Been a little while since I delved into the comic books. The good news there is that I had what for me was a pretty big haul: ten books. They were Action Comics #1039; Detective Comics #1048, #1049, & #1050; Fantastic Four #39; Ice Cream Man #28; Icon and Rocket: Season One #5; Saga #55; Static: Season One #5; Usagi Yojimbo #25.
Action Comics #1039 Really felt and looked like John Carter of Mars. More on that HERE.
Detective Comics #1048 well, I'm glad that I didn't yield to temptation and put down $23 for the variant cover edition of this book that I spotted last week. My faith in the re-ordering system has been rewarded with the regular cover version at $4.99--which is still a bit much for a comic book, but pretty much par for the course these days.
I thought that writer Mariko Tamaki did a superb job on this story. It's part of a large arc--the 12-part "The Tower"--but it also had its own nice little arc, in which flashbacks about a main character are used to frame the issue to great effect...and in such away that some dire implications for the future are left as a metallic taste in the mouth. And I am very happy to report that I also have issue #1049, which I purchased last week but held off on reading in the hope that I would get my hands on #1048, and that #1050 was on the stands this week, so presuming that Mariko's writing holds up, I have some significant minutes of reading pleasure still ahead of me.
Oh, the art? Yes, it's good. Executed by Ivans Reis and Danny Miki, with colors by Brad Anderson. I'm familiar with all three of those names, but can't come up with any specifics about the first two, and am guessing that the third is not the Brad Anderson that I know--the one who did such great art on Ka-Zar back in the day.
Okay, having said that, I have to Google.
Ivan Reis is a 45 year old artist who has done a lot of work for DC, Marvel, and others. Nothing that I read much of, but I undoubtedly crossed paths with him a few times. Danny Miki, who is handling the inks here, is a 59 year old fellow who has done a shit ton of work for pretty much everybody. And Brad Anderson, I couldn't find anything direct, but I did find a reference to his first work being for DC in 1998, and since Ka-Zar The Savage #1 came out in 1981, obviously this is not the Brad Anderson I was looking for. I wonder what the hell happened to that Brad Anderson? He was a really good artist back in the day.
Oh, and the back-up story was pretty good, too. I still get the feeling that this is going to intersect with the main story at some point, which is cool, and it's also good to see a little Batman here, since he is absent from the lead story in the book.
Detective Comics #1049 and #1050 were also quite satisfying. I also really like the concept of a weekly comic book. In fact, back in the day Action Comics Weekly was quite the tits so far as I was concerned. Wish they'd bring that back.
Fantastic Four #39 Oh...already wrote about this one. Never mind.
Ice Cream Man #28 I've read quite a few issues of this comic book courtesy of the Louisville Free Public Library, but I've only bought a couple. In both cases, it was because of the cover. First, Ice #14, with this:
Very cool. I don't know who this W. Maxwell Prince writer feller is, but he's a clever one. Wish he didn't seek out cruelty and perversity on such a regular basis...which is why I haven't read all of the collected issues the library has to offer...and why I don't buy the book regularly...but I do like a nicely designed cover.
And the story this time out? Kind of interesting, but in the end it added up to nothing, and of course there was a gross out bit there. It might be time to stop judging books by their covers.
Icon and Rocket: Season One #5 Only one issue to go after this, and I'm already feeling it. Hopefully it won't be long before Season Two kicks in...or, better yet, we just ditch the whole Season concept and get on with it.
Saga #55 It's been a VERY long time since Saga #54 came out. Three years or so. But Brian K. Vaughn came back with a big bang on three counts: (1) the story picks up 3 years later and hits the ground running. Very exciting story, excellent art, and the occasional comment that sears its way into your memory. Yes. (2) The cover price is $2.99. Umm...what? (3) And get this: it's 44 pages long, no ads. WHAT? Also, BKV let us know that he has plotted out "the rest" of the story, and that we can look forward to another 53 issues after this one. I'll be there, for sure.
Static: Season One #5 Wrote about this one elsewhere: HERE. Short version: Static kicks ass.
Usagi Yojimbo #25 Well, you know. It's Usagi. Always good. Rarely great. Sorry, call 'em like I see 'em. I plan on sticking around, though, because sometimes good is good enough.
Next Week's Comics:
Detective Comics #1051
Dark Knights of Steel #4
Suicide Squad #12
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