Sunday Morning Verse

Robert Frost - After Apple-Picking

Saturday Morning Short

Jack London - To Build a Fire

Rise of the Olympian

"The next story shows another side of Wonder Woman entirely as she faces some of the great DC barbarian characters, face to face and sword to sword." [Newsarama]

Awesome!!!

And while we're on the subject of Wonder Woman, how great is it that Aaron Lopresti is the new regular artist? And, how fitting, too? As the illustrator of CrossGen's MYSTIC (a title also featuring a iconic female lead), his new job seems a bit like a homecoming. Can't wait to see his take on the barbarian epic that Gail Simone has cooked up.

Countdown to a Proper Burial

You want to know what's really sad? This is probably the best issue of the entire series.

The ludicrous Jimmy Olsen-Darkseid smackdown/Kirby homage (or whatever) advertised on the front cover turns out, mercifully, to be a red herring. The real fight this issue is (spoilers on) a father-son matchup between Darseid and Orion. First, the good news: the fight looks amazing. Every Scott Kolins issue of Countdown looks sensationsal, obviously, but he really pulls out all the stops here. There are more Kirby dots per square inch in this comic than, perhaps, in any comic actually illustrated by Kirby himself. (BTW: Someone needs to hook a fanboy or two up some kind of blood pressure/heart rate monitor and then show them slides of images with and without Kirby dots--I'm pretty sure it will bear out my theory that Kirby dots are actually physiological stimulants.)


So, CWCID: great looking issue.

The totally mindnumblingly not-at-all-surprising bad news is that, like every single issue of this misbegotten travesty of a series, good writers once again produce risible work. For instance: Superman's response to the showdown between Darkseid and Orion in the middle of Metropolis:

Green Lantern: Superman, I don't care what Orion says--we've gotta do something here!

Superman: This is between a father and his son, Kyle. [portentously] This is between Gods.

Whaaa??? Huuuhhhh?????? One of the "Gods" is Darkseid! At least the Flash was running around saving people on page 1, not standing on a roof eating popcorn with the impossibly lame "Challengers of the Unknown." Normally, I don't care much about this kind of hiccup in my suspension of disbelief, but it's so egregious here that it seems as if Paul Dini and Sean McKeever (good writers both) have just said, fuck it. Let's put this baby to bed. And you know what? I can't say that I blame them. Does anyone really care anymore--if, indeed, anyone ever did? Don't we all, much like poor Brooke White on Tuesday night, just want this damn song to be over and done with so that we can get on to something new and pretend it never happened in the first place?

Cover of the Month: Skrull Skulls

I've noticed his covers before without knowing who the artist was, but browsing through today's Marvel Solicits for July this cover to Secret Invasion: Frontline #1 by Juan Doe made me sit up and take notice. The glowing eye and wisps of green haze emanating from the Skrull skulls (try that five time fast) take me back to the SF paperback covers of the 60s and 70s that so deftly synthesized SF with horror. Creepy creepy creepy. Check out some of his other Marvel work here.

Dale Eaglesham: An Ode

Is Dale the hardest working penciller in comics, or what? GodDAMN. Panels like this one (Sand’s bedroom from JSA #14) take me back to those days when you could seriously brood over a comic book page for hours. His choice here, of showing us only Sandy’s back while foregrounding what should really be the background, is subtle and brilliant. The panel literally “turns its back” on the (usually crappy) figure-centric art that dominates much of the field of superhero comics these days. And there’s wit in these details, too. Just look at them. (The hookah is a nice touch.) I actually find myself wondering what books those are on Sand’s shelf, what records he’s listening to… Or check out the slippers tucked under the bed in the panel where he chats with Powergirl. Or check out the monkey and the tree roots in the two-page spread of Gog blasting Infinity Man in the Congo (the monkey shows up again on page 14). Or, though I don’t have a scan of it, lose yourself for a few minutes in the two-page spread of the JSA sitting around their clubhouse table with Ma Hunkel serving coffee (Jay Garrick will have tea, thank you very much). There’s so damn many members now that they have to pull in all manner of extra seating, including a stool for Mr. Terrific and a 1950s deck chair for Mr. America. This is how you create a world, people. Eaglesham, you fucking ROCK.

Not them too!

SPOILERS! You always knew that the Wolvie-Sabretooth feud was more bark than bite, didn't you? Turns out, beneath all the feral grunting, growling, and rending of flesh they're just a couple of family guys who'd gladly trade in their claws for a soy latté and an I'coo Targo with cub. This priceless pic from the set of the Wolverine film gives away the ending...but who cares? You'll go see it anyway.
[via SuperHeroHype]

How To Relaunch a Classic Property

BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS #9
Written by Chuck Dixon
Art by Julian Lopez & Bit
Cover by Doug Braithwaite
Metamorpho finally makes the trip back to Earth — only to be immediately arrested! And while Katana and Batgirl attempt to break Rex out of a Paris jail, they also manage to abduct a mysterious astronaut! Plus: don’t miss the return of the former Outsider called Looker!
On sale July 16 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

I love love love this book. This is exactly what the new Titans series should be, but (so far) isn't. Batman and the Outsiders is all action, mystery, and great characterization. And it looks fucking stellar, both inside and out. The covers by Doug Brathwaite are more than just icing. They give the impression that DC is actually behind this series. Really behind it. Committed to making it something special, much like the Justice Society of America with its classy Alex Ross covers and slick Eaglesham interiors. Either editorial is behind a series or it isn't; sorry, Titans. Great news for BATO fans, though. Chuck Dixon, Julian Lopez, Doug Brathwaite: kudos.

Skrull Appreciation

A couple of weeks ago, ComicMix put up a nice little reminder of just how lame previous Skrull invasions have actually been. But that's not the whole story. "Skrull Takes a Slave" in Fantastic Four #90 from 1968 (reprinted in World's Greatest Comics #72) is a great Skrull story, even if it does end in Tommy guns and fedoras. I lost my issue of World's Greatest a long time ago, but darned if Kirby's grotesque images of the Skrull slaver lurking in a spooky wood straight out of "Young Goodman Brown," preparing to ensnare Ben Grimm for servitude on a gladiatorial prison world aren't permanently etched in my grey matter. Skrulls should be spooky, not silly, as Bendis clearly understands, judging from the last three panels of Secret Invasion #1. I got chills!

Banana Not Included

"The playful little sweethearts in this baby monkey doll collection are quite a handful - and as much fun as a barrel of you-know-whats! They're sure to make your heart wild with joy...

"Available exclusively from The Ashton-Drake Galleries, the darling collectible baby monkey dolls in this first-ever collection are by acclaimed artist Darlene Austin. They're realistically sculpted, from the tops of their fuzzy heads to the bottoms of their cute little monkey feet. Each doll in the collection is covered with soft hand-applied mohair, and each wears a precious costume just like a pampered human baby! For yourself or as the most delightful collectible monkey-lover gift ever. You can pose them anywhere, and these Heavenly Handfuls will have you falling in love with babies all over again - but only if you hurry! Strong demand is expected, so order now!"

I'm still having nightmares about this.

[Link] NSFW...or anywhere