I Reads You

Sunday, October 16, 2011

I Reads You Review: ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #1

"Everybody's talking 'bout the new kid in town"

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #1
MARVEL COMICS

WRITER: Brian Michael Bendis
ARTIST: Sara Pichelli
COLORS: Justin Ponsor
LETTERS: VC’s Cory Petit
COVER: Kaare Andrews (Variant covers by Sara Pichelli and Justin Ponsor)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

I don’t read many titles from Marvel Comics, and it has been that way for the past seven years, at least. During the last decade, I’ve occasionally read titles from Marvel’s Ultimate line and, for the most part, enjoyed them. However, I had ignored the “Death of Spider-Man” Ultimate storyline which ran through most of this year. Peter Parker was killed, and Miles Morales, a teenager of African-American and Latino descent, is the new Spider-Man (or Ultimate Spider-Man II).

Ultimate Spider-Man #1 (AKA Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #1) begins 11 months prior to the main story and is set at an Osborn Industries laboratory on Long Island. Norman Osborn is demanding that his latest hire, Doctor Markus, reverse calculate the specifications of a genetically altered spider. What spider? That would be the spider that bit Peter Parker and gave him his special powers; the spider’s genetic alterations were the result of Osborn Industries.

Eleven months later, Miles Morales and his parents are attending a lottery that will decide which Brooklyn, New York students get to attend the charter school, Brooklyn Visions Academy. Miles’ life, however, is about to take an even bigger turn because young Mr. Morales has a date with a special spider.

A few years ago, I started reading back issues of Static, one of the titles published by the comics publishing wing of Milestone Media, a company dedicated to bringing diversity in terms of race and ethnicity to comic book superheroes. Reading those early issues of Static, I was struck by how much they reminded me of the early issues of The Amazing Spider-Man by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.

Now, I’m struck by how much this Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man reads like an early issue of Static. Spider-Man writer Brian Michael Bendis has adapted, updated, and reworked the stories of many of the Spider-Man comic book writers that came before him, notably Lee and Ditko. Now, it seems as if he has taken the fresh style and urban tone of Static writers, the late Dwayne McDuffie and Robert L. Washington, III, and fashioned that for Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man. I kid you not; this Spider-Man comic book is an early issue of Static.

I don’t have a problem with that because (1) this is a good opening issue and (2) the story looks, reads, and feels right for a contemporary story of superhero fantasy in which the star is a person of color. This is an auspicious beginning, and I hope Miles Morales welcomes in new readers the way Peter Parker did 50 years ago.

A

Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #1 includes a backup feature that reprints pages from “A Moment of Silence” and “Heroes,” two of Marvel Comics’ 9/11 publications: Bill Jemas (story), Mark Bagley (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Hi-Fi (colors), Sharpefont’s PT (letters); and Joe Quesada and Alex Ross (cover illustration)

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

Kamisama Kiss: Summer Festival

I read Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 5

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan Take Conan to the Black Coast

WOODS AND CLOONAN CONQUER THE BLACK COAST!

Oct, 15th, NEW YORK, NY - If you never thought of picking up and reading Conan because it just wasn’t your style, then think again!

Dark Horse Comics is proud to announce a new era of Conan. Conan the Barbarian is a perfect jumping-on point for new readers—a bold, fresh take on the Cimmerian from the visionary creative team of writer Brian Wood (DMZ, Northlanders) and artist Becky Cloonan (Demo, Pixu)!

Wood and Cloonan will have Conan breaking hearts . . . and breaking faces!

In this sweeping adaptation of Robert E. Howard’s “Queen of the Black Coast,” the most-requested Conan adaptation, Conan turns his back on the civilized world and takes to the high seas alongside the pirate queen Bêlit, setting the stage for an epic of romance, terror, and swashbuckling. This is Conan as you’ve never seen him, and with the combination of one of Robert E. Howard’s greatest tales and the most dynamic creative team in comics, there has never been a better time to start reading!

Conan the Barbarian is on sale February 8, 2012.

The New 52 Review: STATIC SHOCK #2

STATIC SHOCK #2
DC COMICS

WRITERS: Scott McDaniel and John Rozum
PENCILS: Scott McDaniel
INKS: Andy Owens
COLORS: Guy Major
LETTERS: Dezi Sienty
COVER: Chris Brunner with Rico Renzi
32pp, Color, $2.99 U.S.

Static/Virgil Ovid Hawkins is an African-American teen superhero who first appeared in comic books produced by Milestone Media. With the re-launch of DC Comics’ superhero line, “The New 52,” Static stars in a new comic book series entitled Static Shock.

As Static Shock #2 (“Disarmed”) opens, Static takes on a big-talking bad guy named Virule. The battle leaves Static grievously injured… or so he thinks, and suddenly, Virgil has to pay attention to the development his powers. As he navigates the halls of his new high school, P.S. M101 Dwayne G. McDuffie Center for Science and Mathematics (good name), Static discovers that he can get some clues about his other current adversaries, the Slate Gang. Meanwhile, the conspiracy in which he is a part grows with new players.

For readers to fully enjoy the new DC Comics Static Shock, they will need to be somewhat familiar with the Milestone Comics Static stories, but that is less so with this second issue than it was with the first. I must have missed something, because something screwed up is going on with Virgil’s sister, Sharon.

Anyway, everything about Static Shock has improved from issue 1 to issue 2. The action and fight scenes are brief, but are explosive and also effective for the story. Co-writer/penciller Scott McDaniel and co-writer John Rozum jump around a lot from scenes with just Static or just the villains to scenes at home and at school, but each one is necessary to the story and moves it forward by offering more tantalizing details. These scenes form one big structural backbone. This time, Static Shock is not just another superhero comic book; it is also an engaging mystery and drama.

The art by McDaniel and inker Andy Owens is also better. The composition is solid, even if this isn’t the prettiest art around. The graphic and page design are dynamic and certainly more lively than last time, which makes the storytelling less stiff and formal. Static Shock #2 gives me hope that I can, at least, expect good things from this series. After the first issue, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to keep reading.

B+

Friday, October 14, 2011

VIZ Media Announces Weekly Digital Manga Magazine

VIZ MEDIA TO DEBUT WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA - NORTH AMERICA’S ONLY NEAR-SIMULTANEOUS DIGITAL MANGA MAGAZINE

WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA Brings Fans The Most Popular Manga In The World Faster Than Ever Before

San Francisco, CA, October 14, 2011 – VIZ Media, the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in the North America, announces the countdown to the launch of WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA (WEEKLY SJ ALPHA), a weekly serial anthology of some of the most popular manga series in the world: BAKUMAN｡, BLEACH, NARUTO, NURA: RISE OF THE YOKAI CLAN, ONE PIECE, and TORIKO. The first issue of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA goes on sale January 30, 2012, and will be available through VIZManga.com and the VIZ Manga apps for iPhone™, iPod™ touch and iPad™.

Each new digital issue of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA brings manga fans in North America the latest chapters of their favorite series only two weeks after it debuts in Japan’s massively popular WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP Magazine. Currently, Japanese releases are often several months to years ahead of North American print titles; WEEKLY SJ ALPHA eliminates the delay in unprecedented fashion.

“Simultaneously publishing an official translation of the most popular comics magazine in the world has been a dream since manga publishing began in North America in the 1980s,” said Alvin Lu, Senior Vice President & General Manager. “This is how manga is meant to be read in English – weekly, current, authorized and on the go. Now with WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA, it’s about to happen for real.”

WEEKLY SJ ALPHA will be made available through an annual membership that provides access to 48 weekly issues for 52 weeks for just $25.99. Single issues of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA can be read for a four-week rental from the time the reader purchases it for only $0.99. Each issue, once received on one device, can be read on all other enabled devices through the easy-to-use integrated VIZ Manga app and website.

To prepare fans for the debut of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA, VIZ Media is also offering the SHONEN JUMP DIGITAL WARP, a limited collection of digital graphic novel speed-ups that will bring North American readers up-to-date with Japanese releases. In some cases, the digital speed-ups will jump ahead of the print releases in North America. The SHONEN JUMP DIGITAL WARP will begin with NARUTO Volume 53 (available now) and BLEACH Volume 49 (coming soon).

As more fans migrate to the digital WEEKLY SJ ALPHA edition, VIZ Media plans to phase out the print edition of SHONEN JUMP Magazine. The popular, one-of-a-kind monthly magazine led the rapid growth of the manga market for much of the last decade and was VIZ Media’s flagship publication since it launched in 2003. The farewell April 2012 issue hits newsstands March 2012.

For more information on WEEKLY SJ ALPHA and exclusive subscriber offers, please visit ShonenJump.viz.com or VIZManga.com.

The New 52 Review: DETECTIVE COMICS #2

DETECTIVE COMICS #2
DC COMICS

WRITER: Tony Salvador Daniel
PENCILS: Tony Salvador Daniel
INKS: Ryan Winn and Sandu Florea
COLORIST: Tomeu Morey
LETTERS: Jared K. Fletcher
COVER: Tony Salvador Daniel, Ryan Winn, and Tomeu Morey
32pp, Color, $2.99

The first issue of Detective Comics debuted with a March 1937 cover date, and two years later, the 27th issue (cover date May 1939) featured the debut of Batman/Bruce Wayne. Detective Comics would become the “DC” in DC Comics. In fact, DC Comics recently re-launched their superhero comic book line, “The New 52,” and that included a start-over for Detective Comics.

Detective Comics #2 (“Playtime’s Over”) opens with a meeting between Bruce Wayne and fellow CEO, Hugh Marder, before Bruce moves on to some playtime TV news vixen, Charlotte Rivers. Batman’s mind, however, is on the troubles at Arkham Asylum, particularly because someone released The Joker. Batman will get some answers but more questions when he runs into the Dollmaker and his motley gruesome crew.

After the talent and intensity writer/artist Tony Daniel showed in Detective Comics #1, I wondered if he could maintain that for a sustained period. There is only a slight letdown from #1 to #2, which is probably due to the fact that this issue’s hero/villain confrontation isn’t quite as powerful as the one between Batman and Joker in the first issue. Still, Detective Comics #2 is no slouch, as Daniel uses superhero conventions to write a story that is more of a dark crime thriller and horror story – think Chris Nolan’s Batman meets the Saw film franchise.

I still say that Daniel’s Detective Comics is the closest anyone has come to replicating the feel and tone of Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One. With a second issue down, Tony S. Daniel’s Detective Comics remains a winner.

A-

The New 52: The Complete Review List