POBB February 10, 2016

Pick of Brown Bag

February 10, 2016

by

Ray Tate

This week, the comic book reviews come in droves.  My name is Ray Tate, and I am the creator/master of the Pick of the Brown Bag   Each week, I peruse the best and the worst of the current comic book yield.  If you haven’t time to check out the full reviews, just pull up the teensy versions on Twitter: #PickoftheBrownBag.

Let’s get this party started.  First…

Shaft returns in “The Imitation of Life,” and let me just say if Shaft were actually in The Imitation of Life, it would have been a far, far better film.  Such a dreadfully dull melodrama.

No acting.  No plot.  No direction.  No budget.  No boobies.  No beadings.  

Doubtful MST3K could do something with it.

In the case of Shaft “The Imitation of Life” pertains to superb writer David Walker’s philosophically rich narration.  Shaft relates to the reader how he can kill without compunction and still be a human being.  Dissection though fails to demonstrate the gritty beauty in these words.

You’ll read every line because Walker crafts remarkable rhythm, and that rhythm carries you through the breakdown of Shaft’s character.  The narration further draws your attention to twin plots that mirror each other.  Two months ago Shaft took a job for a connected father looking for his daughter.

In Shaft's present, he attempts to rejoin society through the search for another missing teen.  What he finds is savagery that must be dealt with instead.

These two cases fit snugly in the private eye genre.  The seediness of the seventies drop Shaft in the grindhouses.  The art of Dietrich Smith classes everything up without losing a hint of the blaxploitation beginnings.

Though Shaft is period-specific, the prejudice toward the individuals Shaft seeks is unfortunately timeless, and it brings to mind a lyric from Shaft’s theme, “Who is the man that would risk his neck for his brother man?” Shaft.  John Shaft.

Doc Savage continues to travel along the spider’s web, but this particular cloth hasn’t been woven by Richard Wentworth.  Instead, a group from Doc's past called Arachne unspools the anarchy.  

In previous issues, Doc uncovered a mystery with ties to a loose cadre that set house in the 1930s.  The group of filthy rich individuals intended to plunder the wealth of the world and use whatever mad designs available to enforce their positions as we mere peons’ overlords.  Doc of course thwarted them, but Arachne always comes back because it’s difficult to kill an idea.  Even harder to reform it.

This issue we learn of a connection to a nineteen seventies kidnapping that at once reflects the abduction of Patty Hearst and the madness of various Doomsday Cults.  Arachne's plans depended upon the itchy trigger fingers on the hot buttons of the Cold War.  Doc of course sees the flaw in their ultimate plan.

It’s just like Doc to combine optimism and logic in one fell swoop, and it’s an example of writer Chris Roberson’s excellent characterization for the Man of Bronze.

Roberson’s story compels for a number of reasons.  Primarily though the tale confronts the near infallibility of Doc Savage in the presence of a particularly hardy disease.  This miasma spans the decades: from Doc’s well known operations in the thirties and forties to the current Doc Savage conglomerate dedicated to helping the world on multiple fronts.  

Roberson’s updating of the Doc Savage mythos is the same system the writer introduced in his first Doc Savage miniseries, and I understand now that “Spider’s Web” is the story that he wanted to scribe first.  However, Roberson had to establish the present day Doc Savage protocols.  Thus, the first Doc Savage miniseries from Dynamite was actually Roberson’s first chapters to this saga.  Those chapters related the adventures of Doc Savage within each succeeding era, explained how his Amazing Crew expanded and backed Pat’s explanation for still looking spry for her age.  Doc would be lost without his cousin.

In order for Roberson’s story to work Doc had to continue.  For maximum impact Arachne couldn’t be just another group of nutjobs for Doc to repair at his Crime College.  Instead, they had to be the group of nutjobs, the Illumanti, the Trilateral Commission, the conspiracy believers' darlings all rolled up into one.  

Lester Dent’s defacto creation rarely earned less than total victory.  The exception being John Sunlight.  Arachne had to be so complex through a culmination of incremental growth that Doc Savage could plausibly miss them.  The group also had to evolve.  It had to become, no less than an organization intent on overthrowing civilization.  It had to deserve Doc Savage. 

Our other good Doctor this week plays up his investigation into a case companion Clara Oswald intended to solve herself.  The Doctor wasn’t about to let Clara succumb to any dangers.  He has a duty of care.  

The disappearance of a fellow teacher and friend Christel Dean triggered Clara’s infiltration of Ravenscaur.  There she finds a headmistress that’s a pill-and-a-half.

She however is the least of Clara’s worries.  Whoever heard of eerily well-behaved students that clash with the cool teacher’s relaxed means of education? Expertly delivered in the illustration of Rachael Stott.

While Clara ferrets around Ravenscaur, the Doctor takes a page from his previous incarnation and investigates the goings on from the point of view of gossip.  The pub.

He finds a most unwelcome audience.

Morrison's and Stott's Doctor Who is almost as entertaining as the real thing on television.  They portray the Doctor at his most boisterous and dangerous.  Peter Capaldi’s Doctor in a nutshell.  Clara harnesses the acumen she picked up on her travels with the Doctor, and an exciting cliffhanger awaits Doctor Who fans old and new.

In the last issue of Batman/Superman, the World’s Finest team found themselves lured into space by the death of an alien.  In her last moments, she dramatically requested their Batman's and Superman's assistance.  Tom Taylor’s story just gains momentum with the second issue.

Batman deduces the entire puzzle with all the skill and delivery of a ratiocinator stepping out of the mold of Sherlock Holmes.  Taylor’s elegant murder mystery falls like dominoes before the world’s greatest detective, and Batman doesn’t see just the enigma before him.  He figures it all out.

At the same time Batman defends himself against Lobo, and goes just as you imagine.

Lobo finds himself in the rare position of being so woefully unprepared for his quarry.  This is consummate Batman, and insanely entertaining.

Meanwhile, Taylor demonstrates just how super is Superman.

Seriously.  I got chills.

That’s really all you need.  Variations on a theme.  Batman is hyper intelligent, and there’s nobody more powerful than Superman.  Each hero supplements the other.  They perform these feats in uncanny milieus, and the setting creates a greater sense of wonder actualized by artists Robson Rocha, Julio Ferreira and Blond.

In Batman: Arkham Knight, Tim Seeley relates a substantial updating of Batgirl’s mythology.  Batman originally welcomed Batgirl into the fold.  Batman: the Animated Series duplicated the scene.  In contrast, the flashbacks of the modern era suggest that Batman deterred Batgirl from joining his ranks.  On the flip-side, the new 52  followed through with ideas postulated by the non-canonical Batman & Superman: World’s Finest.  

There, Batman actually trained Batgirl, and this is today’s currency.

Seeley tries for a balance.  Batman strongly suggests Batgirl quit and stay safe, but not in a mean, sexist way; which is how Batman always sounded in the flashbacks.

Though Harley Quinn features on the cover, Seeley primarily draws Batgirl’s arch-nemesis the Killer Moth to the flame.  Killer Moth first encountered Batgirl in her Silver Age debut.  Ever since, she trounced the goofball, Killer Moth fostered an itch to end the Darknight Daredoll.

Seeley’s Killer Moth is rather spectacular.  At once a Silver Age specific baddie but also a potentially dangerous realistic criminal.  Kudos for Matthew Clark’s depiction of the villain as an obviously disturbed individual.  Kudos actually for the whole thing.  Clark’s art depicts a diverse, modern outlook rich with detail.

Oh, and if you’re wondering.  When Harley Quinn does take the stage, she’s less of villain and more of a menace.  No less entertaining.

Batman/Man from UNCLE picks up the pieces left from newly anointed THRUSH agents Egghead, Poison Ivy and Mr. Freeze.  The rogues intended to steal a satellite prototype from Bruce Wayne’s soiree but found resistance from the Dynamic Duo and UNCLE Agents Ilya Kuryakin and Napoleon Solo.

Definitely not forgetting Batgirl.

This issue we discover that Batman’s well-laid plans fruited in thwarting the dirty birds, but there’s a catch.

Whether or not our avian d’jour speaks the truth is moot.  The Gothamite THRUSH agents strike again for a two-part plan that means definite dastardliness.  Their near simultaneous chicanery means that Batman and UNCLE must lose this round.  Our heroes cannot be in three places at once and lacked the intel to stop the enemy.

The plan concocted by Jeff Parker neatly bridges the gap between the weird ploys of the Arkham criminals and the oft-effective disruption generated by THRUSH.  Thus, Parker satisfies both thirsts.  As does the characterization and organization of Batman and UNCLE.  

Parker even remembers the little niceties like Batman’s penchant for knocking out Batgirl when she visits the Batcave.  This gag paves the way for a wonderful cliffhanger that most Batman fans will see through.  It’s never the less a fun little moment, and it will no doubt put to rest Mr. Waverly's suspicions about Bruce Wayne while protecting Batman's secret identity.

When Batman contacts UNCLE, Parker remembers UNCLE’s pattern of involving an innocent person to aid them in eliminating the opposition.  

I’ve often thought that this motif in The Man from UNCLE actually served as a safety net.  The inclusion of an ordinary man or woman in a case kept UNCLE honest.  UNCLE agents can never think themselves above these common people.   They work with them.

Agents of SHIELD ripens with a fantastic plan that’s all kinds of cynical.  SHIELD on the other hand is a positive force, and it’s refreshing to see this kind of openness.  SHIELD has been too often been portrayed as the bad guy or the inept guy that constantly finds itself being eaten within by double-agents.

Okay.  Fitz just may not be our Fitz, or he could have been brain-washed by this NEXUS.  However, everybody else is on the up and up, and that’s what’s so great about Agents of SHIELD.  

Raising a hand to ask question is such a Daisy/Skye Thing to Do.

While some of the behavior of the SHIELD agents is a little Marvel off kilter with respect to the television series, the personae of the agents seems familiar enough.  Phil Coulson and Melinda May are dead-on.

SHIELD's goal is to stop the sale of a spoilsport ultimate weapon pointed at every super-hero in the Marvelverse.  That is a worthwhile aim and it’s one of those so obvious why hasn’t anybody done this before kind of plots.  A law enforcement organization in a superhero universe would try to stop the sale of superhero secrets.  It’s such a no-brainer.

The Ultimates failed the test this week.  The reason I didn’t connect to the story is that it’s built on artificial continuity.  The more laudable goal and much more interesting story to fix the timeline falls by the wayside in favor of a personal vignette that draws on history of the Blue Marvel.   I like the Blue Marvel.  I want to get to know him in The Ultimates, but not in one glob of information.

LSD meets "Game Over, Man!"

The Ultimates encounter an Anti-Man, former friend and comrade to Blue Marvel.  Alas, also the killer of his wife.  See this is just getting way too complicated.  A trip down memory lane leads to a vengeful confrontation, interfered with by yet another character from Blue Marvel’s past.  

Kevin? Who's Kevin? 

The very reason why Doc Savage works is why The Ultimates doesn’t.  The Blue Marvel is a new character.  He shouldn’t have a villain from his past.  This character doesn’t really have enough strength yet to support a past.  His history is just blurted out.  It doesn’t have any build up.  The Ultimates is a shoulder shrug.

Writer Dennis Hopeless’ All-New X-Men is the all Wolverine issue.  Although the lion's share of the p.o.v. comes from her current beau Warren Worthington aka Angel.

Angel loves Wolverine, but he cannot stand the way she recklessly faces dangers because like any of Logan’s ilk, she can heal almost instantly.  This also creates the fickleness of celebrity.

All of the episodes are fun and games.  Laura faces fire and flood, saves lives and and always comes out alive sometimes bringing a friend with her.

This playful mood shifts however when Angel confronts Laura about her blasé attitude toward harm.  Hopeless gives Angel a fair point, and I kind of would have liked Laura to acknowledge his very reasonable argument.  Instead, a situation wedges the discussion aside.  Laura faces the Blob, and this is truly a very painful exchange to witness.

The fight with the Blob grants Hopeless' story a certain amount of meta.  Mark Bagley's, Andrew Hennessy's and Nolan Woodwar's depiction of the Blob's rage-fueled violence against Laura is frightening...

...and for the first time we who have been voyeuristically enjoying Laura's carefree attitude when facing of danger as well as the girl's ability to bounce back in feat after feat of escapist body injury fare begin to fret that there just may be a limit to how often Laura can regenerate her wounds.  We may even feel a bit of guilt in goading on Wolverine.

Wolverine is a lot more circumspect in her eponymous book.  Perhaps that’s because she’s in charge of a group of ladies with personal connections.  One of those charges found themselves gravely wounded in battle last issue.  The injury forced Wolverine to take drastic measures.

Tom Taylor’s story of course recalls Fantastic Voyage and for my money it’s an entertaining descendent that allows artist David Lopez to let loose with some more fantastical art and science fiction motifs.  In a broader sense, I'd be curious to know if Taylor and Hopeless are in contact.  Because if I were to judge Wolverine in conjunction with All-New X-Men, I'd say the former takes place after All-New X-Men.  Laura seems a little wiser in Wolverine than in Hopeless' book.

That's all for now, folks.  I had to split the reviews into two this week.  So, you'll get to see the reviews of Black Canary, Catwoman, Death-Defying Doctor Mirage, James Bond, Radioactive Spider-Gwen and Starfire in the upcoming set posted next week.  I haven't forgotten about the Black Canary and Scooby-Doo specials.  They'll be on the band before you know it.

POBB February 3, 2016

Pick of Brown Bag

February 3, 2016

by

Ray Tate

The Pick of the Brown Bag drops in on A-Force, Angel and Faith, Barbwire, Batgirl, Captain Marvel and Rocket Raccoon and Groot.  If you miss the POBB, but need some quick comic book advice, I also tweet the reviews under: #PickoftheBrownBag.

Whereas in most fiction, magic is a force of nature, the magic of Magic Town is sentient.  As a result, several foreshadowed factors come into play for this issue of Angel and Faith.  

The Big Bad Archaeus attempted to persuade the magic to side with him.  So, the monster gave the magic a gift that all sentients require.

However, the way writer Victor Gischler characterizes the magic suggests that the gift isn’t quite the end all to be alls.  The magic mostly acts benign.  People don’t quite understand its actions.  That’s part of Archaeus’ plan.  Archaeus’ gift is the whisper in the magic’s figurative ear.  That the magic will never be accepted and it should become part of the Archaeus Family.  It’s the typical why serve in heaven when you can rule with me in hell trick.

Gischler doesn’t treat the magic as a threat.  Instead, he looks at the entity’s point of view and Nadira’s influence.  As we learned in previous issues, Nadira is a Slayer, but her instincts slant toward finding a peaceful/harmonious solution to all problems.  The magic as we learned likes to solve problems and be part of the solution.

The plot twist thus serves four purposes.  To redefine the magic of Magic Town.  Grant an extra level of cunning to Archaeus, while at the same time demonstrating the shallowness in his character and strengthen Nadira’s already inspiring resolve.  As to four…That would be telling.

In the action portion of the series, Angel confronts crooked cop Brandt.

I like how Gischler takes a Whedon cut-to-the-chase approach in this act.  Angel knows that Brandt knows.  Brandt knows that Angel knows.  Somebody needs to hurt.  Unfortunately for Angel, Brandt is a cop.  So, he’s never alone.

Angelus wasn’t a loner.  Angelus was in a league of vampires controlled by the Master.  Angel became a loner because he thought that was the only means to fight Angelus.  It would take years, but Angel became part of a family, and when he left that family, he built up another.  He would never be a loner again.  A trusted ally from the series became his partner in the comic book.  Faith.

Gischler uses the conflict that’s tied to the overall storyarc, to actually serve as an excellent introduction to how Angel’s and Faith’s friendship works.  

Angel and Faith are good together because of the humor, the pragmatism from both characters and the history of corruption from which both stars emerged.  Largely due to each other’s influence.

Angel and Faith is so well written that if doesn’t feel written at all.  Gischler seems to reconstitute the television series into the comic book as easily as Will Conrad and Michelle Madsen mimic the actors’ personages.

A midnight picnic and the growing romance between Batgirl and Batwing segues to fighting the larceny of hard-light hologram harnessing hoodlums.

The encounter’s totally familiar to Batwing but not to Babs.  Her eidetic memory once again fails, and this is the issue of Batgirl where writers Cameron Stewart and Brendon Fletcher resolve the gaps once and for all.

Though the story begins with a Batwing/Batgirl team-up, the lion’s share of the book belongs to the partnership on the cover.

Batgirl teams up with Black Canary to fight the enemy responsible for Babs' memory loss.

The superb story functions with a strong visual narrative courtesy of regular artist Babs Tarr.   The tale acts as a fair play mystery where suspects and clues introduced in past issues and this one bear scrutiny from the reader and the detectives.

Black Canary’s return to the cast adds much needed toughness and encouragement to a situation that’s turned Babs vulnerable and given her friend Frankie too many worries.  Dinah on the other hand comes onto the scene fresh and direct.

Canary picks up the slack.  She’s confident that Babs isn’t losing anything.  Rather somebody or some thing must be taking.  She’s out to protect her friend in the most violent way possible.  She’s in short a female character after my own heart.

The story flows to an action-packed conclusion that will more than sate the thirst of thrill-seekers missing the Dinah/Babs dynamic.

Barb Wire revisits Avram Roman, and discovers he's not the man she remembered.

Unbeknownst to Barb, she led the Feds straight to him, but in a juicy twist.  That was Avram's plan all along.

Avram intends to make a Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid stand against government forces, but Barb's conscience gets the better of her.

Barb's participation turns what could have been tragedy or massacre, into a smart-ass comeuppance that even Avram couldn’t have predicted.  That’s entertainment.

Captain Marvel leads Alpha Flight on an exploration of an unknown spaceship, and the craft proves to be full of surprises.

This issue of Captain Marvel doesn't break any new ground when it comes to science fiction, but it uses the traditions well.  The starship backdrop serves to flesh out the cast and examine their shared history.

Aurora as first imagined by Chris Claremont and John Byrne suffered from multiple personality syndrome.  She seems a lot better now, and apparently turned her flirtation with Sasquatch into a full blown romance at one time.  That's over now, but Sasquatch apparently still harbors feelings for the mutant hero.

The relationship between Sasquatch and Aurora is a kind of anchor in an otherwise brand new group, less Puck and our title hero.  The new characters deserve some examination.  Wendy Kawasaki for example is vivacious and curious.

The heroes by the way do not stay in the dark throughout the story.  Instead, artists Kris Anka and Matthew Wilson step up their game with striking visuals that will be familiar to anybody who to their sorrow watched Prometheus.

I’m not suggesting a direct correlation.  Rather, in general, Captain Marvel takes and admits the Alien franchise as its inspiration.  At least early on, with the red lights and organic ship, it’s a favorable comparison.  When the lights come on though, Prometheus gets a good kick in the shins.

The last issue of A-Force was instantaneously better than the first volume since writers Kelly Thompson and G. Willow Wilson focused on actual Marvel heroines, rather than confusing, ersatz doppelgängers.  This issue of A-Force is better through the virtue of being damn enjoyable to read and bearing the stunning art of Jorge Molina and colorist Laura Martin.

A cosmic blue being appeared in the Marvelverse.  She's a refugee from the previous volume of A-Force dubbed Singularity.

She was friends with versions of Marvel's female champions.  Singularity's first instinct was to seek out her allies, but something else noticed her.  Christened Antimatter, the being wants to kill Singularity because she causes him pain.

Though not friends with Medusa, She-Hulk or Captain Marvel, Singularity quickly becomes at least liked by the heroes, who defend her out of principle.  Well, almost.

Of course, Medusa quickly sobers up and remembers she was one of the Fantastic Four.

This is just one of Medusa's impressive moments.  Indeed, the creators of A-Force build up all the team.

At a certain point, Singularity, She-Hulk and Medusa seek out Nico, of the Runaways.  Nico and Singularity were in fact the best of friends in the prior universe, but strangers here.

I'm not overly familiar with Nico or her powers, but Wilson and Thompson quickly inform through and during the comedy of a wedding gone awry.  

I know enough now to say that I like Nico and appreciate the limits of her abilities.  I’m a tough sell for any magic-basis.  Giving the sorcery boundaries that affect the character and make a sort of sense is a big incentive.

Thompson and Wilson demonstrate that each of the heroes is capable of combatting Antimatter but not getting rid of him permanently.  This at once does justice to each character and explains why they must band together with Dazzler...

...to once and for all eliminate the threat to Singularity and the earth if not the universe.

Rocket Raccoon and Groot is losing me fast.  Under the conceit of a campfire story, writer Young hacks out a story that lacks the charm, warmth and humor of the solo Groot miniseries.  Essentially this tale posits that Groot lost Rocket Raccoon during Battle World or Secret Wars and has been looking for him ever since.

Two questions.  Why do the Guardians of the Galaxy believe Groot and Rocket to be dead, as seen last issue, when the heroes of earth could have just informed the Guardians that Groot, at least, is alive?  Why does everybody all of a sudden understand Groot?  Nobody understands Groot’s language except Rocket.  Former Groot writer Jeff Loveness spent a whole Brian Kesinger lovely issue of Groot explaining just how Rocket picked up Groot’s tongue.

Anyway, Groot believes he found Rocket in the raccoon tyrant.

Maybe, but who wants to read about an amnesiac raccoon torturing his friend?  I'd rather retread scenes from Groot such as this:

From Groot

And this.

From Groot

And this.

Best Silver Surfer Ever in Groot

Groot, just Groot, is superior to Rocket Raccoon and Groot by parsecs.  Young isn't giving me anything entertaining.  So, no, Marvel I don't "want to know what happens next.”

Groot is now available in a sweet twenty-four-ninety-five cents hardback.  ISBN # 978-0-7851-9552-8.  By not buying Rocket Raccoon and Groot thus far, you can invest eight dollars into buying that hardback.

Yup.  This scene is in Groot as well.