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WINCBD! – David’s Stack (8-25-10)

By | August 26th, 2010
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

Welcome to another edition of Wednesday is New Comic Book Day, our collection of weekly reviews. This week, we’ve got Matt, Gil and myself reviewing on what happened to be a fairly light week for your’s truly. But still, I have a rather atypical assortment of books. What are they? Well, first, let’s take a look at our rating system.

0: Uwe Boll will direct the adaptation of this comic
0.1 – 1: Burn upon touching
1- 1.9: Abysmal
2.0 – 2.9: Art. Writing. Editing. All bad.
3.0 – 3.9: You’d be a masochist to pick this up.
4.0 – 4.9: “I’ll give it another month…but that was not good.”
5.0 – 5.9: “Really? The Watcher? In the face? I guess it was fun.”
6.0 – 6.9: “Hmm. That was decent.”
7.0 – 7.9: Well made but a few problems
8.0 – 8.9: Nearly flawless
9.0 – 9.9: Outstanding
10: Perfection. Issue of the year contender

So how about this for a unique lineup of books…I don’t just have one Robert Kirkman book this week, I have three Robert Kirkman books, as I take a look at Invincible #74, Guardians of the Globe #1, and the collected edition of the previous shorts found in the pages of Invincible, Science Dog Special #1. All three books happen to be the first ones released with the Skybound Entertainment label as well.

Not only that, but my favorite ongoing in comics had a new issue, with Scalped #40 gracing comic racks everywhere today.

It’s a nice week of books for everyone…find out how good of one after the jump.

Invincible #74
Written by: Robert Kirkman
Illustrated by: Ryan Ottley

On the cover of Robert Kirkman’s Invincible every month, it says “The Best Superhero Comic Book in the Universe” above the title.

Couldn’t have said it much better myself, really.

Month in and month out, Robert Kirkman manages to craft fresh stories that share roots with other superhero books, but manage to achieve a level of quality quite higher than others reach. While the title may take tropes that have been used elsewhere, Kirkman spins them in such a way that they feel fresh all over again. In this issue, he does that as well as he’s done it in a while. You’ve got the Viltrumites (Empire) attacking the Coalition of Planets (Rebel Forces) homeworld (Yavin), just when the underdogs are at their weakest, and then the Family Grayson (Millennium Falcon) comes in to turn the tide when everything seems darkest. It’s similar, but Kirkman does it with so much panache and in such a character rich way it feels completely unlike anything that ever preceded it.

I love the little character bits that Kirkman sprinkles in. The Viltrumite leader externalizing his anger while speaking to a skull like he’s a rage driven version of Hamlet. The bit at the end between the two communication agents for the Coalition of Planets, two brothers broken up by deceit and betrayal (bonus points to Kirkman for making that scene funny, as the deceived brother screams at the other one after shooting him in the face – he knows the brother is alive, we don’t – that’s some dark humor people!). The budding brotherhood between Tech Jacket and Allen the Alien. Mark’s reaction to his regained consciousness. Oliver’s lobster confession.

These are all moments that add layers of depth to the characters and make the events that transpire all the more powerful, and will likely make this next issue all the more intense because we’ve learned to care for these characters. I mean, you know someone is going to die next issue, right? My money is on Oliver, as it would affect the main players (Mark and Nolan) the most, although Nolan is a close second. That’s another incredible thing Kirkman does – he makes every reader realize that anything is on the table.

Series artist Ryan Ottley is, without JH Williams III out there, the best superhero artist working in my book. Actually, in terms of strict capes and tights, straightforward storytelling, I’d even say Ottley surpasses him. This issue…you can feel the power of the battle, the intensity of the moment…everything…thanks to Ottley’s pencils. He’s a remarkably talented guy, and he is successful at not just those big moments but the smaller moments such as the splash page where Thaedus explains the current state of their conflict with the rest of the Coalition of Planets as they look on in horror to something Thaedus can’t see. Awesome.

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Cliff Rathburn and FCO Plascencia continue to do what they’ve been doing for a long time – take Ottley’s pencils and push them to even higher levels. When you combine the three of them, with Rathburn’s inks and Plascencia’s colors ramping up the depth and life of Ottley’s linework, you start to really get a look at what Ottley has accomplished: evolutionary widescreen art, taking Bryan Hitch’s niche to a whole new level.

Long ago, I said “Invincible is the best Spider-Man title on the market” to anyone who would listen. Once upon a time that was true, but with the turn towards a more epic scope and a darker tone, it has escaped those shackles and fulfilled the destiny thrown upon it: it’s the best superhero book out there folks. Bar none.

Final Verdict: 9.6 – Buy

Guarding the Globe #1
Written by: Robert Kirkman and Benita Cereno
Illustrated by: Ransom Getty

I’ve always enjoyed the Guardians of the Globe in their appearances in the pages of Invincible, but I wasn’t so sure about them when I heard that Robert Kirkman was going to develop a series about the team while Invincible was off during the Viltrumite War. They were interesting, but were they interesting because of their role in Invincible?

Kirkman and co-writer Benita Cereno set out to find out, and I have to say the results are pretty damn enjoyable so far. With Invincible out of town and power couple Robot and Monster Girl leaving their home dimension to try and dispense of the Flaxan threat once and for all, we’re not even left with the type of team we’d normally expect: so far we’ve got Brit (a character that hasn’t really been featured in Invincible that often), Bulletproof, Shapesmith, Black Samson, and the newly recruited Yeti, but not much else.

Yet, in the hands of Kirkman and Cereno, this cast quickly becomes one filled with characters I enjoy and care about. In particular, I’m really digging Brit. I never picked up his solo series, but as the leader of the Guardians? I love the guy. His inability to handle his jetboots, new costume and his battle strategy pre-augmented strength provide a lot of levity to the story (he’s invulnerable, so his strategy used to be “get bad guys to throw me into buildings, hope buildings crash on bad guys, profit.”), and I can’t wait to see his interactions with the rest of the crew when they’re all put together. Kirkman and Cereno have a real gift for voice when it comes to these characters, and it makes it a joy to read throughout.

Ransom Getty isn’t someone whom I recognized really, I couldn’t recall any work he’d done in the past (Kirkman stated that he’d worked for Marvel previously, but I don’t know what on), but I can say he fits perfectly in the stable of Invincible contributors like Ryan Ottley and Cory Walker. Granted, it helps that Invincible inker Cliff Rathburn and FCO Plascencia contribute to this book to aid that transition, but Getty deserves most of the credit. His storytelling and figure work really stands out for a pretty new creator.

How’s this for a compliment? There are some points where if I didn’t know any better, I would think I was looking at some of Ottley’s older work. Getty has a ton of potential, and his attention to detail elevates this book quite a bit. Little things, like the way he shows Brit’s crash landing at home or (in particular) the way he shows Brit stretching before he swan dives face first into the Himalayas from an airplane without a parachute (because god knows you don’t want to pull a hammy if you’re sky diving without a parachute from a couple miles up), help take this book to another level.

A lot of this book is exposition, explaining who is who and what the current situation is, but its a first issue. That’s what first issues are for. There is a lot to like here, and I for one can’t wait to read more. While I was originally tentative about the Invincible world being expanded, I’m now fully on board. With Kirkman involved, I shouldn’t have expected any less.

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Oh yeah, and bonus points for Chris Giarrusso’s awesome back up. The fake Guardians of the Globe (Barack Obama, Spawn, Invincible, Rick Grimes – in black and white with an axe – and “Perry Hotter) were hilarious, and Sarah Palin coming to confront Obama over his lack of knowledge about the “Presidential Matrix of Leadership?” Priceless.

Final Verdict: 8.7 – Buy

Science Dog Special #1
Written by: Robert Kirkman
Illustrated by: Cory Walker

This is kind of a cheater review, as I’ve read this book before (each half was originally published in Invincible #25 and #50 respectively), but it allows my to make a Kirkman trifecta happen and its new to a lot of you. Plus, any time you have the chance to review a book about a jetpack wearing, super intelligent, super strong, science superhero schnauzer, you’ve got to take it, right?

Right.

Before we get into the writing, I have to say Cory Walker was born to illustrate Science Dog. In terms of Invincible artists, I’ve always been more of an Ottley guy, but Walker does a phenomenal job with Science Dog. The book has a ton of visual personality, upping the entertainment value of writing by bringing a lot of the laughs out with the imagery. For one, I loved the way Walker structured the fight between Walter and Science, as Walker intelligently lays out the scene in such a way that makes the fact Science has so meticulously plotted out his moves against him seem not only believable but freaking awesome.

I also loved the pages Walker recounts the history between Walter and Science on. The humble origins of the friendly schnauzer, the fantastical growth, and the two battles between the two that Science invariably wins. Its a joy to read from an artistic standpoint.

Given that its just 24 pages, most of this book from Kirkman is just exposition as to who these characters are and what their relationships are. Because Kirkman excels at characters though, we’re quickly given a ton to work with in terms of Science and his team as well as the villainous Walter. In just 24 pages, Kirkman quickly makes us excited to see where this story will go in issue #75. Science Dog has been whisked away to some other location in the midst of the fight with Walter, and its entirely possible that he could be off in Invincible’s dimension preparing to meet his greatest fan – Invincible – but for real this time. We’ll find out next month.

This is a nice little book, and a definite joy to read for fans of Kirkman and Walker’s work. While it isn’t exactly something that is a can’t miss, its definitely worth a purchase in my book.

Final Verdict: 7.0 – Buy

Scalped #40
Written by: Jason Aaron
Illustrated by: R.M. Guera


David Harper

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