Always New Stuff
There are always new ongoing series and mini-series coming-out. With that in mind I usually am excited to try new comics out (I say, "Usually," because there is some stuff I'd dread, like perhaps anything drawn by Greg Land). Let's dive into some new books, shall we?
Debut Issues
Catwoman #1
After the debacle that was Batman's wedding in his book's issue #50, Catwoman seems to have fled quite far away and is dealing with a whole new assortment of foes, be they political figures, or posing as Catwoman herself! Joelle Jones is a stellar writer and illustrator as her past work such as, "Ladykiller," has shown, and here she provides amazing artwork to a story that has a little oomph but I feel ends on a cliffhanger right as the book starts getting interesting. Jones beautiful drawing makes up for any bit of short-changing I feel in regards to the plot however, and I imagine future issues will do a lot more to explain what is going on.
Unnatural #1
A new comic published by Image featuring both the writing and artwork of Mirka Andolfo. This is a very weird comic that also is really good! Both highly erotically-charged and quite humorous, it takes place in a world of humanoid animals who are taught to never seek-out romance from another species (same sex attraction is also verboten) but a pig-girl named Leslie keeps having these dreams of a mysterious and intriguing wolf-fellow. It's a little bit cheesecake-styled, has some interesting metaphors with its talk of how animals should only be with the, "Right," partner, and otherwise has me wondering where the story will go next. Good stuff!
Project Superpowers #0
God, this comic feels like it just has so much to cover and can't quite manage to do so over the span of its pages. I mean, the comic only cost a dime so it is a decent enough refresher on all the past, "Project Superpowers," plot-elements that will, "Count," in this iteration as there have of course been takes on the property that clearly aren't in this continuity (Warren Ellis did an efficiently creepy mini-series some years ago, for example). Honestly though, in an era when comics sometimes feel too slow this one moves at a rate that could give readers literary whiplash with the mixture of backstory set in World War II, then the present, and a weird future. It make me curious for the main series though, and as I said, just cost 10 cents, so it accomplished its goal of being a taste of what's to come, I guess?
Final Street #1
Written by Scott Schmidt and expertly illustrated by Brian Atkins, this comic is a clever take on a mixture of concepts. From 1980's action movies, to the, "Street Fighter," video-games, two friends unite to try to rescue one's boyfriend from a variety of gang-members and street-toughs. Things move at a good pace and the allusions to video-games come fast and furious in the form of fun illustrated SFX, and bright signs pointing out who a, "Boss," character could be. It is extremely clever and well portrayed by Atkins art. It's a great first issue and worth picking-up!
Skilled journalist and occasional comic-writer Ta-Nehisi Coates has begun his much-publicized run on, "Captain America," that appropriately enough was released on July 4th, and it is a excellent start! The comic thankfully doesn't try to ignore the debacle that was, "Secret Empire," and instead uses that as a stepping-stone to explore an America that doesn't quite trust its titular hero in much the same way a lot of us don't trust the Government lately. A new threat is introduced in the form of supposedly-patriotic terrorists wielding cybernetic enhancements and guns who think they represent the, "Real America," as opposed to everyone else. There also is a new threat introducing brewing cleverly enough within Russia. It's a good mixture of super-heroics, political commentary, and is probably the first,"Captain America," I've read and enjoyed in some time.
The Quantum Age #1
Another spin-off of the spectacular, "Black Hammer," comic Jeff Lemire created (he writes this too) that helps to flesh-out the worlds of the series, this book draws from moving the world to one set in the future (like the Legion of Heroes) where things have clearly gone wrong. Whereas the other, "Black Hammer," tie-in books have had a more immediate feel in terms of relating to the main series, this one being 1,000-plus years in the future results in the plot feeling a lot more removed from the main book. This isn't a bad thing as its an interesting take on the, "Futuristic team falls apart and is hunted and hated due to doing something terrible," but I'm more curious to see how it eventually most likely ties itself back into the original book.
(Generally) Solid Starts
I always am pleased when a new comic impresses, and of course a little let-down when it disappoints. You of course can't judge something too much by its premiere but it always helps for getting an idea of what to expect.
Posted by David Charles Bitterbaum at 9:29 PM
Labels: Black Hammer, Brian Atkins, Captain America, Catwoman, comics, Final Street, Image, Jeff Lemire, Joelle Jones, Marvel, Mirka Andolfo, Project Superpowers, Scott Schmidt, Ta-Nehisi Coates