New Comics - May 17th - Part Three

...continued

• Illustration 16 (Illustration Magazine) - This quarterly magazine is outside my main interest range in illustration. Of course, comics are foremost, and when it comes to illustration work I tend to prefer less realistic work, and especially black and white illustrations. This magazine focuses on primarily realists, and generally on painters. The reason this magazine continues to hold my attention is the superior writing, design, and even the advertisements, which also contain some of the very best illustrative art of the 20th century

• All-Star Batman And Robin The Boy Wonder 4 (DC) - This title, while holding some surprises production-wise, like the quadruple gatefold, is turning out to be more lackluster than blockbuster. Jim Lee's art is strong — nothing new, but no major anatomy or proportion flaws. Plenty of minor ones, but the surface sheen outshines the fundamental weakness, as is true of all of Mr Lee's best work. The story is where it all falls apart for me. What Frank Miller is trying to do it seems is set up the origin of the Robin in the world of the Batman that became Miller's Dark Knight of his two most famous Batman stories, rather than the Batman of his Year One. The characters, taken in that context, are, for me, hitting the mark. The characterization is the only thing that makes the story worth reading, and that is my problem with the whole endeavor. The characters are spot on, but the plot is, at this point, practically non-existent. It has taken us four issues to get from the circus to the Batcave, and there isn't a comic book style cliffhanger to be found. If the point is that this isn't a plot driven book, then I need to know something new about the characters, and if you're not going to tell me in the first four issues, then what are you waiting for. At this rate, not much will happen until the second volume of the trade paperback, but maybe that's the point.
• Negative Burn 1 (Image) - This Joe Pruett edited anthology, like most anthologies, can be maddeningly inconsistent in tone, but is more than covered for in quality. The artists here are all very adept at the nuances of black and white illustration, and that's how they are published here. This issue features such big names as (big mainstream cover artist) Brian Bolland and (big mainstream inker) Phil Hester, such future big names as (Goon artist/writer) Eric Powell and (Girls/Ultra penciller/plotter) Jonathan Luna, and such indy stalwarts as Matt Smith (left) and James Owen and R.G. Taylor. They are all in fine form here, Mr Smith's Mignola-isms and Mr Luna's uninked pencils are standouts. The stories are necessarily light; there's not much to do in 6 or 8 pages. Overall, though, a promising beginning for fans of unheralded creators and those fond of the minutiae of their well-known stars. I look forward to more installments.
  

Now, as promised, the best superhero book I read this week, and it's no coincidence that the only time the title character appears in costume is the cover. This book isn't available for sale until May 24th, so this'll give you three days to think about it before you can buy it.

• Daredevil 85 (Marvel) - Ed Brubaker has followed many distinctive writers (Frank Miller, Brian Bendis, and underrated Ann Nocenti) and made this title his own in just four issues. It seems to me that this book owes a great deal to movies and TV shows set in prison (Oz in particular), but I am completely enthralled by the spin that the Brube is putting on it. Three major Marvel "superheroes" and one several minor characters (including the welcome return of Dakota North (which could only be made better by Tony Salmons return to the fold)), and nary a costume to be found. This fact only makes stronger the point that Mr Brubaker has such a strong grip on the narrative that you forget that this is a character that has been manhandled for 40 years now. His longtime collaborators Michael Lark and Stefano Gaudiano (right) do a capable job of keeping the story flowing and the setting looking good, even when an issue consists mostly of heads talking. This is quickly becoming my favorite monthly comic. Check it out.

Also as promised, the best genre book I read this week:

• Y The Last Man vol. 7 Paper Dolls (DC/Vertigo) - Brian K. Vaughan is, for my money, the most exciting genre writer in comics. Whether it's traditional superheroes in Runaways, post-modern superheroes in Ex Machina, or post-apocalyptic genre pieces like this one, Mr Vaughan is why I still love monthly comics, even though I don't read any of his titles monthly. I buy all three of these titles in trade paperback, but I look forward to each new volume of Ex Machina and this title in particular as ravenously as I do any periodical. If you're not yet a believer (I wasn't, that's why I read them in tpb form), you owe it to your genre-loving ass to give them a try.

And this week's book of the week:

• Castle Waiting (Fantagraphics) - Linda Medley has been one of my favorite comics artists for over a decade now, and the art on this title is one of the big reasons. Crisp, clean, assured, exciting, inventive and attractive (below), Ms Medley is one of the major unsung talents of comics. The fact that she lacks wide recognition is one of much lament. Hopefully this book will get the attention it deserves, and she will join the ranks of "Great Comics Creators". I read this title in fits and starts as it came out, and look forward to one sustained read.The subject matter is of little interest to me, as it's basically a fantasy title built around many familiar fairy tale and fantasy characters of myth and history, and the setting is one that is usually a turn off (to my untrained eye, it looks much like a local renaissance fair), but Ms Medley's art and storytelling ability more than compensate. I'm sure that there are many references to characters of yore that are lost on me, but the characters also become Medley's own in her story, set in her world. A beautifully put together hardcover, this book will hold a proud spot on my bookshelf, and it will hopefully be joined very shortly by her next masterpiece.