A Matter Of Life

 My Son Mikey and I love Jeffrey Brown's DARTH VADER AND SON book, so I was excited by the prospect of seeing what Brown could do with more adult subject matter, and I'm happy to report that his latest, A MATTER OF LIFE, published by Top Shelf, does not disappoint.

 A MATTER OF LIFE is less a graphic novel than it is a series of loosely connected vignettes about three generations of Brown men: Author/Illustrator Jeffrey Brown, his Father, and his Son Oscar. The stories flow together wonderfully, creating a beautiful narrative that is funny, poignant, and heartbreaking, and these emotions are perfectly complimented by Brown's endearingly scratchy art. I grew especially fond of young Oscar over the course of the book....My Son is the same age as Oscar, and I could totally relate to the way Oscar and Jeffrey bounce around one another. If I had one complaint, and it's really the only one that I have, it's that Brown's lettering can be hard to read at times. But if that's the worst thing this Crabby Reviewer can come up with, you know you've got a winner on your hands. Highly recommended.

 Top Shelf provided a review copy.

Batman- Detective Comics, Volume 1: Faces of Death

 When will I learn to trust my instincts? When, I ask you???? After forty years (FORTY YEARS!!!!) of reading comics, starting at the tender age of two, I generally know, sight unseen, when I will enjoy a book, and when I will loathe it with every tiny fiber of my being. I just KNEW that Tony S. Daniel was not going to be a good Writer, but my Wife's best friend's Husband was raving about how good a book this was, and I did want to see exactly WHY The Joker had his face skinned off, so here I am.

 Oy yoy yoy, this is a bad book.

 Generally, I would give a brief synopsis here, but I literally have no idea what this book is about or what happened in it, aside from the fact that it's as gory as hell, and I would never let my kid read it. I mean, I realize that most people reading comics are my age, or slightly younger or older, but Batman should be accessible to younger readers, and all of what was shown here could have been implied , or maybe less of it could have been shown. I mean, there;s faces being taken off, cops being decapitated, Commissioner Gordon gets abducted and has a Kidney removed against his will, there are dismembered body parts, eyes taken out by throwing stars....it's a real Horror show. I could probably accept this, if it was a competently written book, but as a Writer, Tony S. Daniel is a pretty good Artist.

 BATMAN- DETECTIVE COMICS, VOLUME 1: FACES OF DEATH presents the first seven issues of DETECTIVE COMICS, and starts off with Batman chasing The Joker, who may or may not be on a serial killing spree. This is never really explained, nor is the reason why he may or may not be killing people buck naked. Some loon called The Dollmaker is also maybe killing people (Again, bad writing, so I really have no idea...), and he comes over to The Joker's cell in Arkham Asylum to take his face off and helps him escape. Why The Joker would want his face removed is never explained. Then there's some nut little kid, who apparently comes and goes as she pleases, be it in a Hospital or a Police Precinct, places where I would expect better security, or at least someone to say "Hey kid, what are you doing here?", but I guess not. The book ends with Batman fighting The Penguin, with a one-eyed woman thrown in to complicate matters for some unclear reason. I don't know...I was just praying for this to end, and kicking myself for having bought the second volume as well.

 This is bad, bad stuff, and doesn't do much to make me a "New 52" fan. I'm still totally perplexed at just what DC was aiming for here. It was presented as a total reboot, but Geoff Johns kept going with GREEN LANTERN as if nothing happened, yet JUSTICE LEAGUE was a ground-up, day-one reboot. But Batman seems like he's been around forever, complete was his whole slew of Robins. I'm so confused. And in Scott Snyder's BATMAN, Bats works with the G.C.P.D., yet here, they shoot at him on sight.

DC is just a sloppy fucking mess, isn't it?

 BATMAN- DETECTIVE COMICS, VOLUME 1: FACES OF DEATH presents the first seven issues of DETECTIVE COMICS, complete with covers as well as the black-and-white versions of the covers (I just don't get the whole black-and-white cover variant thing at all...), and a sketch Gallery by Tony S. Daniel.

Before Watchmen: Ozymandias/Crimson Corsair

 And so I reach the end of my seemingly random but accidentally alphabetical BEFORE WATCHMEN reading binge, and it seems I've saved the worst for last.

 BEFORE WATCHMEN: OZYMANDIAS/CRIMSON CORSAIR is written (Mostly...) by original WATCHMEN Editor Len Wein, a name that's sure to be familiar to fans of 1970's Marvel and DC Comics. I've never really been a fan of Wein's overly-wordy scripts, but I kept an open mind, mainly because, I wrongly assumed, he might have some special insight into the Watchmen characters, since he was involved with the original and all.

 One day I'll learn to go with my gut. (Not that the collector in me would have allowed for the horrific possibility of skipping this questionable volume and not having a complete set!!!!! Shudder.....

 Anyway, the book starts with Wein and Jae Lee's six-part Ozymandias story, which basically regurgitates Bruce Wayne's trek around the world to learn  how to fight crime and kick ass before it settles into a pattern of Wein presenting WATCHMEN/BEFORE WATCHMEN greatest hits, where he shamelessly presents large chunks of other Writers dialogue without any kind of credit being given. The asshole in me did enjoy seeing the big "Fuck you!" that Wein gives Alan Moore by showing Adrian Veidt getting his whole evil scheme from an old episode of "The Outer Limits", which is an accusation that has long dogged Moore and the original series. Artwise, Jae Lee has never really clicked with me, for some reason. His work here is good, beautiful in places, but something about it seems cold and sterile to me. He always seems to pick the most bland way to execute a scene, as evidenced by the totally lazy sequence where we see Edward Blake discover Veidt's Squid-Beast. That could have been an amazing page, but it just kind of lies there and does nothing.Wein continues the trend of making Veidt another mustache-twirling megalomaniac, which was never really the impression that I got from Alan Moore, who presented him more as a man who has to do bad to achieve the ultimate good. And as much as I felt "Meh" about this story, I thought that Wein chose to end it too soon...I would have preferred to see it through to Veidt's Arctic showdown with his old compatriots. Not a terrible story, but not an especially good one, and not one that needed to be told.

Next up is the story that ran in two-page increments as a BEFORE WATCHMEN back-up, THE CRIMSON CORSAIR. This is basically a repeat of the TALES OF THE BLACK FREIGHTER story that Moore wove though the original series, and it's pretty terrible, and gets worse when Wein is booted off and replaced by Co-Writer/Artist John Higgins, after what I read was a pretty nasty behind-the-scenes power struggle. Higgins is a talented Artist, but he's no Writer, and the already weak story is virtually crippled by the hideous, hideous color palette that Higgins uses. It makes his art look muddy and ugly, and left me puzzled as to why the Editors let it go to press as is.

 Finally we get the totally unnecessary DOLLAR BILL one-shot. (Yes, I know that you could argue that the entire BEFORE WATCHMEN run has been unnecessary.....) This one is also Written by Wein, with art by Steve Rude. Rude's cover is fantastic, but his interior art seemed rushed, which would make sense as this story was, to my understanding, basically a last-minute afterthought. We get Dollar Bill's origin, and Wein once again uses scene after scene that we've already seen Moore and various BEFORE WATCHMEN Writers show us. The ironic end of Dollar Bill's career is almost entirely ruined by the puzzling perspective that Rude uses, so much so that Wein had to use dialogue to tell us what we are supposed to be seeing. Sloppy, boring stuff.

 Overall, there's little to recommend to anyone but anal-retentive collectors in this last volume. I'd say that you should read this one first, so you can go out on a high note with one of the other volumes.

 BEFORE WATCHMEN: OZYMANDIAS/CRIMSON CORSAIR collects all six issues of the OZYMANDIAS mini-series, the complete CRIMSON CORSAIR back-up, and the DOLLAR BILL one-shot, complete with all covers and variants. The extras here are pretty sparse, with two pages apiece of Jae Lee and John Higgins sketches and preliminary art.

 DC provided a review copy, but I bought a hardcover anyway. Shame on me.

Florida Theme Parks: A Guide

 My Wife and I honeymooned at Walt Disney World, and we've been back a few times since with the kids, so I'm always interested in books about the Disney and Universal Theme Parks. Alex Miller's FLORIDA THEME PARKS: A GUIDE wasn't quite what I was expecting from a book of this type. It's mainly a photo guide to Florida's various Theme Parks, with a (Very brief...) history and overview of each park. I liked the fact that it covered ALL of Florida's Theme Parks, many of which I'd never heard of, and the book has absolutely made me want to visit some of them. What I didn't like was the fact that it really didn't offer anything that you couldn't find in any of the Parks' promotional brochures. I don't think this book would be of any use to someone who is planning a vacation, aside from some pretty pictures. Perhaps very young Theme Park visitors would appreciate this book as a keepsake of some of the places they have visited or want to visit, but, pretty pictures aside, it's really not a very useful or practical vacation guide.

 The Publisher provided a review copy.

Before Watchmen: Nite Owl/Dr. Manhattan

 

BEFORE WATCHMEN: NITE OWL/DR. MANHATTAN is the third volume in my four-volume WATCHMEN prequel binge, and it’s my least favorite so far.

 This volume collects three separate BEFORE WATCHMEN mini-series: Two four-part stories (NITE OWL, written by J. Michael Straczynski and illustrated by Andy Kubert, Joe Kubert, and Bill Sienkiewicz and DR. MANHATTAN, also written by Straczynski and illustrated by Adam Hughes) and the two-part MOLOCH, showcasing the ill-fated retired villain from the original WATCHMEN.

 I do have to say this before I start: I’m a fan of J. Michael Straczynski’s work. I’ve enjoyed his writing on RISING STARS (Which would probably be remembered as a classic, if it wasn’t saddled with such hideous art for most of its terminally-late 24 issue run…) and THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (Yes, I’M the one who enjoyed his run on Spidey!). I haven’t read everything that he’s written, but when he’s on, he can be really good. As I said earlier, this was my least favorite volume so far, but it was still a really good read.

 The book starts strong with NITE OWL, which is actually more of an exploration of the bizarre NITE OWL/RORSCHACH team than a solo story. Kudos to Straczynski for taking a throwaway line from the original WATCHMEN and making a strong, compelling story out of it. (Although I have to say, Rorschach seems to have stumbled across a new serial killer every time he turned around.) The art, by the Son/Father team of Andy & Joe Kubert, fits the story wonderfully, and the coloring compliments their art beautifully. (Bill Sienkiewicz takes over the inking reins from Joe Kubert halfway through the four-issue run….I’m assuming Joe Kubert passed away while working on the book. The change of inker really doesn’t seem to impact the art much. I was surprised to see that there was no mention of Kubert’s death in the collection, or any kind of dedication. )

 Next up is DR. MANHATTAN, which seemed a little too clever and deep for its own good. Straczynski does a good job of channeling Moore’s introspective voice, but what worked so well for one chapter in WATCHMEN stretches a little thin after four. The twisty, mind-bending narrative was certainly enjoyable, but it went on a bit too long for my tastes. 

 The book ends on a high note, as Straczynski teams with Artist Eduardo Risso for the two-part MOLOCH. The story follows the pointy-eared Magician from his birth through his death as a part of Adrian Veidt’s plot to save the world, and it’s quite a compelling read, but it’s marred at times by Risso’s heavy-handed art. Part of the shock of finding out that Veidt was the “Bad guy” in WATCHMEN was because Moore and Gibbons played it totally straight, and didn’t portray Veidt as a scheming, evil fuck….Straczynski does his part, but Risso has so many panels of Veidt leering, grinning, and making evil faces that it’s hard to believe no one saw this guy coming a mile off. A great story, with a few points taken off for the occasional heavy-handedness of the art. 

 BEFORE WATCHMEN: NITE OWL/DR. MANHATTAN collects all of the original covers, as well as variant covers, sketches, and concept art.

 DC Comics provided a review copy, but I bought a hardcover anyway, because I’m mentally ill and need help.