I read this pretty much in a single afternoon which is always the way with a graphic novel even if you want to make space for it. The beauty of BechdeI read this pretty much in a single afternoon which is always the way with a graphic novel even if you want to make space for it. The beauty of Bechdel's Fun Home was that it lived on as a cultural moment and then as a Broadway musical that was its own thing extending the sense of delight and charm of the original. I'm not sure this will have the same kind of cultural impact, but it's more measured, better composed and much funnier than that earlier work. I genuinely laughed at some of the panels here with many but not all of the jokes coming at Alison Bechdel's character's expense. The image of a middle-aged man going downstairs to the kitchen wearing nothing but his yellow Crocs was simultaneously hilarious and a clear warning-to-self. There is a lot of joy to be found in these pages even if it is unlikely to linger. Spent is time well spent....more
Sometimes with a graphic novel the gaps between the panels are too wide. I mean that too much is asked of the reader and not enough work has been doneSometimes with a graphic novel the gaps between the panels are too wide. I mean that too much is asked of the reader and not enough work has been done by the writer. This is a 70s homage so a badass self-sufficient bombshell goes undercover as a prostitute to uncover the truth about her sister's murder. It's all a bit of an excuse for some nudity, some conspiracy and a couple of brutal murders. I don't think it really added up to much even if I appreciate what it was trying to do....more
Less manic in some ways than Way's run, but still a fair amount of bonkers with extra supernatural stuff. This edition had a great Hawkeye miniseries Less manic in some ways than Way's run, but still a fair amount of bonkers with extra supernatural stuff. This edition had a great Hawkeye miniseries running through the middle of it which I didn't terribly mind....more
If I had friends into whose hands I could thrust this joy-packed and silly comic books, I would be doing it daily. They're so wholesome and funny and If I had friends into whose hands I could thrust this joy-packed and silly comic books, I would be doing it daily. They're so wholesome and funny and sweet and filled with love and young adult optimism. Marvelous....more
I think the quality of stories was slightly higher here than in the last two volumes. We get two multi-part call backs to the Judge Child saga and theI think the quality of stories was slightly higher here than in the last two volumes. We get two multi-part call backs to the Judge Child saga and the Mean Machine which were strong enough. I love the way these volumes sit on my shelves. I don't image I will do a lot of re-reading as I really need an index to the best stories, but I will keep going with these as long as I can still pick them up....more
Super chunky and all together excellent collection that barely features Steve Rogers, but gets right to the heart of what Captain America means to peoSuper chunky and all together excellent collection that barely features Steve Rogers, but gets right to the heart of what Captain America means to people who care about America. This is storytelling with second-tier characters at best thrust to the foreground - Sharon Carter, The Falcon, Bucky Barnes, Dr. Faustus, Arnim Zola, and only the Red Skull's disembodied consciousness repping anything close to the A-list. The art is doing a lot of heavy lifting in creating a sense of spies operating in the shadows here. A lighter brush would have exposed the flimsiness of brainwashed good guys and one of the key baddies just giving up and switching sides at the end. And yet somehow the silliness gets back-burnered and the idea of Cap as myth pushes through even before Chris Evans took on the role.
In contrast the updated version of women in refrigerators sees poor Sharon Carter, brainwashed into murdering her lover, discovering her pregnancy, losing the baby by being stabbed in the stomach, and then brainwashed again to forget she was ever pregnant. It's pretty grim.
A grand storyline with some questionable elements....more
Read this immediately after the last volume because it was such a rush. This is a whole change of pace where we get to see Forever in action at war. IRead this immediately after the last volume because it was such a rush. This is a whole change of pace where we get to see Forever in action at war. I'm sure they explained somewhere why each family can only have one Lazarus, but it's a bit of a silly plot constraint, especially given what we learn in this volume. Still this chunters along in an entertaining enough fashion....more
I'm enjoying these as I have no expectations or preconceptions. They remain well-plotted and Forever is effective and intriguing as a consistently lieI'm enjoying these as I have no expectations or preconceptions. They remain well-plotted and Forever is effective and intriguing as a consistently lied-to character who only knows loyalty....more
Readable tosh. There is some funny work being done here. I particularly enjoyed Deadpool in North Korea taking out gun turrets on each compass point sReadable tosh. There is some funny work being done here. I particularly enjoyed Deadpool in North Korea taking out gun turrets on each compass point saying, "1... 2... 3... 4... I declare a real war." Still, I can't see that there is much here that is worth revisiting. It's gorgeously presented in this edition, though with an utterly unnecessary but fun miniseries about Deadpool doing work for hire for Dracula. ...more
Some wholly unnecessary holiday specials, but once you're all in with a series like this, you may as well just submit and read whatever you can find.Some wholly unnecessary holiday specials, but once you're all in with a series like this, you may as well just submit and read whatever you can find....more
This story should not still be this readable, this transgressive and this much fun. I will continue to take this slow and pick up volumes when I find This story should not still be this readable, this transgressive and this much fun. I will continue to take this slow and pick up volumes when I find them going cheap, but I'm glad they are back producing the monthly series and that we will get a conclusion at some point....more
Just working my way through this Brubaker run. This would have been super exciting to pick this up month by month. Just solid episodic storytelling. IJust working my way through this Brubaker run. This would have been super exciting to pick this up month by month. Just solid episodic storytelling. I'm not a huge fan of the art and giant sleeper robots buried under heaving cities feels a little, er, comic book, but as hard as it has ever been to take seriously a man with a star on his chest and shield who literally punches Nazis for a living, Brubaker makes it look easy....more
No real stand-out stories here although there is the usual crop of standalones and weird multi-part stories that are mostly inconsequential. One partiNo real stand-out stories here although there is the usual crop of standalones and weird multi-part stories that are mostly inconsequential. One particular story has a robot with a conscience releasing some circus dinosaurs from captivity called "Bob & Carol & Ted & Ringo". It doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I prefer the social satires where the pampered populace experience massive unemployment are so bored they prefer to go to war with their neighbouring tower blocks than stay in and watch TV. The references come thick and fast with a multi-part story covering a single night shift for the judges which could have come straight from the pen of Ed McBain. It's all good even if the black and white images and text can sometimes be hard on the eye....more
Strongly cinematic, if you had an unlimited budget and a penchant for bloody violence and a futuristic setting. HBO? It may be riddled with cliche, buStrongly cinematic, if you had an unlimited budget and a penchant for bloody violence and a futuristic setting. HBO? It may be riddled with cliche, but I'm a sucker for it. I have a couple more of these volumes and then I will have to chase down the rest because, so far, this is good reading....more
I thoroughly enjoyed Deadpool when he was funny, but this is my first time reading him written by comedians and it hits a little differently. When theI thoroughly enjoyed Deadpool when he was funny, but this is my first time reading him written by comedians and it hits a little differently. When the jokes land, it's because they're well crafted, but sometimes the in-between bits feel like mere setups to a punchline. In all the previous meetings between Spider-man and Deadpool it's hard to believe no one else came up with "Face it Tiger, you just hit the crackpot," but it's satisfyingly throwaway here amidst the rapid-fire lunacy and strong writers' voice. More than good enough....more
I need to separate out the craft and beauty of this work from the storytelling. It's so sprawling and often terribly moving, but there is so much unreI need to separate out the craft and beauty of this work from the storytelling. It's so sprawling and often terribly moving, but there is so much unresolved by the end. Why was Anka Silverberg shot? What's with Herr Schutz? Why does Karen Reyes have blackouts and what did she do in the last one?
After ending the first volume on a cliffhanger, I wanted something a little more satisfying than this endlessly digressing shaggy dog tale which is still introducing newer elements late in the day - a 1960s speakeasy, hookers with hearts of gold, drag karaoke - to go along with all the nutty stuff from the first book - Satanic cults, PTSD from the Holocaust, mean nuns, burgeoning teenage sexuality, Chicago gangsters, and more.
Will we ever get answers? I don't know, but not having them is a bit of a barrier to me returning time and again to these gorgeous pages....more
I bought this because I wanted to own and reread the Kraven's Last Hunt storyline. I might have been better off paying up for a standalone tpb as thisI bought this because I wanted to own and reread the Kraven's Last Hunt storyline. I might have been better off paying up for a standalone tpb as this was a little unwieldy to read. Most of the stories prior to the six-parter that I came for were padding. It feels like a rough time in Spidey's life. He seems to have been friend-zoned by both MJ and the Black Cat, his career is in a rut, and he feels the burden of constantly lying to Aunt May. Into the middle of all this come Wolverine to screw up a journalism assignment in Berlin which leaves Peter with a dead friend and some horrific guilt about accidentally punching a woman to death. There are not many laughs here. Everyone remembers how dark and gritty Batman was in the late 80s, but this is Peter Parker at his regular shitty life-iest.
Still even with all this doom and gloom, the colours still pop and he manages to build up enough courage to propose to MJ and make it to the wedding.
Then two-thirds into this collection we come to the main attraction. Kraven the Hunter was C-list at best. Uncinematic. Silly costume. Cartoonish accent. DeMatteis here turns him into a tragic figure, way more interesting than Spider-Man. He is a man battling his demons, wrestling with notions of honour and standing on the precipice of oblivion. The most obvious comparison is Moore's Killing Joke, which DeMatteis references in his introduction to the first collected edition, included here as one of the DVD extras. In this story Kraven is the hero. He defeats Spider-Man easily and takes on his costume. Spider-Man returns, literally, from the grave and Kraven bests him once again. I won't spoil things further, but there are trigger warnings here for a reason. This was an astonishing story when it was published and it wowed me all over again reading it this time.
This storyline is so much better than everything that precedes it including endless filler with Wolverine, the Rose, Hobgoblin and the Kingpin. Still shocking and maybe one of the great Spider-Man stories of all time....more
Fairly consequential side arc to the Civil War. Peter Parker is entirely in character here and well written with Tony Stark going full fascist. Of allFairly consequential side arc to the Civil War. Peter Parker is entirely in character here and well written with Tony Stark going full fascist. Of all the storylines I have read, Civil War is still the one that gets me most riled up. I haven't read everything before it or since, but I can't get over what they put Spider-Man, Captain America, Thor and other through to get to this point.
I'm glad the war is over, but I cannot forgive the winners....more
I don't remember what happened to the people of different sides of the Civil War afterwards, but this should have been one of the most momentous changI don't remember what happened to the people of different sides of the Civil War afterwards, but this should have been one of the most momentous changes. Reed Richards' behaviour throughout was monstrous. I know we're supposed to see righteousness on both sides, but he was just a Nazi-grade monster. Sue nails it in this collection telling him he's worse than Tony Stark. I was right there with her when she smashed her way through the building and left him. How disappointing then to see them two issues later taking some time to work on their marriage. Tony Stark is a douche, but Reed Richards is a dick. I get that the issues of Civil War come between the first and second half of this collection, but I still really do not like Reed.
There is also some stuff about Ben Grimm getting so upset about mummy and daddy fighting that he abandons the USA to go a live in Paris. It's rubbish and he's back two issues later having forgotten the whole thing. ...more
Working my way through the Civil War side issues. This didn't work for me, mostly because I just don't care about these characters. I read the very fiWorking my way through the Civil War side issues. This didn't work for me, mostly because I just don't care about these characters. I read the very first arc of Thunderbolts when their true identities were first revealed, but I didn't know enough about these D-list baddies before then for it to matter beyond the surprise. 100 issues later and it's still attempting to deliver a psychological soap opera with people whose names I can't get straight with powers I don't remember plotting deceptions I can't fathom. Meh to the max....more
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