Mainstream Mania
by Mike Guardabascio
4/28/08
(Note: you can click on the pictures below to see a larger view!)Mike Across America!
Panel 3: America's Real Gotham!
It was my goal when I started these articles to not just review comics shops, but also to talk about comics locations. We recently drove through Chicago, the closest thing to Gotham City currently in America. The Gothic church architecture at the edges of the city instantly had us looking for a bat signal, a feeling that only intensified as we made our way downtown, where glimmering skyscrapers shade dark alleys you wouldn't want to be caught in if you were Thomas or Martha Wayne.
Only adding to the feeling that we'd stepped into a Bat Book was the fact that Batman Begins (and its upcoming sequel) were filmed almost entirely in the city, and we easily recognized several landmarks, including the Wayne Building (actually the Chicago Board of Trade Building) as well as the elevated train that's the site of Batman's climactic fight with Ra's in the film. There was obviously plenty of other stuff in Chicago to see, but it was pretty cool to explore a city that so closely parallels the coolest locale in comics; naturally, it got us salivating for New York! Hopefully Chris Nolan will include as many cool pieces of the city in The Dark Knight; I think the natural feel of Chicago comes through on screen in a way that is perfectly Gotham.
Note: Due to a death in my family, my wife and I are flying home for a week and a half, leaving our car in St. Louis, where we'll return to resume our trip with plenty more cool stops. There won't be a new column until then, unless you're interested in reading about buying comics in Long Beach, which, you know, I assume you already know about.
<TOP>4/17/08
(Note: you can click on the pictures below to see a larger view!)Mike Across America!
Panel 2: DreamHaven in Minneapolis, MN
DreamHaven is everything great and horrible about comics shops. We put it into our itinerary (on a Thursday no less, forgoing getting comics on the usual day because we were in North Dakota on Wednesday) because it's a well-known shop and because it's the semi-operating base/favorite haunt of my wife's favorite writer, Neil Gaiman, who lives in the area. If you want things signed by Neil, you send them to DreamHaven and they have him sign them when he comes in to periodically clear his desk. "Well," we figured, "a shop frequented by a generous and kind-hearted man like Mr. Gaiman must be a welcoming and wonderful place to shop." Not so!
We walked in to the stony stares and silence that I haven't known since beginning to shop at Pulp Fiction. Since the staff at Isotope had been just as inviting and friendly as PF, I forgot that this just usually isn't the case. The people behind the counter literally did not say one word to us, other than to tell me that in their enormous store, there was no restroom available for customers. But that was it: no thanks when we made our purchase, no offers to help show us around, just awkward, oppressive silence.
Aside from the staff, the place was just totally awesome. Their selection was huge, with lots of signed material and weird collectibles (ie, the Neil Gaiman is a Rat figurine). They're also a sci-fi store, so in addition to comics they had a wide selection of novels, as well as a fairly expansive "adult" section. What I think may have impressed me most, however, was a large Used graphic novels section, where customers have traded in old or unwanted books for store credit. There were a few books in there, too, and we walked out with our normal weekly books, a few signed Gaiman rarities for my wife, and my new prized possession: a reprint of the old Stan Lee/Kurt Busiek-edited collection of Spider-Man short stories, a prized possession of mine when I was a kid, but long since donated to the library during a comics drought.
I'd recommend DreamHaven to you if you're in the Twin Cities for some reason, as long as what you're looking for is a lot of comics, and almost no conversation. Otherwise, you may end up feeling as I did, missing Isotope, and missing Pulp Fiction's welcoming doors.
Next up: Chicago! <TOP>4/07/08
(Note: you can click on the pictures below to see a larger view!)Mike Across America!
A quick note, long-lost readers: I haven't lost the use of my hands, but we shifted focus from online reviews to those helpful in-store reviews you see posted around everywhere, so that's what I've been up to. As my wife and I are currently on a cross-country delayed honeymoon kinda deal, I figured I'd pop into some famous comics stores and locales and give you the lowdown, so you can learn all about this stuff while still being able to use your own toilet.
Panel 1: Isotope Comics in San Francisco, CA
Isotope is like no other comics store I've ever visited, the kind of place that could probably only exist in San Francisco. It's also practically worth the trip from Southern California, just on its own. Run by James Sime, who clearly loves his job more than any of us will ever love ours, Isotope is half comics store, half relaxed lounge, with comfortable chairs lining the walls. Hung above those chairs are what really makes this store stand out, even to an off-the-street customer who'd never been to a shop before. Isotope has a toilet seat museum, and you have to see it. A number of famous artists (and writers) have taken Sharpy to toilet seat for Isotope at in-store signings, and 52 of Simes' 150ish collection are currently strung across the store, near the ceiling.
There were a lot of eye-catchers, from Jim Lee's Dr. Strange to BKV's self-caricature, to more impressive works by lesser-known artists (who, judging from their commode work, should be morer-known). But the crown jewel was the seat that Warren Ellis scribbled a brief script to the imaginary 61st issue of Transmetropolitan on, with an accompanying seat illustrated by Darick Robertson. It's this great image of Spider…naw, you've gotta see it to believe it.
The seats are great, and the atmosphere is wonderful, but the coolest thing to me about Isotope was that they had both a local artists section, and a mini-comics lounge with an enormous collection of minis. My wife and I are both big fans of the new format, which I think is pushing the graphic medium to some cool places, and Isotope has done a lot to promote them, both by featuring them so prominently in the store, and by giving annual awards to the mini-comic of the year.
Anyway, I'm sure Mike wouldn't appreciate me driving his customers to San Francisco, but if you do happen to be in or near The City, Isotope would be well worth your time, if you're looking to see great art displayed in a unique way, relax with a book or a mini or, of course, if you want to be boring and just buy some comics.
<TOP>3/13/08
Killing Joke HC
I reread this classic for this review, although I really didn't need to. Like most people I know, I got hooked on comics by the Killing Joke, and almost all the dialogue, as well as the masterful art by Brian Bolland, are seared into my mind. On a fresh read, the only thing I had trouble with was the coloring, which was apparently only done by John Higgins because Brian Bolland was late on his deadline. That's the biggest reason I'm picking up this hardcover edition of one of the best comic stories ever told: Bolland has gone back and recolored the whole book (for reference: the cover of the original is colored by Bolland). This makes for a brighter, more vibrant look to perfectly offset Alan Moore's dark, existentialist characterizations. If you're not buying this book this week, I'm not entirely sure what you're doing in a comic book store.
Dark Tower
This new miniseries signals the start of the real project of the Dark Tower comics, since the last one didn't actually contribute anything new to the story, but rather recapped an already-published book. The biggest draw of this one (which Marvel hasn't done nearly enough to promote) is that it actually adds a new story, a new chapter to the Dark Tower mythos. Even if you thought the last one dragged a bit, check out at least the first issue of The Long Road Home. The art, by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, is moody and textured, and the writing is a bit crisper.
Logan
Brian K. Vaughan says he thinks this miniseries is as good as, or better than his recent smash Dr. Strange book, which should be reason enough to plunk down a few bucks. If you've never read BKV and are wondering what the hype is about, a Wolverine book is about as accessible as you can get, and if you're already a convert, you know that when he says he's done good, he means it. This story wades hip-deep in the mostly unexplored Japanese era of Wolverine's past, and is drawn by Eduardo Risso, whose landscape work here is breathtaking. After reading the first issue, I can definitively say that both BKV and Risso lived up to my expectations, and I enjoyed this as a Wolverine miniseries as well, as much for what it didn't have (there's no "I'm the best at what I do" line, thank God) as for what it did (the scene where he breaks out of an interrogation cell is classic). Well worth checking out, especially since (unfortunately) there's only going to be three issues.
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