Sunday Splash Page #400

"Optimistically Marketed, Abruptly Canceled," in O.M.A.C. #3, by Dan Didio and Keith Giffen (storytellers), Scott Koblish (inkers), Hi-Fi (colorist), Travis Lanham (letterer)

One of the New 52's original 52 titles (which isn't all that impressive when I put it like that), O.M.A.C. was Keith Giffen doing his best Jack Kirby cosplay, and Dan Didio, well, I'm sure Didio was responsible for something.

Rather than taking place in some far flung future, the book took place in the same time and Earth as all the other DC books. So O.M.A.C. - Kevin Kho, forcibly converted into 'the perfect blend of biology and technology' by the Brother Eye satellite - can run afoul of other DC characters. If, you know, that's a prospect you were excited about. O.M.A.C. having an inconclusive fight with Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E., or Superman being sent after him by Checkmate. Sarge Steel also works for Checkmate but he's just some generic super-soldier, though he loses a hand in his last fight with O.M.A.C.

In this continuity Checkmate oversees Cadmus, and they're responsible for creating Brother Eye, leading to conversations between Brother Eye and Max Lord, where they exchange threats and vague proclamations. Max is wearing a hazmat suit the whole time, which is disconcerting. Also, I kind of picture Max as smarmy, the sleazy, glad-handing, overconfident used car salesman, and that is not something that fits with Giffen doing his Kirby impression. He's got an imperious air, standing on raised platforms with his arms folded behind his back. Stuff better suited for Darkseid.

Kevin spends most of his time staggering around confused in the aftermath of whatever Brother Eye's put him through, so he doesn't get a lot of development beyond having some OCD which seemed to suit him well in his job, which involved filing reports on microbial cultures for the public facing half of Cadmus. It seems like Brother Eye chose him due to something related to Kevin's father, but that's not revealed. There's a girlfriend, but with Kevin spending so much time as O.M.A.C., there's no time for anything there but her wondering why he's never around. At least he comes clean about what's happening - to the extent he understands it - by the end.

The book was one of the first wave of cancelations, ending at 8 issues with Brother Eye defeated by a Checkmate weapon that magnetized Eye's outer covering so it essentially became an asteroid. As a last ditch "gift," Eye grants Kevin full control of O.M.A.C.'s power, but left him stuck in that form. What was Eye after, hooking into Cadmus' files, Checkmate's files, trying to swipe the files of a Dr. Simyan (creating animal men with names like "Command D")? No idea. At least I picked the tpb up for $5 a few years ago.

Sunday Splash Page #289

 

"People You Meet in Prison," in Justice League International #13, by Keith Giffen (writer/penciler), J.M. DeMatteis (writer), Al Gordon (inker), Gene D'Angelo (colorist), Bob Lappan (letterer)

After Crisis on the Infinite Earths, DC went a somewhat different direction with the Justice League. Not just in the sense that this Justice League was more tied to the governments of the world, with the team having embassies around the world, but in the tone of the book. Superhero teams weren't strangers to characters getting on each other's nerves, going back to at least Ben Grimm wanting to throttle the Human Torch, but that was usually played for melodrama or angst.

While Giffen and DeMatteis had some of that - in the issue above, Batman's increasing frustration is causing him to basically be a dick to the entire team and forces the Martian Manhunter to lay down the law - Justice League International could qualify as a workplace comedy. Because amid Batman's poor attitude, you've got Oberon remarking (under his breath) that Bats could use a good psychiatrist, Canary joking Batman paid the super-villains(read: Suicide Squad) to attack the Russian prison to get permission to go there, and an injured Max Lord deciding it's a good idea to play cute with Amanda Waller. It's not making light of the whole situation, not exactly, but it's not playing things with a perfectly straight face, either.

The roster's a mix of established Leaguers, second-stringers, and a few relative newbies, but it seemed to work better than the Detroit era's attempt did. Certainly most of the characters that got promoted to the big leagues by this title have hung around (even if it hasn't always been pretty what's been done with them.)

Maybe the tone being so novel gave less-established characters a more unique hook. Blue Beetle and Booster Gold running pranks and get-rich schemes when they aren't fighting crime (and sometimes while they are). Guy Gardner being an abrasive loudmouth, except when he's got brain damage and is acting like a sweet-mannered child. Or just trying not to be a jerk because he actually really likes Ice and wants to impress her. Max Lord being the connection to the government, but rather than being a Peter Gyrich-style antagonist, Lord's putting every bit of his used car salesman charm into trying to make the League (and by extension, himself) look good.

Adam Hughes and especially Kevin Maguire are a big part of the book's success. With a title that's as much about conversations and humor as it about fighting super-criminals, the artist has to be good at facial expressions and body language. Not only to help sell the characters as feeling genuine, or sell the humor, but to keep things from looking static and dull. Otherwise, it's just a comic of talking heads, and that can get old quick. Maguire and Hughes both do that. The characters gesture and snarl and hands are thrown up in exasperation (when they aren't burying their faces in them).

Saturday Splash Page #87

 

"Death Takes a Holiday", in Thanos #7, by Keith Giffen (writer), Ron Lim (penciler), Al Milgrom (inker), Christie Scheele and Krista Ward (colorists), Dave Sharpe (letterer)

Years and years before he would be the tentpole villain for the culmination of multiple phases of a cinematic universe (I'm imagining myself reading that sentence 20 years ago and muttering something about gobbledygook), Thanos got himself an ongoing series. Jim Starlin wrote and drew the first 6 issues, where Thanos trying to chart a new course for his life, after having yet another epiphany in the Starlin-written mini-series Marvel Universe: The End. 

Having decided to try and make amends for past misdeeds committed in Dan Jurgens' Thor run by what was actually a rogue clone of himself Thanos made (because Jim Starlin doesn't like it when other people mess with his toy), Thanos saves the universe from some cosmos-devouring thing called The Hunger, which played Galactus like a chump. Because when Jim Starlin writes Thanos, all other characters become 1000 times dumber and less-competent than normal.

Because Jim Starlin has no problem messing with other people's toys. Which is why I didn't keep those 6 issues. He's got some interesting ideas, I just completely hate the execution of those ideas.

I did keep the other six issues, handled by the Keith Giffen/Ron Lim team. Where Thanos decides to make a pilgrimage to the Kyln. Which is a combination power plant/max security prison/holy site at the edge of the place where the universe is generated. I'm unclear if that puts it at an expanding edge or some "center", but whatever. Point is, it's a delicate place, and while Thanos is ostensibly there to think, he gets sucked into a mess involving some version of the Beyonder, having made itself mortal.

In the process of that, Galactus' true first herald escapes. No, not Tyrant, his other first herald. The Fallen One, who goes gunning for Galactus himself, while Big G is still worn down from that previous story arc. Thanos handles that, albeit out of desire to have a herald of his own. Especially one that apparently is powered by dark matter. 

Giffen's Thanos is patient when he wants to be. Smart naturally, able to quick figure out weaknesses in his opponent and bring them to heel. He's also got a bit of a sense of humor - dry, to the point it isn't clear if he's trying to be funny - and not above provoking someone if he thinks it in his interests. And for all that he proclaims to Death - who Lim draws as a child dressed all in black - he's done serving her, he still seems inclined to listen to what she has to say.

That arc is probably most notable for the number of things Giffen introduces that he later used in Annihilation. The Kyln and the Crunch are where Annihilus' army emerges. This frees the two elder beings Thanos encourages to take down Galactus and the Surfer so he can use them as weapons of planetary mass destruction for Annihilus. 

Most importantly, this is where Star-Lord steps back out on the stage for the first time in a long time. Ship is gone, the element gun is gone, the cybernetic eye is there. Quill's an inmate, for what he did to stop the Fallen One originally, but he's also there to make sure the Fallen One stays locked up. He's sarcastic, cynical, basically ready to die whenever. Gladiator's there on made up charges to keep an eye on the Beyonder, and even he treads carefully around Thanos. Quill basically gives zero fucks, maybe because he realizes that if Thanos decides to kill him, it could have very little to do with anything Quill says or does.

The one odd thing of note is, one of the guards responsible for sending pilgrims on through to the Kyln is an Earthling named Cole, who was abducted, then abandoned. To what end he was abducted isn't explained, possibly because Cole doesn't know. But that's pretty much the origin they gave Star-Lord in the movies, except the kidnappers kept Quill. Hard to believe, as annoying as movie Star-Lord can be.

Saturday Splash Page #41

 

"Delusion,", in Webspinners: Tales of Spider-Man #4, by Eric Stephenson (writer), Keith Giffen (penciler), Andy Smith (inker), Digital Chameleon (colorist), BencHMark Productions (letterer)

The only three issues I have are this story set during the '60s era. Peter's following up a lead from Ben Urich on people who disappeared in a particular flophouse hotel. This investigation is interrupted by the flying hood ornament deciding all humanity is against him again, so he's going to attack New York. Those two things end up being connected, via Psycho-Man of all things. Giffen's the artist, except by the second issue Andy Smith is joined by 3 more inkers. In the third issue, Smith handles the art chores himself, and there is a substantial difference between his art and Giffen's.

I was going to say this was like DC's Legends of the Dark Knight, but as Spider-Man books go, I think that was Tangled Web. The book where you let prestigious writers or artists have some fun with the character. This is probably more like Shadow of the Bat, just another attempt to cash in by slapping Popular Character's name on the cover.

Although looking over a listing of the issues online, there were a few issues written by Paul Jenkins, some drawn by Sean Phillips, the others by J.G. Jones. But there's also a DeFalco/Frenz story set during the black costume days, and a couple issues written by Howard Mackie that send Spidey back into the Negative Zone. So, a mixed bag.

Sunday Splash Page #234

 

"Template," in The Heckler #2, by Keith Giffen (writer/penciler), Tom and Mary Bierbaum (writers), Malcolm Jones III (inker), Tom McCraw (colorist), Bob Pinaha (letterer)

Yes, it's the obvious choice, but sometimes you have to take the easy ones when they're handed to you. It was either this or the one where the narrator gets really snippy with us about being so demanding halfway through the caption boxes.

The Heckler is, I guess a loving pastiche of superhero comics. It carries a lot of the trappings, with the overburdened, responsible protagonist and his colorful supporting cast. The unusual villains, the distinctive urban setting. But it's all turned to just absurd enough the reader isn't intended to really take it seriously. Stu owns/runs a diner, which has a running gag about its sign never being correct. One of the patrons is a Fat Elvis-looking guy that seemingly knows everything, and the cook appears to be a French chef slumming it.

So Heckler fights El Gusano, a man-sized, talking worm that works for the chief mob boss in the first issue. There's an air of Bugs Bunny to it (or maybe it's just the Heckler's penchant for calling his opponents maroons), as the issue has a brief gag where El Gusano suspects Heckler of hiding in one of 3 garbage cans. The Heckler pops up alongside him and suggests checking the one in the middle. Cue 3-panel sequence of the Heckler being punched high into the sky, then falling back to the city below.

After that there's a battle with John Doe, the Generic Man, which also involves a gun-toting bounty hunter who targets guys she went on lousy dates with. Then an assassin robot from outer space that looks like a clown, which also involves a sci-fi fan who can't distinguish fiction from reality. Considering the clown-bot is out to get its brethren and thinks they've already subjugated Earth, there must be a lot of that going around.

From there Giffen and the Bierbaums spend an issue joking about the Heckler going on patrol and finding no crime, all the while an inept big-game hunter type tries to kill him. Then a night at the theater is ruined by a frustrated, past-his-prime thespian (who seems to have gotten his look swiped by Christopher Nolan's version of Scarecrow). The sixth, and ultimately final issue, involved the Heckler getting dragged into stopping some hideous monster from another dimension that was summoned to usher in the Apocalypse.

Well, the book got canceled, so I guess either it succeeded or the Heckler failed, depending on how you want to look at it. The subplot of the guy who was waging a "purity" campaign to try and turn Delta City against the Heckler never did get resolved. Ah well.

Outside the splash pages, Giffen sticks almost exclusively to 9-panel grids. His Heckler is an expressive character, always with that mask with the enormous smile on it. He moves unconventionally in terms of how Giffen depicts him. Side-hurdling chimneys, and leaping across rooftops in an almost hunched over posture. He's not drawn as an acrobat like Spider-Man or Nightwing. Giffen's Heckler reminds me a lot of Ditko's Creeper, only with the "HAHAHAHA" on the Heckler's costume instead of filling panels and surrounding the Villains of the Week. 

Lots of extreme close-ups on people's face, but also I think Giffen uses the small panels to try and offer a sense of Delta City. Not just all the panels showing joke names for different businesses - such as Delta Epsilon Pies, or Mr Fix-It and across the street Mr. Fix It's Ex-Wife Gloria - but it makes it feel like a very close urban area. Lots of people, homes and businesses all tucked in together. A neighborhood, you might say.

One which is, in the background of all the madness, being steadily destroyed or gentrified. I think that's also Mr. Rabid's doing, part of his so-called attempt to clean up America (meaning, homogenize it, which makes sense given his true identity.) Again, that subplot never comes to fruition.

Until Mark Russell's One-Star Squadron, the less said of which the better, I'm not sure anyone had used the Heckler since this early '90s debut. If Russell's work is the best one could manage, that's probably for the best.

Some Don't Play Well with Others

In addition to buying collected editions of different series, I'm usually hunting things down in back issues as well. Whichever is easier to manage, really, given how often things fall out of print these days. One of the series I tried at the start of this year was the post-Infinite Crisis volume of Doom Patrol, the one written by Keith Giffen.

The first six issues, which is all I bought at the time, didn't do much for me. Nobody on the team really seems to like each other or enjoy being around one another. It reminded me unpleasantly of where Teen Titans was at after the One Year Later jump, back when I first started this blog. One of those books where you wonder why any of the characters are even there if they hate being around each other so much. I suppose the standard response is, "a lack of anywhere else to go."

But the book really didn't get off to a good start with me. The first issue opens on the team on some mission. Negative Man, Robotman, Rita Farr, and two characters left over from the John Byrne run that preceded this, a (I'm assuming) telekinetic teenage girl codenamed Nudge, and a four-armed gorilla called Grunt.

Within about six pages, Nudge gets machine-gunned into nearly unrecognizable meat chunks by a helicopter and Grunt flees into the jungle with her corpse. And that's basically it. One other character questions the fact the team didn't even attempt to recover Nudge's remains, but otherwise, out of sight, out of mind.

I mentioned in the Sunday Splash Page for John Arcudi and Tan Eng Huat's Doom Patrol run that I'd never heard anything positive about the Byrne run that followed it. But this just seemed so, perfunctory. Like Giffen didn't want to deal with either of those characters and shuffled them out as quick as possible. In which case, why not just have someone make an offhand reference to why they aren't around and leave it at that? Nudge didn't want to hang out on Mad Scientist Island, and the gorilla only likes her so it went along.

I also get that the Doom Patrol have a long and distinguished tradition of some or all of the team dying. So much so, none of the team appear to be phased by the death. But if the point they're all highly depressed, inured to death or even actively suicidal, there are plenty of other ways to show it. I know, because Giffen does it in subsequent issues. All told, it came off as Giffen smashing a toy he didn't even want to use, just because he could.

Sunday Splash Page #145

 

"How Come Valkyrie Doesn't Get a Cool Adjective?" in The Defenders (vol. 1) #50, by David Kraft (writer), Keith Giffen (artist), Don Warfield (colorist), John Costanza (letterer) 

Steve Gerber and Sal Buscema left the book after issue 41. Gerry Conway wrote the next couple of issues, then co-wrote the next two with Roger Slifer and David Anthony Kraft. Then Slifer and Kraft did a couple of issues together, and finally in issue #48, Kraft took sole writer duties, and remained on the book for another 20 issues, although several of the last few were co-written with Ed Hannigan. 

After Buscema's departure, Keith Giffen stepped in as penciler for the next 12 issues, his style varying pretty widely depending on if he's inking himself (like the picture above), or it's being done by Klaus Janson or someone else. Then it fell to a variety of artists. Carmine Infantino, Ed Hannigan, Jim Mooney. Buscema returned for the "Defender for a Day" storyline.

Dr. Strange leaves the book, because he feels it's distracting him from his greater duties, and the team relocates to a farmhouse/riding academy Nighthawk owns in the country. Luke Cage bows out, and the Red Guardian returns home because the KGB is threatening her mother's life. It turns out to be some mysterious genius/asshole named Sergei who wants her to be his obedient bride as he turns them into energy beings. Just get one of those anime girl pillows, dude. Or invent them if they didn't exist yet.

(It surprises me that's stuck all these years later. I mean, Busiek used Sergei/The Presence and Tanya in his Avengers run, and as far as I know, it's still the status quo that those two live alone together in the radioactive zone in Siberia Sergei created giving them their powers. Tanya's more interesting of a Red Guardian than the usual model, which is just Soviet Captain America, which is probably not all that different from Mark Millar's version of Captain America, now that I think of it. A jingoistic asswipe.)

It's not all defections, though. Hellcat shows up in the last story before the other three depart, ultimately becoming one of the characters I think of as a core Defender. Certainly more than the Surfer, who hasn't appeared in almost 60 issues by the end of Kraft's run. Namor swings back in because of the damage to the oceans Sergei's work is causing. Moon Knight pops on for one story. Claremont writes a fill-in issue, so naturally Carol Danvers guest-stars.

"Who Remembers Scorpio?" is probably the best known story from this run, as Nick Fury's older brother, stuck in a mid-life crisis and dealing with feelings of worthlessness and inadequacy next to his brother, tries to create his own Zodiac of artificial beings to have someplace to belong. It doesn't work. 

After that, it's probably the aforementioned "Defender for a Day", where a college film student and would-be auteur, called Dollar Bill of all things, does a film on the Defenders and claims anyone can join. So a bunch of heroes show up to join, and decide they should capture their new teammate the Hulk (always a good idea). Meanwhile, a bunch of villains run around calling themselves Defenders and committing crimes.

Kraft makes Nighthawk team leader after Strange bows out, to mixed results. Kyle's gung-ho, but struggles to really assert any control, and with his temper, doesn't have the light touch Strange and Valkyrie can use with the Hulk. Val is encouraged to enroll in college and broaden her horizons, which is how Dollar Bill gets in the picture, and is how Kraft introduces annoying antagonist Lunatik, a guy who beats people with pipes and speaks in song lyrics. Where's that damn Elf with a Gun when you need him?

Lunatik's story gets concluded after Volume 3 of Essential Defenders ends, but I recall there's multiples Lunatiks, who are all part of some guy originally from another dimension, and they're connected somehow to the Nameless Ones from the Defenders' creation.

You can definitely feeling Kraft trying to follow in Gerber's footsteps, while maybe not emphasizing the futility of superheroics in a world of problems they can't solve quite as much.

Sunday Splash Page #35

"After the Raccoon You Think He'd Be Less Surprised," in Annihilation: Conquest - Star-Lord #1, by Keith Giffen (writer), Timothy Green II (penciler), Victor Olazaba (inker), Nathan Fairbairn (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer)

Whereas Quasar was the epic mystical Heroes' Quest story, Star-Lord is the Dirty Dozen. The Kree press-gang a bunch of what they consider criminals and lower life forms into running a dangerous mission of the Kree Homeworld, to stop some new weapon the Phalanx are developing. Peter Quill is forced to assume his abandoned Star-Lord identity, because it's an effective symbol. He remains a cycnical, sarcastic grump, though.

Giffen pulled in a bunch of characters I'm guessing hadn't been seen in at least 10 years (ignoring Peter David turning Rocket into a rug in his Captain Marvel series. Not cool, PAD.) So potentially any of them could die, and two of them did, although one of those wasn't until the main Annihilation: Conquest mini-series. This is where Rocket and Groot form their friendship, of course, and the core of the Abnett/Lanning Guardians of the Galaxy series takes shape.

Tim Green's art is a bit stiffer than it would be in later works, bit more delicate on the linework. Maybe that's Olazaba's inks. I'm not sure but I think Green inked himself more often later. This isn't the best for extended action sequences, but it works in brief stints, and things look fairly pretty. I prefer the designs for the Phalanx technicians with their elongated limbs and floating bodies, to the soldiers in Quasar.

Sunday Splash Page #33

"Lotta Cracks in the Finish There" in Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus #2 by Keith Giffen (writer), Andrea DiVito (artist), Paul Mounts (colorist), Cory Petit (letterer)

So after Nova made Annihilus' insides his outsides, they followed that up with a two-part mini-series that looked in on the status of all the currently living Heralds of Galactus, seeing as their numbers had taken a hit during Annihilation (Morg, Red Shift, and the Fallen One all bit the dust at various points). One story each for Terrax, Firelord, Stardust, and the Surfer, by various creative teams, although Keith Giffen wrote both stories in this issue.

My favorite story of the four was the one about Stardust (by Stuart Moore and Mike McKone), because of the idea Stardust originally came from a civilization composed of very short-lived and constantly changing exotic particles. That just seemed extremely cool, and the idea of how you'd have a civilization if you can exist for long periods of time, but nothing you create lasts more than moments. Those unusual settings and concepts are always a good hook for me, but there was no splash page.

For this particular image, we have the Surfer getting a little payback on the two "proemial" gods that beat down Surfer and Big G and handed them over to Thanos during Annihilation. OK, he's not doing it for revenge but because they plan to defy "cosmic consonance", which I believe is the nonsense term Galactus uses to justify his existence. Course, the Surfer alone against two beings on Galactus' level is a bit of mismatch. . .

Sunday Splash Page #32

"FATALITY", in Annihilation #6, by Keith Giffen (writer), Andrea DiVito (artist), Laura Villari (color artist), Cory Petit (letterer)

My scanner is just a little too small for double-page splashes, so I didn't quite get all of "This is for the Nova Corps!". There's a couple of single-page splashes in this issue alone I like better. Like the one where we see the Kree can actually shoot their buildings like surface-to-air missiles. But after the page I used for last week's entry, I figured I needed to show the rematch between Nova and Annihilus, and this was the only option.

Anyway, after the mixed bag of the four lead-in mini-series, we got to the main show of what is still my favorite Event Comic. Giffen is good here at ramping up the stakes. Each time the resistance seems like they might be be turning a corner, disaster strikes. When Firelord captures one of Annihilus' admirals (also one of his queens), they learn Annihilus and Thanos have teamed up, and made a deal with two Elder Beings to take down Galactus and the Silver Surfer. Things are bad enough Nova has to not only rely on Ronan as an ally, but Ronan's an essential leader as someone who actually knows something about warfare for the Kree units. And Ronan willingly (if not happily) works with Super-Skrull later on.

DiVito and Villari's artwork is bright and clean. It's not a gritty, bloody war book. There are a few pages that sell the injuries as more severe, but a lot of times injured translates to, "outfit torn, maybe some scratches". Even in scenes like above, I'd describe my reaction more as, "Oh, wow" than "Ouch", if that makes sense. It's a very pretty book, with a lot of very cool, big scenes in it. Most of the characters involved get moments to be awesome or make a key contribution. It made for a nice escape from the dreary mess that was Millar's Civil War.

Sunday Splash Page #29

"At Least He's Not Moping", in Annihilation: Silver Surfer #3, by Keith Giffen (writer), Renato Arlem (artist), June Chung (color artist), Cory Petit (letterer)

Just to warn you now, the next couple months of these are going to Annihilation and Annihilation: Conquest related stuff. Expect explosions.

This was one of the four 4-issue mini-series that led into the main Annihilation mini-series, each focused on a different character and getting them to where they needed to be for when the main show started, while kind of fleshing out the scope and direction of the larger story. Here, the Surfer's troubled by the mindless slaughter and devastation of the Annihilation Wave, but is slow to commit himself to fighting it, preferring to be sad about it instead. He's been a party to death on this scale himself, although he eventually rationalizes it that deaths on Galactus' behalf served a purpose. Hey, Annihilus has a purpose to all his killing, too! 

The Surfer finds himself hunted, along with the other heralds, but would end up dealing with an entirely different problem, as he gets sucked into helping Galactus throw down with a couple of elder beings that were inadvertently freed by the Wave and are after Big G for some revenge. And that's how the Surfer wound up back as Galactus' herald for a few years (this series came out in 2006, and that status quo persisted to at least some time in 2009-2010).

This is the only issue I kept. Partially for that double-page splash, and partially because Annihilus' hunter at one point refers to the Surfer as a 'sadly inadequate poltroon', which is just fantastic. So much better than me calling him a "mopey, overgrown hood ornament". I guess Giffen figured he had to have some fun with it. Until I double-checked the credits, I thought it was Alex Maleev on the art chores, but Arlem's style is a bit more sketchy, leans a bit less on shadows. Although this isn't set in a place where shadows would make a ton of sense..

Sunday Splash Page #24

"Thanks, Captain Buzzkill", in Amethyst (vol. 3) #2, by Keith Giffen (story) and Mindy Newell (script/story), Esteban Maroto (artist), John Costanza (letterer)

After the second volume concluded with issue 16, there was a Special, where Amethyst faced down a particularly irritating Lord of Chaos for the fate of Gemworld. Then this four-issue mini-series, set decades later. The Chaos Lords try again, and Amethyst has to come out of the substance of the world to face them down. It's a natural story to do, since the whole Order vs. Chaos thing is an ongoing struggle.

The part that annoys me is that young fool, who ended up helping Chaos, turns out to be Mordru, the JSA and Legion of Superheroes enemy. Now you know the rest of the story. Or where to find the rest of his story. If that's something that interests you, it doesn't mean much to me.

Amethyst herself is quite different. Older, more confident. There's not really a moment where I thought she was at any risk of losing. She also feels more detached. She's been part of this world and its inhabitants, which has given a certain sense of ownership. Like she isn't fighting or punishing Mordru because she's angry that he hurt and killed people, but because he hurt her stuff. Like someone came to your house and smashed your lawn ornaments. It's also a development that makes sense - she's a Lord of Order now, living on a different plane of existence in her perceptions - but I don't know that it was an improvement.

Justice League 3000 Volume 1 - Yesterday Lives

Justice League 3000 started near the end of the New 52 era, and the follow-up series, Justice League 3001 actually carried over into that DCYou thing they did in 2015. It seems like DC was thinking two things: One, that they wanted to do a book in the future, but they couldn't get the Legion of Superheroes to sell, so slap "Justice League" on there instead. And two, that they'd try to serve that
portion of the fanbase that loved the Giffen/DeMatteis JLI.

So you get this, a "resurrected" Justice League trying to free the galaxy from the control of a group called "The Five", who have one member called "Persuader", but otherwise no real resemblance to the Fatal Five I can see. The process was imperfect, and so are the heroes, so they bicker and squabble, and behave stupidly, and die, and get brought back again. One of them does, at least.

There are a few jokes or gags that get run into the ground. Superman forgetting he can't fly, characters acting incredulously when someone refers to Ariel Masters as the team's "mother". That second one is made especially annoying because whenever it happens, no ever bothers to just explain it then, because that would possibly stop them from using it again 10 pages later.

There was potential to the idea. An inexperienced, wobbly Justice League trying to overthrow a powerful, entrenched dictatorship in a time they don't really understand. By the end of issue 7, which is the last one in this trade, you can see the team making halting steps in the direction of their old selves. They aren't their original selves - they still lack pieces, notably when it comes to strategy - but there's a hint they could form into an effective group.

But they still aren't a group you care much about. Beyond the fact it's established they can just be brought back if they die, and the question of whether they should even exist at all, they're an annoying group. A Superman who won't stop announcing it, no matter how many times nobody is impressed, his skull apparently only invulnerable to insight. Flash keeps dying, but pointlessly - such a poor copy he can't even get the only thing Barry Allen does well right. On and on. It might be funny if they didn't belabor the point.

One thing that's influencing my outlook is I found two-thirds of JL 3001 in some dollar bins right before this tpb showed up in the mail. I know the rushed, inconclusive ending this book ultimately gets. I was looking forward to seeing Blue & Gold running amok in this dystopia, but, knowing they're going to vanish early in the next series, without enough time for them to make a dramatic last-minute (possibly accidental) rescue takes a lot of wind from those sails. 

Howard Porter's art doesn't help. It has more energy to it than his work on those Superman Beyond stories that ran in Batman Beyond Unlimited did - or maybe just more effects to show movement or action. And the Batman costume isn't bad, and I quite like the Green Lantern one (pity he mostly stops wearing the cloak three issues in). But his work is still overly busy, lots of lines trying to create depth or detail, but often just muddling or confusing things. That guy in the panels above, possessed by one of the Five, in a couple of the panels you might think he had some sort of rectangular facial markings, but no, they aren't there in other panels. Porter just felt he needed those lines there for some reason.

Keith Giffen handles the breakdowns and manages to avoid reverting to 9-panel grids all the time. Porter's work needs more space than that. A lot of 5-panel pages, usually with one panel stretching across the page at the top or bottom, and then two pairs. That part works fairly well.

That's the book overall. Some good pieces, but it doesn't come together into much of anything.

What I Bought 12/28/2016

I was able to get one of the two books that came out this week. By next Wednesday I should have the other one, plus two books from earlier this month. That'll take care of that day and Friday. The second week of January is currently set aside for the Year in Review posts.

Avengers #2.1, by Mark Waid (writer), Barry Kitson (penciler), Mark Farmer (inker), Jordan Boyd (colorist), Ferran Delgado (letterer) - I don't think I realized the Stranger originally walked around in a trench coat and tie, like an ordinary joe. Albeit one with unfortunate choices in hair and facial hair.

The Kooky Quartet is pressing ahead, despite the scorn of the public, who can't stop talking about Thor. At least Stark got around to giving them a Quinjet. You'd think he would have noticed sooner the team has no one who can fly, which is going to make dealing with worldwide threats difficult. Threats like the Stranger, who is after a teenage girl named Cressida in Thailand he thinks is a mutant. The Avengers take their best shot, but are hopelessly outclassed until Cressida somehow boosts their power enough to put him on his heels. At which point he pouts and says, Fine you're not a mutant so I don't want you anyway, and leaves. And the Avengers have a fifth team member, just so long as no one asks any inconvenient questions about how she boosts their powers.

I think I enjoy watching Pietro and Wanda interact the most. The way he always acts as though he's going to protect, but he's the one who panics. Who wants to pack up and bail at the first sign things are about to get bad. The fact Wanda tells him she saw the same vision he did, and she's not running. So of course he takes it out on Hawkeye, who does make it easy by being, well, Hawkeye. And we've got a Captain America who still hasn't got a grasp on this team, so he's probably being stricter than he needs to. He talks about them acting as a family, but there's not much warmth there, just him barking orders. Telling them to hold their heads high, when he's asking Stark why they can't get any fancy-schmancy weapons on their nifty jet, which kind of undercuts any statements he makes about how capable they are.

I noticed Hawkeye called Cap "Abe Simpson" at one point. That creeping timeline kicking in.

The contrast in colors during the bus sequence between the Avengers and the other passengers is a nice touch. Everyone else is kind of washed out, but the Avengers are in these relatively bright colors (the contrast between the green of Pietro's outfit and the shirt of that guy behind Cap on the right, who looks like someone out of a '70s "goofy kids and their talking {insert object} solve mysteries" cartoon. Even if people scoff, there are still a little larger than life, bolder than people give them credit for. Beyond that, I'm still enjoying Barry Kitson's work more than I normally do. Maybe it's Mark Farmer's inks, but the art seems less stiff, more lively than I'm used to. The shift in Hawkeye's expressions from the panel where he derides Cap for relying on a shield, then grumbles as Cap points out Clint relies on a bow, and then goes right back to fooling in the panel after that was a solid sequence.

Blue Beetle #4, by Keith Giffen (story/script), Scott Kolins (artist/story), Romulo Fajarado Jr. (colorist), Josh Reed (letterer) - It occurs to me, should Jaime have that expression? Admittedly, a glowing blue scarab is a strange thing to see, but Jaime is reaching for it anyway, so he's clearly decided to put aside that shock.

The story hops back and forth. First with someone trying to call Ted Kord while driving, only to drive off a bridge because of Dr. Fate. Who then lets the guy drown. In the present, Jaime goes for his physical, and isn't told the scarab is mutating his skeleton. He relates how he met the scarab, floating in a river, and it was nearly Brenda that wound up with it. Then it flashes back to Ted getting ready to start costumed adventuring, and his neighbor is the guy from the beginning of the issue, who at this point had just found the scarab. And Brenda is trying to set Jaime up with Naomi, who may or may not be that teleporting member of the Posse. I'm guessing she is, but also suspicious that Giffen wants us to think that and is going to pull some, "haha, fooled you" thing down the line.

Which I guess would be more relevant if I thought I was going to be here down the line, but I think we're done. I would suggest that the scarab had exerted some influence on Brenda, and that's why she's constantly being an ass to Paco, but she was doing that in the flashback before they saw the scarab, so never mind. I gotta say, I'm disappointed in Jaime that he doesn't tell her to stop always calling Paco stupid. It's nonstop with her, and I don't think I'm supposed to want bad things to happen to Jaime's supporting cast, but here we are.

So the story and characterization ain't gettin' it done, how about the art. Minor nitpick first, Fajardo, miscolored Paco's hair in one panel. Not a big thing, but something I noticed so there, now you know about it too. I really like the shade of blue he uses during the whole sequence in the river. And the giant, glowing beetle Kolins draws looked very cool. The sequence on the next page, where the armor starts appearing on Jaime reminded me of Sailor Moon, what with all the twinkly lights all around. Although it's a bit of a miscommunication that at the end of the physical, the doc tells Jaime to get dressed, when he's been fully dressed the entire time. He didn't take off his shoes or sweater or anything. What's left to put on?

What I Bought 12/6/2016 - Part 1

Just some catch-up with some books that came out last month I hadn't found copies of yet. We'll cover two more on Friday, and I'll get to something from this week on Monday. Hopefully by then I'll have more than one of the comics I wanted that came out this week.

Atomic Robo: The Temple of Od #4, by Brian Clevinger (words), Scott Wegener (artist), Anthony Clark (colors), Jeff Powell (letterer) - I actually went with the variant cover for this one, not because there was anything wrong with Wegener's - could have made an illegal fishing joke pretty easily - but I thought Hollie Mengert's cover was kind of sweet.

Matsuda, with Dr. Lu back in his grasp, plans to have the doctor fix the damaged reactor, and proceed with his plans to help Japan conquer the world. But forces are aligning against him. Helen and Zheng were captured with Lu, and don't stay captured long. They're roaming his compound. The Russians have finally decided to get off their ass and do something about this secret fortress they've supposedly known about for months. And the Ghost Bandits have brought Robo to Matsuda, ostensibly as their prisoner, but really as a ruse to get themselves, Robo, and a burlap sackload of dynamite into the compound. Matusda doesn't seem too concerned, though.

Positives include the Ghost Bandits, who continue to be mostly delightful in their complete selfish amorality and secretiveness. Whether trying to gouge Matsuda over Robo, or gouge each other over how much of a bonus they get for doing dangerous stuff, they're pretty much full of greed and bravado at all times. Wegener draws some good expressions in there, and the scene where the Soviets notice their shells aren't exploding, and it turns out Matsuda's soldiers are catching them and throwing them back was cool. And the color work in the final panel, where the green of Matusda's Odic field is contrasted with the explosion of the dynamite hurled at him. It's a lovely swirl of red against green, and it just looks violent and angry. It's a nice cliffhanger.

But the whole thing feels padded. I enjoy the bandits, but it still feels like Clevinger and Wegener devote as much time to them as they do because there isn't enough else there to fill out the story. Which is odd. It seems like Helen and Robo crossing paths after a few years ought to be a little more relevant. Not in terms of some love triangle, but at least old friends meeting up in a place they wouldn't have expected. I don't know, it's just empty.

Blue Beetle #3, Keith Giffen (story and script), Scott Kolins (story and art), Romulo Fajardo Jr. (colors), Josh Reed (letters) - We've all been there, waking up in a spooky cave facing a bunch of angry green bug guys.

The scarab carries Jaime somewhere underground, where he is nearly killed by the mob on the cover. This understandably spooks Jaime enough he willing goes to Ted to talk about it. Ted isn't terribly helpful, other than revealing a little of what Dr. Fate told him. This doesn't serve to calm Jaime much. He tries talking to Paco, then to his dad, then to Brenda, none of which seems to help much. Paco doesn't seem too concerned, his dad does, but can't offer much advice, and Brenda alternates between impatient and somewhat supportive. Which is still a huge leap forward for the supporting cast in this book. And Giffen is going to add the aged-up versions of Sugar and Spike he was writing elsewhere recently to the cast, if that was something you were wanting more of. For me, all the bits of those stories I saw made Sugar seem like a massively unlikable person, so not real eager for her to join the cast.

It was nice to see Ted trying to stand up to Dr. Fate and argue on Jaime's behalf. Part of me wanted to see Ted slug Fate, but that wouldn't have been productive or bright. The problem here for me is the struggle between the plot and the characters. I'm curious about the mystery of what the scarab is in this reality, why Fate's worried about it, and what the Horde is (although something in the Horde's design screams "Parademon" to me, and please, no more Fourth World for awhile). On the other hand, I don't like most of the characters in the story, at least not based on what we're seeing here. They're coasting on residual affection from the pre-Flashpoint series. Giffen and Kolins are shooting for everyone to bicker, but have it come from a place of affection, and they aren't sticking the landing often. This issue was a bit better, but adding Sugar's acerbic attitude to the mix isn't going to help, unless it gives the rest of the cast someone to band together against. Which is what villains were for, I thought.

They're still using those black dots on white as the background on almost every page. Not sure why. In the panel where the Horde's master is getting in Jaime's head, it works, because one of the panel borders is gone, and the dots are like a presence encroaching on Jaime's reality. And so them being there all the time could be a deliberate symbol of this "master's" reach, or presence. But there are other panels where one of the borders are missing, and I can't tell what it would mean there. Ted repeating that he doesn't know enough to remove the scarab safely on page 11, or the panel where Jaime admits to his dad he's afraid he's losing control of the scarab. Although it could be significant that in the Kord panel, the area immediately around him is a white background, like he's banishing the presence by refusing to panic and endanger Jaime's life.

Next issue promises the origin of the Blue Beetles? Do they mean multiple scarabs, or multiple heroes calling themselves Blue Beetle? Am I a big enough sucker to buy the issue and find out? Yeah, probably.

What I Bought 11/1/2016 - Part 1

I've got six other comics besides this one, but I felt like discussing it solo. Or maybe I was just lazy and only wanted to discuss one book.

Blue Beetle #2, by Keith Giffen (story/script), Scott Kolins (story/artist), Romulo Fajardo Jr. (colorist), Josh Reed (letterer) - You'd think the scarab could keep Jaime's blood inside the armor.

Jaime and the Posse try to investigate what's going on, though Jaime mostly only succeeds in learning his mom has been helping the Posse, and making them think he's crazy.  Then he can't get rid of Blur, who keeps following and flirting and getting pissed for no reason, and finally attacks him for awhile before kissing him and departing. Then Jaime tries to yell at his mom, which doesn't work at all.

This was a little better than the previous issue, if only because everyone seems slightly less on edge. Honestly, Jaime and the Posse seem to get along better than anyone else in this book. I'd like to think that's a deliberate choice on Giffen and Kolins' part. That extended exposure to the scarab exerts a dark influence on people's psyches. It would go along with Dr. Fate's dire warnings. But I'm not convinced that is the case.

I'd like to see some sign Ted Kord is actually helping Jaime. Besides giving him money to investigate weird stuff Jaime would probably look into anyway. There hasn't been any indication he's doing anything to figure out what the scarab is, how it works, how to get it off Jaime. At least give us some hint that when he asks Jaime to try and do new stuff with the suit (like run "scans), he's analyzing what's happening as part of his work.

Also, I think Ted's assistant and Milagro's friend, Tina, might be artificial constructs Ted made. Something the assistant said about possibly getting Tina out of the house if Jaime was going to cause a scene makes me think that. I could be misreading it entirely; maybe she just meant it in terms of Jaime not blowing his secret identity in front of a stranger, but I don't know.

Kolins' art seems to be playing into this. I don't recall the armor having all those spike on the arms and legs previously, and that panel of the Beetle crawling into the hole was interesting. There's enough room to walk in the tunnel, or float down if the angle is too steep, so why did Kolins draw him in a classic Spider-Man pose? But it does make him look a little more creepy, a little less human. Ditto some of those antennae or whatever that come off his shoulders. There's just a certain vibe that's less Iron Man, more something out of one of those '60s sci-fi/horror things Ditko would have drawn.

You could throw in the fact Jaime doesn't seem to talk to the scarab, or even have that much control over it. It's a thing, alien and silent, that may have motivations Jaime doesn't know and couldn't grasp if he did. And the people who are supposed to be helping all seem to have their own hidden motives. It's different, but there's potential. It's not always a bad thing to go against audience expectations, but I wonder if it's the right move here.

What I Bought 10/12/2016 - Part 2

Nothing like having a question about some movie we're watching and not wanting to ask because I know my dad will launch into some overly long, ten-minute dissertation on the thing.

Blue Beetle #1, Keith Giffen (story and script), Scott Kolins (story and artist), Romulo Fajardo Jr. (colorist), Josh Reed (letterer) - Seems like more of a Spider-Man pose there than one for a character that can fly.

Curious issue. Jaime relates a dream he had to Brenda of Dr. Fate fighting a giant beetle. Brenda is extremely acerbic and not helpful. Then Ted ropes Jaime into investigating a tip from a super-powered street gang, concerning a bunch of missing kids. One of whom Jaime runs into, and the kid now has shadow-melting powers. Jaime fights him off, but then the aforementioned super-powered street gang shows up.

For some reason, Giffen and Kolins are writing this so no one gives Jaime any sort of straight answer. Brenda is unhelpful, Ted's assistant and Ted both ignore any questions he ask, not to mention any objections he has. Overall, it makes Jaime look like a dope that's letting everyone herd him around. Like, refuse to keep going along with Ted until he produces some concrete answers.

The high point was probably Ted making a brief allusion to knowing Nightshade (as an example of someone with shadow powers) from his own time as a superhero. I had thought this Ted was a superhero wannabe, but it sounds like he was the Blue Beetle at some point. Which improves the chances of Booster showing up sometime soon, which ought to be good.

I like the designs for the Posse, especially the vibrating reddish guy, and the purple, Candlejack looking guy with the glowing weapon thing. We'll see if it translates once they get into action, but they make for interesting visuals, at least. I don't entirely like how he draws Blue Beetle, his lines make the suit look odd somehow, like the elements don't fit. I do like how the suit morphs, expands, gets more sharp as the situation grows more desperate. Plays into that dream, with a giant beetle monster fighting Dr. Fate.

The potential is there for me to enjoy this book, but toning down the antagonism between the characters that are supposed to be friends would be a help.

Deadman: Dark Mansion of Forbidden Love #1, by Sarah Vaughn (writer), Lan Medina (illustrator), Jose Villarubia (color artist), Janice Chiang (letterer) - That's not really good attire to be roaming through a massive yard at night with a candelabra.

Glencourt Manor is the "dark mansion" in question. It has the ghost of a young woman named Adelia Ruskin in it, as well as something else, an oozing dark shadow. Berenice is living there with Nathan, who is trying to get some novel written. But Nathan's health isn't great, and Berenice sees ghosts, so this isn't the best place for either of them. And into all this flied Boston Brand, only to find himself on unfamliar ground. Berenice can see him, not that she wants to. The house has trapped him, where he can't escape, and sometimes can't pass through objects. There's also Berenice's friend, Sam, who Boston can't possess for some reason. And by the end of the issue, Boston and Adelia vanish together, leaving a confused Berenice alone.

So there are a lot of mysteries in here, which is fine with me. Gives me something to mull over, whether they're interconnected or not, coming up with strange theories. I don't know if the book is meant as a Gothic horror story, or Gothic romance, or both. Nathan seems like the soulful, deeply troubled pretty boy, and Berenice the kind, but shy and uncertain heroine. Except Berenice is shy at least in part because she tries to shut out the spirits she can see around her. Not sure how Sam or Boston fit in, but we're up against the limits of what I understand of the genre.

Most of the colors Villarubia uses are fairly muted, kind of mundane. Which makes the parts where he steps outside that all the more effective. The bright yellow when Boston meets resistance to his passing through something. The pitch black shadow. I think Adelia is drawn in by Lan Medina, then not colored in, similar to what Declan Shalvey did in Moon Knight. Makes her seem disconnected from the whole thing in a way none of the other characters are. Which is interesting, since you'd think she'd be distinctly connected to the place she's haunting.

Medina does a solid job with the figure work. There are a few places characters seem a little stiff, but overall, the expressions are good, and when Medina gets a chance to draw more of the house, and use it to create a sense of looming threat, he does it well. The panel of her helping Nathan down the hall of doors, with the hall curving out of sight at the end, that one worked really well. Not sure why, some sense of the hall extending on forever, and endless string of identical doors that Berenice could see if she only went around the bend a little further.

And I like how for the first half of the book, written from Berenice's perspective, we see Boston flying around the manor, testing the place, and she has no idea what's going on. We understand why Boston Brand would show up, but she doesn't know him, and the issue shows him a lot with Berenice watching him from a distance. Even though he might be close to us, it helps put the reader in the mindset of seeing it how she is. Bizarre, something she can't understand, and doesn't want to get close enough to that she could.

What I Bought 8/28/2016 - Part 1

While I was visiting my dad, I took the opportunity to grab some of the comics that had come out over the previous two weeks. But I already had all of last week's posts ready to go, so we're just getting to them now. Not as though I've been on the cutting edge of reviews for a long time now.

Black Widow #6, by Mark Waid (storyteller), Chris Samnee (storyteller/artist), Matthew Wilson (colorist), Joe Caramagna (letterer) - Samnee drew an older version of the armor, but not the really early, clunky grey or gold versions. Curious.

Dr. Yinsen is the man who saved Tony Stark's life when they were held prisoner by a warlord. Natasha is the one who abducted Yinsen for that warlord. Stark is somewhat peeved, but gets duped by Natasha, who uses his equipment to find where the Weeping Lion is. Then she finds out the big guy is just the brother of the true Weeping Lion, a telepathic teen, right before she repulsor rays the kid through a window and tells him he works for her now.

I've not been a big fan of Tony Stark since oh, the last Civil War Marvel did. I think that's well established in the archives. Still, I feel conflicted about how this played out. Natasha's smile as she busted out the Iron Man gauntlet on her would-be tormentor was a nice moment, the smile Samnee gave her a nice touch, but could she have tried just asking for the stuff? Maybe Stark was too heated for that, but he isn't wrong that she is at least partially responsible for Yinsen's death (though also Stark's still being alive, since Yinsen is responsible for that). It wasn't something done of her own volition, but "I was only following orders," hasn't been an acceptable excuse for awhile now. And her explanation to Stark consists of "I was a different person then."

I'm probably just looking for a "sorry", but I think the character, and certainly the people who trained her would contend sorry doesn't matter. Doesn't fix anything (though what would she do?). But it's at least a public acknowledgment that you fucked up, you know? It was what drove me nuts about Batman for years, all his heavy-handed bull that kept blowing up in other people's faces, and never the actual admission he messed up.

Maybe if Tony hadn't come in so obviously cocky, talking about "amateur hour" they would have been able to chat.

It's another lovely issue. The flashback being colored in that pale red is a nice, vivid distinguisher, and I think Wilson darkened it just a bit on the final page, as Yinsen's being handed over. That moment of no return, when Natasha stands with her hands in her pockets and sends a man to his death without a word. And I like the last word balloon on that page being partially cut off by the panel border, I guess as Yinsen is dragged out of range of his voice, or physically silenced. Also, the two panels of Natasha stepping out of, and then back into her shoes in the cemetery, with the noticeable difference in the condition of her stockings. Very effective.

Blue Beetle Rebirth #1, by Keith Giffen (story and script), Scott Kolins (story and art), Romulo Fajardo Jr. (colors), Josh Reed (letters) - That's not the cover I wound up with, but I like it better.

Jaime is living at home, with his parents and his sister. His friends are once again, Brenda and Paco, though I don't recall them being quite this argumentative, but I came into Jaime's first series late and sporadically, anyway. Jaime's working with Ted Kord, who alerts him to a couple of somethings tearing up a coffee shop. Jaime struggles to deal with them, while Ted is being not terribly helpful in his ear, but survives the encounter with no civilian casualties. Ted's supposed to be helping Jaime get the scarab off of him, but doesn't seem to be making much progress, and along comes Dr. Fate to claim the scarab is magic, not alien science. Well, you know, sufficiently advanced technology would be indistinguishable from science, if practically every Arthur C. Clarke story I read is correct.

Looking at this as an introduction (or re-introduction of the character), I think it's very effective. Giffen and Kolins got a lot of the supporting cast in there, from Jaime's parents, to his friends, to Ted and Fate, and Brenda's aunt, who is probably still a crime boss, and maybe she's a sorcerer. Her eyes were red in one panel. Oh, I hope she doesn't turn out to be Darkseid. That would be the dirt worst. Anyway, I think they managed to give at least some idea of the various relationships between the characters, even if just a sketch outline, but that's not too bad for the ground covered.

Kolins' art is pretty much how I remember it from the last time I saw it, whenever that was. Maybe a little less busy with faces than before, which is fine. I actually thought Amparo (Brenda's aunt) looked drawn in a different style from everyone else, even smoother and more simplified, which could be something significant. Could just be my imagination. A lot of panels per page early in the issue, a some decent variety in layouts, which is a good call for extended sequences of talking. Plus, it makes the point when you turn the page and get the full page splash of Jaime in the armor more effective. I also noticed that in the panel where the armor starts to form some sort of gun, before Jaime alters its aim, the gun partially goes outside the panel borders, to that area that's full of black dots on a white background on practically every page. Again, could be something, given what Dr. Fate's selling, could be nothing.

Solid start, regardless. I'm on board for awhile.

31 Days of Scans - Day 26

Favorite Person of Color character day. Hmm, should I use a different term? "Favorite character who isn't a honky?" "Favorite non-Caucasian character"?

This should by all rights be Cassandra Cain, but I opted to go with Amanda Waller. For one, I already highlighted Cass in "Favorite Legacy Character", and second, I got some images of a scene I wanted to post when I highlighted Waller for my Favorite Characters posts last year.

This is from Suicide Squad Annual #1. Waller's come back to her apartment looking to take a breather from Tolliver and Senator Cray trying to blackmail her, and finds the doorman has let her daughter Sereetha into her home. Waller comments that she hadn't heard anything from her in over a year, and Sereetha grumbles about her mother's tendency to keep score. I can imagine have the Wall for a mom could have been tough. She would have done all she could, but I'd bet she'd expect you to do things how she wanted them done. It's about this point we learn why Sereetha's there: She's left her husband, because he's very much a "I'm the man and my word is law" kind of guy.

I love Waller's 'Oh, that book,' response. She's speaking from experience, but I wonder whether it's the dopes like Sarge Steel and Eiling she's thinking of, or if her husband was fool enough to try that on her. If so, I suspect he only did so once. As you can see, R.J. has arrived, expecting his wife to come home because he says so. When Waller learns her daughter is not only not going back to her husband, but plans to move in with Mama, she takes it as well as you'd suspect.

Those bottom two panels may be my favorite Amanda Waller scene ever. The ridiculous size disparity (are we sure R.J.'s a linebacker, dude looks like a damn O-lineman), Waller's head barely making it into the panel, and calling R.J. first an overgrown piece of beef jerky, and then 'chump change'. Prior to Suicide Squad, I had never seen that used as an insult, but I love it. Waller busts it out again later on Apokolips to refer to Granny Goodness and the Furies. Plus, of course, the threat to move in and make R.J.'s life miserable if he doesn't shape up. Cripes, Amanda Waller as a live-in mother-in-law? I'd say it sounds like a sitcom, but American Horror Story might be a more appropriate show.

For the record, the story ends with the couple leaving together, duly chastened, and Waller promising her daughter that she probably won't get Joe the Doorman fired for sending people up to her apartment without her say-so. Then Joe turned out to be a member of Kobra and everyone died. Kidding. I like this as one of those comedy bits Ostrander used to keep the book from getting too bleak, and also as a peek at Waller's life outside Task Force X. The reminder that she's a regular, everyday person like you or me, but has taken a position of considerable power and influence by will few can match (not to mention intelligence. Waller isn't a super-scientist, but she's smart, and she's sneaky. She sees the angles, and knows when to play them).

This story was written by John Ostrander, Keith Giffen and Bob Oksner are listed as artists, Carl Gafford is the colorist, and Todd Klein the letterer.

31 Days of Scans - Day 21

Favorite Event? Easy-peasy. Acts of Vengeance merited some brief consideration, but there’s really one only choice.

ANNIHILATION!

This event showed up at just the right time, when Civil War was making me sick of all the nonsense going on with Marvel Earth. I had no interest in watching alleged heroes punch each other over legislation, seeing the New Warriors dumped on, or watching Spider-Man reveal his identity to the world like a moron. On the other hand, give me a story that presents Annihilus as this terrible, single-minded threat to the entire universe, but has actually marshaled his considerable forces so he might actually carry out his goals?

Then throw in Thanos, who is helping Annihilus pretty much because he was bored and wanted to see what would happen if things got shook up a little. Of course they can’t trust each other. Annihilus trusts no one, is dead set on his plans, with the power to back them up. Thanos is more circuitous in his approach, always with contingencies, but no less powerful. Neither one would really like how the other's plans would turn out, where they to learn of them. That doesn’t mean they can’t cause a lot of damage before the partnership falls to pieces. Combine a being clever enough to bargain with two ancient beings to defeat Galactus, and also smart enough to turn Big G into a weapon, with a being crazy enough to actually use said planet-destroying weapon, and it’s bad for everyone.

So bad in fact, Kree and Skrull willingly teamed up. Ronan and Kl’rt weren’t happy about it (well, Super-Skrull enjoyed killing Kree traitors), but they did it. This whole part, where Ronan, Super-Skrull, and Praxagora storm the current ruling house of the Kree and find them negotiating a truce with the Annihilation Wave, leading to Ronan pretty much killing everyone and assuming control. Then he launches entire rocket-propelled city blocks loaded with Kree soldiers at the Wave. And all that’s really a sideshow to what Galactus was up to, and what Nova was about to face.

I know I cut part of that off, but I do like the jabs at what was going on with Civil War. 'It's as if they've forgotten how to be heroes.' 'The Annihilation Wave will rip the planet out from under them while they shoot at each other!' This was the point when Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning’s stretch writing Richard Rider began (they wrote the Annihilation: Nova mini-series, though Keith Giffen wrote the main series, and the above scene). Rich finds himself the last of the Nova Corps, carrying all the Corps’ power and knowledge, without going crazy, and save all life in the universe. Even if that means dying trying to take out Annihilus. Though that's still not a very good costume for Rich.

There’s a fantastic sense of momentum to the whole thing. Super-Skrull comes back from an apparently noble death in his tie-in mini-series, and there’s only enough time to vaguely handwave in the general direction of an explanation, because things have gotten even worse for the good guys. It wasn’t enough Annihilus had an army of millions or more bugs, or that the Negative Zone has its own super-humans, willing to fight for what they’ve been told is the survival of their home. The odds keep ramping up, and the heroes have to try a different approach. It plays up the idea that Earth’s heroes, normally such a potent force in these sorts of things, are too distracted with stupid crap to be of much help. Reed Richards isn’t going to pop-up with some doodad to reverse the polarity and toss the Annihilation Wave back into the Negative Zone, or disrupt the hive mind of the Wave. Drax is working for the United Front, killing lots of bugs, but it’s very clear it’s all a means to an end for him, Thanos’ end, which isn’t as good a thing as you’d think.

Oh, and this is the mini-series that introduced me to Cammi, at that point claiming ownership of Drax (she’d gained that in an earlier mini-series Giffen wrote I’d missed). Their whole relationship is a little strange, and it’s hard to say how much of what people imply is concern for her on Drax’ part is just projection on theirs. The ambiguity is interesting.

Things mostly work out. The day is saved. Most of the characters get happy endings of a sort, even Thanos (his doesn’t stick, but oh well, it was nice while it lasted). It sets things up for Nova’s ongoing, put Star-Lord back in circulation (Giffen sort of started that with his stint on Thanos, but this got Quill out of the prison and into action), which eventually led to Guardians of the Galaxy (I’m thinking of Abnett and Lanning’s version, but if you want to envision Bendis’, or the movie, that’s your call). It was always disappointing there was never enough time between events to really explore the new status quo (Annihilation: Conquest kicked off about six months after Annihilation ended), but that isn’t the fault of the event itself. I thought it put a lot of potential fodder for stories out there, even if it didn’t get used.

All images are from the primary Annihilation #1-6 mini-series, by Keith Giffen (writer), Andrea DiVito (artist), Laura Villari (color artist), and Cory Petit (letterer).