Hey to all of you here on the wonderful world that is Suicide Girls. I'm Zaphod, new here to the site and working my way slowly to becoming (hopefully) a Suicide Girl. Currently I am I guess what you would call a Hopeful Hopeful. My first photo shoot will take place this Friday and I am super excited. My set's going to incorporate one of the things that I love most, which is COMICS! That brings me to my next point, which is that I am hoping to do a Tuesday night weekly (if I can keep my ass motivated) comic review.
"But comics come out on Wednesday!" I can hear you saying. Yes, of course you are right. However, I work at a comic shop and one of the perks to my job is that we are encouraged to get our comics on Tuesdays so we can better recommend them to customers. Pretty fucking cool, right? And here I am with comics freshly read to talk to you a little bit about them. I'll keep plot aspects vague so as not to ruin the actual reading for you lovely folks at home. I just get really excited and love to talk about what I'm reading so hopefully a few of you will be interested in what I have to say, whether you agree or not, and maybe just maybe you'll find something new to read.
Alrighty, let's get cracking.
So this week was pretty amazing as far as comics go. It wasn't an exceptionally heavy week for me, but pretty much all that came out were things that are always at the top of my to-read stack. So then the tough question, WHAT DO I READ FIRST? Well, here are my comics in order of reading with Saga making it to the top followed by Invincible, East of West, Serenity: Leaves on the Wind, Black Science, Batman and Robin Annual, and Damian: Son of Batman..
Saga #18:
This comic pretty much always is at the top of my stack. Brian K. Vaughan's Y: The Last Man is the graphic novel that got me hooked on comics in a big way. Before that point, it had been a casual interest but after that story, comics were a full-on love affair. So when I heard he was starting a new series, I was on board no matter what. And 18 issues later, I am still in love and in awe with this vivid fantasy universe and the beautiful, unique, yet flawed characters that Vaughan and Staples have created.
This is always very bittersweet for me. Issue #18 marks the end of the six issue story arc which means that following this issue, Saga will be on hiatus for 3-5 months to allow Fiona Staples to stay on top of her stunning artwork and to allow the third trade to come out. Which is the worst thing ever. Except I know that without this break, they would have to resort to fill-in artists or that the quality of art would suffer because what Staples does is so time intensive. She draws and colors every issue and she even photographs herself in every pose as an art reference. So I suppose it's fair to cut the lady a break. What she does is incredible and nobody else could bring to the series everything that she has managed.
This issue did a good job of tying up a few of the plot points to end the arc as well as giving us a peek into the background of a character that up until this point we didn't know much about. It's just a peek, but it'll be interesting to see how things develop from this point forward.
100% worth the read. If you're not reading Saga, now is the perfect time to start! Like I said, the third paperback is coming out soon so you'll have no excuse not to catch up. The first trade is only $10 for a full six issues which will probably be the best $10 you've ever spent.
Invincible #108:
On a week where both Saga and Invincible come out, it's always really tough for me to decide which to read first. Just because Saga made the top of the stack, though, doesn't mean Invincible was any less intense and amazing. This comic is solicited as a monthly book but tends to always be delayed so it comes out maybe every 1.5-2.5 months. Which is super painful waiting for a comic this great. For those of you not reading Invincible, here's my pitch. Invincible is the superhero comic written by Robert Kirkman who created and writes the Walking Dead. However, I will always rank Invincible as the superior title. The title started out being penciled by Cory Walker who was only 15 at the time he designed and did the first issues!! His art style has developed a lot since then, as you see in later issues (issue 92 through 96) but you'll see the early issues are fairly simplistic but still do a great job complimenting Kirkman's storytelling style. Ryan Ottley picked up the story and has been doing the art ever since (with a few exceptions such as the parts of the issues I previously mentioned) and his art is phenomenal. It started strong and he has been pushing himself ever since and making his art better, making the action bloodier and more intense, and the fists bigger and bigger! It truly is the superhero comic that gets to do whatever it wants. The benefit of it being an Image title is that Kirkman can do whatever he wants with the characters without having to get editor approval so the story arcs can go in some crazy directions that result in violent deaths and incredible plot twists.
Which brings me to this month(ish)'s issue. HOLY SHIT!!! Stuff happens. I really don't want to spoil it for you but this issue was well worth the wait. Invincible's off to take down Angstrom Levy once and for all!
I think the next issue comes out in March which is quite a wait but if things keep up the pace they are in the story, it'll be worth the wait.
East of West #9:
This comic is constantly impressing me. It takes a familiar concept of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and creates this rich, strange world around them. One of the Horsemen, Death, has turned away from the cause and is currently seeking the whereabouts of his child that was stolen. Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta have created a winner here and while I have no idea where this story is going, I am on board for the long haul.
Serenity: Leaves on the Wind #1:
This is what all fans of the Firefly series have been waiting for. This series picks up nine months after Serenity and finally tells us what the crew of Serenity have been doing in the aftermath of the Miranda broadcast. I would recommend that if you get the chance that you read the Serenity: Float Out one shot from 2010 as it does actually take place between the movie and the first issue of this series. It was collected in the Better Days and Other Stories hard cover if you can't track down the single-issue. This is being written by Zach Whedon and drawn by Georges Jeanty and is a must-read for any fans of the series or the movie.
Batman and Robin Annual #2:
This is the first true Batman and Robin issue we've seen in a while, after the Batman and Two-Face and the Batman and "everyone else" issues. This issue focuses on Dick Grayson, retelling the New 52 version of his first mission out as Robin. The issue has a kind of a fun flash back with Damian, which was really nice for me as he is a personal favorite of mine. As an annual, this is pretty much a standalone as far as I see but it's still a fun read from Tomasi and Mahnke.
Damian: Son of Batman #4 (of 4):
This is the last issue of the four-part mini series by Andy Kubert. It tells a story of a world where Damian lives and dons the cowl as Batman. Check out Batman #666 by Grant Morrison for another story about Damian as Batman in a war-torn Gotham where he has sold his soul to the devil to ensure Gotham's protection after the death of Bruce. If the Batsuit in Damian: Son of Batman is any indication, this is that same future as seen in #666, however it takes place earlier on while Bruce is still alive. Damian struggles to come to terms with the weight of being Batman and having criminals escalate their crimes because they don't fear the Batman because they know the Bat doesn't kill.
Well, that's it for me this week guys! Hopefully by next Tuesday, I'll actually have someone reading. Here's hoping!
Comic blog to do list (suggestions welcome and encouraged)
Come up with a stunningly clever and sexy name for this review
