Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 4/27 Part 2

Disney's Darkwing Duck #1
Story: Aaron Sparrow
Art: James Silvani & Andrew Dalhouse

He is the terror who flaps in the night, and he's back! I was sad to see Boom Studios Disney line end, especially since some books, like The Incredibles, never were actually resolved, and because the Darwing Duck series there was so perfect. It captured everything about one of my favorite Disney cartoons, a supehero send-up with an egotistical duck hero, his hapless sidekick, his spunky daughter, and a rogues gallery of cool and wacky villains. So now that Disney has Joe Books doing some comics for them, it was the perfect time to bring Darkwing back for his 25th anniversary. This first issue is a treat both for fans of the original animated series, the previous volume of the comic, and DW neophytes as well. The story is structured to introduce or re-introduce all the classic Darkwing elements: we get a supervillain battle with one of his recurring foes, Megavolt, aided by his pal and sidekick, Ducktales' own Launchpad McQuack. There's a barbecue with his neighbors (and often the banes of his existence), the Muddlefoots and his daughter, Gosalyn. He gets a new headquarters as a gift from S.H.U.S.H., the spy organization he works with, still including Agent Gryzlikoff, a Russian bear whose Cold War attitude started getting dated as the Cold War ended and now eerily works again. And as Gosalyn and her best friend, Honker, go on a field trip to the newly opening St. Canard Maximum Security Penitentiary, we get to see more villains, and as anyone who has ever read a comic or watched a cartoon knows, innocents in a prison means one thing... BREAKOUT! And what's great is the comic is completely aware of this; it acknowledges the trope and plays off it, and also acknowledges Darkwing's massive ego, as he's initially more upset that he wasn't invited to cut the ribbon on the Pen than he is that his daughter is walking into it. Darkwing Duck was a great superhero comedy, and this comic gets all the beats just right to recapture the magic.Now if we can only get someone to convince Greg Weisman to come over and do some new Gargoyles stories...

Faith #4
Story: Jody Houser
Art: Francis Portela, Marguerite Sauvage, & Andrew Dalhouse w/ Pete Pantazis

The Faith mini-series wraps up with an issue packed to the gills with action. Now that Hadley, one of the alien Vine, has come to Faith with information that the aliens have been the ones kidnapping potential psiots, Faith prepares to go in and save the taken, but she needs some help. So first she calls in Obadiah Archer, of Archer and Armstrong, and, well, I try not to be a person who 'ships characters, since I have scene that often that way lies heartbreak and ire, but holy crap they are absolutely adorable together! Faith's flirty and Archer is so awkward. And after giving a rousing hero speech to Hadley, she agrees to join in the fight as well. Faith jokes internally about leveling up in inspirational speechifying, but I think this is one of the charms of the character she is so genuinely good that she inspires those around her to be better, and it makes her all the more wonderful for it. The fight scene is beautifully done by Francis Portela, who has a great sense of motion and action. I also like that Hadley isn't a damsel in distress, as she has to point out to the chivalrous Archer more than once; she does her own stunts after all. Faith has one more ally in the fight, but that ally is also an enemy as her ex-boyfriend/ex-teammate, Torque, has been mind controlled by the Vine, and it's cool to see Faith have to fight a physically superior foe and still win. And win she does. The end of issue has one of my favorite of Marguerite Sauvage's fantasy pages, as Faith imagines her friends as a superhero team. It doesn't work out that way, but Faith is still fighting the good fight, ans she has a new beginning. I love that Faith realizes that it's the little things, all together, that mean you're making a life for yourself, and she winds up not in a dark place but in a bright one, one that she deserves. And that's it for Faith! Oh, wait? An ongoing series launching in July? Sweet! Looks like there's more to come, and I can't wait.

Saga #36
Art: Fiona Staples
Story: Brian K. Vaughan

The last issue of an arc of Saga is usually an issue that steps back from the big plot of the series and focuses on a secondary character for an issue. That... is not the case at all in this issue. As a matter of fact, as the big plot things go, this is probably going to be one of the biggest issues of the series. And while there is the usual assortment of character beats and snappy dialogue, this is an issue full of exciting action that moves the series forward to interesting new directions. The two main quests of the past arc, Marko and Alana attempting to retrieve their daughter, Hazel, and bounty hunter The Will seeking his revenge against Prince Robot IV both reach a climax here, and end in very different ways. I'm going to SPOIL one bit here, while leaving the big end of issue cliffhanger unmentioned. The reunion between Marko and Hazel is absolutely heart-rending, in the best way. The splash page, of the two embracing with a bit of narration and Hazel just repeating, "daddy" over and over again would make the most stone-like heart grow three sizes when they saw it. And Marko's parting from his mother is equally heart wrenching; Saga is at its best when it's driving home emotional truths abut its wide cast. By the end of the issue, Petrichor, the hermaphroditic member of Marko's species, has made it onto Marko and Alana's ship, and her reaction to Alana and her marriage to Marko is surprising; for someone who has had people act towards her in disgust for her biology, her complete revulsion at the thought of Marko and Alana is interesting and I hope is something we see dealt with more in the next arc, Meanwhile, The Will's insane visions finally come to a head, now not only seeing his ex, The Stalk, but his sister, The Brand. His inner discourse, and the choices he makes, change where he's going as a character. But the highlight of that sequence? Adorable little seal-man Ghüs is a badass! He sure as hell knows how to use a battleaxe. I understand that there's all this other emotion going on, but seeing Ghüs come at The Will with his axe was just... awesome. Now, the wait between arcs begins. I'm going to spend it reading Brian K. Vaughan and Marcos Martin's Private Eye, which I have been saving for the Saga hiatus, but for those of you not caught up, this is a great time to start.

Image + #1

This isn't a regular review, since what I'm talking about here isn't really a comic. Image + is the new supplemental magazine from Image that comes with your Previews catalog if you buy that, or is $1.99 separately. When I heard it announced, I figured this was going to be like Marvel's Previews supplement, just the solicitations in a different magazine so it captures the eye and can be sold on its own. But it's way more. It's actually a series of preview pages and interviews from upcoming Image projects, some of which haven't even been solicited yet. It's a really nice package for $1.99, and might be worth checking out if you, like me, are always curious to see what Image has coming down the pike. Oh, and if that's not enough, this issue features the first four pages of a  twelve issue serial by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard that features the origins of The Walking Dead's favorite potty-mouthed, bat-wielding sociopath, Negan. That's worth the price of admission alone.

Recommended Reading for 5/15: Rat Queens

So, I'd have to figure some of you, my loyal readers, are also Dungeons and Dragons players. I've played D&D on and off since high school, and have been part of a regular Thursday game group for years now, playing various RPGs and board games. And while there are plenty of fantasy comics, I can't think of many that really capture the spirit of the D&D campaign. Even the D&D comics seem to be more idealized versions of what a campaign is/should be. But Image Comics has come to the rescue with Rat Queens, a fantasy series written by Kurtis J. Wiebe that captures all the fun, action, and completely bawdy humor of a great RPG campaign.

The core conceit of Rat Queens is pretty simple: a party of four female adventurer/mercenaries go out and have mercenary adventures. But what makes the book phenomenal are the personalities, the world building, and the completely off the wall sense of humor. The comic has picked up a dedicated female fan base for its strong characterization of female characters and treatment of them. But it reaches a wide audience by being a crazy fantasy comic with a ton of action, character, and charm.

Each of the four Rat Queens (which is the name of their team/guild/party, not an indication of any affinity to rats) is of a distinct fantasy race and class. The closest thing the group of chaotic characters has to a leader is Hannah, who is an Elf necromancer. Violet is a warrior Dwarf, although she shaves her beard to stand against the old dwarf order. Dee is a human cleric of a tentacled dark god, N'Rygoth, although at the beginning of the series is an agnostic, unsure of where her magic comes from and doubting the existence of the god of her parents. And Betty is a Smidgen, this world's answer to the halfling or hobbit, who is a rogue with a knack for mixing drinks and taking all sorts of mind altering substances.

The first issue of Rat Queens opens in the town of Palisade, where the ladies live, and the first time we see them, they're standing among a group of vanquished foes... after a bar fight. And the mayor and the people of the city are very much not happy with this. I love the fact that this is an issue. So much high and low fantasy ignore the ramifications of the heroes rolling into town, but it's a major plot point here. Sure the Queens kill monsters, but they also get really drunk and cause a ton a havoc when in between jobs. After getting locked up for all the destruction, along with the other adventurers in the city who they were fighting, the Queens are given an assignment to get out of jail. So we get an inciting incident and a convenient way to meet the rivals and supporting characters, including the local captain of the guard, Sawyer, who shares a will they/won't they chemistry with Hannah. The other adventurers include groups called the Four Daves (four adventurers named Dave), and the Peaches, who are shinier looking then the Rat Queens, and are led by Tizzie, who was friends with Hannah at one point before a falling out that has yet to be explained.

The plot structure of the first two volumes is cleverly done. While trying to figure out who sent assassins to kill all the adventurers of Palisade in the first volume, and pissing off the matron of a troll clan along the way, there was a scene dealing with the merchant's guild. The very end of volume one reveals exactly what the merchant in charge was up to, and it was subtly played out throughout that volume to perfectly set him up as the big bad in volume two. It was smart plotting, and there's a lot of that here. A lot of little things that come back to prove important later on done with subtlety. Of course, in a lot of ways, that's one of the few subtle things about this book.

The joy of Rat Queens is it's lack of subtlety in some of the best ways. The ladies fight. They swear. They drink. The have sex. And it's all presented in the same way it would be if they were male characters. These are fantasy adventurers and they blow off steam like all fantasy adventurers. The swearing is one of the most hilarious aspects of a very funny comic, mixing real world swear words with fantasy situations. Issue one features Sawyer saying the chaos has made him not just annoyed, but, "hotter than a dragon getting his dick tickled." That is not anywhere near the most inventive or graphic one either, just the first. It also proves you should be careful what you say, since happy-go-lucky Betty is confused by it, pointing out that would probably make said dragon happy.

The humor is also situational, not just word games. A character met at the beginning of the first volume is "Old Lady Bernadette," a local shopkeeper who keeps getting her store wrecked by the Queens' antics. Of course, Bernadette keeps pointing out she's only thirty-nine, which falls on deaf ears. Gary, the incompetent member of the city guard, is one of those perfect comic relief characters. And Betty's reactions to the stream of mind-altering chemicals she takes just leave you breathless from laughter.

The action and violence also pull no punches. When pushed to the point of true rage, Hannah uses her powers to beat a troll to death with her own club. The fight scenes are as gory as you would expect in a world where everyone fights with blades and clubs. And it's well choreographed. The action scenes are all set to be easily followed and to allow for enough space to let the Queens banter while fighting, which is a key component to a book where so much of the humor is in the banter and the character interaction.

And there's the thing that elevates this from what could have been a simple D&D pastiche and fantasy send-up into a truly excellent comic. All of these characters are wrought with care and have interesting backstories and inner lives. It would be easy to have thrown them into the situations they're in and just played it all for laughs. But it's clear that there's so much beneath the surface.

Hannah is standoffish with a dark sense of humor, appropriate for a necromancer (that's a spellcaster who uses the power of the dead in their spells for those of you who aren't fantasy types). She has what seems to be a strained relationship with her parents; she carries a runestone that works like a cell phone, and there are a couple of very funny exchanges between her and her mother. Her relationship with Sawyer is deeper than the typical, "are they going to get together" thing; they are clearly sleeping together, but the reason she refuses to get involved more deeply is something that is teased out until the end of the volume two. But, like all the others, she's fiercely loyal to her friends.

Dee and Violet are both interesting in how the stand against their upbringing, yet still embrace aspects of it. Dee has given up on worshiping the Lovecraftian horror that her family does, while Violet wouldn't stand for being left to model armor while her less adept brother, Barrie, got to represent their clan in tournaments. But just because they're similar in history doesn't mean their personalities are similar. Violet is outgoing, a woman of action who drinks and carouses with the best of them. Dee is quieter; in one scene at a victory party, she's sitting in a corner reading a book and blows off the guy who hits on her. As someone who has spent more parties curled up in a corner with a book than he can count, I feel a kinship with Dee.

And then there's Betty. Betty is absolutely hilarious. Watching Betty make her way through life, taking every magic mushroom she can, mixing her signature drink, "The Betty," a drink it's better not to ask what's in it. While we haven't gotten as deeply into Betty's backstory as the others, she's sweet and romantic. We see her with her nascent girlfriend, Faeyri, in volume one, and how the other Rat Queens and their temperament gets in the way of that budding romance. But it works out in the end. She's also as savage a fighter as the others, and since she fights dirty, she's all the deadlier.

Original series artist Roc Upchurch did an excellent job not just setting up a gorgeous world design, but establishing the look of each of the Queens and their distinct fighting/magic using style, and new artist Stejpan Sejic runs with it even harder. The designs of each character fits their skill set and the tradition they fall in, but are distinct not just to the world, but within it as well; Hannah doesn't dress like other spell casters, and Dee's outfit mixes both the look of the city and the look of her demongod worshiping clan. They also have very distinct body types and racial characteristics. They're not all the generic superhero comic buxom look; as a matter of fact none of them are.

Rat Queens isn't like any other comic on the racks. It's a rousing, character based fantasy story with a sense of humor and action that skews decidedly adult. If you've ever played a tabletop RPG like D&D , or even an MMO like World of Warcraft, and want the feel of those sessions with friends put down on paper as a great comic, it's the perfect book to try.

Two trades of Rat Queens are currently available, Sass & Sorcery and The Far Reaching Tentacles of N'Rygoth, each collecting five issues. The series is released semi-monthly from Image Comics, and is available in both formats in better comic shops.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 1/7

Detective Comics #38
Story & Art: Brian Buccellato & Francis Manapul

Detective Comics continues to be the most gorgeous comic coming out on a month-to-month basis. Not in a sexy way, but in an exciting, dynamic way. Whether it was the traditionally exciting Batman stopping the explosion from the end of last issue scene or the bank robbery at the end, or the quieter moments on Matches Malone talking to a snitch or Batman shaking down Mad Hatter, every moment brims with energy. I have a particular affection for Batman's other secret identity, his undercover in the mob identity Matches Malone, so any time Matches pops up I'm pleased, and to see how Batman can use Matches for more than just getting dirt, but to test the crooks he gave another chance to, gives that identity a bit of nuance. The A-plot of the issue continues the return of Anarky story. I like the way the creators are playing Anarky. Many stories with Anarky over the years made him out to be a homicidal whacko at one moment and this petulant child in the next. In the world of Anonymous, I feel like the character has a renewed purpose and message, a character who really works, especially because the idea of someone with the know how erasing all of our digital background and giving us all a clean slate is something not out of the realm of real possibility. The new design for Anarky is closer to his look from Batman: Arkham Origins than to his original costume, which is more grounded in reality, as Anarky's original costume is a bit goofy with the long neck and robes, and might be telling about his secret identity. I feel like we're being presented with two suspects for Anarky, and I'm completely unsure which it might be. Is it Sam Young, Gotham City councilman who had some dirty dealings with the Wayne Enterprises exec Anarky killed last issue and seems to be using Anarky's attack as a platform to run for mayor, or is it Lonnie Machin, the original Anarky from the pre-New 52? If it's the former, it wouldn't be unprecedented; a similar fake out happened in Nightwing Annual #1 with the identity of the new Firefly. And the end of the issue certainly seems to indicate Machin isn't a suspect. But I think Buccellato and Manapul might have something up their sleeves. I'm also curious how the Mad Hatter plot is going to fit in; it might be an unrelated subplot, but I think it might have more to do than it seems now. Buccellato and Manapul have breathed new life into Detective Comics since coming on the book, and this story is their strongest yet.

The Fade Out #4
Story: Ed Brubaker
Art: Sean Phillips

As the first arc ends, I have to say that I think The Fade Out is the best Brubaker/Phillips collaboration since Sleeper. And that's not to put down any of the intervening work; Criminal, Incognito, and Fatale are all brilliant. I just have a real love for Sleeper, something in it struck me, and this is a book that hits a similar cord, but in a very different way. The Fade Out is like the best historical fiction, dancing in and out of the real world in ways that make you ask exactly what they're creating and what actually happened. If you know anything about the Golden Age of Hollywood, you know that all that gold did not glitter, and this is a series about murder, loyalty, and what it takes to get ahead. This issue sees Charlie Parrish, the series principal protagonist, going to a Hollywood event to show off the new starlet of the movie he wrote, the one who replaced the woman who was murdered in the first issue, the murder Charlie knows more about than he can remember. He interacts with most of the series principals along the way, lecherous leading man Earl Rath, his old writing partner Gil Mason (who is on the Communist blacklist now), Dottie Quinn, PR girl, and Maya Silver, the starlet. What initially seems a scene that is just there to show off exactly what a scumbag Rath is and to maybe give Charlie a further hint at what he doesn't remember about the night of the murder through his drunken haze turns out to be something much darker by issue's end. And the web connecting the characters draws tighter, as what wasn't a date with Dottie might have been more. Along the way, we also get an appearance by Clark Gable, mentions of Ava Gardner, and a photo of then Screen Actors Guild president Ronald Reagan. These appearances give the issue a sense of veracity. The issue's end deepens the mystery at the center of the series, adding a new element that might just make Charlie's ties to it all the more dangerous to him. A murder mystery/conspiracy story with compelling characters and a setting that allows Phillips to show off his artistic talent makes The Fade Out a must read.

Nailbiter #9
Story: Joshua Williamson
Art: Mike Henderson

Every time I think Nailbiter can't get any creepier, if finds a way, and that's the finest compliment I can give a horror comic. This issue has a lot going on in it, the least of which is the payoff to the end of last issue and a new Buckaroo Butcher with his bees. Poor Finch, former NSA intel agent on the outs, winds up once again looking like he's not quite right, although he has discovered more of the tunnels that seem to honeycomb below the town of Buckaroo. There are clues to the conspiracy that seems to lie behind some of what is going on in Buckaroo, but no answers yet. The centerpiece of the issue is the introduction of Mr. Crowe, the school bus driver who we see at the beginning of the issue has driven more than his share of the Buckaroo Butchers, the serial killer Buckaroo seems to create as its chief export. What happens to Mr. Crowe, as he drives children to school who are fascinated by the Bucthers is something dark. It begs the question where the Butchers stop and people who are broken by living in a town with such a dark history and reputation begin. I want to see where the story with Mr. Crowe goes next issue to see how far down the path of madness we've seen so much of in Buckaroo he has gone. But if you're looking for a scene that packs all the best, most violent cut punch a horror and suspense comic can pack, you go no further than the scene where Sheriff Crane comes home. Finding Reverend Fairgold in her house, she has an exchange with the preacher before sending him off, and then lies down in her bed, where... Now why would I spoil the surprise? It's a punch right out of the best urban legends and horror stories, and Mike Henderson is at the top of his game in how he presents the sequence, making it all the creepier. As the clues mount and the horror factor amps up, Nailbiter goes beyond all expectations to present human horror; if you're suffering withdrawal from Hannibal, Nailbiter is the book for you.

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #1
Story: Ryan North
Art: Erica Henderson & Maris Wicks

I admit freely, I never thought I'd pick this book up. My exposure to Squirrel Girl is limited to her appearances with the Great Lakes Avengers, and I have no particular feeling for the character. But the advance buzz was so good, and having just finished the fourth volume of Ryan North's work on Adventure Time, a book rife with the humor and sadness that permeate the best episodes of the cartoon on which the comic is based, I figured why not give this book a try. And it is outstanding. Doreen Green, the titular Squirrel Girl, is a charming lead; she's a little spacey without being ditzy, loves what she does as a super hero, and is excited to start college, Marvel's catch all school Empire State University. The issue has its share of action, starting with Squirrel Girl defeating some muggers to the tune of the Squirrel Girl theme song (you know the one that sounds suspiciously like the classic Spider-Man one), and has a throw down with Kraven the Hunter, who she defeats not with her fists but with a clever gambit. We also meet Tippy-Toe, Doreen's pet/sidekick; I don't know if previous appearances have had Tippy-Toe's speech appear as words only Doreen understands or just as symbols, but I'm glad North chose to have the squirrel speak, as it gives the reader someone Doreen to talk to and give exposition to. And upon arriving at ESU, readers are introduced to characters who I assume will be the principals of our supporting cast: Tomas, who offers to help Doreen move her boxes and is tossed for a loop by her quirky demeanor, and Nancy Whitehead, Doreen's prickly but good at heart roommate. Erica Henderson has a delightful, light style that works perfectly with Squirrel Girl's world, and Maris Wicks adds to it by drawing the illustrations for the trading cards Squirrel Girl uses to determine who the villains are, cards narrated by Deadpool in his inimitable voice. This is the most all-ages comic that exists from Marvel, more so than Ms. Marvel or Rocket Raccoon, finding a perfect balance of character, action, and humor; and yes, it is a very funny comic, both in character and in situation. I would love to know why the "T" rating was decided on for the book, but regardless of that, this is a book that can be shared with anyone. Oh, and if you do pick the issue up, be sure to check out the text along the bottom gutter of the page; North got his start doing a webcomic, Dinosaur Comics, and as webcomics usually have hidden scrollover gag text, he places similar jokes down there both in Adventure Time and here, and it's worth reading.

Before we move on to Dan's review of the week, I just wanted to call out some of the announcements from last week's Image Expo. I love how Image uses the expo to announce projects and build buzz around their existing books; it feels like they're really excited about comics, something that's missing from some other publishers.

- The creative team of the incredible first arc on Marvel's recent Moon Knight series, Warren Ellis, Declan Shalvey, and Jordie Bellaire, reunite for a sci-fi series very much in the Ellis mold called Injection.

- A.D.: After Death is an original graphic novel from Scott Snyder and Jeff Lemire about a world after the cure for death has been found.

- From Jeff Lemire (as writer this time), with art by Emi Lenox, is Plutona, where a group of kids find  the body of the world's most famous super hero. It made me immediately think of Stand by Me, which Lemire states as an influence.

- Sons of the Devil is a thriller from Detective Comics writer Brian Buccellato with art by Toni Ifante With how impressive Detective has been, I want to see Buccallato work his own suspense series.

- I'm always willing to try out new James Robinson, and Heaven, with art by Philip Tan, is the story of mankind going to war with God and his angels, and I'm on board since if Supernatural has taught us nothing else, it's that angels are dicks.

- I Hate Fairyland is from Skottie Young, known for his darling Marvel babies variants and work on books like the Oz adaptations. This book seems like the reaction to years of having to be so nice, as he has a protagonist who murders her way through a children's book world.

- Not one but two new projects from Matt Signal favorite Brian K. Vaughan! Paper Girls, with a excellent Cliff Chiang on art, is about four paper girls making deliveries the day after Halloween, when something weird happens, and We Stand Guard, with art by Steve Skroce, where,100 years from now, Canada must fend off an invasion from mechs from the USA.

- Last but most assuredly not least is a new mini-series from the always incredible Darwyn Cooke. Revengeance is a three part murder mystery set in Toronto, which is Cooke's first long form story that is not licensed or adapted from another work. He says he wants to play with form and storytelling, which for anyone who has seen what he's done with style his Parker series knows means it's going to be quite a ride.


And now, from Dan Grote:

Ant Man #1

Story:  Nick Spencer

Art: Ramon Rosanas and Jordan Boyd

Last week, Marvel released a two-front Ant-Man assault: a teaser trailer for this summer’s movie starring Paul Rudd as Scott Lang and Michael Douglas as Hank Pym, and a new comic centered on Lang, the second Ant-Man, written by the mastermind behind the dearly departed Superior Foes of Spider-Man, one of the best series you didn’t read.

The print Ant-Man won, on account of it had all the heart and humor the trailer didn’t appear to have time for.

Like the nonheroes of Superior Foes, Lang is a loser. He’s out of work, divorced, separated from his daughter, can’t hang on a superhero team for very long and maybe lost a step after spending most of the past decade dead-ish. He wears his costume in public hoping people will recognize him, but more often than not he’s mistaken for Pym.

The first issue goes a bit heavy on history – new readers need the exposition, quite frankly – but it ups the page count to compensate. That said, I could have used a box or two explaining why Lang’s daughter, Cassie, is in middle school when just a few years ago she was in the Young Avengers. Was she de-aged when she was resurrected? Feel free to tweet @danielpgrote if you know.

The book also relies on a big-three cameo from post-Axis, Jerkface Iron Man, who pits Lang against some special guests from Marvel’s more critically celebrated titles for a security job at Stark Industries. Look for the gag early on referencing everyone’s least favorite Iron Man story.

There’s a twist at the end that sets up the true premise of the book, as well as its true setting, that keeps the whole thing from falling into the cliché of the ex-thief who becomes head of security because he can think like the bad guys. Here’s hoping Spencer can keep Ant-Man fever going till the movie premieres this summer.

Recommended Reading for 12/12: Krampus!

It's Christmas time, so it's time to think about those favorite Christmas characters. Rudolph, the reindeer who saved Christmas. Frosty, the snowman who came to life. Santa Claus, the jolly giver of gifts. And of course, the Krampus. What's that? Some of you don't know the Krampus? Well, google him. Or better yet, read this article by Tick writer Benito Cereno, who likens him to Christmas's Batman. Or if you want something in the video way, check out the Venture Bros. episode, "A Very Venture Christmas." I'll wait.

OK, now you've been primed with a general idea of who the Krampus is. In all fairness, today's recommendation would have been all the introduction you'd need, but part of what makes it exciting is knowing exactly what you're in for. Krampus!, written by Brian Joines and with art by Dean Kotz,  was a five issue mini-series released through Image Comics last year, revolving around the holiday adventures of the Krampus, liberated from his imprisonment by a society of multinational Santas to serve as their black ops agent. If that concept doesn't sell you, I don't know what will, but I'll do my best to try.

The set up for the series is that the skeleton of the actual St. Nicholas has been stolen. The skeleton serves as the power source for the Secret Society of Santas Clauses, and without their powers, the Santas must find someone else to hunt the skeleton down. Enter Krampus, who has been imprisoned since the holiday became more about reward than punishment. They offer Krampus his freedom if he can track down the skeleton. They totally Suicide Squad him, attaching a bomb to him to blow him up if acts too naughty, so frankly the Santas are kind of dicks. But still, the Krampus is on the loose and ready to hunt down the wicked and punish them.

Krampus himself isn't a bad guy. He isn't a villain, or even a bad guy. He just has a function, which is to punish wicked children, and he wants to do what he was meant to do, and nothing more. He's not some Machiavellian mastermind. He demonstrates moments of empathy as well as his trademark punishment. He's a tough green demon looking guy with a sinister German accent who flies around on a huge wolf named Stutgaard; there aren't a lot of job opportunities if you fit that particular description. He is more human looking than the traditional depiction of Krampus, or at least less monstrous, lacking, for example, the freaky long tongue, which not only allows for his face to be more expressive, but makes for a more empathetic character; while it's easy enough to empathize with non-human aliens, full on monsters are harder, especially when they talk about punishment. A lot. Giving Krampus a more streamlined look allows his emotions to play out on his face, which is useful when he's the focus on the story.

The whole concept of a Krampus based series had me interested, but flipping through issue one and seeing all the different versions of Santa had me sold. The back cover has a group shot of all the Santas with their name and country of origin, and it's Santas from all over the world. Each of them have distinct personalities, and fortunately they don't fall into terrible stereotypes. It's easy when you have an international coalition to have everyone take on the worst aspects of their culture. Now, I won't say Beach Bum Santa from the Pacific Islands would have worked from, say France, but he doesn't say cowabunga at any point, so credit is given for that. The two principal Santas are the modern Father Christmas of England, the current leader of the society, and Sinterklaas, the Dutch Santa, who was the first Santa. There actually is a whole subplot involving the political divisions within the Society, which allows Joines to explore the personalities of the different Santas without relying on tons of random exposition.

The cast of the book also includes new takes on other classic winter themed characters. Old Man Winter, who controls cold and the season, lives in a giant ice castle, and his son, Jack Frost, is a hipster kid who is trying to escape his fate of taking on his father's role. But the character I enjoyed most, and who gives you the best impression of the odd sense of humor in Krampus!, was Doc Holliday. Yes, the Doc Holliday, the dentist who fought with the Earps at the OK Corral, who was given immortality by the Yuletide Spirit because she thought he was Doc Holiday, who is now a supernatural bounty hunter who has been hired to hunt the Krampus. He also has singing skeleton horse, Mari Lywd, who belts various pop hits. So, yeah, there's not much more to say about that weirdness other than... weird.

The action of the series follows Krampus as he hunts down the bones of St. Nicholas. It's an action movie/detective story motif, as Krampus follows hints and clues down blind alleys, all while being pursued by killer nutcrackers and violent sugar plum fairies. The mystery, like the bones, are a Mcguffin, since the villain is a character who doesn't get mentioned more than casually before he appears, and is revealed halfway through the series as it is. But the whole point of the mystery is to get Krampus out and about, meeting all these characters and fighting monsters. And it succeeds in that, making for a fun action series.

The villain, Mos Gerila, was a Communist era former Santa who was cast out of the Society after the fall of communism, when he predecessor, Mos Craciun, was freed. He has a whole insane plot about world domination and being the only Santa. Having a villain who is the holiday equivalent of James Bond's Blofeld makes for a good counterpoint to Krampus; sure he wants to take out his reeds and punish naughty children, but he's not talking about making the world bow to him for presents by putting it under a permanent deep freeze.

The series ends with most of the loose ends tied up, but with one final page sting that shows there's much more story to tell, something that Joines and Kotz say they'd like to get back to some day. So if you're looking for a holiday comic this year that's quirky, action-packed, and like no one you've read before, you should give Krampus! a shot.

The trade paperback of Krampus! arrives at comic shops this Wednesday.

Recommended Reading for 12/5: Cowboy Ninja Viking

A couple weeks ago, it was announced that Chris Pratt, this year's breakout star thanks to his work voicing Emmet in The Lego Movie and playing Star Lord in a little movie called Guardians of the Galaxy, would be starring in a film adaptation of a fairly obscure Image comic from 2009-2010, Cowboy Ninja Viking. I had that moment of comic fan hipster pride, as, "I read that comic when it was coming out." And I remembered enjoying the heck out of it, but it was some years ago, and memories can be fuzzy. Fortunately, I have ready access to more of my collection now that certain plans are coming together (that I will be writing about in the near future as they reach fruition), so I was able to find my copies, and as it turns out, it's actually even better than I remember.

The high concept on this book is brilliant in its madness and simplicity. A genius and arrogant psychologist and the US government worked together to use, "experimental past life regression therapies, (&) pioneering pharmacological enhancements" to take people with multiple personalities and let the prime personality channel the abilities of the others to make deadly assassins. As any reasonable person might imagine, this ends poorly. Six years later, when the series begins, though, it looks like these Triplets, thus named because each person has three alternate personalities with a specific set of skills, are back, and so the original doctor must find the one Triplet he knows he can trust and track down the others.

If you couldn't figure it out from that paragraph, the titles of the comic references that particular Triplet. Duncan was the success of the project, basically making him the most stable of a group of highly unstable psychopaths, which is like saying this one poison will kill you quicker than the others. Duncan himself is a fairly normal seeming guy, not threatening and not even very noticeable. But with his other personalities in his head, well he's not normal at all. And one of the charms of the way the book is written is that each of the Triplets' different personalities are really that: personalities. These aren't just different versions of the same guy, but are very distinct. Cowboy, for instance, pictures himself as a ladies man and is always on the hunt for, shall we say, companionship, and he has no issue with providing compensation for it. Viking is a pretty typical viking, who figures everything can be solved with his axe. And Ninja tends to spout platitudes and philosophy, which frustrates the hell out of the others. But they're all super deadly, and Duncan has no problem channeling them to fight evil. Or anyone that bugs him. So, yeah, crazy.

I will tell you flat out, Duncan won the Triplet lottery. As we see other Triplets, we see that the personalities aren't all quite as useful in combat as Duncan's three. Grear, for instance, Dunca's ex-wife, is Sniper Martial Artist Chef. That last one is kind of persnickety about people bashing her food, and wields a mean frying pan, but not optimal in combat. Or there's Yoshitiki Ammo, who is Pirate Gladiator Oceanographer. Steed Malbranque is Navy SEAL Hitman Roadie; not useful on that last one, but he has some great stories. And there are fourteen of these characters total! I won't sit here and list what they all can do, despite it being a ton of fun, because we never see exactly what all of them can do. But I will say Joan of Arc and Genghis Khan are in there, as are archers, a highlander, and a hairdresser.

There is a supporting cast in the comic that aren't Triplets too. Sara Nix is Duncan's partner and handler. She's almost heart breakingly normal, or at least desires to be on some level. She was working for Dr. Sebastian Ghislain,the man who designed the Triplet program and who we'll get to in a minute, and was about to move on to a bigger job in three days (which she never fails to point out when things get hairy, in the same way Dante in Clerks says he "isn't supposed to be here today.") when the Triplets resurfaced and she was sucked into Duncan's orbit. Nix is efficient, intelligent, and likes Duncan. And Duncan clearly develops feelings for her quickly, and although he won't tell her, his quiet love for her and desire to protect her is part of his motivation to keep going with all this insanity.

Dr. Sebastian Ghislain is my favorite character in the comic who isn't a Triplet. He is a wealthy,completely self-centered, arrogant, womanizing drunk, who also happens to be a brilliant psychologist; picture Tony Stark at the beginning of Iron Man if he was a shrink and not a weapons designer. When we first meet him, he is about to bed a model, and his penchant for the ladies and his inability to say anything but exactly what he thinks at that moment gets him, and by extension his team, into a few problems over the course of the series. But he does actually seem to care about the Triplets, and wants to do right by them, even if it's right only in the way he thinks is right. Which cannot be said for Johann Blaq, Ghislain's former assistant, who faked his own death and spent years secretly perfecting the Triplet process so he could release the Triplets, who had been locked up after the project failed, and turn them into a cabal of mercenaries under his command. Blaq is the series' principle antagonist, and you can tell he's evil by his facial hair. Dude has seriously evil mustache/pointy beard combo.

The plot of the series starts off with the Triplets resurfacing, and Ghislain recruiting Duncan and Nix to help him try to solve the problem, getting back involved with the US government, and confronting Blaq. And when the new Triplet program gets its first government mission, well things just get worse. The book is full of crazy action, great characterization, and some really funny bits. Duncan and his three personalities bickering is hilarious, and many of the other Triplets have some pretty funny personalities, especially Steed's roadie. Ghislain is also funny in that, "I'm going to say exactly what I think and damn the consequences," way. I will warn those who are squeamish, the violence is pretty graphic, with body parts flying; when you've got katanas and viking axes as principal weapons, limbs and heads tend to roll.

Riley Rossmo, on of my favorite artists in comics, provided the art for the entire series. This was early in his career, after Proof but before Green Wake and Bedlam. Rossmo does wonderful things that add to the feel of the book and helps makes what could be a somewhat confusing concept work. Panels shift from one personality to the next as they converse, making it easy to keep straight who is talking. While there are some splash pages mixed in, most of them have quite a few panels, which allows for some really crazy page layouts, as well as a great sense of action. The designs for all the Triplets different personalities are also clever; Rossmo makes it easy to figure out exactly what each Triplet can do from simple visual cues, since in most cases the personality is only seen from chest up.

But I would be remiss in not pointing out that Rossmo is aided in this by letterer Clayton Cowles. Cowles designed specific shaped word bubbles for each Triplet personality with a specific symbol or object attached to it or passing through it, something that represents exactly who that personality is. It's a great conceit, helping differentiate who is speaking when multiple personalities are conversing in the same panel, and shows exactly how much a good letterer can help make a book work.

A couple more notes on style and form. The comic is in color, but not full color as used in most comics. Each page has usually a one color tone over it, designed by Rossmo. It makes the book look very stylish and unique. It was also one of the books Image used it's "Golden Age Format" meaning it's slightly off size from what you usually get, being slightly longer and wider than a standard comic, and has very few to no ads per issue. It was a really nice format, and it was a shame it didn't catch on. I would have liked to see more off-the-beaten-path projects use it.

Sadly, only ten issues of Cowboy Ninja Viking were published. Not only that, but issue ten ends with a page that has at the top, "Twelve Issues Later," so it felt like the creators had plenty more lined up. Hopefully, if the movie does come around, we'll get a return for Duncan and the rest, and some answers to the mysteries that ending left dangling. But, hanging plot lines or not, if you enjoy fun action and whacky characters, you should track down Cowboy Ninja Viking.

The ten issues of Cowboy Ninja Viking were collected into two trades or one deluxe hardcover. While all are currently out of stock on Amazon, the second trade is still in print, as is the hardcover, and are orderable through Diamond, so if your comic shop doesn't have it on the shelf, they should be able to get it for you.

All the News That Excited Me From San Diego Comic Con

So, like all comic fans, I spent this weekend waiting on bated breath for announcements from Geek Mardi Gras, better known as San Diego Comic Con. And, like most comic fans, I wasn't able to attend. So I relied on sources from around the internet to give me all sorts of cool announcements. And if you aren't one of those people who kept refreshing their browser all weekend, well, here are a handful of announcements that got me excited.

-Ok, I'm going to get one of the biggest reveals out of the way first. The first official image of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman from Superman v. Batman: Dawn of Justice. At first blush, I wasn't sure if I was impressed. The muted color palette isn't something I'm a big fan of, and is something that I wasn't in love with when it came to Superman's costume in Man of Steel. But since the whole image seems muted and sepia toned, I moved past that and looked at the costume and the image itself, and she looks wonderful (pun intended). She's regal and tough, but not masculine, which is exactly how I picture Wonder Woman. I can't say anything beyond that about the movie, but at this point, my excitement is increasing for DC's big universe builder.

- And while on the subject of DC on film, the announcement that Ra's al Ghul will be the big bad for season three of Arrow is big news for me. Ra's is a villain with a lot of possibility for interpretation, and the producers of Arrow have said they don't want to compete with the vision from Batman Begins, so they're going at him from another angle. Arrow has been consistently enjoyable since the beginning of the series, and has been slowly building a mythology, with the League of Assassins a large part of that. That slow build will hopefully pay off with Ra's making an appearance. Oh, and Brandon Routh appearing as Ray Palmer, better known as the Atom, is exciting too. From appearances in other genre shows like Chuck, it's clear Routh is a stronger actor than Superman Returns showed, and I think he'll be a great addition to the world of Arrow.

- Marvel has been making a lot of announcements the past few weeks that, in a bygone era, would have been Comic Con announcements, things like the new female Thor and Falcon becoming Captain America. And while the announcement of a new series that brings the characters from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. into the Marvel Universe isn't on par, PR-wise, with that one, the series being written by modern comics legend Mark Waid, whose Daredevil is still in my top three current Marvel titles, and drawn by a big name artist doing series of done-in-one-issue storieis pretty darn exciting. I think I've made it clear in the past how much I like one off stories, both as a fan and as someone who likes being able to hand any issue of a series to a customer and say, "Here, try this," so if this has the same feel as Warren Ellis's similarly formatted short run on Secret Avengers, than I'm in for it.

- Now, onto another Marvel announcement that I've been mulling over since it came out. As a Star Wars fan, I've been waiting to see what Marvel is going to do now that they have the comics license. And with the announcement of three Star Wars series, it's pretty sweet; Jason Aaron and John Cassaday on Star Wars (set in between episodes 4 & 5), a Darth Vader series from Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca, and a Princess Leia mini-series from Mark Waid and Terry Dodson. While I'm a little disappointed and not surprised that all these books are clustered around the classic trilogy (disappointed because there's a ton of other times to play with that won't impinge on the new trilogy, not surprised because this is the most profitable era for Star Wars publishing), I can't argue with the creators. I've already talked about Mark Waid, and Jason Aaron is a writer I've written about plenty. It's the Vader series that has me most curious. Larroca drew some great space stories during his tenure on the X-Men books, and drew plenty of high tech and armor during his time on Invincible Iron Man, so I think he's a good fit. But it's Kieron Gillen that has me very excited. A writer who does great character work as well as high concept sci-fi (see his short lived S.W.O.R.D. series), he was one of Marvels' stable of writers I thought would best fit Star Wars, so I'm pleased to see that he's getting a spot right out of the gate.

- On a note that is tangentially comic related, the Star Wars book panel announced a novel based on an unproduced Star Wars: The Clone Wars script featuring two characters who had a very heavy presence in Star Wars comics. Asajj Ventress was created for the initial Clone Wars short cartoons and was defined during Dark Horse's Clone Wars comics. Quinaln Vos was created by John Ostrander for his run on the prequel set comics, and is my favorite EU comics character (and second favorite EU character of all, right behind Grand Admiral Thrawn). These are two characters of mixed morality who are haunted by their past. They're an interesting pairing that has minimal interactions in their past (and none in the new official canon). I'm happy that these two great characters aren't being forgotten with the focus on the new future.


- DC didn't make many announcements this year, instead focusing on creators expounding on the upcoming work we've already heard about. There was one really cool bit of art shown, the map of the Multiverse devised by Grant Morrison for his Multiversity series (track it down somewhere where you can get better resolution than I can provide). And after I recently talked about Batman '66, I would have had to mention the digital publication of an adaptation of a lost episode, even if it wasn't written by legend in the annals of the bookstore, the comic shop, the Hollywood studio, and the courtroom, Harlan Ellison, and feature the first '66 appearance of my second favorite (pun not intended this time, but willingly accepted) Bat villain, Two-Face.

-Finally,  Image Comics and Dark Horse Comics announced twelve new series each, and there are some from both companies that I'm looking forward to, but two really jumped out at me. As a big fan of the B.P.R.D. and the whole Hellboy universe, it's cool to see the creators that Mike Mignola has brought to work on those books do other work, and two of these series feature that talent. John Arcudi, regular co-writer on B.P.R.D.: Hell on Earth, and James Harren, who has worked on his share of arcs on that title, give us Rumble from Image, featuring a scarecrow barbarian. And Tyler Crook, previous regular artist on B.P.R.D. and who drew the excellent Bad Blood mini-series from Dark Horse earlier this year, returns to that publisher, this time teaming with Sixth Gun and Helheim writer Cullen Bunn for Harrow County, a spooky tale of a girl with strange powers in a haunted wood and a town that seems to want her dead. I like Bunn's superhero work for Marvel, but when he's doing his creator owned horror books he dazzles, and Crook is the perfect artist for something like this.

And as one final, non-Comic Con related note, friend of the blog Michael Calia, one of the guys at the Shut Up Kids podcast (celebrating fifty episodes this week), who writes for the Wall Street Journal, wrote a piece for their Speakeasy blog about what to do if you're a first time shopper in a comic shop, and yours truly is quoted, so go check that out too!