Panelology - Marvel & DC August 2009 Solicitation Picks

by Brandon

Now that Marvel & DC have released their solicitations for August 2009, I thought it might be worthwhile to look at books coming down the pike that are of interest to collectors. August looks to be a pretty decent month for collectors new and old. Both Marvel and DC have some neat looking books for old and new fans alike just begging to be pre-ordered. I know I'm going to have to make a lot of room for some new titles. Jenn won't be happy, but my inner-fanboy will just love it!


The House of Ideas has a few books that I'll be adding to my order this month. Here's a look at my picks.

- Dominic Fortune # 1 (of 4): It's always good to see Howard Chaykin writing and drawing a book, but its extra nice to see him return to a character that he created. In the various incarnations that have cropped up of this archetypal character from Chaykin's creative stables, Dominic Fortune was one of my favorites. He's been little used, but this looks to be one of those great returns we fans don't get to see very often. This title should be full of violence, zippy dialogue, loose women, and excellent art.

- Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #1 and Avengers #1: Oh boy. I haven't made it a secret that I have been displeased with the direction of the Ultimate Universe lately. The bloated and unnecessary Ultimatum freak show has been ridiculously stupid. It's redemption time for this line. Starting with new first issues, Avengers and Spiderman look to be good starting places for those people who left the Ultimate Universe before Jeph Loeb's involvement was just a dusty twinkle in Joe Quesada's bad eye. Perhaps with the always entertaining Millar on board, Avengers will pick up with where his Ultimates 2 title left off. Otherwise, this lines probably in deep shit. Check this out, if only for the train wreck.

- The Marvels Project #1 (of 8): Ed Brubabker? Check. Steve Epting? Check. Worth $3.99 an issue? Not so sure. But, I might be willing to give it a shot. With the aforementioned creative team from Captain America on board, this will probably be entertaining at the very least. With Marvel celebrating "their" 70th anniversary, this title promises to be the centerpiece to their celebrations. Whatever. The big question for Marvel is will anyone care about a miniseries dealing with the Golden Age version of Marvel's oldest heroes. This has the potential to be a bust or a boon. I'm hoping for the latter, especially if I'm going to shell out $3.99 an issue!

- Captain America: The Death of Captain America Omnibus HC: Sweet Jesus! On the one hand, the $75 price tag gives me pause, but getting issues 25-42 of Brubaker and Epting's Captain America saga in hardcover is very tempting. I haven't bought any of Marvel's omnibus editions, but they look sweet and many people have had nothing but great things to say about these volumes.

- Marvel Bromance TPB: Huh? When I first saw this solicitation, I must admit that I almost just skipped reading it. But my curiosity got the better of me and I read it. I hate the term "bromance" but it is oddly appropriate for some comic books match-ups. It is with a little bit of shame that I must admit that this sounds kind of cool. As hokey as they may be, some buddy comics are just fun to read. Marvel selected a wide variety of characters here to spotlight, which is excellent because I don't think having Wolverine or Spider-Man pop up in your book constitutes the "bromance" label. Male bonding is cool and this should be a fun title to read.


I'm not much of a DC Comics kind of guy, but a couple of things in their August previews looked interesting.

- Red Circle Comics: The Shield, The Web, Inferno, and The Hamngman # 1's: J. Michael Straczynski takes a stab at bringing the Archie heroes into the DCU. I honestly think this is what JMS does best. I just wish he would go back to finishing The Twelve. Regardless, these books should at least be interesting for old and new readers. Plus, these specials are backed by some killer artists including Bill Sienkiewicz, Greg Scott, Roger Robinson, Hilary Barta, Scott McDaniel, and Andy Owens. Fitting these four issues into your order might taking a little more tightening of the belt, but I think they could be definitely worth it.

- Doom Patrol #1: Finally! It seems like DC has been talking about this reboot for months now, so I was happy to see it finally solicited. Kieth Giffen seems like a perfect fit for this book. To sweeten the pot, and to soften the blow of the $3.99 admission price, there is a Metal Men co-feature co-written by Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis with art from Kevin Maguire! That's right, this is the celebrated team that brought us the original JLI title in the late 1980s. I hope Giffen's back to the basics approach works out better for him that it did for John Byrne. I love all the various incarnations of this team and I am highly anticipating the release of this title.

- Peter & Max: A Fables Novel: This is another book that seems to have been discussed for a while now by the folks over at Vertigo. If you aren't reading Fables, you truly are missing out on one of the best titles to ever be published. This prose novel from Bill Willingham will be supported by ink drawings from Fables artist Steve Leialoha. Vertigo always does a good job with these special hardcovers and I don't think this one will disappoint any regular Fables fans. Sounds really good to me!



That's it for me this week! You can of course check out the Previews website from Diamond Distributors if you want to browse more solicitations and news.

Next week, I'll be back to talk about how my comic book life is changing now that the big wedding date is coming up faster than a speeding bullet. What am I doing to myself?
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Spring Break Reading, Part 3 - Oldies

by Brandon

Two days late and many, many dollars short, the third and final installment of Spring Break Reading comes to a grinding halt. I read over one hundred issues during my spring break last week. It definitely put a dent in my reading stack, but I still have a log way to go. In this final installment, I'll astonish and astound you with reviews of Doom patrol, Queen & Country, Justice League, Suicide Squad, The Spirit, and Grendel. And guess what? I think I loved nearly everything I read while I was camping. That was awesome!

Doom Patrol #'s 26-50
Ever since DC announced Kieth Giffen would be starting a new Doom Patrol series, I got the urge to go back an re-read Grant Morrison's Doom Patrol, probably the undisputed high point for this property. In fact, every time a new reboot of this title has been announced since the Vertigo run, I have gone back to these original issues. What can I say? Part of me lives in the past. When you read these issues, you really do get a sense of how gutsy DC was when they let Morrison go off the deep end with these characters. Doom Patrol had always been billed as being the world's strangest heroes, but they had often come off as being the most mundane, especially in the 1980s. Morrison gave the Doom Patrol a purpose by embracing the weird. The characters were so great, especially Crazy Jane and Danny the Street. Cliff Steele always remains the emotional heart for the team, but Morrison was able to give the character a voice beyond being good ol' stable Cliff. This comic book is not for the passive reader. Morrison challenges you with each absurd turn. There is more psychedelic super-heroics in these pages than you could probably shake some LSD at. The art was just as appropriately trippy as the writing was. If you haven't given this title a spin, what are you waiting for? Just think of the X-Men on mind boggling drugs and you'll be getting close. Chin-chin.

Queen & Country Definitive Edition Volume 1
I'm a huge fan of the television show 24. Or should I say I was a huge fan? While the past two seasons have been less than entertaining, many Q&C fans have told me I should try this book out to scratch my counter-terrorism itch. I found a copy of this definitive edition dirt cheap on Amazon a couple of months ago and it was worth every penny. I sat down under a tree Friday afternoon with a few beers and this book. The afternoon just breezed away. Everything just seemed to meld together perfectly. I'm not terribly familiar with Greg Rucka, but this book just blew me away. He was able to mix savvy dialogue with great action without all the clumsiness that plagues many counter-terrorism shows and books. The language never gets bogged down in procedural or technical matters, but it never once feels dumbed down or trite.

Justice League International #'s 7-25
I've expressed my childhood (and adulthood, for that matter) love of the Giffen and DeMatteis Justice League era books. They just mix action and comedy so well. These comic books were fun. As a kid, I probably never owned more than five issues at a time due to my restrictive $2 a week allowance. I traded these issues out like hotcakes for new issues every chance I got. Now that I'm an adult who can actually afford to buy and keep these issues, I've made it my goal to go back and get some of the issues I traded away back in those fabled days of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Justice League just happens to be one of those titles. These titles are just fun to read. I can guarantee at least a couple laugh out loud moments in every issue, and many more chuckles. These guys knew how to keep a joke rolling without it becoming forced or overdrawn. The interaction between the characters is just golden and definitely make the book. The bad guys are pathetic, but in a lovable way. God, I hate the term bromance, but I'll be damned if it doesn't aptly describe the unique and hilarious friendship between Blue Beetle and Booster Gold. It makes you wonder what the hell crawled up Dan Didio's ass to make him dislike these characters so much. I know many people love the buff, flawless, iconic heroes to populate their Justice League books, but give me Beetle and Booster nyuk-nyuking it up while Martian Manhunter just sighs any day of the week.

Suicide Squad #'s 11-15
This was another book from the same era in DC history as Justice League and it is equally as good. I believe Doug recommended this series to me and I am eternally grateful to him for doing so. Unlike Justice League, there's only a smidgen of humor here, but the real story with this comic book is villains doing bad things. Sure, Captain Boomerang's costume is less than stellar, but the book reads like a frantic action movie. As a reader, you find yourself rooting for the bad guys to kill people. You don't often see that in comic books. Heroes are supposed to kick the crap out of the bad guys before they get too carried away. Just ask a Superman fan. B-O-R-I-N-G! The amoral area of the DC universe is so much more interesting than the white bread, might-makes-right side of that company. Ostrander is one of those writers who is never lauded as being a superstar comic book writer, but he has quietly become one of my favorite writers. Like Justice League of the same era, this book doesn't have to use the best and brightest of the DC Universe to pack some punch. I look forward to completing my collection and reading the remaining issues.

The Spirit #'s 6-10
I've been trying to purge the memory of the awful Spirit movie by going to the source, the original Eisner comics. After reading the first ten issues of the Kitchen Sink reprints from the 1980s, I have to confess that my mission has been accomplished. I started reading some of the older Spirit strips back in June when I picked up the Best Of collection from DC. I never thought in a million years that I would enjoy a golden age comic book. I always assumed golden books were all cheesy and lacked any depth. And guess what? The Spirit is cheesy. However, reading these issues just proves what treasure Will Eisner was to comic books. Eisner manages to capture the gritty side of life with glee. There are so many great characters that populate these issues that it's hard to pick a favorite. Commissioner Dolan stands out as a solid funny man, his Barney Fife to the Spirit's Andy Griffith. The art is crisp and clean, but always evocative. Eisner tried some pretty wild styles out, especially the dream sequence from the "Pool's Toadstool Facial Cream" story where Spirit imagines a future where he has to marry Ellen. Put through the modern viewing lens, Ebony White stands out like sore thumb throughout every story. But outside of the exaggerated minstrel art and dialogue, he actually is treated with respect by all the characters in the story. Just be advised of the existence of this character if you decide to go poking around in the Spirit's past. Kitchen Sink did such a wonderful job with these reprints and they are definitely worth seeking out if you don't feeling paying the exaggerated price for the hardcovers DC offers.

Grendel: Black, White, & Red TPB
Though I like all the Grendel books I've read thus far and the various takes on the character, my favorite version of the character is still the first devil, Hunter Rose. I found this trade at a used bookstore for a reasonable price and picked up for some nice, bloody reading last week. The stories were all solid, but what really amazed me about this book wasn't the writing, but the artists. Represented in the pages are some of comic book's finest artists. Off the top of my head, I remember seeing art from Tim Sale, Mike Allred, Guy Davis, Tim Bradstreet, David Mack, Duncan Fegredo, and Chris Sprouse. The simple color pallet works well for this character. Matt Wagner knows how to write a good tale of criminal minds. Probably my favorite story here was "Devil's Vagary" with art from Dean Motter. The idea of having Grendel lead a type of criminal board meeting was simply delicious and creepy to read. The stories in this book are short. They are also very powerful. I think I got a better sense for Hunter Rose out of these short stories than I have from anything else I have read. Grendel remains one of the better indie character in comic books and I hope Mr. Wagner stays true to his word and brings more tales of the devil quite soon.
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Panelology - Five Comic Books That Could Be Made Into Movies

by Brandon

Have you seen Watchmen yet? I haven’t had the chance, but I will correct that this afternoon. It sort of feels like the end seeing Watchmen actually make it to theaters. With the release of Watchmen last week, I think comic book fans were left to question what truly remained left to be adapted to film. It seems like every comic character I ever wished for as a child, teen, and the adult has made it to the big screen. Some of these wishes were dreams come true. Such was the case with films like The Dark Knight, the first two X-Men movies, and Spider-Man. Bit for every good comic-to-movie adaptation developed, at least three lacking adaptations were made, with one of them being a truly awful viewing experience. Not to name names, but we all can rattle off the bad adaptations we have seen with much regret and gnashing of fanboy teeth. Has everything been tapped? Have we reached the bottom?

The thing is, comic book companies are not short on ideas or potential, but really, if you look at the stable of stories left, what classics remain? There are several comic books left out there on the roster that could be potentially made into great movies. The big guns have already been picked over, but that isn’t necessiarly the place to find comic books biggest and best stories. They just have the name recognition and that does not translate into quality. Well today, I offer up five comic book properties that have not been made into films yet, but really could be. I’m not saying they should be made into stories, but the potential for all of these properties is there. Here are my top five.

5) Doom Patrol
The concept of Doom Patrol in almost any of its incarnations would be ripe territory for a feature film. If filmmakers went with the original Arnold Drake concept of the team, a nice, concise dynamic would be set up between a small cast of four main characters. Any of the later incarnations would herald in an almost ensemble type cast of characters that might be difficult to control on the screen, although Arcudi’s Doom Patrol was funny. A more interesting movie, and by extension more difficult film to make, would be Grant Morrison’s vision of the team. This trippy version of the Doom Patrol would be difficult to breakthrough to mainstream audiences, but it sure would be fun to watch!

4) Astro City
Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson’s sweeping series is a modern day comic work of genius. The stories are matchless and affecting, bringing a unique twist to the tired idea of a city populated by a menagerie of superheroes. Though there have been several story arcs in Astro City that would be great to see on the screen, there is one story that comes to mind that would really work; Confession. This story is still one of my favorite comic book stories I have ever had the pleasure of reading. The story revolves around the complexity of the hero/sidekick model that is typically ignored at best and mocked at worst in both comic books and films. The nature of the mentor/mentee relationship between the Confessor and Altar Boy is so well done by the creative team and harkens back to the days in comic book where sidekicks actually matter and served a purpose. With the Battle for the Cowll currently underway at DC, Busiek and team already covered a triumphant succession story without feeling cheap or overwrought. Take notes DC, and Hollywood.


3) Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
I know, I know; Samuel L. Jackson just signed a 1,563 picture deal with Marvel to play Nick Fury. I hget that. And yes, I know David Hasselhoff portrayed Nick Fury in a made for TV movie. But I think Hollywood really needs to go back and do Nick Fury properly. While the Ultimate Version of Fury is great to read, nothing can ever beat in my mind the old adventures of Nick Fury written by Jim Steranko. Those nineteen issues of Strange Tales and the few issues of Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. were always some of my favorite action and adventure stories. Sure, the premise and dialogue is a bit dated in those issues, but the content and idea behind the stories could easily be lifted on to the screen. They could even keep Samuel L. Jackson in the title role so long as they look back on this character’s finest moment under the pen of Jim Steranko.

2) Grendel
Americans love violence. In fact, we love violence more than we do sex in our movies. Blow someone’s head off and you might get a PG-13 rating. Show a nipple and you can almost assuredly guarantee an R-rating. So, violence is always a safe bet to go with. Matt Wagner’s examination of the nature of violence is so adept and timeless in Grendel that one has to wonder why exactly this hasn’t seen its way to the silver screen yet. The stories that feature the original Grendel Hunter Rose are absolutely begging to be adapted. The stories of the various Grendels that followed Hunter Rose practically scream “franchise.” The only thing going against this character would be name recognition. Grendel isn’t as well known as some of the other comic movie starlets, but come on, any Grendel movie would have to better than, say, Elektra or Fantastic Four.

1) American Flagg!
Howard Chaykin’s classic series from First Comics is an easy and extremely biased number one choice for me. I have extolled the greatness of this title in this column before, but it never hurts to hear it twice. This comic is practically begging for a revival and there would be no better way than for someone to adapt this series into a movie. American Flagg death with themes anyone in today’s modern world could relate to. Idea such as corporate greed, cynical governance, pervasiveness of advertising, and good ol’ fashioned violence would sit well for audiences. Though some might suggest that we have too much of these things going on in our country right now, I think seeing them in the context of a future where America has seen its better days come and gone would be both sobering a satirical without being sardonic or depressing. Chaykin was able to explore these themes without ever being overly pessimistic or self-righteous. Hollywood could do the same.
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