Comic Books and Graphic Novels

You guys! You guys! The cover for the fourth printing of Sex Criminals #1 is fucking glorious! I already own that issue, but I'm buying it again just for that cover. Well played, Sex Criminals. Well played.

That really is hilarious.

Also: I need the artists to get the fuck on with Hawkeye already. This "one issue in four months" routine is bullshit. Especially since I figure Fraction's probably not long for that book, either.

laddical wrote:That really is hilarious.

Also: I need the artists to get the fuck on with Hawkeye already. This "one issue in four months" routine is bullshit. Especially since I figure Fraction's probably not long for that book, either.

Why not? Because they took him off Inhuman? Not sure why that would effect Hawkeye.

It just feels like this might be the start of a falling out.

I've read the first two issues of Velvet by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting, and they're pretty great so far. The main character is a Moneypenny-type character in a spy agency who used to be a kickass field agent, but when the story opens she's an admin assistant - sort of a 'still waters run deep' type. Then an ex-lover, also a spy, is killed and someone tries to frame her for it. The main character is an older woman, and is drawn looking her age, but it's also implied that she has a healthy sex life. It's very refreshing, and I highly recommend it.

I've also read the first three issues of Pretty Deadly, which as Raksha pointed out above, is a supernatural western. It's beautifully drawn by Emma Rios. I didn't really like her work in Captain Marvel, but her style really works here.

Also reading Lazarus, by Greg Rucka. It's set in the future when a handful of rich family-owned corporations run the world (or the US at least), and each family has a Lazarus, which is a bodyguard / enforcer security type who is unkillable. When I first read the premise it gave me a bit of a Painkiller Jane vibe, but I think the similarity ends there. Also recommended.

'I Do Not Have an Eating Disorder' is an ongoing comic on tumblr about one woman's experience dealing with...wait for it...an eating disorder. And depression, self-harm, and suicidal feelings. It's really, really good! The art is great and the subject matter is extremely honest and emotional.

(Hat tip to io9!)

Did anyone else go to Free Comic Book Day at their local comic book shops? I couldn't believe Archaia put out a hard cover for their free offering! It worked, though. I grabbed it, when I probably wouldn't have before (and I'd have regretted it, since there are Labyrinth and Farscape stories in there!). I also got the Guardians of the Galaxy and Rocket Raccoon ones for myself. And since it was 3 per person, I brought my mom along and she got me the Deadly Class and the Rise of the Magi ones and got the New 52 Futures End for herself.

And since I was there, I snatched up the first Pretty Deadly trade. w00t! Can't wait to start reading!

I went! And my local comic shop (two blocks away) had no limit, so I got every single issue. The owner always says shops that have limits just don't order enough. (In the past, I've found shops are mixed bags. A couple have had no limits, a couple have had 2 or 3 book limits.)

I'm so torn on Uncanny X-Men right now.  I'm enjoying it because this is the most I've enjoyed Cyclops probably ever.  I'm super excited about the concept of a splinter team of more militant X-Men and I love love love the cast of characters.

I'm weirdly annoyed that Bendis refuses to get Cyclops and Emma back together (I didn't realize how much I loved them until I learned I couldn't have them back).  And I'm getting annoyed by the constant repetition of "the team shows up somewhere/gets attacked by sentinels/SHIELD shows up/they escape."  Also, I'm getting really fucking sick of the rest of the X-Men's unbelievable hypocrisy over what Cyclops (and the others) did while possessed by the Phoenix.  So, Jean annihilates a planet full of people, but that's fine, no one cares.  But Phoenix!Cyclops kills one dude and people are acting like it's the end of the world and that unpossessed Cyclops is personally responsible for it.  In the latest issue, after Cyclops passed out, Beast was even like (not a direct quote) "I'm going to study you and if I learn something, you'll finally be useful for the first time in your life" and I started shrieking.  Like, FUCK YOU, Hank McCoy, you unbelievably arrogant asshole!  Not only has Cyclops saved the entire world about a billionty times, but YOU BROKE TIME AND TORE HOLES IN THE FABRIC OF REALITY AND IT'S KIND OF COLLAPSING NOW!  FUCK YOUUUUUU!!  (I hate Beast now.  Not just for this, but he's just unbearable)

So I guess that means I want someone other than Bendis to write the book and keep the same premise and characters?  Hm.

ETA: But keep Bachalo on pencils, because I adore him.

Mr. Algae and Plankton saw X-men this weekend. Plankton now wants to read some X-men comics; any suggestions where an 8 year old could start?

Ooh, an 8-year-old. You might want to read these recommendations first yourself because I don't have kids, I don't have any in-person interactions with other people's kids, and I don't know your kid personally. But I'll do my best:

The current adjectiveless X-Men is pretty straight forward. It's fairly uncomplicated and not weighed down by lots of twisty continuity and intrigue.

I've only read the first few trades of Wolverine and the X-Men, but it's pretty light in tone and quite funny at times. Plus it features a lot of younger characters because of the centrality of the school to the book. However, there is one thing that I remember that a kid might find disturbing:

Spoiler:

All-New X-Men is pretty charming, if your kid isn't going to be bothered by two sets of the same characters. Beast brings the original 5 X-Men forward to, he says, prevent a genocide (which is a bit heavy, but that's hard to avoid since all the X-books are still dealing with the fallout from the super dark AvX).

The new Cyclops solo series follows the young Cyclops who got pulled forward as he just discovers his dad is alive and is a space pirate. They're going on an intergalactic road trip while Cyclops tries to figure out who he is and what kind of man he wants to grow up to be. Only one issue has come out so far, but I was surprised by how much I liked it and how fun it seems like it's going to be.

Skip Uncanny, it's pretty burdened by recent traumatic continuity and the team is pretty extreme and a lot of other characters (wrongly, in my opinion) consider them terrorists. That might be a bit confusing and worrying for younger kids to read.

Thanks! This is a great starting point.

I have an amazon.com gift card and I'm in a Superman graphic novel mood. Does anyone have any recommendations for one or two good ones?

QueenSix, I'm not much of a Superman reader, but I recently read 'Grounded' and enjoyed it. Superman goes on a walking tour of the US, basically. Being that I'm not a Superman reader I don't know how it compares to other stories, but I enjoyed it. I just realised how late this reply is, sorry!

I recently read the first volume of Pretty Deadly. It is pretty much a complete story in itself, and the art and writing is just beautiful, they really complement each other. If you have the opportunity to read it, go for it.

Has anyone else read Saga? It's fantastic. I just read Volume 1 and I'm hooked.

Yes! It gets better, if you can believe that. It's fantastic.

Yes! I've read Vol. 1 and it was great, but it's been kind of a nightmare trying to get the other volumes from my local libraries. Why is everyone only reading Vol. 2?? So annoying!

Okay, so I've started reading comics again. Is there a site that tells you release dates? I've found a couple for the next week, but what about for a month or more?

I think each publisher releases lists of solicits for each month. They usually post them or have links to them on Comics Alliance.

Has anyone else read A Boy and a Girl? I want to talk about it, but I can't talk about it without spoiling it!

No I haven't, but it sounds very interesting! It's going on the list.

I finally got around to reading the X-Men: No More Humans graphic novel and it was alright. I really liked the ideas in it, but it could have been longer and used that room to really explore those ideas more than we got. Also, the adults from the Jean Grey School are insufferable now. Especially Storm, Wolverine, and Beast. Extra especially Beast. Among other things, that motherfucker stole kids from the past and screwed around with time so much he BROKE it and there's, like, tears in the fabric of reality so big characters from other publishers are falling through! And don't even get me started on both Storm and Wolverine's raging hypocrisy.

Anyway.

Is anyone else reading Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie's The Wicked + The Divine? It's soooo good! So very good. I'm a big fan of McKelvie's art. It's so clean and stylish and he's the master of facial expressions. I would have checked this out anyway, just because I'm such a fan of this team's Young Avengers run, but I'm actually super into this premise all on its own. It hits a lot of my story kinks. Gods as pop stars? With a looming doom and a bigger mystery thrown in? Yes. Sign me up.

Has anyone read their Phonogram books? Worth checking out?

Have you guys seen the Dazzler cosplay/MUSIC VIDEO???  That is some dedicated geekery! Loved the Longshot cameo.

That's pretty cool. Good find!

Related, I've been reading All New and Uncanny. Without having read the last Phoenix story, it looks to me like Scott is in the right. He was possessed by the Phoenix, which was inflicted on him by Tony Stark's actions. Of course, no one will acknowledge that, even when called on it. One of the tropes of the X-Men is that they never get any credit, only blame.

Related, at no point does he ever go the full Magneto. He's running around rescuing mutants, not threatening regular humans. At least, humans who are minding their own businesses, and not threatening mutants. He's not trying to take over the world either. The other teams should be supporting him. But again, never the credit. Scott, being one of the first X-Men, gets that even more than the others.

However, his choice of allies isn't entirely helping his image. You're never going to look like a hero when you have Emma Frost and Magneto on your team.

Y'know what would be interesting? If he faked his death for a while, see what Storm and Wolverine say about his views once they think he's gone. My bet is that they'd start the lighter side of his recent behaviour. Of course, the problem with that is that as soon as he was revealed as alive, they'd suddenly snap back to their previous views.

Finally, I don't like his current costume. When I first saw it, I thought it was Daredevil. Now I just think it's stupid.

Opinions, all?

Red Wolf wrote:Related, I've been reading All New and Uncanny. Without having read the last Phoenix story, it looks to me like Scott is in the right. He was possessed by the Phoenix, which was inflicted on him by Tony Stark's actions. Of course, no one will acknowledge that, even when called on it. One of the tropes of the X-Men is that they never get any credit, only blame.

I have read the last Phoenix story and that's exactly right! Cyclops is in the right, and was in the right when Tony Stark and Captain America showed up trying to imprison Hope. That whole shit storm was their fault, particularly Captain America's, and neither Scott nor any of the other Phoenix Five were in control of their actions after they were possessed. I mean, nobody blamed Jean when she ate that planet full of billions of people under the Phoenix influence. But Wolverine doesn't want to fuck Scott, so Scott is a villain forever and ever for killing one dude. So obnoxious. Suuuuper annoyed by all of Wolverine's and Storm's hypocrisy.

But yeah, you're right, it's hard to look like a hero when you've got Magneto on the team. Which may be part of why he's not on the team anymore. But Emma's been a hero for longer than she was a villain, so I think that's fine.

On a related note, I want a Cyclops Was Right and a Magneto Made Some Valid Points shirt.

On a related related note, I can't remember if I've pimped the Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men podcast, but if you haven't heard it yet, it's amazing.