Sunday, February 17, 2008

Suicide Squad #6 Passes The Mo Movie Measure

Always on the look out for a full page that passes the Mo Movie Measure.

The three elements are:

1. Two female characters (here, Twister and Windfall)


2. Who talk to each other (here, a religious conversation)



3. About something besides a man. (the value of pain)



A clean sweep.

Friday, February 08, 2008

And the rest . . .

Thoughts on the other comics I read this week that I didn't have a post's worth of stuff to say about:

1. The Atom #20 -- The best part about this issue (besides the fact that it fully wrapped up all of the stuff that went on in the past 19 issues) was that the key clue that helped Ryan figure out who the enemy was happened in the filler issue -- the one-shot #19 that Gail Simone didn't even write.



Way to keep that fill-in in continuity!

2. Buffy #11 -- Best big-reveal joke.



Who is it? Who's under the mask? Quick turn the page to find out!



Okay. Maybe it was stupid. But it made me laugh.

3. Teen Titans: Year One #2 -- Not very memorable.

4. Supergirl #26. This one would have been good if the last few issues had made any sense. As it is, I just feel like this month's cliff hanger will get ignored and next week we'll get an issue that takes place in Deep Space with a flash back to Krypton and an Editor's Note saying: "This issue takes place after issue #24, but before that crappy arc with the Outsiders."

It is a sign of despair when an otherwise good issue leaves you with the conclusion, "So this will be the last good one until the mid-30s, then?"

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Thursday, February 07, 2008

Justice Society of America #12

Three Short and One Long Thought on Justice Society of America #12.



1. I am intrigued by the seemingly unlimited source of new Black superheroes that are "Black Lightning's Previously Unmentioned Children." I am picturing Russian Nesting Dolls of Pierce girls, all prepared to take on a career of superheroing as soon as they graduate from college, from "Thunder" at the top, all the way down to the baby, "Static Cling."

2. This issue was billed as "The Return of Jakeem Thunder." That did, in fact, happen. As far as Jakeem is concerned, though, all he did was "return."

3. Did Judomaster not speak English in Birds of Prey? She was kind of quiet, but I don't remember her not understanding what the others were talking about.

4. Usually you go on a recruitment drive when you are down some members. The JSA is already filled to the gills after last year's recruitment drive, no one has left or died in the interim, and there has even been a stray Wildcat or Citizen Steel or Superman thrown in during the intervening year.

I don't object to any of the new recruits in particular. "Lance" seems interesting, as do the others (at least in theory -- they each get two pages), but to quote Michael Chabon in "Wonder Boys" (or, at least, to paraphrase Katie Holmes' character in the movie, which is the next best thing) "Writing is about making choices, and it looks like you didn't make any." Either Obsidian is in the JSA, in which case he should sometimes get a job or two, or else he should go retire or move to Los Angeles with Manhunter or marry Damon or whatever. One line per year from the guy on "wallpaper duty" is not making choices.

In fact, I think "Not Making Choices" is becoming the new Comics Cop Out. And possibly a direct result of loud fan complaints.

Cancel Manhunter? Fans scream. Renew Manhunter? Fans cheer. Cancel Manhunter, then announce you will renew it, and then never actually put out another issue? Fans are silent.

Is Connor Hawke dead or not? The didn't make a choice there, and the fans just sit and wait.

Is there a memorial for Misfit? Kind of in the Robin Cave, or in Batman's Dream, or maybe Stephanie isn't really dead. What was I rallying around again? I forget.

Is Obsidian in the JSA? Yes! Of course he is! There he was with Kingdom Come Superman just a few months ago having a conversation that didn't move the plot along!

The way to keep people from criticizing your decisions is to just not make any decisions. It shouldn't work that way, but it does.

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Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Today, I read Countdown to Final Crisis 12

I also read Justice Society of America #12. In my imagination, the #12s are waving to each other as they proceed in opposite directions down the number line.





12 Quick thoughts on Countdown to Final Crisis #12

1. I am starting to get the sneaking suspicion that Darkseid does not actually KNOW how to play chess. I think, if he actually had to play a real game, he'd just assume that most of the pieces moved like the Horsey.

2. I'm a big fan of Maps. I'd really like a map of Themiscyra so I can figure out where everyone is in the Holly/Harley bits from Countdown; where everyone is in the Paradise Island parts of Wonder; and where everyone is during the "Free Ollie" parts of Green Arrow/ Black Canary.

3. The Jimmy Olsen/ Forager relationship appears to be based largely upon showering separately.

4. I wish I knew anything about the "original" OMAC stuff so I could figure out what was going on with Old OMAC meets New OMAC. I know there was a Countdown Special out today, but really. I wish I "knew" already. I'm not actually that interested in taking the time to "find out."

5. So, who-all knew that "Athena" was really Granny Goodness? I mean, WE knew, because we studied all of the subtle clues from Amazons Attack, but I sort of felt like no one was surprised here, despite the fact that they only suspected she was an "imposter." Did the all start to figure it out when she started talking about "Amazon Furies"? Or did I miss the issue where we saw Holly spying on Granny Goodness through a keyhole?

6. I can't actually remember why Jimmy and Forager went to Apokolips the first time, or why they came back to Earth, so I'm not really excited that the time travelling finger of Grant Morrison's-Patrick-Swayze-in-Ghost-Animal-Man (or whoever) wants them to go back.

7. Yey, Hippolyta! But why did you think that you couldn't beat Granny Goodness by yourself, but could beat her with three unpowered back-up singers? Sure, Hippolyta could win a fair fight with G.G. But if she can't, Holly, Harley, and Mary aren't going to push her over the edge to victory.

8. Is there some sort of Air Traffic Control system for Boom Tubes, so they don't crash into each other on Apokolips?

9. I feel like a saw a "Furries" joke in comic book pretty recently, but I can't remember which one. Or maybe it was in a blog. In any event, even if its the first time ever, the joke is already old.

10. It's been a really long time since we had a "Piper" segment. Looks like not a lot has changed, but you'd think he would have lost enough weight by now that the handcuffs should just slide off.

11. Holly asking Mary what she's going to do against Granny Goodness? Glass houses, Holly. Glass houses.

12. I've completely lost track of what's happening in Bludhaven. Why are the gang there? What happened to Professor Stein? Why is the OMAC there? I even read all of the massively confusing "Battle for Bludhaven" and the theoretically relevant last arc of Firestorm, and I am just lost. Anyway, it may not matter, since OMAC is treating Bludhaven like Darkseid treats his chess boards.

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We Voted



We dragged the Raggirls up out of bed at 6 AM to vote in our New Jersey primaries yesterday morning. Then we took them out for post-voting breakfast. The family that votes together . . .

Well, you know. I can't figure out how couples like Schwartzenegger/Schriver stay together with such different fundamental values.

Anyway, then a late night of watching election returns, to see that Senator Clinton was victorious in New Jersey! Go team!



Off to buy the new books now, and maybe read one or two over lunchtime.

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Contorting Supergirl the Other Way



Josh Middleton's upcoming Supergirl cover.

Note that Supergirl is bent over so that NEITHER her chest or her nether regions are directed at the viewer.

An improvement from Inflatable Sex Toy Supergirl (below), although that seagull behind Kara, above, is clearly aware that he is being mooned.




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Monday, February 04, 2008

Groundhog's Day Resolutions

Maybe it's a Pennsylvania thing, but I prefer making Groundhog's Day resolutions to New Years' Resolutions. This is good because I am starting my resolutions just as everyone else is giving up on theirs. My Groundhog's Day Resolution for my blog is to maintain my blog, and not try to make it too great so that I end up giving up because it isn't perfect. So, instead of big, long posts with lots of scans that I never finish, I will try short posts with minimal graphics. Also, I would ideally like to comment briefly on every comic I read, starting Wednesday, but I don't know how realistic that is.

As a jump start, Kalinara is posting about her favorite storylines. Mine is the classic "The characters in the book come to life" (or, oppositely, "the real-life people get sucked into the book.")



This was the plot of the comic I read today, which I don't really know what its called, because there are too many words on the cover. My best guess is "The Tall Tales of Vishnu Sharma: Panchantra #1" from Virgin Comics. The characters are from an Indian book, and they are mostly animals, but can appear like people also.



Also, some of the characters are cool:




And the bad guy is a little boy wizard who rides a broomstick and wears short pants.



Doesn't get too much better than that!

Ragtime's Ideosynchratic Rating System: 14 out of 18 stars.

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