Beverly Cleary, Grendel, New comics

Beverly Cleary passed away yesterday at the age of 104.  Her Ramona books were a staple of my childhood, and I can’t wait to share them with my daughter.  Through Ramona Quimby, Cleary illustrated the huge gap between how children and adults think, and how painful and isolating a grownup’s inability to understand a kid’s point of view can be.  I shared the acute sense of injustice that Ramona often felt when she got into trouble - while things may technically have been her fault, there were always mitigating circumstances that no one else saw.  

That spoke to me, and it’s something I hope I remember as my daughter grows up.

Thanks for the joy and understanding you brought to my life, Mrs. Cleary.

New comics!

Taskmaster 5

The twist isn’t all that twisty, but that’s fine.  What’s awesome to discover is that even with all his abilities, Taskmaster still isn’t a match for Black Widow.  That’s as it should be.

Captain Marvel 27

I was done with this series after the departure of Lee Garbett on art, but this issue is just too delightful to pass up; Carol’s friends help her deal with her breakup with Rhodey, to hilarious effect.  It’s so much fun.  Enough so that I might have to keep getting this for a little while longer.  

Grendel: Devils and Deaths 1-2

Grendel: Devil’s Choices 1-4

Oh my god, Darko Macan and Edvin Biukovic are an amazing team.  They have the terrifying ability to make you care about characters right before tearing their lives apart.  The result is a phenomenal pair of stories that just barely missed the Pure Joy rating.  Probably the third best Grendel story I’ve read after the original Devil by the Deed and the first Batman/Grendel.  

Mega spoilers in the 3 images below.

Heartbreaking.

Even more heartbreak.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Really good

Grendel vs Shadow 1-3

Shadow: Death of Margo Lane 1-5

More things written and drawn by later-period Matt Wagner.  I’m realizing that I bought these based on the reputation he made earlier in his career, and that he hasn’t done anything beyond Nice for a while.  Also, I don’t find the Shadow to be that interesting of a character.  He’s a mix of Batman, Chow Yun Fat, and Sherlock Holmes, with overly dramatic monologues and a cheesy laugh.  Not for me.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Grendel/Batman II 1-2

I’m saving Grendel/Batman I for the last of my Grendel books to read, it’s just so darn good.  This one’s pretty good, but it’s a ton of fights without the cerebral nature that elevated its predecessor.

Sweet Batman.

Sweeter Robin.

But then again, Wagner's always been good at the Dynamic Duo.

Love the way Robin's sitting.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Grendel

Grendel: Four Devils, One Hell 1-6

An entertaining story by a young James Robinson, with some gorgeously atmospheric art by Teddy Kristiansen.  Not much actually happens - the four main characters spend five issues converging on the same location to trigger the massive, bloody denouement.  But it’s masterfully told with likable protagonists who also look super cool, and that’s more than enough for this story.

The collector.

The knight.

The gambler.  (Love his hat!)

The private eye.  (He totally does deserve it.)

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Grendel: Devil May Care 1-6

I’ve never heard of Terry LaBan, and a search reveals him to be an indie comic/comic strip writer.  I wish he’d do more stuff, because his work here is quite good.  He puts his characters through the ringer, and by the end, it’s only a question of whether it’s going to end poorly or tragically for the leads.  

I also wish artist Peter Doherty did more work outside of 2000 AD.  He’s got a European style that I really like.  

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Grendel, New comics, New movies

New comic!

Nightwing 78

I’ll buy anything new by Tom Taylor at this point.  This is a wonderful, heartwarming first issue for him and Bruno Redondo.  Some beautiful moments for Dick with Barbara Gordon, Alfred, and a puppy.  Can’t wait for more.

Lovely.  Great colors by Adriano Lucas.

New movie!

Invictus

A movie about the South African rugby team winning the World Cup at the very beginning of Nelson Mandela’s presidency.  It’s not a good sign when what’s ostensibly a sports movie is more interesting during the political bits.  I’d actually watch a full movie of Morgan Freeman as Mandela running South Africa.  

Director Clint Eastwood fails to engender any interest in the players.  I had zero investment in their success, and would have been just as happy if they’d lost.  Even worse, the rugby side fails because the action is horribly filmed.  The final match feels interminable. There’s no tension, and because Eastwood does nothing to explain the rules of the game, it’s hard to tell what’s going on.  It’s a complete fail all around.  Watch Miracle to see how to pull off an excellent sports final.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: No

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Fine  

Grendel 24-33

The Eppy Thatcher Grendel.  There’s more Orion Assante and less Eppy than I remember, which is a good thing; Matt Wagner is much better writing political scheming than batshit crazy internal monologues (Also the weak points of all the previous issues).  Another weak point is the prominent positioning of all the vampire stuff.  None of that is interesting to me.  Still, it’s fun to read the set up for Orion’s march to power in the next arc.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Didn’t suck

Grendel 34-40

Matt Wagner is so skilled at these narrated histories; This and Devil by the Deed are among his strongest works ever.  (His other strength is the illustrated screenplay, with Grendel 16-17 and Batman/Grendel.)  This is a gripping political thriller, as Orion Assante navigates his way through the minefields of international intrigue.  Tim Sale isn’t TIM SALE yet (that comes with Long Halloween), but his work is well suited for the story.  Super well done.  

The vampires in Vegas backups are completely forgettable.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Grendel: War Child 1-10

Very Lone Wolf and Cub as Grendel Prime keeps Jupiter Assante safe until he comes of age.  On the other side of things, Laurel Assante slowly goes crazy in a number of humorous ways.  A nice continuation of the original series.  

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Grendel: Devil Quest

A collection of backup stories where a number of interested parties hunt Grendel Prime.  None of it matters, since he teleports off to Batman/Grendel II.  Kind of a waste of time, but Wagner’s art is pretty good.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Grendel: Devil in our Midst 1-5

Whiteout, but with Grendel.  It’s unremarkable, but not bad.  I’m on the fence about keeping it, which means it stays.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Fine

Grendel

Grendel: Devil Child 1-2

So dark, the life of Stacy Palumbo is a tragedy from start to finish.  Her rape is particularly horrifying, and difficult to read.  Tim Sale’s art is a perfect match for Diana Schutz’s heart-aching script.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Grendel: Behold the Devil 0-8

Surprisingly mediocre for a Matt Wagner written/pencilled comic, especially one starring Hunter Rose.  The introduction of the demon sprite thing and Grendel’s vision of the future takes things a step too far.  

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Fine

Grendel: Black, White, and Red 1-4

Grendel Red, White, and Black 1-2

Did Batman: Black and White start the whole anthology using only a few colors trend?  These issues, all written by Matt Wagner, have a hit rate of about one good story per issue.  Not a good batting average, though the hits that do happen go for extra bases.  (Tim Sale’s lawyer story in issue 1, David Mack’s in issue 2, the editor story in issue 3, and Jason Martin’s art in issue 4 of BWR)  

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Fine

Grendel 1-12

Blech.  So much doesn’t work for this story.  I like how it builds on Christine Spar, ‘author’ of the original Grendel tale.  I get how her son’s kidnapping and murder would drive her over the edge and turn her into Grendel.  But she drops her vendetta against Tujiro without even killing him.  Then, when she gets back home, a little police harassment is enough to set her off against Argent.  The irrationality annoys me greatly.

Even worse is the abysmal artwork by the Pander Brothers.  Was Comico that hard up for competent artists?  It’s really so bad.  

The one bit of Pander Brothers art that I like.

Wagner, of course, draws an amazing Christine Spar.

There’s a story in here that’s actually pretty good.  But it doesn’t need to be stretched out over 12 issues, and it really needs a better artist.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Didn’t suck

Grendel 13-15

At least the motivation for Brian Li Sung makes a little more sense.  Wagner, artist Bernie Mireault, and letterer Bob Pinaha do a good job of conveying how New York City and the people in his life slowly drive him crazy.  I also like how Brian’s Grendel is completely incompetent.  It’s a neat contrast to the hyper-capable Hunter Rose.  

Despite that, though, I didn’t really enjoy my time reading this.  Reading about people slowly going insane with little to show for it (for both Christine and Brian) feels pointless.  I don’t get anything out of it from an entertainment point of view.  

Just some ad art that I really like.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Fine

Grendel 16-17

This is what I’m talking about - Peak Wagner art/story.  This detective story is told in a 20-panel grid on each page, only breaking from the format for dramatic punctuation.

The first time Wagner breaks the grid.

I skip a few pages, but Grendel's head gets bigger and bigger...

...over the course of six pages...

...until he makes his grand entrance...

...in dramatic fashion.  His costume is so clean and wonderful.

It’s gorgeously done, and the mystery is well told in a clear, compelling manner.  I’ve read this story numerous times, and it never gets old.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Really good

Grendel 18-19

The story of Tommy Nuncio, a character mentioned in two panels of Devil by the Deed.  It’s drawn like a comic with notes for the artist along the top, an interesting experiment that unfortunately slows reading down to a crawl.  As with the previous story, Wagner adheres to a strict panel layout throughout that maximizes the claustrophobia that Nuncio’s experiencing.  

Tall, thin, compressed panels.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Grendel 20-23

A mess of an arc that shows how the spirit of Grendel has passed through 400 years of human history, or something like that.  It’s incomprehensible, a slog to read, and completely unfun.  I'd cut it if I wasn't keeping the series intact.

So far, this original Grendel series is exactly as I remember it - Not that good except for the previous four Wagner issues and the final spectacular arc with Orion Assante (the only ones I read over and over.)

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: No

Rating: Disliked

Valiant Comics, Grendel, New comics

New comics!

Doctor Doom 6-10

I ordered this trade before I’d read the first one.  Based off the first five issues, I wouldn’t have kept going.  Thankfully, the tail end of this series is a lot better than the first.  Doom’s visions of himself as the leader of a world utopia are finally explained, and they set up an amazing character study that tragically explains why he will never ultimately win.  I was doubting the hype around writer Christopher Cantwell for most of this run, but the ending’s convinced me to keep an eye out for more of his stuff.

That is indeed the proper reaction to someone riding a bear.

That last line is so Doom

Misc box 8 actually finished with the end of Walking Dead.

Box summary

Time spent reading: 23 hours 35 minutes

Issues read: 295

Issues cut: 12

Highlights (Good or better): All of Walking Dead

Project Summary:

Time spent reading: 34 days, 16 hours, 12 minutes

Issues read: 7235

Issues cut: 856

Delinquents 1-4

I liked the Archer and Armstrong trade.  I find Quantum and Woody to be pretty amusing.  A team-up between the two duos in search of a hobo treasure sounds like the perfect, light-hearted jaunt I’d be in the market for.

Utter fail.  There are moments of levity, but the story left me completely bored.  Easy cut.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: No

Rating: Boring (Cut)

X-O Manowar 1-8

A perfect example of replacement level entertainment.  I enjoyed my time reading it, would read it again, but will never go out of my way to do it.  

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Grendel: Devil by the Deed

I love this comic every single time that I read it.  More an illustrated novella than a comic, this Matt Wagner creation is the beginning of an epic, amazing saga of evil and comic book mastery.  And to think he started this at nineteen years of age.  The art is gorgeous with its art deco motifs, and the writing is utterly captivating.  I rarely have patience for such large blocks of text in comics (see: Alan Moore’s later LoEG), but I’ll read this stuff all day long.

Love the body language on Larry

Sweet wheel of death.

So pretty.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pure joy