glossy coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock.

Review- GREEN ARROW VOL. 2: HERE THERE BE DRAGONS

GREEN ARROW VOL. 2: HERE THERE BE DRAGONS (DC, 2014; Softcover)

Collects Green Arrow #7-12 (cover dates August- Winter, 1988)

Writers: Mike Grell and Sharon Wright

Artists: Ed Hannigan, Dick Giordano, Frank McLaughlin, Paris Cullins, Eduardo Barreto, Randy Duburke, Arne Starr, and Gary Martin

Continuing with the mature readers angle, Volume 2 of Mike Grell's Green Arrow works extremely well for what it is. Over the top violence, sexual situations, and adversaries rooted in the real world are what's on tap in this book. Lots of action here with CIA operations and sled dog races in Alaska. Grell lost me with the ninja crap in #9, though. Martial arts enjoyed a brief renaissance in the '80s, but the whole honor/samurai shtick is lame and boring. It reminds me of that episode of South Park...it has a dragon right on the blade. While the writing and artwork are solid enough I won't be back for volume 3.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- This book weighs about as much as a pack of cigarettes due to the cheap paper that DC passes off on folks. The paper is so off-putting that it helped me decide against continuing to buy this line of books.

Linework and Color restoration: It looks good, but I didn't bother comparing it to scans of the original issues.

Paper stock: DC's Charmin special toilet paper stock. It looks and feels cheap and will brown with age. My first printing of Batman Chronicles Vol. 1 from a decade ago is browning on the top, and it has been stored in a climate controlled environment in an acid free box, away from sunlight and dust. My old Swamp Thing trades from that era are also browning. What a joke.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Thick waxlike lamination.

 

Review- INCREDIBLE HULK: REGRESSION

INCREDIBLE HULK: REGRESSION (Marvel, 2012; Softcover)

Collects The Incredible Hulk #286-300 and The Incredible Hulk Annual #12 (cover dates August, 1983- October, 1984)

Writer: Bill Mantlo (#286 adapted from a story by Harlan Ellison)

Artists: Sal Buscema (Penciler) with Inkers Kim DeMulder, Chic Stone, Jim Mooney, Joe Sinnott, Carlos Garzon, Gerry Talaoc, Danny Bulanadi; Artwork on Annual #12 by Herb Trimpe

I had a blast reading this. The M.O.D.O.K./ Abomination/ A.I.M. arc was great, ditto the Circus Of Crime and Dragon Man one. There is so much character development, in the true sense of the term, between Dr. Banner, S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Dr. Kate Waynesboro, and the Recordasphere. By true character development I mean events occur which change all involved, not endless conversations about nothing which fans of modern comic books mistake for character development. That is called “padding the page count” and it is the hallmark of clueless lazy writers. Boomerang gets his ass handed to him by the Hulk, which was fun to read.

A subplot which had been slowly developing was Dr. Banner's discovery of an energy burst of significant and unknown power. This burst happened a few times, and was ultimately revealed to be (SPOILER!!!) The Beyonder, all of it leading up to the Marvel Super-Heroes Secret Wars maxi-series. All of the heroes were drawn into “the stonehenge-like construct” in Central Park and whisked away to Battleworld and then dropped back into Central Park at the beginning of the next issue of their respective titles, in this case #294 and 295. It seems like this was a bother to Mantlo's tightly constructed long-term plans, as it is apparent that he had planned on these issues being a cliffhanger with the Boomerang kidnapping of Dr. Waynesboro. The Hulk issues read like it was mere moments, whereas over in Amazing Spider-Man the heroes were gone long enough that it was mystery reported on the front page of The Daily Bugle.

#296 is presented in an abridged form due to the fact that ROM, Spaceknight was a guest star. ROM is a licensed character, a strange case of the comic book tie-in being more interesting and successful than the toy which spawned it. Unfortunately for the rights holders (and Marvel) writer Bill Mantlo created so much backstory and so many characters owned by Marvel that whoever owns the rights to ROM cannot reprint the series. Likewise, Marvel cannot reprint anything which ROM was a part of, which was quite a bit during the 1980s. It's really a catch 22, and I wish that Disney would just gobble up whoever owns the rights so I can get my ROMnibus, which remains a dream of mine. Only pages 4-13 out of 22 total pages are reprinted here, as the cover and the rest of the issue has ROM in it. There are text recap pages for the rest which refer to ROM as an “alien cyborg” and not by name.

I have enjoyed the Hulk's trials and tribulations with the intellect of Bruce Banner in control. Bill Mantlo has put the Hulk and Banner through their paces while not destroying anything about the series. This is the definition of characters development, folks. The Hulk goes back to his savage self at the hands of (SPOILER!!!) Nightmare, who has been manipulating him for a while to get back at Doctor Strange. This all leads up to a mindless Hulk attacking New York City in #300, with literally every hero in the Marvel Universe taking a shot a stopping him. While it was a double sized issue, I couldn't help but chuckle at how this would have been an event mini-series with a ton of crossover issues and tie-in mini-series and one-shots. I liked comics better back when universe-altering events occurred within a regular series. Number don't lie though, so modern fandom must get off on big dumb endless events and being gouged with endless tie-ins and mini-series. You go, fanboys*.

*Term used in the original pejorative.

Credit where credit is due: Chic Stone is one of the most solid inkers in the business. Everything that he touched received a spit-shine to it. Only Joe Sinnott did such solid inking on a consistent basis. Gerry Talaoc settles in as the regular inker, and I was never a fan of his work. Serviceable is as kind as a description as I can give.

I never bothered with the Hulk back when these issues were originally published. Maybe it was the memory of the television series that turned me off, but more likely it was that I didn't have enough money to buy every single comic back then. These covers, many done by Al Milgrom, never leapt off of the spinner rack at me. Most of them are just plain bland, and I fail to see why Sal Buscema didn't do them himself.

Mantlo was a favorite of mine as a kid, and his writing holds up thirty odd years later. These “proto-Epic” thick trades are a joy. My Hulk marathon will conclude with Crossroads.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.25 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I love big trades and I cannot lie.

Linework and Color restoration: Excellent work, not quite Masterworks-level but solid enough that if they never get this far then I am good.

Paper stock: The same great matte coated stock found in softcover Masterworks and Classic line trade paperbacks. It's perfect.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback. The binding in these fat books seems more sturdy than it does in the thinner books.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- MISS FURY: SENSATIONAL SUNDAYS 1941-1944

MISS FURY: SENSATIONAL SUNDAYS 1941-1944 (Library Of American Comics/ IDW, 2013; Hardcover)

Collects Miss Fury Sunday Strip 1-158b, originally published on April 6, 1941- April 16, 1941.

Writer and Artist: Tarpe Mills

This first volume in the series was released after the second one. I loved the first (second) book when I read it, but some story elements eluded me early on in that book because they were plotlines that carried over from this one. That wrong has been righted with the release of this book. This strip was originally titled Black Fury, a nod to the black leopard skin costume that our femme fatale, Marla Drake, wore. In truth she doesn't wear it very much as the series progresses. While she is billed as a superhero, Miss Fury is in truth a World War II spy strip with dizzying plotline twists. Mills juggled so many plates that it's nothing short of a miracle that she didn't drop any.

There are some cheesecake and S & M elements here, made all the more curious considering that the strip was written and drawn by a woman. This was a true rarity for an adventure strip in this era. I wonder if Mills was pandering to her predominately male audience or if she genuinely enjoyed presenting this sort of thing.

Being a weekly strip, there were weeks and sometimes a month or more without so much as an appearance by the supposed star of the strip, and you know what? It doesn't matter one bit. Some of these supporting characters are as interesting as Miss Fury. Mills' artwork is unique and adds a certain charm to this strip. I am buying more and more of these strip books these days, and the ones from the IDW Library Of American Comics imprint are some of the best out there.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- While this is presented in an oversized format, I have no idea if this is presented in the same size at the strips originally appeared.

Linework and Color restoration: Scans with the yellowing removed. Most look really good but there are a few pages that are from inferior sources, possibly even scanned at lower resolution than the rest of the book. All of the problems found with old four color comics are present here (line bleed, off register printing, etc.).

Paper stock: Beautiful, super thick off-white uncoated stock.

Binding: Smyth sewn binding, lays flat. Built in ribbon bookmark. Those aren't my cup of tea but seem to be standard in many of these strip collections.

Hardback cover notes: The dustjacket has a dull finish that requires careful handling. The hardback has a vintage feeling casewrap which I find to be appealing.

Review- SIDEKICK VOL. 1

SIDEKICK VOL. 1 (Image, 2014; Softcover)

Collects Sidekick #1-6 (cover dates August, 2013- April, 2014)

Writer: J. Michael Straczynski

Artist: Tom Mandrake

Colorist: Hi-Fi

Super serious dark and gritty “mature” superhero comics have been done to death, so much so that I am beginning to feel that they are the cliché and fun, lighthearted superhero comics are really for the cool kids. JMS' writing is of such high quality that he makes what sounds like a tired concept a compelling read.

The Red Cowl is a decidedly Golden Age flavored hero. He fights crime in Sol City with his sidekick, Flyboy. These Batman and Robin doppelgangers are met with tragedy when The Red Cowl is assassinated in a manner similar to JFK, resulting in Flyboy becoming a laughing stock and sliding down a hole into depression, alcohol, and lost battles. Then something occurs (I won't say what) that leads Flyboy to believe that The Red Cowl is alive, and it is more than he can bear. JMS seems to work in 12-issue cycles on a lot of things, so hopefully this will all pan out.

Tom Mandrake's art is great as usual. His superhero battles are reminiscent of Neal Adams or John Byrne, a great contrast to the static, statuesque poses that so many artists do these days. Mandrake conveys story, whereas others just try to get a licensable image to slap on a T-shirt and get royalties from.

The hook is strong enough for me to come back for Volume 2. JMS is on his own timetable, so I won't be holding my breath.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.25 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Image makes the nicest trade paperbacks these days. Solid.

Paper stock: Thick coated stock with a slight sheen.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Thick waxlike lamination.

 

Review- BLACK DYNAMITE

BLACK DYNAMITE (IDW, 2015; Softcover)

Collects Black Dynamite: Slave Island one shot and Black Dynamite #1-4 (cover dates April, 2011- August, 2014)

Writer: Brian Ash

Artists: Jun Lofamia, Ron Wimberly, Marcelo Ferreira, and Sal Buscema

Colorists: Jim Ringuet

I was lucky enough to catch the film at the former Burton Theatre in Detroit (now under different owners and called Cinema Detroit) when it was making the indie rounds and have been a fan ever since. I was also lucky enough to have a first printing of Slave Island, which I dumped on eBay and cashed in on, using the money to buy this book. Black Dynamite paid me to buy this book.

While the aforementioned Slave Island one shot is the best issue in the book, the other issues are all good in their own right. Issue 1 is the weak link, but 2 through 4 are all great. Each issue is a self-contained story. I especially enjoyed the one with Tibetan monks, although the one about the shoes was equally memorable.

This is tongue in cheek satire and homage to and of the Blaxploitation genre. There are many jokes about race, so super-sensitive politically correct types need not apply. Those of us with a sense of humor will enjoy this immensely. While word on the street is that the animated series won't be back for a third season*, one can only hope that we get another movie or some more comic books.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

*I feel guilty about this since I don't watch television. I waste my time reading comics, listening to music, and surfing the Internet, not glued to the boob tube. Sorry.

The OCD zone- This book smells nice. Really, really nice. I sat there huffing that magical toxic Korean made scent.

Paper stock: Thick semi-glossy coated stock. Nice.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperbacks.

Cardstock cover notes: The lamination started peeling off as I read it. Not cool.

Review- CROSSED VOL. 11

This is the ONLY true image of the hardcover on the entire Internet. I made it because I couldn't find one anywhere to swipe. You're welcome, Internet!

CROSSED VOL. 11 (Avatar Press, 2014; Hardcover)

Note: Book actually released in 2015.

Collects Crossed: Badlands #57-61 and Crossed 2014 Annual (cover dates January- August, 2014)

Writers: Justin Jordan and Simon Spurrier (Crossed 2014 Annual)

Artists: Georges Quarte, Geanes Holland (#61), and Rafael Ortiz (Crossed 2014 Annual)

Colorist: Digikore Studios

If Crossed has taught me anything it is that only the sick will survive. Most of these people who arrange compounds or safe havens have a sick, depraved reason for doing so. It kind of makes you think about people in the world who seem normal on the surface and go about their daily life. Who knows what people are like inside their head, though? Your friends or neighbors could be really sick people and just need that push to go off of the deep end. Something like, say, civilization collapsing because of the Crossed.

The Folly, the story from the 2014 Annual, is even better than the main arc collected here. A young boy with asthma who has been bullied and has never accomplished anything in his life is faced with the realization that we are the makers of our own destiny...even a destiny like this. It is the human backdrop against the carnage that keeps me plunking down money time and again for this series. That and the fact that this is just so f**ked up and wrong, like a train wreck that I have to keep taking another peek at when I should just turn and walk away like decent people would do. Weep for my humanity, for it must surely be dead.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Some of the variants are presented here. They should release a book with all of the variant covers. That would be cool.

These hardcovers are Direct Market exclusives supposedly not available online. ;)

Paper stock: Good weight glossy coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound.

Hardback cover notes: Super thick lamination on the casewrap make this dustjacket-free hardcover a joy.