Category Alternating Current

Cross-talks on individual issues.

Dec 23 2016

Nightwing 11

nightwing-11

Today, Mark and Spencer are discussing Nightwing 11, originally released December 21st, 2016. As always, this article containers SPOILERS.

Mark: Being written by a member of the team that created a New 52 MVP contender in Grayson, the expectation was that Nightwing would continue that series’ characterization of Dick Grayson as, essentially, the most awesome person alive. Tom King, Tim Seeley, and Mikel Janin’s Grayson leaned heavily on Dick’s “Best Ass in Comics” reputation. Their Grayson was sexy, funny, smart, and could kick ass—basically, he was perfect. And while it should have been impossible to write an ongoing series about a seemingly flawless character, King and Seeley made it work month after month. But now almost one full year into Tim Seeley’s solo run, it’s clear that Nightwing is its own beast. The question, then, is who is this Dick Grayson? Continue reading →

Dec 21 2016

Wonder Woman 12

wonder-woman-12

Today, Michael and Spencer are discussing Wonder Woman 12, originally released December 14th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Michael: There was a lot of emotions on both sides of the recent U.N. decision to drop Wonder Woman as an honorary ambassador. Detractors believed that the fictional character was “the epitome of a pin-up girl,” while lifelong fans see her as a figure of peace and equality. Regardless of your personal feelings, when you step back and look at the whole thing, it’s just another example of us defining what Wonder Woman – and women in general – are allowed to be. In both “Year One” and “The Lies,” Greg Rucka has been exploring how we have historically defined Wonder Woman, while building towards what she is today. Continue reading →

Dec 20 2016

Hawkeye 1

Today, Ryan M. and Taylor are discussing Hawkeye 1, originally released December 14th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Ryan M.: Los Angeles is a mainstay of detective fiction. There is something about the contrast between the sunshine and the darkness within the worst of humanity. Modern noir is rife with the stories of private investigators getting entangled in what starts as a simple case but turns into a much bigger problem, all the while surrounded by the superficial beauty of the city. In Hawkeye 1, Kelly Thompson and Leonardo Romero not only establish the series’ specific version of Los Angeles but also give us a spin on Kate Bishop that feels fresh, while still acknowledging her history.

Continue reading →

Dec 20 2016

Moonshine 3

Alternating Currents: Moonshine 3, Drew and Patrick

Today, Drew and Patrick are discussing Moonshine 3, originally released December 14th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Drew: I remember my third grade teacher expressing regret at having sat too close to the stage at a magic show. “I could see how every trick was done,” she said, oblivious that her complaints were describing what I always wanted. To me, the “magic” of a magic wasn’t in suspending my disbelief, but knowing that they were doing something that isn’t magic right before my eyes, and I still couldn’t see it. Suffice it to say, my love of seeing the strings in art — of appreciating the thought and care that goes into those strings — runs deep. The best artists, like the best magicians, hide those strings in plain sight, such that people like my third grade teacher regret noticing them, but finding and celebrating effective uses of even the simplest techniques offers an entirely different set of pleasures. As Moonshine continues to develop its relationships in issue 3, I’d like to turn to the storytelling mechanics that make this series so remarkable. Continue reading →

Dec 19 2016

IvX 1

ivx1

Today, Spencer and Patrick are discussing IvX 1, originally released December 14th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Spencer: Last month’s IvX 0 did a fantastic job of summing up the conflict between the Inhumans and the X-Men and showing why their going to war was only a matter of time. Charles Soule, Jeff Lemire, and Leinil Francis Yu’s IvX 1, though, is the issue where that powder keg finally ignites into all-out war, and war…well, war is ugly. IvX 1 plays up the fun of watching these two groups duke it out, but also the pain and sadness inherent in its scenario. Continue reading →

Dec 16 2016

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 15

unbeatable-squirrel-girl-15

Today, Taylor and Spencer are discussing The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 15, originally released December 14th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Taylor: Looking back at Matt Fraction and David Aja’s run on Hawkeye, it’s hard to pick out a single, best issue. But press any comic reader hard enough and they’ll probably say that #11, the famous “Pizza Dog” issue, stands apart as particularly good. If you haven’t read it, the premise of the issue is fairly simple: what’s a day in the life of Clint’s dog, Lucky, like? It turns out that question is far more complex than it would seem, as Fraction and Aja use revelatory methods to show what it’s like to experience the world from the point of view of a dog. Taking it’s queues from this modern classic, Squirrel Girl 15 aka the Unbeatable Mew shows us what it’s like to experience the world not from the point of view of a hound, but from man’s other best friend, a cat.

Continue reading →

Dec 15 2016

Supergirl 4

supergirl-4

Today, Patrick and Mark are discussing Supergirl 4, originally released December 14. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Patrick: Hey, why do we hate midichlorians so much? Y’know, the quantifiable micro organisms that live in bodies of Star Wars characters that help them communicate with the force. Do we hate it because it’s an explanation of something that was cool precisely because it was mysterious? Or is it that we hate the answer because it is inherently dumb? The answer is kind of a mix of both – I’m totally fine with unanswered questions if the wonder those questions inspire is fun all on its own. That quality — let’s just call it “wonder” — is something that I look for in Superman comics. I want to grin stupidly to myself and say “whoa, neat.” But that wonder is so fragile, and can be ruined with some inelegant attempt to explain the mysteries I’m letting into my heart. Unfortunately, Supergirl 4 is all answers for middling mysteries, going out of its way to over-explain even the most uninteresting questions.

Continue reading →

Dec 14 2016

Cannibal 3

Alternating Currents: Cannibal 3, Drew and Patrick

Today, Drew and Patrick are discussing Cannibal 3, originally released December 7th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Drew: My wife loves the Scream movies. So much, in fact, that we winced through both overwritten seasons (and feature-length Halloween special) of the MTV series. From the start, the franchise has celebrated its formulaicness, forcing its heroine (and the audience) to suspect each character in kind before ultimately revealing the killer to be the one we least suspected. In stretching that formula to 10- and 14-episode seasons, we’re forced to confront the paradox of knowing the least-likely person is most likely the killer (therefore making them no longer the least-likely), such that the reveal is somehow still a surprise. It’s basic murder mystery stuff, but the series luxuriates in the time between the first murder and the ultimate unmasking of the killer. Cannibal‘s premise is ripe for a similar twist on the murder mystery formula, blowing it up to include the entire town of Willow, but with the added twist that we have absolutely no idea how many killers are out there. Continue reading →

Dec 14 2016

Nova 1

nova-1

Today, Patrick and Spencer are discussing Nova 1, originally released December 7, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Patrick: Marvel has been particularly bold with its legacy heroes lately. Iron Man isn’t Tony Stark, Hulk isn’t Bruce Banner, Thor isn’t… Thor… Even when the originators do carry the mantle, their proteges are filling the role at the same time (like Sam Wilson and Miles Morales). That’s a powerful transfer of status because those originals are so beloved and so iconic. But what happens when the hero being replaced doesn’t have decades of history to lean on? Hell, what happens when he’s being replaced by an even more senior member of his legacy-line? Jeff Loveness and Ramón Pérez aren’t quite ready to bring their titular Novas in contact with each other, probably because they’re too busy making the case for how great a character Sam Alexander is. Just as Richard Rider is coming back into the fold, Sam is at is high-flying, awkward-flirting, Avenger-defying best. Continue reading →

Dec 13 2016

Motor Crush 1

motor-crush-1

Today, Drew and Ryan M. are discussing Motor Crush 1, originally released December 7th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Drew: I’ve been thinking a lot recently about story structure, and particularly Dan Harmon’s distillation of the hero’s journey. Joseph Campbell’s monomyth was designed to be as general as possible, so that it might be applied universally, but Harmon takes it a step further, stripping away specifics like “the belly of the beast” and “death and resurrection” to land on an ordered set of eight words: You, Need, Go, Search, Find, Take, Return, and CHANGE. Harmon explains all of those in greater depth, but for the purposes of this discussion, I’m interested in the first two: you (establishing a protagonist in a zone of comfort) and need (establishing a need for the character that might draw them outside of that zone of comfort). I’m used to that opening quadrant of the “story circle” — the quadrant that ends when the character leaves their zone of comfort — being relatively small, moving on to the meat of the journey quickly. That’s definitely the case with Motor Crush 1, which pushes its protagonist out of her comfort zone so quickly, I’m honestly not sure what “normal” looks like for her. Continue reading →