We’re back, with a renewed emphasis on drawing attention to what is and isn’t worth your hard earned dollars in these lean economic times. Comics have never been more expensive, with cover prices that have far outpaced inflation (despite an increasing number of full page ads). The $3.99 price point is in sight. 

No more B.S. We ‘re committed to a weekly comic book column highlighting some things we think are worth a look, and some that should be overlooked.

Raided: Spider-Man Noir #1 (Marvel- $3.99)
By Jeb D.
 
Spider-Man Noir #1 moves this alternate universe Marvel project several steps ahead of the initial issue of its sister book, X-Men Noir. As my colleague Graig pointed out in his review, that book did a good job of setting the Depression-era scene of the series (which actually predates classic “noir” by a few years, but why quibble?), but by the end of issue #1, little had happened beyond setting the large cast into place. In Spider-Man Noir #1, though, the story is kicked into high gear right away, as we meet Peter Parker, the son of local community gadfly May Parker (in current Marvel continuity, Aunt May volunteers in a soup kitchen). The influence of French writer/editor Fabrice Sapolsky (evidently a key source for the original idea for this new series) is evident as he and co-writer David Hine take the unusual step of making her the voice of a nascent outright socialism: to her, an FDR is little better than a Hoover in a system she regards as corrupt. Photographer Ben Urich takes Peter under his wing, and J Jonah Jameson is a crusading, and opportunistic newspaper editor perfectly happy making enemies of any political stripe. Spidey’s familiar rogues’ gallery forms the core of an underworld that flourishes in a near-lawless New York , and by issue’s end, our hero is (as you’d expect) truly in the thick of it. The art by Carmine Di Giandomenico is quite different from the film-noir darkness of Dennis Calero’s work on the X-Men book, with a European-tinged bleakness very reminiscent of his Magneto: Testament series, or Kaare Andrews’ Spider-Man: Reign. From the dismal streets of New York to the horror of Ben Parker’s death, he makes every page gripping reading. The idea of Marvel actually sustaining what amounts to a third ongoing comics universe seems pretty unlikely in today’s economic climate, but the presentation of the Marvel Noir world in this issue makes me hope they have the time to explore and develop it fully. Unlike the Ultimate Universe (which rarely took advantage of its license to innovate), Marvel Noir feels as though it has a point to it, one that might actually go beyond selling a few more comics.


FOUR OUT OF FIVE VIKINGS



[Raided] Warhammer: Crown of Destruction #3 (of 5) (Boom Studios – $3.99)
By Graig Kent

Boom Studios’ series of Warhammer license, based off the Games Workshop gaming system, has resulted in a steady stream of books on the shelves over the past few years, the bulk of them co-written by Ian Edginton and Dan Abnett, two talents whose prior and current work I quite enjoy.  Yet, as a non-player, I’ve all but ignored the titles, primarily because they seem to be books meant for the indoctrinated.  With Crown of Destruction, I decided to have a look, mainly because of its written by Kieron Gillen, whose Phonogram is one of my favorite titles in recent memory.  The result is a mish-mash of original perception and mild enjoyment.  On the one hand, my lack of familiarity with the Warhammer universe leaves quite an empty feeling while reading this book, a sense of not fully understanding the war-faring world of swordsmen and rat-men and magicians and vampires.  On the other hand, Gillen just plows through, allowing the characters to introduce themselves and the warring fractions and the story intrigue to all develop naturally, and by this third issue there’s less distance between the new reader and the material.  The art by Dwayne Harris is at times quite stimulating, but more often proves problematic, as it’s of the photo-manipulated sort, whereby images are doubtlessly photo-based and assembled on computer, making characters look stiff and often detached from their surroundings, like vinyl clings stuck to a static scene.  While I don’t have an overt objection to the technique (Renato Arlem’s recent Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters was less overt and Scott Meyer’s Basic Instructions puts the technique to hilarious use), here it is a frequent distraction, especially in scenes involving large groups and figures are copied and pasted multiple times in the same panel.  I’m guessing Warhammer players will enjoy the book far more than an outsider, but fantasy fans don’t necessarily need to shy away either.


TWO AND A HALF VIKINGS OUT OF FIVE


Raided: Thor: God-Sized Edition #1 (Marvel-- $3.99)
 
For a guy that was missing in action for  a couple of years, Thor’s positively ubiquitous these days. None of his appearances have been more welcome than the epic sagas written by Matt Fraction, and he closes out his Year of Thunder with the biggest one yet. A stellar assortment of artists—Dan Brererton, Dougie Braithewaite, Mike Allred, and Miguel Angel Sepulveda—each illustrate one section of a story that feels right out of classic myth: various Asgardians are troubled by their difficulty in remembering Skurge (known to us Lee and Kirby fans simply as The Executioner): his life, his purpose, his fate are all unclear, but Thor, Loki, and Balder discover that even their vague memories are in conflict with each other’s. Being gods, of course, there’s no question of the vagaries of memory: someone has meddled with their minds, and they will have the truth. The story takes them to the realm of an equally-befuddled Hela, into pitched battles and mystic encounters, and to a truth that, naturally, involves Skurge’s beloved Enchantress. The tales that each character “remembers” about Skurge are larger than life, as is the quest, and each of the artists renders his section most effectively, and Fraction tailors the script to their individual styles: Brereton paints Thor’s telling of Skurge’s final battle with colorful grandeur, while the cynical narration of Loki’s segment is perfectly suited to Allred’s more comic-y approach. And while the main story gives pretty good value at 38 pages, as a bonus, we get a reprint of the story they’re all trying to remember: Walt Simonson’s Thor #362 (particularly handy for anyone confused by the appearance of automatic weaponry in the Asgardian battle depicted early on). No one who’s been reading Fraction’s Thor needs me to tell them to pick this up, but if you’ve missed the previous ones, this one’s completely self-contained, and a great buy.


FOUR OUT OF FIVE VIKINGS


[Trade Winds]  The War At Ellsmere (SLG Publishing - $12.95)
By Graig Kent

The big climax to Tina Fey’s Mean Girls involved a hopeful but entirely improbable situation wherein Fey’s character teacher role brings all the feuding young women of the high-school together in the gymnasium and for a few hours runs them through a bonding exercise while pleading to them (and the target audience) to let go of petty jealousy, envy and gender degrading language, and instead embrace the concept of sisterhood and unity. It was the quasi-feminist message of the film, and while the movie did well for itself in the theatres, on DVD and broadcast on TV, I doubt it really hit home. You can still see teenage girls brawl on youTube and cutting someone else down to make themselves feel better remains a top pastime. Loathing, resentment, backstabbing and the like all make for good entertainment but it’s still a sad reality. 

There’s a push from the media for young women (well, for everyone, actually, but it would seem girls of a certain age are most susceptible to the message) to look and act a certain way, conform or be an outcast. That the message perpetuates in schools and forms social circles and cliques isn’t surprising. It is important then, for other media, aside from advertising, to confront and counter-balance this message by presenting stories that can make these girls relate to one another in another way outside of the superficial.

In comics, well, women are tragically underrepresented in both creators and characters. That most young women that are into comics look to Manga isn’t surprising, since the predominant genre in North America is superheroes, where by and large the characters are meant to be (primarily male) adolescent power fantasies (idealized physiques for the men and the women who accompany them). Not being much of an Otaku, I can’t say I understand where the appeal lies, if the Japanese experience is even relatable to the North American reader, or if it’s the structure and style of storytelling that is more amenable. 

The War At Ellsmere by Faith Erin Hicks is a pleasant blend of Manga-influenced art and traditional North American storytelling. It’s a prep-school variant of Mean Girls-style high-school story, following Juniper, the new girl on scholarship at a prestigious boarding school. Unlike most of her classmates, she’s doesn’t come from money, but her intellect is what places her amidst the junior social elite, and her prickly attitude and self-awareness is what keeps her distanced. Although most of the students come from a similar background and all don the same wardrobe day in and out, cliques still form. There are the popular girls and the outcasts, and Juniper falls in line handily with the latter, but unlike the rest, she’s not at all afraid to challenge the establishment.

Juniper soon finds herself with a new best friend in her chipper if daydream-prone roommate, Cassie, and a bitter nemesis in the most popular and snobby girl in school, Emily, whom is her only intellectual rival. Their evil-eyed rivalry takes on both physical and more subversively malicious forms, and drags everyone around them down with them, the school included.

Hicks presents a high-school story that doesn’t stray too far from the norm, but why break the mold when the old one still works so well. It’s not the story but the presentation that makes it different, with Hicks giving Jun, Cassie and Ellie all distinctively strong personalities while the supporting cast does their part as silent goons, teacher and parental figures. Cassie’s fascination with the school’s fabled history weaves itself into the story as well, presenting itself in the climax in a fashion that will either confound or pleasantly surprise the reader.

A long-time friend of artists Bryan Lee O’Malley, fans of Scott Pilgrim will note similarities in artistic style, both taking similar inspiration in the simplified, wide-eyed figures from Manga, only I find Hicks’ characters more distinctive in design. Hicks also invests more in scenery crafting an environment for most panels, but submitting to expressive lines when an impact is needed.

There’s a moral to the story… perhaps it’s about rising above rivalries, or perhaps it’s that some people are just unhappy and therefore giant a-holes. Either way, Hicks has put together an enjoyable story suitable for all readers, but absolutely perfect for teen and pre-teen girls who are decidedly under-serviced in the medium.


FOUR OUT OF FIVE VIKINGS