Last Week's Haul!

Well screw it. If Johnathan is going to post reviews this late then so am I. Memorial Day in the States screwed up our comic buying schedule, and I didn't end up picking up my comics until Saturday either. And for the past couple of days I have been doing a whole "should I...shouldn't I..." inner struggle about whether or not there is any point in posting reviews this late. But Johnathan did it, so I will too. Because I actually have a lot to say about last week's comics.

Batman in Barcelona (one-shot)

These days I tend to pick up any Batman comic that is independent of the Battle for the Cowl. Or basically any Batman comic that has Batman in it doing Batman stuff. This comic was basically created for the Barcelona comic convention which ran over the past weekend. It was pretty flat, I gotta say. It will probably be fun for the comic fans in Barcelona, but it sort of had that Spider-Man goes to CANADA! feel, y'know? Not that I don't collect and love any piece of American pop culture that I can get my hands on that involves a trip to Canada. So what I am saying is that although I have already forgotten what this comic was about, I am sure that the fans in Barcelona are at least a little thrilled to see Bruce Wayne partaking in Festival of St George celebrations (or, at least, acknowledging them).

Superman #688

Oh, Mon-El. So tragic. In this issue Mon-El finds out why his powers have been unreliable of late, and the news ain't good. He's dying. His stupid body is killing itself. But for now at least he is attractive and talking with a vague accent that passes for British. He also kinda wants to live, especially after a fairly (and maybe I read this wrong?) romantic encounter with a young man who runs an Italian restaurant downstairs from Mon's apartment. The man gives Mon a panini and encourages him to check out some café in Paris (which is undoubtedly writer James Robinson's favourite Paris café). It definitely felt like he was hitting on Mon, and that Mon was into it. Maybe it was the beautiful Renato Guedes art that was making everything seem so romantic. Anyway, after going to the café and drinking some espresso, Mon decides that not dying would be nice. To be continued!

Wonder Woman #32

Wonder Woman says enough is enough and beats the holy hell out of Genocide for this entire issue. It's awesome. She also admits that she never loved Tom, she just wanted to attractive children with him (children who would have been at least a little douchey, if you ask me). It's a tough day for Tom. There's only one issue left of this awesome storyline!

The Last Days of Animal Man #1

This six-issue series is set maybe ten years into the future, where an aging Buddy Baker is dealing with the fact that his powers are fading. Gerry Conway is writing it, and he knows a thing or two about writing comics. I really enjoyed this. Fans like me have been whining for years about DC and Vertigo having some sorta problem that didn't allow Vertigo heroes to return to the DCU. Over the past couple of years we have seen Animal Man slowly work his way back into the main DC line-up, and while I doubt we'll see him in the JLA anytime soon, he works really well in off-beat stories like this one. I think this series will be pretty fun.

Spider-Man: The Short Halloween (one-shot)

An oddly-timed but charming little Spider-Man comic written by SNL's Seth Myers and Bill Hader, and drawn by Kevin Maguire! It's a wacky story of mistaken identity when the real Spider-Man gets confused for a drunk dude in a Spider-Man halloween costume. Hilarity ensues. The comic does have pretty sharp comedy writing, and Maguire, the master of physical comedy in comic books, makes it funnier with his art. Plus it's a great stand-alone Spider-Man comic for those fools who aren't reading Amazing Spider-Man.

Ghost Rider #35

Whoever had the idea of making Tony Moore the artist on this book deserves a massive high five. What a great pairing! Like all Jason Aaron issues of Ghost Rider, this issue was gross, awesome and awesome.

Green Lantern #41

Looks like Hal Jordan's Guitar Hero playing days are over!

Bayou vol 1

The first book to be released under DC's Zuda label, Bayou vol 1 collects the acclaimed and beautiful webcomic. For those of you who weren't paying attention to Zuda, it's something DC set up a couple of years ago where creators could post the first few pages of a webcomic for people to read and rate. It has an American Idol-style competition element where the winner of each competition will become an ongoing webcomic on the Zuda site (complete with a contract). Unlike Idol, however, Zuda has actually brought recognition to people who deserve it. Bayou, by Jeremy Love, is the first of the winners to be collected into an actual physical book.

It's a very touching story about racism set in Depression-era Mississippi. The fantasy and folklore elements, and young girl protagonist, make it appropriate for young readers as well. I was hoping the paper quality of the book would be higher, but that's my only complaint. It's a lovely book.

Punctuation!

Hey there folks. I'm sure that you're all still reeling from the wicked-cool fishing post that I did last week, but trust me: this week we're heading toward even cooler waters with some good ol' talk about punctuation, the coolest thing since etymology!

See, I was bopping around Wikipedia last week and I happened upon the article on the sadly-underused interrobang, which then led me to read of the exclamation mark, and on that page there's a section on how comics - and especially older comics - tended to use them almost to the exclusion of the period. Now, this was back in the day, when printing processes were more primitive and art was a bit more standardized, and people have gotten pretty good at conveying body language nowadays. In combination with the standard punctuation that we all know and love as well as techniques like bolding significant words and maybe sometimes giving speech balloons crinkly borders or something, comic bookers can convey a pretty wide range of emotion and tone. But what, my little brain asks, if some of the more unusual punctuation that has been invented over the years was incorporated into the experience? Could things get even better?

(Just a note here: Dave and Tiina have been deriving a fair amount of amusement out of my tendency toward researching the things that I write about here on Johnathan Super Saturday Excellent Extravaganza. I totally swear that I went no further than Wikipedia for this. Though I guess I did consider getting a book from the library.)

  The Interrobang

The interrobang is more of a stylistic thing than most of the bits of punctuation that will follow. It was created in 1962 by an advertising executive by the name of Martin Speckter and was meant to replace the odd-looking-yet-frequently-used pairing of ! and ?. I could get into the interrobang seeing more use in the comix. Here, I made an example (a famous example):

Well, that was my reaction upon first hearing of this one. Uh, sorry that the interrobang is so tall. Frankenstinian punctution so often is, after all.

I was kind of disappointed because I couldn't find any information on two other bits of punctuation that I heard about years ago and seem to remember that Speckter had a hand in. One was like an exclamation mark but had three spikes coming off of it instead of one, the theory being that advertising had overused the exclamation to the point that it had no meaning any more and needed a replacement. The second had a whopping five spikes coming off of it and was created preemptively for when the three-spike variety became overused. They fill me with cynical delight!

The Acclamation Point

This isn't the best bit of punctuation ever, I admit, but it's alphabetically the first in a group suggested in 1966 by author Hervé Bazin. It's the weakest of the bunch due to the fact that it resembles the younger brother of those multi-spike exclamation points that I was talking about earlier and also due to the fact that it's pretty easy to convey acclaim without needing special punctuation for it. Still, the shocked looks on everyone's faces whenever Batman gave someone a compliment might be extra-intense if he had one of these bad boys at the end of whatever minor bit of approval that he might deign to dole out.

The Authority Point

Another good one for Batman - in fact, it should probably go on the end of about half of his sentences. Here:

Now: isn't that more authoratative? He's threatening to spank her in a firm, commanding tone.

On that note, the authority point could make for some good "this guy is an asshole" shorthand, given how many super-heroes are hotshot young mavericks with something to prove. A Guardian of the Universe or a government agent could signal that they were to be held in contempt with one authority point-adorned sentence. Alternately, in a team book, this mark could tie a whole issue together - say the Justice League is beaten and near-defeated and then Superman stands up and rallies them around him with a cry of "Get the crumb-bums" - such a stirring moment!

The Certitude Point

Looks very similar to the authority point, which makes some sense. This is another one that perhaps isn't as needed on a regular basis. But! What if it was repurposed as the attitude point? Suddenly, all of those snot-nosed young mavericks with something to prove would have something to use as they mouthed off to the guys that were using the authority point. Also, teenagers.

The Doubt Point

A bit too complex for my tastes, but would be handy for books about the paranormal. As the requisite skeptical character (the Scully, for those in the field) is drawn further and further into the world of shoggoths and wills-o-the-wisp, his or her sentences could slide gradually toward acceptance of the supernatural, beginning with doubt points, changing to question marks partway through and then at the climactic moment rocking the full certitude point. Oh, I changed it to attitude point, didn't I? Well, Cthulhu could stand to get some attitude now and then.

The Indignation Point

More punctuaton for defining stock characters. If you use an indignation point then you're a stuffed shirt, a society type of the sort that might end up employing the Three Stooges or acting as a foil to the Marx Brothers. If you rock this thing in a comic book you're going to be humiliated by the Creeper or someone at best and eaten by something gross at worst. Or both.

The Irony Mark

The Wikipedia entry on the irony mark is where I fond most of the rest of these guys. It has its own entry because irony is cool, if misunderstood. This thing should be in use all over the comic book as a medium - just think how many characters define themselves by their habit of making wise-acre comments all the time. Heck, there's also a sarcasm mark that looks like the Spanish favourite inverted exclamation mark (¡) - how many characters would there be who never ended a sentence with anything other than those two? Note that the sarcasm mark is actually something that is actually used in the the Ethiopic language, making it and them super-cool.

I  felt compelled to use this one as an example due to the fact that Batman has gotten so much attention for the 'Papa spank" thing in recent years - look, Wonder Woman did it too! And included bondage and mind-control, naturally.

The Love Point

Slightly sickening to look at, isn't it? It could come in useful for comics with a lot of teenage crushing going on but what else could the beat-you-over-the-head-with-what-it's-for love point be good for? I'll tell you what it's good for: elevating the art of taking panels out of context to a whole new level:

Isn't it just too creepy? Speaking of which, I coudn't resist:

I'll leave you with that.

Good afternoon!

This Week's Haul: It's the Muppet Show!

Hiya everyone!

Here are some of the comics I read this week!

The Muppet Show #1

I am actually astonished at how well this was executed. It's really, really great. The way the characters are only drawn from the waist up, the jokes, the structure of the comic mirroring the Muppet Show episodes. It's just fantastic. Roger Langridge writes and draws it and he captures the feel of the original show perfectly. I am pretty excited about Boom Studios new Boom Kids line, but the Muppet Show was definitely what I was most looking forward to. I am a huge Jim Henson fan, and I have been watching a lot of the Sesame Street: Old School DVDs lately, so I was definitely in the mood for this. By the way, a Sesame Street comic would be awesome.

Wonder Woman #30

I know I have praised Gail Simone's run on Wonder Woman plenty, but I just want to say it again: her Wonder Woman voice is amazing. I find it really jarring when a character just doesn't sound right (ie - James Robinson's Superman) and Wonder Woman is a character that has been, more often than not, written as a very flat character. Simone manages to give her a lot of depth and personality without losing the regal quality of the character. Like, I want Wonder Woman to have some warmth and humanity, but I don't want to see her being like "yo, what's up Etta?"

Also in this comic, Wonder Woman is really, really angry so we get to see how powerful she can be when she wants to be. And I like that.
 

Daredevil #117

Daredevil is one of those comics that makes me feel sorry for people who don't read comics because they do not get to read DAREDEVIL. There are a lot of comics on the stands that I enjoy, and there are a lot of great story lines, but the world of Daredevil, however depressing, is one of my favourites to lose myself in for 10 minutes or so each month. I think because it's more of a character study than any other comic, which makes it sound boring but it's really not because there is also a lot of kicking and punching. Plus, Brubaker is the master of the cliffhanger ending.
 

Captain America #48

I love nothing more than when Daredevil and Captain America drop on the same week. Double shot of Brubaker, PLUS I get my two Marvel boyfriends, Matt Murdock and Winter Soldier, in one week. And this week there is the added bonus of NAMOR in Captain America! I would love a week where Namor appears in every Marvel title, because he really makes every comic that much more entertaining. In this issue we get a nice example of how Namor, though pretty ridiculous-looking, is really one of the most terrifying characters when he's angry.

And also, Winter Soldier was hot.

Superman #686

Meh. I love this cross-over Superman storyline. I love Renato Guedes' art. I do not love James Robinson's writing on this title. Usually I like his writing, but I am not feeling his Superman. I do love seeing Mon-El back in action, though. But seriously, Superman, the dude is trapped in the Phantom Zone forever because you, let's face it, did not even try to find a cure for his lead allergy and as soon as he gets out (on his own) you are demanding favours of him? I'm surprised he didn't tell you to take a flying leap (note: not an effective insult for Superman).
 

Showcase Presents: Ambush Bug

Hello, what's this? Something totally rad?!

I basically own everything that is in here, but I still bought it because I just want to support the fact that they even published this. Well done, DC. Ambush Bug may seem like an odd choice for a Showcase, but it's actually perfect because there has never been an Ambush Bug collection of any kind before, and it's a little challenging finding all of the issues he appears in. You won't be sorry you bought this.

Great Hera!

I could seriously look at this all day.

Holy crap. It's so funny.

This Week's Haul: We hardly knew ye, Batman

Would you believe I am still sick? This is the worst cold ever.

BUT I am done my classes and I only have a few things to finish up before I am done school forever! I am going to celebrate by playing video games all day and partying all night.

Here are some comics I read this week.

Batman #681

The end of "Batman R.I.P." and what a long, crazy trip it's been. I've seen the "Batman BRB" jokes floating around that internet. That's pretty funny. Or, maybe, "Batman WTF?" I actually found this particular issue to be surprisingly fluid, for the most part. I don't think this storyline needed all the mass media attention it received. And it completely failed as a cross-over, as far as I'm concerned. Neither Detective, Nightwing nor Robin seemed to tie into Batman in any notable way.

I liked the Batman R.I.P. storyline, though. I don't know if I understood it, but I liked it. I just think people who don't regularly read comics who are picking up this issue because it made the news are going to be very dissapointed and confused.

Captain America #44

Do you know why Bucky is awesome? Because he is two super heroes! When he's got a job to do that's too dirty for Captain America, he switch to Winter Soldier. This issue shows that off nicely.

Daredevil #113

I am loving this Lady Bullseye storyline. I'm glad that we finally get some Matt Murdock reaction to the revelation that Elektra is a Skrull. And I am glad that we get some characters like Danny Rand and Master Ito kicking around for levity. Plus Dakota is still awesome. And not dead yet...will she shake the "sleeping with Matt Murdock" curse? I hope so.

Superman #682

I think this was James Robinson's best issue of Superman so far. The voices seemed a lot better, whereas before it just sounded like a bunch of James Robinsons conversing with each other. I always like Renato Guedes art, too, especially when he's drawing Supergirl.

Wonder Woman #26

I'm really glad that DC not only has the perfect person writing Wonder Woman (Gail Simone), but they also have the perfect person drawing this title (Aaron Lopresti). This issue launches a new storyline that looks like it's going to be fantastic.

Supergirl Week: To be Continued...

Alright, so I picked kind of a busy week to attempt a theme week on this blog. But I have much more to say about Supergirl. So I promise another Supergirl Week sometime soon. Because I didn't even get into anything past the Silver Age, or her team-ups, or any of the other awesome adventures the last daughter of Krypton has had. And that's a shame, because look!:

Remember to vote today, Canada. And if you want to vote against Harper, that's cool with me.