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Review: The Wrong Earth #1

Although most of my reading pile goes back 10 years or so, I do often pull books “forward” if I’m sufficiently interested. This review is for such a book, especially because I wanted to alert you to it before it disappears off the shelves.

Today’s book, The Wrong Earth #1, comes from a new company called Ahoy Comics. If you’re like me, you’re probably thinking, “Another new publisher in today’s crowded market?”, but maybe we should give these guys a chance, as they’ve set sail with a number of quality creators we don’t see often enough.

The Wrong Earth is written by Tom Peyer, co-creator of one of my very favorite series, DC’s Hourman (Trust me, if you haven’t read it, do so!). Tom used to do a lot of work with fellow writers like Mark Waid and Grant Morrison; he never quite ascended to their level of popularity, but he always delivered solid stories. Admittedly, I’m predisposed to like his work – and I do here as well. The art is by Jamal Igle (from DC’s Firestorm), another somewhat unsung but excellent penciller. Here he does a very nice job of world(s)-building.

The story centers around a parallel Earth premise where 2 superbeings – one a hero, and his doppleganger, a villain – trade places. Obviously this isn’t a new scenario, but the fun is in how it’s handled and how it diverts from what you might expect. I don’t want to spoil it, so let’s just say it’s very well done, different enough to be interesting, and I definitely want to see what’s going to happen next.

The book also contains some back-up features:

A Golden Age style story featuring “Stinger” (the main hero’s sidekick). Perhaps inconsequential, but fun.
A prose story – or more aptly stated, a segment of a prose story – by Grant Morrison. I love much of his work, but sometimes – often in his creator-owned output – he is too far out even for me. This is one of those cases so far. I have no idea what this story is about or where it’s going. Perhaps it will become clearer in the future.
A one-page “Too Much Coffee Man” cartoon by Shannon Wheeler. Strange as it may seem, this was my introduction to his work. Okay, I guess, but I’m not sure why this was (is?) so popular.
Bios / articles about Ahoy, Peyer and fellow Ahoy writer (and former fellow Vertigo editor and writer) Stuart Moore. Informative and entertaining.

The Wrong Earth #1 is a very well done package, with quality work by talented creators. In an era where the last thing I’m looking for is an addition to my pull list, I do plan to buy the next issue. I suggest you give it a try!

Rating: 4

Review: Salvation Run #s 1-7: Run, Reader, Run!

DC never fails to amaze me with the way they milk their major events with a plethora of meaningless, related mini-series. Salvation Run is one such series, but in this case the cow is dry.

It’s painfully obvious that the setup for this book was: “We need to put out more books. Let’s send all the villains to another planet, let ’em fight, and then have them all return back to Earth at the end. 7 issues, $21. Bang!”

In other words, Salvation Run is a pointless cash grab with virtually no impact on the characters or the DC Universe.

I approached this series with some optimism due to it being written by Bill Willingham, creator of the inspired Vertigo series Fables. However, the premise here is much too pedestrian to leverage his talents. Bill wisely departed this dog after the second issue, turning the reins over to his protege, Matthew Sturges (these days known as Lila Sturges). Hey, it’s a paycheck, right?

The pencils are by Mike Chen. Let’s be polite: I am very much not a fan of his style. I find his work to be very stiff, and his character poses lack dynamism. Dare I say it? I find his work boring. See example (right)!

The only thing that distinguishes this series is the occasional brutality these villains exhibit. The beat the HELL out of each other, to the point of killing their own (don’t worry, I’m sure they’ll be resurrected, they always are). The villains seem to have a dislike of anyone with a visible brain. Witness the Joker’s smashing of Psimon’s cranial containment unit, and the way Grodd uses The Brain to pummel and kill his adversary Monsieur Moolah!

I have to admit I did love seeing DC return to the days of putting a gorilla on a cover to boost sales. I can just hear the editorial conference: “If one gorilla is good, TWO is even better!” Then again, look at the art – yuck!

To add insult to injury, the last issue costs more than the rest and features not one but TWO terrible covers (see carousel): The first, by Chen, features a wretched, bloody Luthor – I mean look at that face! You could live on his thick upper lip – and the variant features an equally bloody, disgusting Joker. It’s truly cringe worthy, but when you realize it’s by the once genius Neal Adams, I just wanted this thing to be over.

Rating: 1 Star!

Review: Robin / Spoiler Special #1

As mentioned on my “About Me” page, I am basically 10 years behind in my reading. I do bring books I’m very interested in forward, but by and large I am presently reading books from August 2008 in September 2018. That means I am 3 years away from the launch of DC’s “New 52”! Good Lord!

Still, I press on. Today’s book is:

Robin / Spoiler Special #1, DC Comics, August 2008.

The first story, “Puddles”, was written by Chuck Dixon, drawn by Rafael Albuquerque, colored by Cris Peter, lettered by Sal Cipriano, and edited by Jeanine Schaffer.

Going back this far in time, Tim Drake is still Robin. I’ve always thought he was a decent Robin and overall character – much better than that why-didn’t-he-stay-dead? reprobate Jason Todd. He’s (obviously) joined by Stephanie Brown, aka Spoiler, another juvenile acrobat trained by Batman, who has recently reappeared in Gotham after a long absence. She is a perennial “fan favorite”, as they say, and often requested to return to today’s DC continuity. Though for the life of me, I can’t remember her back story at all! Based upon this story, however, I was not impressed enough to join their ranks.

This story basically has the two protagonists on the hunt for a missing

little girl. They save her from the bad guys and all is well. Dixon’s story is coherent and professional, but doesn’t really distinguish itself. Albuquerque’s art is similarly competent but not spectacular. I was annoyed by his habit of delineating Robin’s teeth in long shots that make it look like he is a bucktoothed goon (see image)!

The second story, “Katavi”, was also written by Dixon, lettered by Cipriano, and edited by Schaffer, but with full color art by Victor Ibanez.

This is a Spoiler solo story. Apparently it precedes the first story, in that Stephanie is in Africa assisting Dr. Leslie Thompkins on a vaccination mission. For some reason I am unaware of, she is on a mission of personal redemption. She adopts the guise of Katavi, the local devil, to fight the ignorance of militant tribesmen resisting Dr. Thompkin’s efforts – thus saving the village. She then decides to embrace her Spoilerhood and return to Gotham.

Once again, this is all “okay, but not spectacular”.

Overall rating? 3 Stars (Good, but ultimately forgettable)

The Secret Origins of My Comic Book Addiction, Part 2

In my previous post, I related how I got started reading (and to a limited degree, collecting) comics. I also stressed how normal and typical this was for any kid growing up in the 50’s and 60’s. What, then, turbo-charged my interest from an average reader into an obsessed collector?

In order to answer this, I must first digress to provide a brief explanation about periodical distribution in that era:

Magazines are delivered to stores by a network of distributors. The stores are expected to pay their distributor for copies sold, and they receive a credit for copies unsold. Rather than return the full unsold copies (which would be costly, heavy, and a pain) the store owner would rip off and return the top fourth of the book’s cover for credit. Tidy and efficient, right?

Back to our story: My dad had a friend named Joe Teague. Joe’s parents owned a drug store in Indiana, and they had a problem – what to do with the piles of “returned” comics flooding the back room of their store? Joe decided to help his parents out by regularly taking those books and giving them to me when he visited! Due to his generosity, my supply chain experienced exponential growth. On an average visit, he would deliver 3 0r 4 two-foot stacks of comics to my room. Sure, they weren’t in mint condition, and yes, there were a lot of doubles, and certainly many of them were dogs (such as Timmy the Timid Ghost, above, and many other Charltons), but to a little kid it was comics nirvana!

I can still recall happily sitting inside a “fort” made from stacks of these comics, without a care in the world. Life was good!

Anyway, I attribute my comic book addiction to this deep immersion therapy, and I have remained in its thrall to this day.

The Secret Origins of My Comic Book Addiction, Part 1

How, dear reader, did your humble correspondent get hooked on these four color wonders?

Well, first you have to realize that in the 50’s and 60’s comics were readily available, cheap, and virtually all kids read them. While reliable distribution of titles was spotty and inconsistent at best, you could find them at drug stores, newsstands, the Mom & Pop stores so prevalent on the East Coast, super markets, “5 and 10” stores such as Woolworth’s, department stores, and even as giveaways at the shoe store! Almost every kid had some to read, share or trade.

I was no different. I was a somewhat sickly child, so I paid frequent visits to the doctor. The wait was interminable, so my mother would allow me to buy a small pile of comics to read while we waited. After some time the books occupied a place of honor on my bedroom bookshelf. This was the start of my collection!

Alas, it was not to be. Each time my pile grew to about 6 inches, my mother would make me get rid of them and start anew. She considered them – as did most people, to be fair – to be throwaway material, no different from the movie star periodicals she enjoyed. Clutter was to be avoided in the well-kept home of the Postwar Era!

But even at the age of 5, I resisted to the degree possible. I told myself, “I’m gonna get those again some day!” Little did I realize this would become my life’s mission.

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