Stuff of the Year

I don't feel entirely qualified to make a “best of” comic list for the year. Most of the stuff I have read this year has been out for a while. The fact that I usually read trade paperbacks means that they have been previously published and then collected into a larger book. I have been planning on checking out DC's new “52” titles, but budget limitations [unemployment] mean[s] I haven't been to the book store in a while.

I have been making a better effort in keeping up with the webcomic world [it's FREE!], so I can go through some of my highlights there.

My two favourite webcomics are both not at their finest, Achewood having few and irregular updates all year [but Chris Onstad provided a very good explanation], and A Lesson is Learned But the Damage is Irreversible has been on hiatus since 2006 [although apparently Dale has written a novel!], so those are out of the running. Dresden Codak is great, but it is updated so rarely [only eight this year!] that it is hard to give it the top prize. Dinosaur Comics doesn't have the same kind of staying power that is once had... maybe it is the opposite of the Dreseden Codak situation: it has more quantity over quality. Or maybe the writing is still solid... Whatever the case, I just kind of lost interest after a while.

In good news, after a lord-knows-how-long hiatus, the Perry Bible Fellowship is finally back. There have been six new comics as of late, all wonderful in the weird,  perverse/hilarious way that writer/artist Nicholas Gurewitch has perfected.

My personal fave of the new batch:
[just click to enlarge][that's what she said]

xkcd is, of course, always solid and usually ends up on “best of the year” lists. But one that I don't think gets enough recognition is Toothpaste for Dinner. It has a superhigh output [a new comic virtually everyday!], and they aren't all winners, but I really enjoy the simplicity of the whole thing. It's where I go when I am in need of a quick, cheap chuckle.

I have looked at a couple of other “best webcomics of 2011” lists and one that I really liked upon checking out was Three Word Phrase. Simply amazing:

So, really no clear champ, but some good stuff... I'll try harder next year.

Non-Comic-Related Stuff

Album of the year: Watch the Throne, Jay-Z & Kanye West

Song of the Year: Calgary, Bon Iver

Movie of the Year: X-Men: First Class [so, actually comic-related!]

Year of the Year: Rabbit

Review #23: Sherlock's my Homie

The Hound of the Baskervilles


Writer: Arthur Conan Doyle [adapted by Ian Edginton]

Artist: I. N. J. Culbard

Published: Sterling Publishing, 2009




I saw the new Sherlock Holmes flick the other week and it was not bad. I do prefer Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, though. In my mind, Jeremy Brett will always be Sherlock Holmes. Sorry, Rob. In any case, I recently happened to pick up a graphic novel version of the classic Holmes tale, The Hound of the Baskervilles.

The year is 1889. James Mortimer, physician, needs the help of the world's greatest detective: Sherlock Holmes. It seems his friend Charles Baskerville, a rich guy, has recently died under mysterious circumstances. Mortimer believes that Charles could have been the victim of his “family curse”: for generations, the family has been plagued by the legend of a ghostly hound that haunts the nearby moor. On the night Charles died [of “cardiac exhaustion”, which Mortimer believes was brought on by terror], his body was found on the edge of the moor, not far from a set of large paw prints. THE PLOT THICKENS.

Henry, the son of one of Charles' two deceased brothers, is eager to claim Baskerville Hall for his own, despite the possibility of a supernatural creature's thirst for his blood. He also meets with Holmes, who determines that, though the nature of the hound remains unknown, there is definitely a human element to this mystery. Watson travels to Baskerville Hall with Henry in order to keep an eye on him while Holmes attends to other matters.

Watson writes to Holmes to keep him up to snuff with the goings on, until his partner is able to join him. Together, they begin to unravel a plot involving the butler [seriously], an escaped convict, and several denizens of the DARK AND MYSTERIOUS MOOR!

My father is a big fan of the old British TV series, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring the aforementioned Jeremy Brett [actually, the Holmes in the book looks rather like Mr. Brett, I find], and I recall watching this episode as a wee child, but I could not recall how it ended, so that was a nice surprise.

The novel opens awesomely with Holmes and Watson inspecting the walking stick that Mortimer left at 221 Baker Street when he came by and missed them. They take turns deducing who Mortimer is based on the stick, with Holmes, naturally, being freakishly close to the truth. Classic Holmes!

I didn't have any problems with this adaptation, except I thought that they could've held off longer on the reveal of the hound, just for suspense's sake. The art looks almost like a Saturday-morning cartoon, with a very exaggerated style. It reminded me of a caricature artist you would find on the street of a large city, or one of those “how to draw” guides. It's not for everyone, but I thought it was alright. Despite the simple look, it doesn't sacrifice any detail, with backgrounds still fleshed out with zeal.

Watson character sketches found in the back of the book

So: good stuff, but if you don't like Sherlock Holmes/cartoony artwork, this probably won't change your mind.

BONUS XMAS SPECIAL POST

Ho ho hoo boy. Christmas day once again comes to an end, and once again, I have underslept, over-stuffed myself, and had too many cups of coffee and Bailey’s. Before I pass out into a food-induced coma, I figured I would fire off a blog post.

I got a couple comic-related things this Christmas, courtesy of my dear sister, Kirsten, and my dear friend, Kerilee. The first was An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories, which I have flipped through and it looks awesome. It features samples from such heavy-hitters as Art Spiegelman, Charlie Burns, and Gil Hernandez.

The second is a Marvel pop-up calendar, which is also pretty cool and which I can use to schedule my blog updates more regularly. It features such heavy-hitters as the Silver Surfer, Wolverine, and Hulk.

In the spirit of the holidays, BuzzFeed recently featured some artwork that shows what the old classic “A Christmas Story” would look like if the cast was made up of Marvel characters. Check 'er out at the link below!

http://www.buzzfeed.com/hgrant/a-marvel-christmas-story

And on the independent webcomic side of things, here is some holiday cheer courtesy of Kate Beaton:

http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php?id=330

I hope you had a good Christmas or whatever it is that you celebrate!

'Til next time!

Review #22: Iron Man Interrupts Taylor Swift

Stark Resilient

Writer: Matt Fraction

Artist: Salvador Larroca /Jamie McKelvie

Published: Marvel, 2011




Tony Stark is the Kanye West of the comic book world: massive douchebaggery, but he backs it up with results.


As both a CEO and a superhero, Tony strikes a chord with readers in this corporate-centric world. I would love to see a story arc in which Iron Man somehow fights a physical representation of the recession.

Anywho, Stark Resilient drops us in the middle of a storyline in which Stark Industries has taken a major hit and is basically restarting from the ground up. Tony's former assistant and current right-hand woman, Pepper Potts, has just undergone surgery to have a “repulsor” installed in her chest, similar to the one Tony has [they are essentially both cyborgs]. Also similar to Tony, she has become a hero with the help of a suit of armor, calling herself Rescue.

Justine Hammer, daughter of a deceased nemesis of Tony's [Justin Hammer] and wife to another [the Mandarin], is determined to humiliate him, both physically and financially. The Hammers have developed their own version of the Iron Man armor, piloted by Lt. Doug Johnson of the U.S. military and dubbed “Detroit Steel”. Hammer Industries is basically are looking to replace Stark Industries in the weapons market, complete with sweet government contracts.

Tony experiences a set back when his new “green” car explodes during a test run. Tony knows it was sabotage, but doesn't have any leads. The company proceeds with the unveiling of their new vehicle, with Tony behind the wheel, but the Hammers decide to attack him with some remotely controlled drones they have developed for the U.S. military. Their plan is to claim it was a terrorist attack and they send in Detroit Steel to “save” Tony, when his mission, of course, is to kill him.


With the help of Rescue and War Machine, Tony manages to dodge Detroit Steel long enough for S.H.E.I.L.D. director Maria Hill to intimidate the Hammer's military ally, a General Babbage, into calling off the dogs. Huzzah!

Apparently a lot of the right people like this series, as it has won an Eisner. I like it as well, but there were a couple problems here and there. I thought that Lt. Johnson was convinced a little too easily that killing innocent AMERICAN civilians was an OK thing to do. And it wasn't quite clear why Hill's threat to General Babbage held any weight, when she didn't have any proof that he was “in bed” with the Hammers.

Plenty of good stuff, though: the smooth artwork, the effortlessly modern feel, and of course, our leading man. The greatest strength that Iron Man has as a character is his humanity [funny, for a guy who is part robot]. Throughout his career, Tony has had an on-and-off struggle with alcoholism. He is currently off the hooch and it is interesting to see how that affects his behaviour. Tony shows an uncharacteristic lack of confidence before an important gala and talks wistfully about not being able to get drunk. Underneath the layers of booze and armor and arrogance, Tony is just as vulnerable as the next guy.


The main story line is followed by a WONDERFUL little 8-pager called “Good Morning, Tony”, which is a hilarious and touching look at a day in the life of Tony Stark, almost completely sans dialogue.

He wakes up, has his coffee, showers, drives to work [I don't know why he doesn't just fly to work in the Iron Man suit; it would save time and money], fights bad guys, has lunch, flirts with some random woman, goes to dinner with said random woman, sleeps with said random woman and then starts the whole thing over again.

The story provides a look at the mundane aspects of Tony's life. Now, wining and dining some hot blond may not be your or my idea of mundane, but it probably happens to a guy like Tony a lot. He seems to be merely going through the motions with this woman.


The only genuine happiness that Tony shows throughout the evening is at 1:30 in the morning, when his floozy is fast asleep, and Pepper calls him. Isn't that sweet.

Review #21: Chi-town Tragedy

Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty

Writer: G. Neri

Artist: Randy Duburke

Published: Lee & Low Books, 2010

This was a sobering read. It's based on the true story of Robert “Yummy” Sandifer, an 11-year-old who shot and killed a 14-year-old girl in 1994.

His parents were in and out of jail for various drug-related crimes, so Yummy was raised by his grandmother in Chicago. Following a similar path as his parents, he was in and out of juvie for breaking and entering and grand theft auto. He eventually fell in with a gang called the Black Disciples. They had him doing all sorts of stuff for them, because he was too young to be convicted of a felony.

One day, Yummy was looking to score some points with the higher-ups in the Black Disciples by offing some rival gang members. He opened fire on some guys playing basketball on a crowded street, but he accidentally hits Shavon Dean, a young aspiring hairdresser.

The Black Disciples help Yummy go into hiding, while media coverage explodes over the shooting and the entire country is in an uproar. The story is featured on the cover of the September 1994 issue of Time. The Black Disciples had planned on hiding Yummy until things “cooled down”, but that didn't really seem to be happening. In the eyes of the gang, Yummy became more of a problem than he was worth. They decided to solve this problem by having him murdered. The book ends with Yummy's funeral and the aftermath.

The narrator is a fictional 11-year-old boy, Roger, who lives in the same neighbourhood as Yummy. He provides us with an innocent, unbiased POV as the story unfolds. We see Yummy as a regular [albeit messed up] kid, before he got involved with the wrong people and things spiraled out of control. The story doesn’t delve too deeply into how society produced an 11-year-old murderer. A few pages of talking heads give a variety of theories on what went wrong and why and when and how. But to get into that would betray the narrator's limited understanding of the world. The childlike approach to this mature subject matter allows us to forget statistics and politicians and experts and instead focus on the simple, terrible fact that somehow, one child killed another child.

Roger has a fictional older brother, Gary, who is a member of the Disciples. Throughout the comic, he defends his gang and their actions, causing friction with his parents. It isn't until after the funeral that Gary breaks down and shows some regret over what happened. It's too late for Yummy, but it shows some hope for the future.

The artwork is good, but the quality fluctuates at times, some drawings seeming more “sketch-book” material. I liked the pacing, with the build-up to Yummy's murder being particularly effective. Dark, hollow eyes and wordless panels... chilling.

As a teacher in South Central L.A., Neri had a first hand look at the circumstances that lead kids to lives of crime and prison and death. In his afterword, Neri states that as “both a bully and a victim– [Yummy] deserves both our anger and our understanding.” I think the book achieves that duality.

Review #20: Constant Hell

Hellblazer: All His Engines

Writer: Mike Carey

Artist: Leonardo Manco

Published: Vertigo, 2005

I figured it would be appropriate to segue from the works of Stephen King to this similarly supernatural series, Hellblazer.

I have heard much about John Constantine, the protagonist of said series. He was played by THE Keanu Reeves in his own Hollywood action/horror flick, which a few friends have recommended [and which also came out in 2005]. He is apparently a certified badass with his chain-smoking, wearing trench-coats and literally making deals with devils. John is a sort of occult detective and has a vast knowledge of magic, although he uses it sparingly, mostly relying on his wits to get him out of the fucked up situations he gets himself into. Think of him as Fox Mulder on steroids.

So, Chas Chandler [which could be an homage to Jim Sterenko's Chandler, who is, in turn, an homage to detective-fiction authour Raymond Chandler], a close friend of John's, has a problem: his granddaughter, Tricia, is in a mysterious coma and doctors have no idea why. Also, similar cases of “mystery coma” have been popping up all over England [John’s a Brit]. John seeks help from an associate who is able to enter Tricia's mind and he finds that her soul has been taken by a demon working out of Los Angeles

John and Chas travel to L.A. to meet with the demon to try and work out a deal. Once there they discover that the States has been hit by the “missing-soul-coma” as well. This demon, Beroul, has been busy. He is quite the ambitious fellow, and is trying to start up a literal “hell on Earth” out in Santa Monica, complete with extra-dimensional torture chamber for all the souls he is acquiring.

By keeping Tricia hostage, Beroul coerces John into doing his dirty work by dealing with some rival demons that have also set up shop in L.A. Realizing he's in over his head with this one, John seeks help from an ancient god who has interest in the Los Angeles area. John must play each faction against the others in order to save the girl's soul.

My first meeting with John Constantine went quite well. He is indeed a badass, playing “chicken” with not just the life of a ten-year-old girl, but with her eternal soul. This is not, however, something he does for shits 'n' giggles. John often puts himself in the most dangerous position: in this story, he attempts to use his own soul as a bargaining chip. Although extremely dangerous, his methods are effective. The results are what is important, not the means to the end.

It kind of reminds me of the show The Shield, as John's wheeling and dealing is similar to that of corrupt detective Vic Mackey. With each new deal, the stakes get higher and the tension rises, and it seems like it's all the protagonist can do to stay one step ahead of his foes.

Despite the required suspension of disbelief, there is a gritty realism to Hellblazer. The dialogue is great, with a refreshing amount of “fuck!” and Beroul recognizing a Star Trek reference. The behaviour of the characters is reasonable, given the circumstances. Chas flies off the handle often, understandable with his granddaughter hanging in the balance. And one of my favourite scenes: Beroul doing coke, like any old Hollywood high-roller.

The art is great. John looks like a more-haggard-than-usual Billy Idol. I have no idea why they got Keanu to play him in the movie. The demon-y and hell-y parts are fittingly disturbing, looking like something out of Hellraiser [fun fact: before its 1988 debut, the series was originally going to be called Hellraiser, but Clive Barker beat them to the punch with his 1987 film].

So: I highly recommend Hellblazer and its anti-hero, Mr. Constantine. I look forward to reading more of his wily adventures.

Review #19: Stephen and Marvel are Superfriends

N.

Writer: Stephen King [adapted by Marc Guggenheim]

Artist: Alex Maleev

Published: Marvel, 2010

Stephen King and Marvel have some kind of partnership going on... and I like it. It seems King is actually creative/executive director of the adaptations that Marvel is doing of his work, which is pretty cool. Apparently, this was first adapted into a series of “webisodes”, which I should check out.*

N. is based on a short story of the same name in which we learn, in the first few pages, that a psychiatrist named Jonathan Bonsaint has recently killed himself. The suicide came after a particularly troubled patient entered his life, one Nathan N. Nance. Nathan had been suffering from OCD, which seemed to have manifested after he stumbled upon a mysterious circle of stones in a field near the fictional town of Motton, Maine [a lot of King's stories take place in Maine, as he grew up there]. “N.”, as Jonathan refers to him, came to believe that the circle of stones was some kind of hole in reality, and that he had become it's “gatekeeper”, so to speak.

Charlie, a childhood friend of Jonathan and his sister, Sheila, reaches out to her upon hearing of her brother's death. Sheila has found and read Jonathan's patient case study on N., and she sends it to Charlie, who is a medical expert for American News, to get his take on how N. may have affected Jonathan's suicide. But Sheila and Charlie have begun to be affected by this strange case themselves... WHAT COULD BE GOING ON?

I haven't read King's short story, so I can't compare it to the original, but I really like this comic. It has a wonderful, ominous vibe. The characters keep thinking that Nathan is merely suffering from some sort of delusion, and the supernatural aspect is left looming in the background. The true nature of the “hole in reality” is never fully explored, providing lovely tension throughout the story.

In case you haven't noticed, I'm a fan of “meta” or self-referential stuff. I like little winks at the reader, and the cleverer, the better. There is a bit of dialogue toward the end where Charlie is pitching an article about what he thinks is a new phenomenon [“contagious obsessive compulsive disorder”] and he says “forget article, there might be a book in this,” to which his boss wryly responds: “a short story, at any rate.”

Most of the story is told in a series of letters, journal entries, and the case study, so it jumps around chronologically a bit and provides various perspectives of what has occurred. Newspaper clippings and Charlie's aforementioned article are shown, and even a Google map of the infamous field [and yes, I confirmed the map's accuracy], providing more depth to the world being created here.

The art has a photo-realistic quality that I like, and a real sense of texture. The attention to detail is great, with desks covered in clutter, windows full of posters, faces creased with wrinkles. I just noticed a Marvel comic in the background of one scene! How's that for self-referential?

I should review a comic about blogs for my blog about comics.

*[FYI, webisodes can be found here!]