Category Alternating Current

Cross-talks on individual issues.

Feb 13 2014

Batman 28

Batman 28

Today, Shelby and Scott are discussing Batman 28, originally released February 12th, 2014.

Shelby: Serialized story-telling is a fickle mistress. There’s a lot of anguish to be had in waiting a month for the conclusion to a cliffhanger, sure, but it’s a sweet kind of anguish, especially when the story-telling is solid and the art is amazing. It can be frustrating, especially if you’re particularly impatient, but there’s a lot of excitement and anticipation as well. Unless, of course, you don’t get the next piece of the story as you were expecting; that’s the point when frustration can win out. Watch out, there be spoilers ahead.
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Feb 12 2014

Goodbye, Not Goodbye

Hello fellow Retcon-Punchers!!!

Today, I bring you some bittersweet news. I shall be leaving the wonderful pages of Retcon Punch with today’s coverage of Detective Comics 28. While it’s a bummer to do so, I’ve got a pretty good reason for it, I swear.

Starting tomorrow, I will be the newest member of IGN’s Comics Review Crew! I am incredibly excited for this opportunity, as it’s a dream come true. Before I leave, I just wanted to say how grateful I am to Patrick, Drew and Shelby for welcoming me into one of the most unique, thought-provoking, and downright hilarious places to talk about comics. Working with all of you, along with Spencer, Scott, Ethan, Greg, and all of our guest writers, has been an incredible experience that I will never forget.

Writing for Retcon Punch has made me a far better writer than I could have ever become on my own, as the intelligence and insightfulness of my fellow writers have helped me up my game in ways I didn’t know that I was capable of. Best of all though, writing here has given me the chance to get to know some incredible people, forge new friendships, and legitimately geek the fuck out!

I hope you will join me each Wednesday (after Reading Retcon Punch, of course) as I dish out some reviews and hopefully some other fun stuff, as well! Make sure to leave some comments too, because if there is one thing that Retcon Punch has taught me it’s that the folks of our Comments Community definitely make this whole thing worthwhile.

This is not the end, but the start of a new journey. With that, I take off the purple bowler hat of Mikyzptlk, and put on the Batman Wayfarers (yes, I totally have those) of Mike Logsdon.

Your friend in time,

kltpzykiM

Hat's off

Feb 12 2014

By Cupid’s pistols, it’s Valentine’s Day!

For Valentine’s Day last year, you may recall, we here at Retcon Punch showed you our love with corny, superhero valentines. Obviously, we had to do it again. So, Internet, this is our way of saying Be Mine; please enjoy these free, awesome valentines! Print them, share them, just keep our name on them; more after the break!

superman wonder woman valentine

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Feb 12 2014

The Superior Foes of Spider-Man 8

Today, Taylor and Greg are discussing The Superior Foes of Spider-Man 8, originally released February 5th, 2014.

Taylor: Since the dawn of pop-culture, antiheroes have been those ill behaving scallywags we love despite their flaws. They may not act right all the time, but we love them despite, if not explicitly for, their flaws. In the annals of American culture, the antihero has frequently eclipsed their more traditionally heroic counterparts — just look at Han Solo or Walter White. This trend has naturally extended to comic books and while many protagonists of comics are antiheroes, few are outright villains. In case you couldn’t tell by its title, The Superior Foes of Spider Man ­­focuses on a villain, who by virtue of his narrative is an antihero. And while we all enjoy a good antihero, it is a perilous line they walk, and issue eight displays how precarious their position is. It begs the question, just how shitty can a protagonist be before we’ve had enough?

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Feb 12 2014

Detective Comics 28

detective comics 28 gothToday, Spencer and Mikyzptlk are discussing Detective Comics 28, originally released February 5th, 2014. This issue is part of the Gothtopia event. We talked with John Layman about Gothtopia, you can find that interview here.

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Spencer: Back in the summer of 2010 I was obsessed with Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim comics, and eagerly awaited the release of their movie adaptation. I spent the weeks leading up to it reading and rereading the comics and preparing myself for the awesomeness I knew the movie would surely be. After I actually saw the movie, though, I was oddly disappointed by the many changes made between it and the comics. It took me quite a while to reconcile the two versions, but once I did, I ended up seeing it twice more in theaters and it quickly became my favorite movie. I had a similar experience reading Detective Comics 28 this week. After last month’s introduction to the “Gothtopia” storyline I was expecting a lot out of this issue—specifically, more exploration of this new Gotham utopia—but the story ended up veering in another direction entirely. I was disappointed at first, but fortunately, the story I got instead ended up being pretty enjoyable in its own right. Continue reading →

Feb 11 2014

Green Arrow 28

green arrow 28

Today, Mike and Shelby are discussing Green Arrow 28, originally released February 5th, 2014.

Mike: I took the opportunity to reread Jeff Lemire’s run so far on Green Arrow from #17 on and man is this a well-executed series. I remember reading it for the first time and being as uncertain as to what was really going on as Oliver himself was. When The Magus popped up and told Oliver that “you were never supposed to leave the island!” I immediately thought of Lost, for the obvious “island” premise as well as the intriguingly vague cliffhangers the show was known for. An early episode of Lost was called “All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues” – absent fathers being a recurring theme on the show. It’s also a title which is very appropriate for Green Arrow, a character with his own daddy issues that have now been taken to a different level entirely with the revelation of Robert Queen being alive. Continue reading →

Feb 11 2014

Ms. Marvel 1

ms marvel 1

Today, Drew and Spencer are discussing Ms. Marvel 1, originally released February 5th, 2014. 

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But what did he see in the clear stream below? His own image; no longer a dark, gray bird, ugly and disagreeable to look at, but a graceful and beautiful swan.

Hans Christian Andersen, The Ugly Duckling

Drew: We all know the story, but have you ever actually read Hans Christian Andersen’s original The Ugly Ducking? It’s beyond dark. Before he realizes he’s actually a swan, the ugly duckling has embraced suicide as his only escape from a life as an outcast. Even without that particular detail, the ending has always struck me as grim. The happy ending stems from the ugly duckling actually being classically beautiful, after all, not from any kind of acknowledgement that looks aren’t everything. This particular duckling happened to be a swan, but what of ducklings that are actually ugly? I guess those end up actually committing suicide. In spite of this straight-up “difference is awful (unless it happens to make you the same as someone else)” message, this story is treated as though it empowers different-looking children. Its contradiction is almost tragic. As I read through the letters column of Ms. Marvel 1, which praised the notion of a non-white heroine, I couldn’t help but feel that same tragic disconnect, as the heroine herself turns out to be, well, you can see for yourself after the jump. Continue reading →

Feb 10 2014

Action Comics 28

action comics 28Today, Scott and Shelby are discussing Action Comics 28, originally released February 5th, 2014.

Tell me something, Billy. How come a cute little guy like this can turn into a thousand ugly monsters?

Sheriff Frank, Gremlins

Scott: Imperial Subterranea. No, that’s not the title of an archeology elective at your local community college (well, maybe it is). It’s the setting of Action Comics 28. It’s a place shrouded in mystery, where looks are always deceiving. Greg Pak’s Action Comics has been a perfect blend of fun and heartfelt, and it’s increasingly full of surprises. All of your expectations can and will be thwarted. Terrifying monsters will transform into cute little buddies, and vice versa. Through it all, the fun, heartfelt nature remains at the forefront. Clark and Lana’s relationship drives this issue, it just so happens to take place on an underground roller-coaster ride (not to be confused with the Underground Railroad, although, strangely, slavery plays a big role in each). It’s 20 pages of pure energy. As Lana might point out, according to the laws thermo-dynamics, it shouldn’t exist.

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Feb 10 2014

Lazarus 6

lazarus 6

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Lazarus 6, originally released February 4th, 2014.

Patrick: Matt Groening had been writing and drawing his comic strip, Life In Hell, for five years before The Los Angeles Way of Death caught the attention of James L. Brooks. Brooks had received a framed copy on the strip and the simple message of the piece eventually lead him to mentor Groening, ultimately developing The Simpsons together. That’s a Cliff Notes version of their history, but that specific Life In Hell strip is notorious for all the right reasons — a quick, clear series of images that expressed the existential slog of living and working in LA, but without being beholden to any narrative, save that which the reader projected onto it. There are clever observations throughout — like that “Gun” and “Cop” are basically the same drawing, or that “Sea” and “Air” are both true and elemental (come to think of it, Fire and Earthquake would also fit) — but the most poignant panels are the last two: “Failure” and “Success.” Both are prisons in their own right, and the uber class system at play in Lazarus makes the similarity between these apparent opposites explicit. Continue reading →

Feb 10 2014

Loki: Agent of Asgard 1

loki 1

Today, Patrick and (guest writer) Arielle are discussing Loki: Agent of Asgard 1, originally released February , 2014. 

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Patrick: You guys, we live in a post Avengers world. Generally, that movie changed the way the world viewed superhero movie franchises and it changed the way we viewed shared cinematic universes (everyone’s trying to ape that shit now). But very specifically – it changed Loki profoundly. Throughout the Thor flicks and Avengers itself, Tom Hiddleston’s take on the character proved to be more charismatic and nuanced than the casts he was supporting, and the zeitgeist changed around this character. He’s not just a compelling villain, he’s a frustrated anti-hero with sex appeal and a undeniably attractive ability to work the room. Between that, and Kieron Gillen’s excellent run with Kid Loki on Young Avengers, it’s hard to deny that the meta-narrative is one of a discovering that Loki is someone we love, more than someone we love to hate. Writer Al Ewing is right on board with that assessment, but is quick to acknowledge that this version of Loki is just another story, and if we start looking at all of the Loki stories, well, me might not like what we see. Continue reading →