I woke upon Wednesday morning really excited about new comics. I walked around most of the morning with lightness in my step, for no other reason than there would be a wealth of new stories on the shelves. I secretly (well, not anymore) have a whole playlist in my iTunes entitled “Super Heroic”, full of songs like R.E.M.’s “I am Superman”, The Ramones’ cover of the Spiderman theme song, and 90’s gems like “Aquaman’s Lament” by Mark Aaron James and “Jimmy Olsen’s Blues” by the Spin Doctors. I spent the whole morning listening to it as I ran errands and got my hair cut, and I was generally in a great mood. Sadly, after my trip to the comic store, it all came crashing down. That’s not to say that there are lots of horrible #1 issues this week. It wasn’t awfulness that ruined the mood, but mediocrity and blandness. So, we’re going to keep this short and sweet version, and then look forward to next week.
Marvel leads the pack with three new offerings, and the first of them is probably the best comic this week. Kicking things off for us is Daredevil: Dark Nights #1, a new mini-series of short works featuring the Man Without Fear. This particular tale reminds us that while some superheroes are god-like beings who fight cosmic threats, some of them are real people putting themselves at real risk. Here, Matt Murdock’s radar senses are thrown off by the worst snow storm New York City has seen in years, and he becomes the victim of a mugging. Watching a hero suddenly become a victim of the kind of street crime he normally prevents was an original take on the hero tale, and an entertaining one as well.
On the cosmic scale, Marvel gives us the marketing ploy/movie tie-in Thor: The Dark World Movie Prelude #1. Set firmly in the Marvel cinematic universe, this two-part tale fills in some of the blanks between the original Thor film and Joss Whedon’s The Avengers. Worried about why Jane Foster just up and went away because Agent Colson told her too? That’s all here. Curious about how Thor magically appeared on Earth at just the right time, even though he supposedly destroyed the only path between Asgard and Earth? They wrap that up as well. Beyond that, there’s very little plot development toward the new Thor film, so we presume that happens in issue #2? I’m not sure I’ll bother.
Lastly, superstar writer Mark Millar brings back the biggest series of his career, also just in time for summer movie season, with Kick Ass 3 #1. With Hit Girl in prison and their super team broken up, Dave Liszewski a.k.a. Kick Ass has real life to contend with, and he’s having trouble finding time to be a super hero. There are no super villains to battle, and Dave is still playing at being a hero more than really becoming one: posing for photos with his friends next to his father’s grave so he can emulate Bruce Wayne and getting a job at a fast food place have become Dave’s life, and it’s honestly (and certainly intentionally) depressing. It’s not a fun read, but it isn’t supposed to be, so if there’s value in that, perhaps you’ll enjoy it more than I did.
Mike Kunkel’s Herobear and the Kid Special #1 is a happy little comic for kids. It’s poignant, drawn with a sketch pad sort of free spirit that’s innocent and fun. This one is the story of a little boy whose stuffed bear is secretly a super hero, and unlike the Calvin and Hobbes style, it’s never really clear if it’s in the little boy’s imagination, or if it’s actually real. The NOT knowing is what makes it work here, but the tale runs a bit long. Beyond that, it was a fun read, and would be a great gift for a young kid and a good intro to the world of comics.
Vertigo delivers Volume 3 of Astro City #1 from the original creative team of Kurt Brusiek and Brent Anderson. Sadly, it’s yet another issue #1 that reads like an issue #60, which is exactly what it is. There’s an unusual narrator who doesn’t have much credibility, and a story that jumps all over the place from super heroes to real life and back again. Ultimately, if you were an Astro City fan before you’ll be stoked to see this, otherwise it’s not a great jumping in point, and I’m jumping off.
And last, and certainly least, we have two more releases form Zenescope, up to their old tricks. The first is the horrifically titled Screwed #1, a re-imagining of the Frankenstein legend in true Zenescope fashion. A young woman awakens in a hospital ward, covered in scars as if she’s been sewn together from bits and pieces, with no memory of her past. Seems plausible right? It gets worse from there as she attacks and wallops the hospital security staff and draws the unwanted attention of a few other monsters along the way. Zenescopes second title is another mini-series tie in to their Unleashed event (which doesn’t seem to have ever started, oddly) titled Demons: The Unseen #1. It features Japanese warrior Masumi from other previous titles as she has returned to Earth from The Shadowlands and settled down with a nice fella. Her only real problem is that she is forced to run off and slay demons every other night, and she’s starting to lose her empathy for the possessed humans she frees. Well, that, and the fact that the folks at Zenescope can resist the chance to fetishize her race and sexually exploit her. In possibly one of the most offensive alternate covers ever, Masumi is featured naked except for some strategically placed bits of sushi while one of Zenescopes other female characters lounges close by in a skimpy robe holding a pair of chopsticks. Disgusting.
