#IReadsYou Review: STATIC #1

STATIC #1
DC COMICS/Milestone Comics

STORY: Dwayne McDuffie and Robert L. Washington, III
PENCILS: John Paul Leon
INKS: Steve Mitchell
COLORS: Noelle C. Giddings
LETTERS: Steve Haynie
EDITOR: Dwayne McDuffie
COVER: Denys Cowan and Jimmy Palmiotti with Noelle C. Giddings
32pp, Color, $2.95 US, $3.95 CAN, 1.20 UK£ (June 1993)

“Trial by Fire” Chapter One: “Burning Sensation”

Introduced in the spring of 1993, Static was one of the early comic book series created by Milestone Media and published through DC Comics.  Milestone Media was a comic book imprint and media company established with the intention presenting more minority characters in American Comics.  Although the Milestone Media stopped producing comics in 1997, Static was reworked as the WB animated series, “Static Shock,” which ran for four seasons from 2000 to 2004.

Static #1 (“Burning Sensation”) opens in the Sadler neighborhood of the city of Dakota, specifically in a teen hangout called Akkad’s Arcade.  Frieda Goren, a high school girl, arrives at the hangout to meet a friend when she suddenly encounters representatives of someone else who wants to meet her.  Known as the “5 Alarm Crew,” these ruffians are practically kidnapping Frieda to take her to their leader, someone named “Hotstreak,” whether she wants an audience with him or not.

By the second page (a splash page), our hero, Static, makes his first appearance, and six and half pages of witty banter and an electric light show later, it’s clear that this new superhero, the first African-American solo teen superhero, is a winner even if his own book doesn’t last over the long haul (which sadly it didn’t).  Static’s powers clearly have something to do with electricity, and his personality is equally stimulating  After he dispatches the 5 Alarm Crew, Static offers to take Frieda home, an indication that she is not just a damsel in distress plot device which allows writers Dwayne McDuffie and Robert L. Washington to introduce their hero.

After reluctantly leaving Frieda, who was standoffish with him although he saved her, Static finds a secluded alley where he returns to his civilian persona, a black teenager named Virgil Ovid Hawkins.  Virgil’s thoughts are still on Frieda, further indication of her importance.  Virgil returns home (apparently a brownstone similar to the family home on “The Cosby Show”) so McDuffie and Washington can reveal Static’s private life and family.  We meet Virgil’s mother and his sister, Sharon, with whom he, of course, spars, as li’l sis has some issue with Virgil hangin’ with white girl.  Virgil races upstairs just in time to answer the phone call from Frieda, who tells him about her adventures at Akkad’s.  The scene closes as the conversation evolves into the usual teen concerns.

The next morning, a breakfast conversation with his mother reveals that Virgil does indeed have a father, who works odd hours at a hospital.  (The African-American father was virtually extinct in pop culture at the time this comic was published, and remains on the endangered species list as of this writing.)

When the story moves to the hallways of the school Virgil attends, Ernest Hemingway High School, McDuffie and Washington introduce Virgil’s pals.  One of them, Richard Stone, would later be revealed as gay, but even now there seems to be some latent tension regarding Richard’s perceived sexual orientation.

Besides Frieda, Virgil’s most interesting friend is Larry, who has something of a thuggish vibe.  Later, while in class, the 5 Alarm Crew returns, and this time they manage to snatch Frieda.  This comes totally out of left field: Larry apparently offers to draw a concealed firearm to put a stop to the 5 Alarm boys, but Virgil has already slipped away to don his super suit.

Meanwhile, in a playground at a local elementary school, Static meets the 5 Alarm Crew’s master, Hotstreak, and here, McDuffie and Washington offer the biggest surprise and delight, which they’ve been saving for the very end of the first issue.  Hotstreak kicks Static’s butt all over the yard, and Static apparently has some kind of psychological block that prohibits him from going whole hog on Hotstreak, who is nevertheless a capable super badass.  And Frieda removes Static’s mask, revealing Virgil to her…

Overall, Static #1 is an impressive first issue.  To begin with, the art team of John Paul Leon on pencils and Steve Mitchell on inks creates a lovely style that has a jazzy vibe.  Although the coloring is modest, the art feels young, hip, and most important urban.  Visually, Leon and Mitchell construct an urban landscape by designing backgrounds and sets out of simple shapes and forms and get the same effect as artists that create urban environments by using heavy inking or intricate detail in drawing the sets.  Best of all, Leon and Mitchell capture the cast’s diversity; this is true melting pot and not something that looks like a Norman Rockwell painting of a Rotary Club meeting.

I have nothing but praise for McDuffie and Washington.  Static is a witty teen superhero, a sassy, brash kid bouncing off walls.  Read it, and recognize the fun of those early Spider-Man comic books.  But Static has an edge.  It’s in the rhythm of the authentic urban language – referencing hip hop without trying to replicate it (unlike the horrid “hip” dialogue in the original Gen13 comics).  Underlying it all is the feeling of life on the streets of Dakota being, at the very least, a little dangerous.  Reading this, I thought that some of these characters have to be ready to kill or be killed – anytime and anywhere.

It’s on.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

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#28DaysofBlack Review: HARDWARE: The Man in the Machine - no text

HARDWARE: THE MAN IN THE MACHINE
MILESTONE MEDIA/DC COMICS

WRITER: Dwayne McDuffie
PENCILS: Denys Cowan; J.J. Birch (issue #8)
INKS: Jimmy Palmiotti; Mike Manley; Joe Brozowski; Joe James; Jason Minor
COLORS: Noelle Giddings
LETTERS: Janice Chiang; Steve Haynie; Steve Dutro
COVER: Denys Cowan and Jimmy Palmiotti
EDITOR: Bob Joy
ISBN: 978-1-4012-2598-8; paperback (March 30, 2021)
192pp, Color, $19.99 U.S., $24.99 CAN

Hardware created by Dwayne McDuffie; Derek Dingle; Denys Cowan, and Michael Davis

Milestone Comics was the publishing division of Milestone Media and was published and distributed by DC Comics.  Milestone was founded in 1993 by a coalition of African-American artists and writers, consisting of Dwayne McDuffie, Denys Cowan, Michael Davis, and Derek T. Dingle.  Milestone Media's founders believed that minorities were severely underrepresented in American comic books and wished to address this.  In 1993, Milestone Media launched its first four titles Icon, Blood Syndicate, Static, and Hardware, the subject of this review.  DC Comics ceased publication of Milestone titles in 1997.

Hardware was created by the late Dwayne McDuffie; Derek Dingle; Denys Cowan, and Michael Davis.  The first seven issues of Hardware were written by McDuffie and drawn by Cowan (pencil art) and a rotating group of inkers:  Jimmy Palmiotti; Mike Manley; Joe Brozowski; and Joe James; colored by Noelle Giddings; and lettered by Janice Chiang, Steve Haynie, and Steve Dutro.  The eighth issue featured the art team of J.J. Birch (pencils) and Jason Minor (inks).

In 2010, DC Comics published the trade paperback Hardware: The Man in the Machine, which collected Hardware #1 to #8 (April 1993 to October 1993).  Like all Milestone titles, Hardware was set in the Milestone Universe, called the “Dakotaverse.”

Hardware #1 (“Angry Black Man”) introduces Curtis “Curt” Metcalf, a genius inventor.  He uses a special suit of armor (the “Hardware shell”) and a variety of high-tech gadgets to fight his employer, respected businessman, Edwin Alva.

Metcalf was a working class child prodigy and inventor who was discovered at age 12 by Alva.  With the blessing of Metcalf's parents, Alva enrolled Metcalf in “A Better Chance,” which was “a program intended to get minority students into elite prep schools.”  Metcalf proved to be much smarter than all the other prep school students and graduated at age 14.  With Alva paying his college tuition, Metcalf earned the first of his seven college degrees at age 15.  In exchange, after graduation, Metcalf began working in Alva Industries' “Inspiration Factory,” where the employees created high-tech gadgets by the hundreds.  However, it was Metcalf's inventions that made Alva many millions of dollars.  After a few years, Metcalf approached Alva about getting a share of the profits from his inventions.  Alva not only declines, but he also tells Metcalf that he is a mere employee, a “cog in the machine,” Alva's machine.

Metcalf begins secretly using Alva resources to create the hardware, software, and technology that becomes Hardware.  Metcalf also discovers that Alva is secretly a powerful crime boss.  Metcalf as Hardware begins his war against Alva, destroying Alva's criminal machine one piece at a time.  However, Hardware also rings up a high body county, so will he lose his soul in his personal war against his boss?

THE LOWDOWN:  When the discussion of black superheroes pops up, it often turns to the question of whether actual African-Americans as writers would tell better stories about Black superheroes than writers who are white.  Of course, some always say skin color doesn’t really matter, but they’re always white, speaking from the perspective of advantage and of white privilege.

A white man can certainly write really good comic books featuring African-American characters.  In the 1970’s, Marv Wolfman and Chris Claremont wrote excellent darkly comic and bloody horrific stories featuring Marvel Comics’ vampire hunter, Blade.  But there’s just something about a writer who has lived as a black man in America writing stories about a fictional character that is not just a black superhero, but also a black person living in America.

But sometimes, being a black writer spinning a narrative about a black character does matter.  Witness the short-lived, mid-1990’s comic book series, Hardware.  Hardware was the first comic book published by Milestone Media.  Milestone was an imprint of DC Comics that sought to publish superhero comic books featuring a more diverse cast in terms of skin color and ethnicity, in particularly African-Americans.  In the case of Dwayne McDuffie, who died in 2011, Hardware’s scribe and co-creator, the title had a storyteller who certainly understood what it was to be a talented African-American who repeatedly bangs his head against the glass ceiling of white privilege, of white supremacy, and of white racism.

What McDuffie gave Hardware was the sense of being more than just a fictional character with a skin color default setting (as many, if not most, white comic book characters are).  McDuffie made the character, in a sense, an idealized version of a black man struggling to prove that he can be and is exceptional in spite of what others may expect of him based on his skin color.

It is not impossible for a white man to write a title like Hardware.  Still, there is something that rings true and feels genuine about the African-American experience in McDuffie’s work on Hardware.  From the opening scene in which a young Curt Metcalf studies the parakeet that will not stop banging its head against the glass window for freedom to the scene of an adult Metcalf learning to check his rage and see the bigger picture of his revenge, McDuffie was likely writing what he knew, but regardless, it reads like the truth.  That is what made McDuffie not just a really good black writer of comic books, but an exceptional comic book writer when compared to just about any other comic book scribe.

Hardware is not perfect.  The character blends Marvel's Iron Man with DC Comics' Batman, but the storytelling and graphic design seem to owe a lot to the big guns and high-tech gadget superheroes that defined most of the early Image Comics superhero titles of the 1990s.  The issues that make up Hardware: The Man in the Machine focus on Curt Metcalf's violent, ruthless, and gory war of revenge.  Hardware is indeed an “angry black man,” and that makes the series mostly stuck in violent mode early on.  Hardware is not Dwayne McDuffie's best work, but it is unique.  Also, there is the chance to enjoy the inventive designs and imaginative compositions of another under-appreciated black comic book creator, the great artist, Denys Cowan.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Milestone Comics will want to read Hardware: The Man in the Machine.

B+
7 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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#28DaysofBlack Review: Dwayne McDuffie and "Justice League of America: The Injustice League"

[Dwayne McDuffie (1962-2011) left behind a diverse body of work in American comic books, one that emphasized diversity and inclusion. He did so when "diversity" and "inclusion" were dirtier words than they may be to some, now. McDuffie continues to be an inspiration to new voices in American comic books and graphic novels.]

Get #28DaysofBlack review links here.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA: THE INJUSTICE LEAGUE
DC COMICS – @DCComics

STORY: Dwayne McDuffie; Alan Burnett
PENCILS: Mike McKone; Joe Benitez; Ed Benes; Allan Jefferson
INKS: Andy Lanning; Victor Llamas; Sandra Hope; Allan Jefferson
COLORS: Pete Pantazis; Alex Sinclair
LETTERS: Rob Leigh
EDITOR: Brian Cunningham
COVER: Ian Churchill and Norm Rapmund with Alex Sinclair
MISC. ART: Ed Benes and Rod Reis with Alex Sinclair; Ian Churchill and Norm Rapmund with Alex Sinclair; Joe Benitez and Victor Llamas with Pete Pantazis
ISBN: 978-1-4012-2050-1; paperback (June 9, 2009)
144pp, Color, $17.99 U.S., $21.99 CAN

Justice League of America created by Gardner Fox

The Justice League of America is a DC Comics team of superheroes.  The team was conceived by writer Gardner Fox in the late 1950s as a then modern update of the 1940s superhero team, the Justice Society of America.  The Justice League of America's original line-up of superheroes was comprised of Superman (Clark Kent), Batman (Bruce Wayne), Wonder Woman (Diana Prince), The Flash (Barry Allen), Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Aquaman (Arthur Curry), and the Martian Manhunter (J'onn J'onzz).  This group first appeared together as the Justice League of America in the comic book, The Brave and the Bold #28 (cover dated: March 1960).

The team received its own comic book title entitled Justice League of America, beginning with a first issue cover dated November 1960.  Justice League of America #261 (cover dated: April 1987) was the series' final issue, and a new series, simply titled Justice League, began with a first issue cover dated May 1987.  The title, “Justice League of America,” would not be used for an ongoing comic book series for almost two decades.

After the events of the event miniseries, Infinite Crisis, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman reformed the Justice League of America as seen in Justice League #0 (cover dated: September 2006), the kickoff of a new Justice League of America ongoing comic book series under the guidance of writer Brad Meltzer and artist Ed Benes.

After the publication of Justice League of America #12, Dwayne McDuffie became the series new writer.  McDuffie's first story arc was entitled “Unlimited.”  The creative team was comprised of pencil artists: Mike McKone, Joe Benitez, and Ed Benes and inkers: Andy Lanning, Victor Llamas, and Sandra Hope; colorist Pete Pantazis; and letterer Rob Leigh.

The story arc began in the one-shot special, Justice League of America Wedding Special #1 (November 2007) and ran through Justice League of America issues #13 to #15 (November 2007 to January 2008).  Issue #16 (cover dated: February 2008) offered two related stories.  “A Brief Tangent” was written by McDuffie; drawn by Benitez (pencils) and Llamas (inks); colored by Pantazis; and lettered by Leigh.  “Tangent: Superman's Reign” was written by Alan Burnett; drawn by Allan Jefferson; colored by Pantazis; and lettered by Leigh.

The “Unlimited” story was collected in Justice League of America: The Injustice League, which reprints Justice League of America Wedding Special #1 and Justice League of America issue #13 to #16.  The collection was first published first in hardcover (June 2008), and then, as a trade paperback (June 2009).

The backdrop of “Unlimited” is the impending wedding of Oliver “Ollie” Queen, the retired superhero known as Green Arrow, and Dinah Lance known as the hero, Black Canary, the leader of the Justice League of America.  The male members of the League are holding a bachelor party for Ollie that is not going as well as expected.  The female members are holding a bachelorette party for Dinah.

Elsewhere, super-villains:  Lex Luthor, The Joker, and Cheetah are forming a new iteration of “The Injustice League,” the evil counterpart of the Justice League, but this version will have the largest roster of villains ever.  Meeting at the “Hall of Doom,” Luthor dubs this new team, “The Injustice League Unlimited,” and they start launching their first attacks against the Justice League.

Soon, at St. Vincent's Hospital in Greenwich Village in New York City, Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl are fighting the new Injustice League's members, Cheetah, Dr. Light, and Killer Frost, while Firestorm (Jason Rusch) is in a hospital bed, gravely injured from his battle with the villains.  Batman and Red Arrow (Roy Harper) find themselves ambushed by The Joker, Fatality, and the Shadow Thief, who have already taken out Geo-Force.

With members of the Justice League falling to its adversaries, the Justice League is outmatched, and its numbers are dwindling.  Lex Luthor, however, is focused on his main target, Superman, and Luthor promises that he has devised a way to finally destroy Superman.

THE LOWDOWN:  Dwayne Glenn McDuffie died on February 21, 2011, one day after his 49th birthday.  McDuffie was a comic book writer, and he was one of the founders of Milestone Media.  This pioneering minority-owned-and minority-operated company created comic books which featured superheroes and other characters that were either African-American or other minorities whose depictions were underrepresented in American comic books.

McDuffie also wrote and produced for television, specifically for animated TV series.  He was a writer-producer for one season of Cartoon Network's “Justice League” (2001-2004) and a writer-producer for its follow-up, “Justice League Unlimited” (2004-2006).  He wrote and/or produced for three iterations of Cartoon Network's “Ben 10” franchise.  McDuffie also wrote several episodes of the animated series, The WB's “Static Shock” (2000-04), which was based on the Milestone comic book series, Static, that McDuffie co-created and co-wrote.

McDuffie may have been one of the most under-utilized talents and under-appreciated and underrated writers during his three-decade career in the American comic book industry.  Since I don't owe anyone anything and because I don't care much about consequences, I can freely say that had Dwayne McDuffie been a white man instead of an African-American, his status as a comic book creator would have been the American comic book industry equivalent of “most favored nation.”

However, much of his creative output was for DC Comics, where the most powerful editorial positions, those that hand out the writing gigs, were held by bigots, racists, and a variety of sexual harassers and abusers.  During his time at Marvel, McDuffie would have encountered much of the same thing, and during the last decade of his life, Marvel editors mainly hired white guys whose work impressed them and their friends outside the job.

Yet, in spite of such obstacles, McDuffie carved out a career telling hugely entertaining stories in comic books.  McDuffie was a traditionalist and largely eschewed the more “adult” and “mature” storytelling modes that began to dominate American comic books in the 1970s.  Yes, McDuffie was a modern writer and his work did feature elements of realism, but he wrote classic fantasy stories of good and evil in which the shades of gray served the plot, characters, and settings.  McDuffie did not write “grim and gritty” for the sake of style or fad.

That can be seen in the comic book, Static, which is a modern and perhaps, “urban contemporary” take on Spider-Man.  Static was a black teen superhero facing typical teen problems, learning to understand his powers, and dealing with the struggle to learn how to be a superhero.  Thirty years before the debut of Static, a white teen, Peter Parker, lived similar experiences in the pages of Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man.

Justice League of America (Vol. 3): The Injustice League offers “Unlimited,” which is also classic in the sense that it recalls the original Justice League of America series.  By the time, McDuffie started writing Justice League of America, comic books featuring superhero teams were dark in tone, with characters involved in adult relationships and living complicated, messy lives.  “Unlimited” is straight-forward good guy vs. bad guy.  Yes, the characters have rivalries, conflicts, motivations, personality quirks, and goals, but the depiction of that purely serves the central plot.  And it is this: with their backs to the wall, how do the members of the Justice League of America come back from the ass-kicking Lex Luthor, The Joker, and Cheetah and company have given them?

McDuffie's storytelling is efficient and every panel on every page is consequential, and there is no “decompression” filler.  From the beginning of the story, there is enough tension to create anxiety in the reader for his heroes, and I certainly found myself racing towards the end, hoping that things would work out in the end.  Of course, the heroes always (sort of) win in the end, but the best writers of superhero comic books convince readers that this is it – the end of the line for the good guys.  And McDuffie did that in “Unlimited,” seemingly with ease.

“Unlimited's” plot is so engaging that I ignored the inconsistency of the graphical storytelling due to the shifting art teams.  Actually, the artists offer straight-forward storytelling.  Artists Ed Benes, Mike McKone, and Joe Benitez might not be the best comic book artists or draw the prettiest pictures, but they are quite good at superhero comic book storytelling.  In the end, their art tells a fine story with great characters, and comic book fans swear that is what they really want...

And if audiences and editors really wanted great-stories-characters, then, Dwayne McDuffie, teller of fine comic book stories filled with hugely attractive characters, would not have had to wait to the last half-decade of his life for an A-list assignment in comic books.  By the way, those outstanding editorial citizens fired McDuffie from Justice League of America less than two years into his run on the title.

But they could not kill his pride... nor our memories of his work.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Dwayne McDuffie will want to treat themselves to Justice League of America: The Injustice League.

A
9 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://www.dccomics.com/
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The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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I Reads You Juniors: January 2021 - Update #105

 by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

"Support Leroy on Patreon. 

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:   The host of the "Phoenix Force" will lead to the new "Heroes Reborn."

AWARDS - From BleedingCool:   Some Angouleme Comics Prizes were announced today.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Marvel is relaunching its "Marvel Masterworks" line.  The trim size will be 6x9 with a price point of $15.99 U.S. - apparently.

DC CINEMA - From Variety:  "Justice League" the "Snyder Cut" will debut on HBO Max on March 18th, 2021.

AWARDS - From BleedingCool:   The "32nd GLAAD Awards" nominations are out, and that includes a comic book category.

DC TV - From GamesRadar:   Netflix has announced a new group of actors that will portray characters in its series adaptation of DC Comics/Neil Gaiman's "The Sandman."

DARK HORSE COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Dark Horse will publish a line of graphic novels collecting the superhero comics of YouNeek Studios.  The comics are centered around African stories produced by African creators.

BLACK COMICS - From BleedingCool: Coming Soon: "The Access Guide to the Black Comic Book Community."

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   The much teased about "Heroes Reborn" from Marvel Comics is a 2021 event in which writer Jason Aaron and artist Ed McGuiness imagine a world in which the Avengers never assembled.

COMICS - From CBR:   Legendary TV and radio host, Larry King, died Sat., Jan. 23rd.  Comic book readers may not know that he made several cameo appearances in comic books.

MANGA - From ANN:   Seishi Kishimoto, the creator of the manga, "O-Parts Hunter," will launch a new manga, "Monster no Isha," later this year.  Seishi is the twin brother of Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of "Naruto."

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Brian Michael Bendis is no longer an exclusive creator to DC Comics.

COMICS TO ANIMATION - From Deadline:   Amazon's adult animated series based on Robert Kirkman's comic book, "Invincible," has a premiere date.  The series will begin streaming, Friday, March 26, 2021.  This article also includes a "first look clip" video preview from "Invincible."

HEROES REBORN - From BleedingCool:  A fourth glimpse at Marvel's "Heroes Reborn."

From BleedingCool:  A third glimpse at Marvel Comics' new "Heroes Reborn."

From BleedingCool:  A second glimpse at Marvel Comics' new "Heroes Reborn." 

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Image announces a new horror comics anthology, "The Silver Coin."  The stories will take place in a shared universe.

MARVEL REVIEWS - From Patreon: "The Eternals #1"

From Patreon:  "Star Wars: The High Republic #1"

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HEROES REBORN - From BleedingCool:   Our first look at Marvel's new "Heroes Reborn."

 

MARVEL - From YahooAVClub: What is Marvel Comics' "Heroes Reborn?"

 

BIDEN! - From BleedingCool:  Comics industry people react to President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris.

 

DC TV - From Variety:   Actress Savannah Welch has been cast as Gotham City Police Commissioner Barbara Gordon for Season 3 of HBO Max's "Titans."

 

MANGA - From BleedingCool:   Yen Press announces eight new manga and light novel titles (1/19).

 

DC COMICS - From YahooAVClub:   DC launches "DC Universe Infinite," a digital comic book reading service.

 

COMICS - From PressDemocrat:  Napa Valley newspaper interviews and profiles Napa Valley native son, comic book artist, Darick Robertson, the co-creator of "The Boys."

 

COMICS TO FILM - From CinemaBlend:  The site offers 10 major Hollywood actors who have played more than one comic book character.  Yes, the list includes Ben Affleck and Chris Evans.

 

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar: Veteran comic book artist, Tom Raney, will join the "Green Lantern" creative team with issue #3.

 

DC CINEMA - From GamesRadar:   Director Zack Snyder confirms hat his four-hour "Justice League" will be a movie and not a miniseries.

 

IN MEMORIAM - From NBCNews:   I'm surprised that NBC News covered the recent death due to COVID-19 of comic book artist Steve Lightle at the age of 61.  His wife, Marianne Lightle, said that the family had no idea he had COVID.  This article also talks about his career and fan-following.

 

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  What is a good cover price for an anthology?  And how are royalties divided for contributors to anthologies?   RE: "Batman: Urban Legends."

 

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:   DC Comics has released 7 images of from its upcoming digital-first miniseries, "RWBY/Justice League."  The images feature core Justice League characters redesigned for the "RWBY" universe.

 

AWARDS - From JoeShusterAwards:   Apparently, I missed the announcement of the winners of the "2020 Joe Shuster Awards" for work done in 2019 by comic book creators and contributors originating from Canada.

 

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool: Hermes Press has announced that it will collect DC Comics' "The Phantom" comic book series in three volumes.  DC published a four-issue miniseries in 1988 and a 13-issue ongoing series from 1989 to 1990.

 

DC TV - From YahooEntertainment:   The CW's new "Batwoman," Javicia Leslie has learned that voting rights goddess, Stacey Abrams, is a fangirl and a "Batman" fan.  So Leslie is calling on Abrams to appear as a villain on "Batwoman."

 

PUBLISHING - From BleedingCool:   Former DC Comics executives are among the founders of "Endpaper Entertainment," a new content development company focused on producing original stories in a variety of media, formats and genres.

 

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:   DC Comics to launch the digital-first series, "Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries" in March.  The series will begin its print run in April 2021 as a 12-issue miniseries.

 

AWARDS - From BleedingCool:   The 2020 Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics has announced finalists for its sixth annual prize, with the winner to be announced during Black History Month.

 

BOOM! STUDIOS - From BleedingCool:  Keanu Reeves "BRZRKR #1" is Boom Studios' highest order comic book to date.

 

DC CINEMA - From Deadline:  WarnerMedia quickly defends DC Entertainment President Walter Hamada from Ray Fisher's tweet storm.  Fisher, who plays Cyborg, in the Justice League films, has been fired from his role in the planned superhero movie, "The Flash."

 

DC COMICS - From TheBeat:   Writer John Ridley's "Future State: Next Batman" a.k.a. "Tim Fox," will continue his adventures in the digital first comics series, "Next Batman: Second Son."

 

MARVEL COMICS - From ComicBook:   And the winner of the 2020 ComicBook.com Golden Issue Award for Best Ongoing Comic is... "X-Men" by Jonathan Hickman and company.

 

DC CINEMA - From ComicBook:  Actor Ray Fisher, who played "Cyborg" in "Justice League" says that he has been fired from his role in the planned superhero film, "The Flash."

 

VIZ MEDIA - From BleedingCool:   VIZ has announced the Feb. 2nd release of the first volume of "The King's Beast" by Rei Toma, the sequel to her "Dawn of the Arcana" manga.

 

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool:   The upcoming "Radiant Black" will launch Image Comics' planned "shared universe" superhero comic book line.

DC MANGA - From CBR:  The site talks about its hopes and fears for DC Comics/Kodansha Comics "Batman: Justice Buster" manga.

DC TV - From BleedingCool:  Joe Baron will be the showrunner for the HBO Max series that will be set in the universe of director Matt Reeves' upcoming film, "The Batman."

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics has unveiled a teaser for Miles Morales: Spider-Man #25, which "kicks off the Clone Saga."

COMICS - From BleedingCool:  The works of Raina Telgmeier dominate "The New York Times Bestseller List" in the graphic novel categories

COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Bookstores saw a 29 percent increase in graphic novel sales in 2020.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics offers a preview of its "Alien #1" comic book, story by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and art by Salvador Larocca

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Has Marvel cancelled "The Punisher" ... completely?

CHARITY - From GoFuneMe:  Brian Lightle, the son of the recently deceased comic book artist, Steve Lightle, has started a "Go Fund Me" page to help with Steve's final expenses.

DC COMICS - From DCBlog:  DC Comics has provided a 7-page preview of "Man-Bat #1," which hits stories February 2nd, 2021.

IMAGE COMICS - From THR:   The site has the first trailer for Kyle Higgins and Marcelo Costa's "Radiant Black" superhero comic book from Image.  The series is set to debut Feb. 10th, 2021.

IN MEMORIAM - From NPR:  Bestselling African-American novelist, Eric Jerome Dickey, has died at the age of 59, Sunday, January 3rd, 2021.  If comic book fans remember him, it is because he wrote the 2006 X-Men miniseries, "Storm" that was drawn by artist David Yardin and Lan Medina.

IN MEMORIAM - From BleedingCool:  According to social media reports, comic book artist, Steve Lightle, has died at the age of 61 of cardiac arrest and COVID-19 complications.  He was best known for his work on "Legion of Super-Heroes" and "Doom Patrol in the 1980s.  He drew interior art and cover art for "Flash" in the 1980s. 1990s, and 2000s.

NEWSPAPER COMICS - From TheDailyProgress:   A look book at 1995, the year newspaper comics changed.

COMICS - From TheThings:   Oscar and Grammy-winning rapper, Eminem, apparently has a huge comic book collection.  He reportedly also has a copy of the rare "Amazing Fantasy #15," which features the first appearance of Spider-Man.

INTERNATIONAL COMICS - From CBR:  10 Comics From The Philippines That Deserve Your Attention

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool: Jeff Lemire says that he was two "Black Label" projects for DC Comics.

DC COMICS - From ComicBook:   With "Future State," DC Comics reveals major changes to the character, "Black Lightning."

MARVEL - From Newsarama:   "The Marvels," Kurt Busiek's sprawling story across the history of Marvel, is back on for a April 2021 debut.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Today's Marvel Comics (Jan. 6th) carry a tribute to former Marvel Comics publisher, Mike Hobson, who died in November.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Thanks to "sold out" first and second printings before they were released, "Star Wars: The High Republic #1" will get a third printing.  Marvel Comics may have over 200,000 orders for the first issue.

VIZ MEDIA - From ScreenRant:  The original "Star Wars"manga will be part of "The High Republic" line, "Star Wars: The Edge Balance," which will be published by VIZ Media.

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:   John Ridley talks about the future of "Next Batman" beyond DC "Future State."

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Over 100,000 orders for Marvel Comics' "Star Wars: The High Republic #1."

DC CINEMA - From ComingSoon:  Reports seem to indicate that actor Michael Keaton, who played Batman in two films, 1989's "Batman" and 1992's "Batman Returns," will be the Batman in Warner Bros.' DC Extended Universe (DCEU) films, replacing Ben Affleck, who has been Batman for several years now.  Other DCEU films include the "Wonder Woman" films and "Aquaman."

BLACK COMICS - From NYT:  "The New York Times" profiles Ken Quattro and his new book about the lost black comic book artists, "Invisible Men: The Trailblazing Black Artists of Comic Books."

MANGA - From TimeOut:   The Italian fashion house, Gucci, has released a collection of fashion and apparel featuring Japanese manga character, Doraemon, entitled "Doraemon x Gucci."

DC CINEMA - From WeGotThisCovered:   Filmmaker Kevin Smith says the ending of Zach Snyder's "Justice League" event film sets up for a sequel.

MANGA - From ANN:   Reports indicate that Stefan Koza, who provides the English translation for VIZ Media's publication of "Jujutsu Kaisen," has been arrested in Virginia for possession and distribution of child pornography.

MARVEL - From Marvel:  Marvel offers a new Kelly Thompson prose story featuring Kate Bishop-Hawkeye story.

BOOM STUDIOS - From BleedingCool:   Keanu Reeves' graphic novel, BZRKR, is due October 2021 from BOOM! Studios.

DARK HORSE - From BleedingCool:   Dark Horse Comics has announced that it will publish Dave McKean's upcoming graphic novel, "Raptor: A Sokol Graphic Novel," July 2021.

MANGA - From Previews:   VIZ Media's Amy Yu talks about editing the hit manga, "Spy X Family."

MANGA - From ComicBook:  Season Two of "The Promised Neverland" anime will tell new "canon" stories not seen in the manga original.

NEWSPAPER COMICS - From ComicYears:   A look back at the final episode of the classic newspaper comics strip, "Calvin and Hobbes," 25 years after its publication.

COMICS - From ScreenRant:  How COVID-19 changed the comics industry in 2020.

MANGA - From CBR:  A look at the hot new "Shonen Jump" manga, "Phantom Seer."

DC COMICS - From TheBeat:  DC Round-Up: 2020, the end of an era.

COMICS TO FILM - From MovieWeb:  Comic book writer and filmmaker, Kevin Smith, says he was once pitched a movie adaptation of comic book creator, Joe Simon's "The Fly," with actor and comedian Chris Rock as the lead.

MARVEL - From ComicBook:   The site looks at the latest chapter of the Marvel manga, "Deadpool Samurai," which involves a "Demon Slayer" reference.

DC COMICS - From Newsarama:  A preview of "DC Generations: Shattered #1."

COLLECTORS - From YouTube: The "Comic Art LIVE" Episode #23 live stream welcome comics original art collector, Jim Warden, who is also an art dealer through his "D.O.A." (Distinctive Original Art).

From comiXology:  The outstanding American manga and science fiction comic book, "Grey," is now on-sale as a digital comic at comiXology.

 --------------------------------

JANUARY 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Ablaze for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  AWA for January 2021 

From BleedingCool:  Behemoth Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Black Mask Studios for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for January 2021 

From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for January 2021 

From BleedingCool:  Kodansha for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics - King in Black for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Source Point Press for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Titans Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Vertical Comics for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  VIZ Media for January 2021

From BleedingCool:  Yen Press for January 2021

FEBRUARY 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Ablaze for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Artists, Writers & Artisans for February 2020

From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for February 2020

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for February 2021

From TheBeat: DC Comics for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Hero Collector for February 2021 

From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Marvel's "King in Black" for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for February 2021

From 2000AD:   Rebellion Comics for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for February 2021

From BleedingCool:  VIZ Media for February 2021

From BleedingCool:   Zenescope Entertainment for February 2021

 

MARCH 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for March 2021 

From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Behemoth Comics for March 2021 

From BleedingCool:  Black Mask Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  BOOM Studios for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for March 2021 

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  March Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Second Sight for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  VIZ Media for March 2021

From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for March 2021

APRIL 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:

From BleedingCool:  AfterShock Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Behemoth Comics for April 2021 

From BleedingCool:  Black Mask Studios for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Hero Collector for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Second Sight for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Source Point Press for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for April 2021

From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for April 2021

----------------------

I Reads You Juniors August 2017 - Update #68

Support Leroy on Patreon.

From BatmanNews:  Joelle Jones joins the creative team on the Batman comic book.

From BleedingCool:  Today's issue of "Black Panther and the Crew" (issue #6) is the final issue of the series.  However, writer Ta-Nehisi Coates says he will continue the Crew's adventures in the main "Black Panther" title.

From ICv2:  Hasbro is suing DC Entertainment over the "Bumblebee" name.  There is a "Bumblebee" Transformer and there is superhero and one-time Teen Titan named Bumblebee.

From MikeLynchCartoons:  A look at comic books featuring the late comedian, actor, and filmmaker, Jerry Lewis.

From BleedingCool:  Dave Sim to kill Cerebus again... if you care...

From ComicBookBin:  New Johnny Bullet episode #132 in English.
From ComicBookBin:  New Johnny Bullet episode #132 in French.

From ScreenRant:  The 15 most controversial comic book covers of all time - according to Screen Rant.

From CBR:  John Romita, Jr. offers details of "Superman: Year One," his miniseries with writer Frank Miller.

From CBR:  DC Comics is reviving a classic 1950s Superman PSA poster to discuss diversity and non-discussion.

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BLURB REVIEW:

Cable #1 (Marvel Comics – July 2017) by James Robinson and Carlos Pacheco with Rafael Fonteriz and Jesus Aburtov

Cable has been one Marvel Comics' most popular X-Men/mutant characters since his debut in New Mutants #87 back in late 1989/early 1990.  The character has been the star or co-star of a number of ongoing comic book series and miniseries.  I find him to be one of the least interesting of Marvel's merry mutants.  When I have purchased a Cable comic book, it was because of the art.

I think I was attracted to his new Cable #1 because of the cover, which is drawn by Dale Keown.  After nearly a quarter century, I still find Keown's unique drawing style to be eye candy.  However, I knew from the opening page that this comic book was going to be awful, and it is.  Whatever happened to James Robinson?  He was once one of the shining lights of comic book scribes, so much so that Hollywood came a-callin' for his writing skills.  Now, he cranks out listless scripts for Marvel secondary titles that are more like dumpster comics than publications from a major company.

Cable is part of Marvel's “ResurrXion” initiative to revive its X-Men line.  Half the “ResurrXion” titles suck, and Cable sucks ass.

Posted:  Saturday, August 26, 2017
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From BleedingCool:  Two more comic book stores are closing.

From ICv2:  "The Wheels on the Bus..." an interesting piece about the future of Marvel Comics.

From CBR:  15 Ways Marvel Comics' "Star Wars" comic books have changed the Star Wars universe.

From BleedingCool:  Rob Liefeld shows off a Wolverine drawing he did as a teenager - in style similar to John Byrne's.

From BleedingCool:  Fantagraphics Books' Eric Reynolds has picked up the worldwide rights to "Dull Margaret," a graphic novel written by Academy Award-winning actor, Jim Broadbent.

From BleedingCool:  Retailers are boycotting Marvel Comics' "Legacy" lenticular cover scheme.

From CBR:  Marvel Comics solicitations for November 2017.

From CBR:  "Doomsday Clock #1" art teases arrival of Watchmen character, Rorschach.

From BleedingCool:  Chuck Dixon may now be the most published comic book writer of all time.

From BleedingCool:  AfterShock Comics' November 2017 solicitations.

From ComicBookBin:  New Johnny Bullet episode #131 in English.
From ComicBookBin:   New Johnny Bullet episode #131 in French.

From MultiversityComics:  Declan Shalvey talks about his upcoming Image Comics title, "Savage Town."

From BleedingCool:  November 2017 solicitations for Archie Comics.

From BleedingCool:  Nick Spencer leads the creative team for Marvel's "Not Brand Ecch."  The comic book is among a group of Marvel Legacy one-shots.

From CBR:  A preview of "Batman: Murder Machine."

From BleedingCool:  The original comic book art collection of singer/songerwriter Graham Nash brought in a lot of money.  This group of original art from Underground Comix earned over $1 million, especially Nash's collection of R. Crumb pages.

From ComicsReporter:  The 2017 Ignatz Awards nominees have been announced.

From BleedingCool:  Howard Chaykin had to change another cover for "The Divided States of Hysteria," this time #3.  And so you won't have to keep looking, on the girl's right butt cheek, Chaykin had used Prince's infamous "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince" symbol, which he removed for the final cover.

From BleedingCool:  Wizard Magazine will return at a print publication, for the first time since 2011.

From BleedingCool:  Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way, and Gail Simone are among the the comic book creators contributing to "Mine," a comic book benefiting Planned Parenthood.

From TheWashingtonPost:  DC Comics' "Dark Nights: Metal" has a Vertigo surprise - Neil Gaiman's The Sandman.

From ComicBookBin:  Deejay Dayton looks at the 1960s "New Look" Batman in "DC Comics History."

From ComicBookBin:  New Johnny Bullet Episode #130 in English.
From ComicBookBin:  New Johnny Bullet Episode #130 in French.

From BleedingCool: Gail Simone begins #ComicsHateNazis hash tag.

From Newsarama:  Mike Mignola is working on the end of the B.P.R.D., the paranormal defense agency in the Hellboy comic book franchise.

From ComicBookBin:  A review of "Generations: Phoenix and Jean Grey #1"

From TheBeat:  Can Christopher Priest and Phil Noto redeem Marvel's "The Inhumans."

From ImageComics:  Image Comics solicitations for October 2017.

From FlickeringMyth:  BOOM! Studios is bringing "Planet of the Apes" and "Kong" together in a comic book.

From BleedingCool:  Marvel to offer second printings of "Generations," "Weapons of Mutant Destruction," and "Darth Vader."

From BleedingCool:  The war over Stan Lee's "last" comic convention appearance.

From ComicBookBin: Deejay Dayton looks at the DC Comics History of "New Look" Superman of the mid-1960s.

From TheVillageVoice:  Marvel's "Secret Empire" with its fascist Captain America is the launch point for a discussion of the prevalence of dystopian storytelling.

From Patreon:  A review of the first issue of IDW 's new reboot of Robert E. Howard's "Kull," entitled "Kull Eternal."

From Negromancer:  VIZ Media announces its digital manga updates for August 2017.

From BleedingCool:  3 pages from "Spider-Gwen #25" a "Legacy" issue.

From ComicBookBin:  Deejay Dayton looks at mid-1960s "New Look" in the latest "DC Comics History."

From CBR:  Archie Comics is reviving its superhero title, "The Mighty Crusaders," and turns "Betty & Veronica" into bikers.

From BleedingCool:  Tom King says new "Mister Miracle" is the most ambitious thing that he has ever written.

From BleedingCool:  DC Comics will launch a new Harley Quinn comic book, "Harley Loves Joker," sometime at the end of the year.  Paul Dini and Jimmy Palmiotti will be involved and the series will be in the vein of "Batman: The Animated Series."

From CBR:  Why has Netflix gone all in on comic books?

From CBR:  "Batman" writer Tom King explains the importance of Kite Man.

From BleedingCool:  Jim Lee is sure that 15% to 45% of DC Comics' readers are women...

From CinemaBlend:  Karl Urban in talks to appear in a possible "Judge Dredd" TV series.

From BleedingCool:  Mark Millar announces that Netflix has bought his publishing entity, Millarworld.

--------------------------------
BLURB REVIEW:

Iceman #1 (Marvel Comics – August 2017) by Sina Grace and Alessandro Vitti with Rachelle Rosenberg

Iceman (Robert Louis Drake, also known as “Bobby Drake”) is one of the original X-Men, created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby in 1963 for the comic book, X-Men.  Iceman has been the star of two four-issue miniseries (one published in 1984-85 and another in 2001-02).  He finally gets his own ongoing series with the simply titled Iceman, written by Sina Grace and drawn by Alessandro Vitti.

Judging by the first issue, this series will focus quite a bit on Bobby Drake's angst-filled family and romantic life.  I'm not interested.  I find Alessandro Vitti's art to be unattractive, another reason I will likely avoid future issues of this comic book.  This new comic book arrives as part of “ResurrXion,” Marvel's initiative to reinvigorate its X-Men line of comic books.  The problem, so far, is that half of these new titles are mediocre, and Iceman is one of them.

Posted:  Sunday, August 6, 2017
---------------------------------

From ComicBookBin:  New Johnny Bullet Episode #129 in English.
From ComicBookBin:  New Johnny Bullet Episode #129 in French.

From ComicBookBin: Deejay Dayton looks at the Silver Age history of DC Comics villain, Eclipso.

From BleedingCool:  Beau Smith, the creator of "Wynonna Earp," will appear on the August 4, 2017 episode.

From TCJ:  Alex Dueben interviews Eurocomics legend, José Muñoz.

From CBR:  Meet the children of the Justice League in "Justice League #26."

From ComicBookBin:  Deejay Dayton offers his latest "DC Comics History" on Doom Patrol.

From BleedingCool:  Sean McKeever shares his pitch for a Wonder Girl series in 2006.

From BleedingCool:  Beginning in 2018, New York Comic Con will host the "Harvey Awards," which are currently hosted by Baltimore Comic-Con.

From CBR:  Dwayne McDuffie's widow sues over the planned revival of Milestone Media.

From BleedingCool:  J. Michael Starczynski - comic book writer, screenwriter, TV writer, novelist, producer - gives advice about writing for the big screen, TV, and comics.

From ComicBookBin:  In a new episode of "DC Comics History," Deejay Dayton looks "Strange Sports Stories," from the long-running comic book series, "The Brave and the Bold."

From ICv2:  TOKYOPOP is also in "The Nightmare Before Christmas" business.  It will publish the first ever comic book project to expand on the story of the original film, "The Nightmare Before Christmas: Zero's Journey," in Spring 2018.

From BleedingCool:  Joe Books will release a comic book version of the Disney's YouTube cartoon, "The Nightmare Before Christmas: As Told by Emoji."

I Reads You Review: DEATHLOK #1 (1991)

DEATHLOK #1
MARVEL COMICS – @Marvel

WRITERS: Dwayne McDuffie and Gregory Wright
PENCILS: Denys Cowan
INKS: Mike Manley
COLORS: Gregory Wright
LETTERS: Ken Lopez
EDITORS: Tom Brevoort, Bob Budiansky (executive), Tom DeFalco (EiC)
COVER: Denys Cowan
32pp, Color, $1.75 U.S. (July 1991)

Deathlok is a Marvel Comics character that first appeared in Astonishing Tales #25 (cover date: August 1974).  Also known as “Deathlok the Demolisher,” he is a cyborg and was created by artist Rich Buckler and writer Doug Moench.  There have been different versions of the character, but the recurring theme is that a dead human is reanimated with cybernetic technology and becomes Deathlok.

The character, Michael Collins, was the third Deathlok and debuted in the four-issue miniseries Deathlok (cover dates: July-October 1990).  An African-American character, Professor Michael Collins was a pacifist working for Cybertek, a subsidiary of Roxxon Oil.

Collins was developing software to control artificial limbs, and he thought that Cybertek, a cybernetics corporation, was working towards the same goal of helping to make disabled people walk again.  He was wrong.  What Collins was really working on was a cyborg killing machine named Deathlok.  Collins’ boss, Harlan Ryker, attacked him after the discovery.  Ryker had Collins’ brain transferred into Deathlok.

After the 1990 miniseries, Deathlok received his own ongoing comic book series that ran for 34 issues and two summer annuals (1992 and 1993).  I read the first issue years ago, which was written by the late Dwayne McDuffie and Gregory Wright and penciled by Denys Cowan.  Whenever I came across Cowan’s name or work, for some reason, I always thought about that first issue of Deathlok, for which Cowan drew a visually striking cover.

Deathlok #1 (“The Wolf at the Door”) opens with Harlan Ryker activating a contingency plan.  Facing treason charges, Ryker needs to get rid of any witnesses to his crimes that the government has.  He activates the cyborg killing machine he developed before Deathlok – a creature called “Warwolf.”

Meanwhile, Deathlok is in Paterson, New Jersey at the home of his wife, Nancy Collins, and his son, Nick.  In hiding, he consoles himself and grieves his situation.  He hopes not only to find where Ryker hid his body, but to also be able to have his brain restored to his body so that he can be human again.  First, he has to stop Ryker, and that means dealing with Warwolf.

Rereading Deathlok, I was surprised to find it intriguing.  Other than Cowan’s art, especially the cover, I did not remember much about it – even that Dwayne McDuffie was one of the writers.  Cowan’s art is stylish and has art deco flourishes.  The pencil art has a painterly quality to it, and the compositions display varying degrees of dynamism.  Cowan just seems to know how much energy is needed or not needed to depict the mood and drama in a panel or over a sequence of panels.

Deathlok/Michael Collins’ quest to recover his body recalls the wandering of Bruce Banner/Hulk.  The last panel of this issue reminds me of the end of The Terminator (1984), as Sarah Connor heads off down a lonely highway to an uncertain future.  This is a good comic book, but it isn’t great.  That’s alright; not everything can be spectacular, but being good is good.  I don’t remember if I read the second issue all those years ago, but I want to now.

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

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