Archives
Off the Beaten Path

11/06/06

Good day my faithful, my Monday addiction will soon be on the air, which brings me to this week's column, one I need to finish quickly in order to watch my stories. Welcome to 'The bad, the badder and the baddest' featuring a criminal mastermind, an ex soviet spy/hit man, and a clinically insane super hero. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I like my women exotic and my heroes' evil, thank you, and as always…enjoy.

Title- Criminal

Publisher- Icon
Script- Ed Brubaker
Artist- Sean Phillips
Format- 5 issues
Shipping- good
Age-15& up

The Basics-

Meet Leo, he's got rules, lots of them. They keep him out of jail, keep him grinding day to day and most importantly, keep him miserable and alone, except for his Alzheimer ridden mentor Ivan. Leo's got demons…demons from a job gone wrong, the only job he pulled where he broke his rules; people died and he feels responsible. They say he's the best and he IS. Leo's story begins anew when he is recruited by Seymour (a shady con man and the man who brought the job that went bad to Leo 5 years earlier); a game of cat and mouse/chess ensues, will he do the job? Will the job go bad? What will Leo do to redeem himself? These and many other questions will be answered in 5 easy installments of Ed Brubaker's Criminal. Brubaker has been at the helm of the few mainstream comics I have enjoyed (Daredevil and Captain America), his writing is hard, edgy, fast and dark. The basest emotions of each character are brought to the forefront as his stories build upon each scene until a final confrontation leaves the reader all gooey inside.

The Art-

Sean Phillips, the current artist for (I can't say this without laughing) Marvel Zombies, is at the helm of this character study filled with many characters. His talents are put to the test here, each scene features 1-3 prominent characters, expressing a myriad of emotions crucial to the understanding of the story. He handles it admirably, not much different from his work on Captain or Daredevil, almost exactly the same - same feel, color work, shading, I like it.

The Verdict-

The mean streets of anywhere USA, take a look and you will find these characters sipping beer, talking in hushed tones, scheming, plotting and planning that one big score, the one they can retire on. Or you could just sit on your nice couch and participate in the safety of your own home, I vote for that one.

Title- Red Warrior

Publisher- Beckett (under Image now)
Script- Jeff Amano
Artist- Andy Macdonald
Format- Graphic Novel (sadly this is all they release now)
Shipping- Good, it's one book
Age- 15 & up

The Basics-

A 'typical' story from the mind of Jeff Amano, when I say 'typical' that is not to say 'ordinary'. His stories are far from ordinary, if you doubt me read Fade From Grace (quite possibly one of the best stories in the last 5 years) or his Kiss and Tell series, based upon biblical stories. No, his 'typical' style is far from ordinary. Red Warrior is no different; in my interview with him (be on the lookout for the entire interview in an upcoming column) he told me that he had rigorously researched Russia, the fall of the KGB and subsequent rise of the Russian mob (which coincidently featured many ex KGB officials and military men), the language, the culture and Russian Martial Arts. Needless to say, this book is full of mystery, intrigue, superpowers, love & murder, neatly interspersed with authenticity to wet your appetite.

The Art-

I enjoy Jeff Amano's artwork immensely, so I was sad to hear that he would not be drawing this one; Andy Macdonald (NYC Mech) is the artist. I'm normally not a fan of black and white comics (The Crow and Sin City the standard which all shall be judged against), but I have to say this book is a good example of what can be done without color; gritty, detailed, dark and looming, fast paced and full of life. A strange statement about a black and white book, however when you look at what makes a black and white book great, it comes down to the artist's ability to convey every nuance through deft hand work and skillful detail. Andy does a wonderful job.

The Verdict-

Jeff Amano writes with a style very hard to describe in words, when you finish this book, you will feel spent, satiated, and ultimately satisfied.

Title-Meltdown

Publisher- Image
Script- David B. Schwartz
Artist- Sean Wang
Format- 2 issues (prestige format)
Shipping- not sure yet
Age- 15& up

The Basics-

"I was battling second string villains…and I was actually able to control both the situation and myself-perfectly, until…" (Paraphrased from the book) Until what? I bet you want to know…the answer, until our man Cal, or The Flare as he is known in costume, goes completely berserk and french fries said second-string villains. Why you may ask? He is dying, the heat he uses to defend the innocent and battle the guilty, is literally consuming him from the inside out. He is physically and more importantly, mentally breaking down. With Cal's life rapidly approaching its end, he decides to right the many wrongs he feels he's committed throughout his short career as a superhero. The last stand of a madman, are his actions truly righting the wrongs, were his deeds truly wrong? Who's to say? Cal does, and with his brain at a nicely 'medium well' state nobody's arguing with him; actually nobody's getting near him.

The Art-

With amazing, I mean amazing covers (from what the advanced previews have shown) and great scene layout, this book is fun to look at. Switching in style from Sunday morning comic strip (think Marmaduke or Father Knows Best) to campy 'POW' style, then blending into a more action oriented adult style. This all happens seamlessly, more of less, following the writing style and pace/action of the story.

The Verdict-

Come follow a madman find his inner peace, through murder, mayhem and all around brilliant violence! Bring the kids, it's fun for the whole family. Written with a darkly unique sense of humor Meltdown hits the spot every time

And now one (sadly short) note from Anthony…

Today's (bonus) column is like a cheesecake from Carl's Jr., good and quick…

Title- African Blood-CVO

Publisher- IDW
Script- horrible
Artist- bad
Format- monthly- really
Shipping- good I guess
Age- 15 & up

The Basics-

This is so bad I won't waste my time reviewing it.

Anthony Dominguez
www.anthonydominguez.com
myspace.com/anthonydominguez <TOP>