Captain Marvel: R.I.P.

Hello Chums,

I've been busy reading trades this week (and last week) and I neglected to post my review. However with the past multiple review posts, I'm currently ahead of schedule on my target of 52 reviews this year. I'll try my best to stay on track (when I can.)

This time around I thought I'd talk a little about The Death Of Captain Marvel. I never read it when I was a kid and I thought I'd give it a try now. Could this Jim Starlin story that's referred to all the time, stand the test of time?

I won't go into all of Captain Marvels past history, this is his story at the end. Early in this story we find that Marvel is sick and diagnosed with what people of Titan call the Inner Decay, we call it cancer. Yep, the BIG "C". There is no cure for it in the Marvel universe either.

To say the Captain is well liked is an understatement. When the diagnosis comes to light, all of Marvel's big brains look for a cure. It's a race to save the Captain. But nothing seems to help. After spending time with friends and lovers, Marvel realizes it's the end and he makes peace with it (and with some enemies) before the inevitable end.

About every major Marvel character is at Captain Marvel's bedside at the end. After Marvel is gone we see part of his journey into "the light." A fitting end to a well liked hero.

Okay this isn't Brian's Song, but it is an effectively sad story.

Rating: Story and Art: A-

K.R.C.

D.L.

Pick Of My Pile for the week of 5-21-08

Hello Chums,



Back on buying track this week with Marvel comics dominating my purchase with 5 out of 6 comics bought.



IDW:

Star Trek - Assignment: Earth #1 Gary Seven is back, courtesy of John Byrne.



Marvel:

Fantastic Four #557 Conclusion of World's Greatest.

Wolverine Origins #25 Conclusion of The Deep End.

Avengers Classic #12 The Avengers verses the Mole Man.

The Mighty Avengers #14 More of the Secret Invasion.

Captain America #38 The Death Of Captain America Act 3, The Man Who Bought America: p.2



It's not an easy week to pick the best book, however Captain America is still entertaining 13 months after the title characters death.

K.R.C.

D.L.

Pick Of My Pile for the week of 5-14-08

Hello Chums,



I have a very short stack to pick from this week and a rather odd occurrence, no Marvels bought. Let's get right to it.



IDW:

FX #3 - Continuing the story of a high school student getting used to his new powers.



DC:

Batman Strikes #45 - A Batgirl stand alone story.



Image:

True Story Swear To God #11 - Tom And Lily plan their wedding.



Dark Horse:

B.P.R.D. 1946 #5 - Conclusion of the 1946 story line.



The Pick Of My Pile this week is True Story Swear To God #11. Tom Beland continues to entertain with his true life stories.

K.R.C.

D.L.

Yet another grab bag of books from the Kansas City con

Hello Chums,

Besides my pile of new comics, I've been busy reading three trades this week. So how about some quick reviews.

First up is New York Times and L.A. Times best seller Fun Home. Fun Home is labeled as "A Tragicomic." I suppose it means the story is drawn in comic form and it's a tragedy. Drawn: yes. Tragedy: no. I've read autobiographical books like this before that have been more sad in content and executed better. The story is okay. However, I was put off by the way the author tells the story and then goes back and revisits ground already covered. The use of references to classical fiction got tedious also. We get the point. The author's father was well read and would refer to passages in literature when making points or telling stories.

So what's Alison Bechdel's Fun Home about anyway? This story is her look back at her family being repressed by her closet-queer father who knows more about interior decorating, gardening and fashion for girls than any straight man would. Oh yeah, her father was also the town mortician at their funeral home (fun home.) Alison's story rolls from childhood through her own budding lesbianism and the the death of her father.

Next up is Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Who Is Scorpio? More sixties secret agent action from Jim Steranko! With all the gadgets, locals, enemies and women, Nick Fury once again reminded me of the sixties James Bond. There should be a book like this available currently. Maybe we'll see more of good 'ol Nick after Secret Invasion.

What's it about? Taking out the bad guys and having a looker of a woman waiting in the wings. Sixties style. That's all you need to know.

Lastly is Scalped vol. 1, by Jason Aaron and R.M. Guera. I got my copy at Planet Comicon in Kansas City. I bought my copy then went across the aisle and had it signed by Jason Aaron. I enjoyed his Vietnam story The Other Side and the first issue of Scalped and every interview I've read lately with different creators has had Scalped as one of their favorites. So what the heck.

Scalped tells the story of Dashiell Bad Horse. He's one lone Indian who goes back to the reservation fifteen years after leaving on bad terms. Upon arrival he meets up with his estranged mother and former (now married) ex-girlfriend. The Rez (Prairie Rose Indian Reservation) is now overrun with drugs and organized crime. Think of it as The Sopranos on a reservation. Oh yeah, Bad Horse is now an undercover FBI agent. I can't wait for vol. 2.

Ratings:

Fun Home: story D+, art A-

Nick Fury: story B+, art A-

Scalped: story A-, art A

K.R.C.

D.L.

Pick Of My Pile for the week of 5-7-08

Hello Chums,

Another large stack of comics this week with more Marvels than anything else.

Marvel comics:

Mighty Avengers #13 - Secret Invasion with Nick Fury

Franklin Richards - Not-So-Secret-Invasion #1

Punisher War Journal #19 - Jigsaw (part 2 of 6)

Dark Tower - The Long Road Home (part 3 of 5)

Secret Invasion #2 (of 8)

Avengers/Invaders #1 (of 12)

Dark Horse:

Abe Sapien #4 - The Drowning (part 4 of 5)

DC:

Action Comics Annual #11 - Last Son Conclusion

Vertigo:

American Splendor #2 - more Harvey Pekar

With the return of Mockingbird and the appearance of Jewel, Secret Invasion #2 is easily my Pick Of The Pile for this week.

K.R.C.

D.L.

Spys spying on spys who spy on spys

Hello Chums,

Okay the title of this post is a little misleading. It should be: Spies who track and kill spies who track and kill spies (or something like it.) Super Spy, by Matt Kindt, is broken up into thirty seven small stories. These stories intersect with each other in many ways and they're presented out of order. Several spy missions overlap each other and characters who are already dead make appearances in later stories (this helps to explain plot points.)

The stories takes place during World War II in Germany, France and Spain. Throughout the story, we're introduced to multiple agents trying to complete various tasks that might include: stealing documents, sending messages in code, eavesdropping, surveillance and assassination. All solid acts that you would expect any spy to preform.

What's it about? The Germans are working on a secret project that could turn the tide of the war. Meanwhile the Allies are using their agents anyway they can to get any scrap of detail about the project. The story starts off slowly as we get hints that there is something going on. As the story progresses, agents that have been used are eliminated (usually brutally.)

I liked this story but it's not for everyone. It has a lot of very graphic violence, but that's what we expect in the world of super spies isn't it?

Rating: Story: (including out of order chapters) A

Art: Stylized ink brushed strokes with usually one (different) color per chapter B+

K.R.C.

D.L.

Free Comic Book Day '08 review

Hello Chums,



Was your Free Comic Book Day this year fun? Mine was. I took my two boys to the four comic book stores in my area. We picked up numerous books for free (and bought a few too). Three of the four stores had decent sales and party type atmospheres (free pizza, cookies, drinks and people in costumes and drawings for free merchandise.) I think the fourth store really missed an opportunity to get fans (and non-fans) excited about comics.



My free comics this year:

Tiny Titans #1 - DC

Hellboy (new material) - Dark Horse

World of Aspen #3 - Aspen

Atomic Robo - Red 5 Comics

Dan Dare - Virgin Comics

Impact University vol.4 - Impact

Gekiga! - Drawn & Quarterly

The Moth - Rude Dude

Ignatz - Fantagraphics

The Death- Defying Devil - Dynamite

Maintenance - ONI Press

Owly and Friends - Top Shelf

Comics go to Hollywood - Twomorrows

Graphics Classics Special Edition - Graphics Classic

EC Comics Sampler - Gemstone

Neotopia - Antartic Press



After picking up all our books, we went to see Iron Man. Now that's a Free Comic Book Day!



What no Marvel in my stack? Oh well, but it looks like I have some real gems. I had better get reading.



K.R.C.



D.L.

Pick Of My Pile for the week of 4-30-08

Hello Chums,

Marvel leads the way this week with four books bought. Here's my books:

Marvel:

The Immortal Iron Fist #14 The Capital Cities of Heaven Round 7 (conclusion)

Marvel Comics Presents #8 four separate stories (one featuring Machine Man)

Thor Ages of Thunder #1 Matt Fraction story

The New Avengers #40 Secret Invasion continues

Image:

76 #3 Two Seventies Kung Fu/Street stories

Crawl Space XXXombies #4 (conclusion)

Elephantmen War Stories #3 (conclusion)

DC Universe 0 (The return of Barry Allen?)

My pick this week was easy. The conclusion of Elephantmen War Toys was very good. The art wasn't bad either.

Keep Reading Comics

D.L.