Category Alternating Current

Cross-talks on individual issues.

Nov 18 2015

The Wicked + The Divine 16

wicked and divine 16Today, Spencer and Patrick are discussing The Wicked + The Divine 16, originally released November 11th, 2015.

Spencer: Back in 2012 I was supposed to go to the midnight premiere of The Hunger Games with a group of friends, but I ended up getting tickets to a different theater by accident. Rather than go by myself, I roped a friend who wasn’t a fan of franchise into going with me by playing up the movie’s violence and making it sound like something it wasn’t. He wasn’t happy with the movie, and I knew up front he wouldn’t be, but at the time I didn’t care — I just wanted him to come with me. I couldn’t help but to remember that anecdote while reading The Wicked + The Divine 16; The Morrigan’s inviting Baphomet into the Pantheon is equally selfish, if much more destructive in the long run than my boneheaded move.

(For the record, I did apologize, and he’s made me watch much worse)
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Nov 18 2015

Infinity Gauntlet 5

infinity gauntlet 5

Today, Spencer and Drew are discussing Infinity Gauntlet 5, originally released November 11th, 2015. This issue is part of Secret Wars. To see more coverage of this week’s Secret Wars issues, check out our Marvel Round-Up.

secret wars div

Spencer: There was one simple reason that I wanted to cover Infinity Gauntlet 5 this week: I just thought it would be a blast, both to read and write about. Spoiler alert: I was right, but considering the previous four issues, I suppose that was always a foregone conclusion. Even when his focus was on the cast’s hopeless task of trying to survive in a savage wasteland, Dustin Weaver imbued the story (and especially the art) with a certain spark of chaotic, creative energy that never failed to draw me in. That spark grew into a full-blown fire as the series progressed; the finale actually revolves around the power of creativity, both in terms of the ideas Weaver and scripter Gerry Duggan fill it with and within the story itself, where Anwen makes creativity her greatest weapon in the battle against Thanos. Continue reading →

Nov 17 2015

Batman 46

batman 46

Today, Michael and Mark are discussing Batman 46 originally released November 11th, 2015.

Michael: Batman 46 continues Scott Snyder’s ongoing query into what the legacy of Batman really means. The frightening Mr. Bloom continues to perform his preferred method of murder by poking his razor fingers through the bodies of various Gotham elite. Gordon and Julia momentarily put Bloom out of commission before he makes his inevitable escape. Geri Powers reveals a whole army of robo-batsuits and tells Gordon how she knows where Bloom is hiding and is going to mount an attack on him. Gordon pleads to let him get Bloom himself because he knows that this is all Bloom’s trap, which it is. Meanwhile, we have a brief scene where Bruce once again reassures Julie that he is not the same man and proposes to her. Another side story involves Duke Thomas breaking into The Penguin’s Iceberg Lounge in order to track down his missing parents and Mr. Bloom. Continue reading →

Nov 16 2015

All-New, All-Different Avengers 1

anad avengers 1

Today, Ryan M. and Taylor are discussing All-New, All-Different Avengers 1, originally released November 11th, 2015.

Ryan: Though the Avengers have yet to assemble, the five of them that are featured in this issue have a shared problem. They have internal issues with how they are perceived by the outside world. Captain America is not happy to have his behavior scrutinized for racial implications, Iron Man is still seen as a titan of industry even though his wallet is literally empty and Spider-Man, well, to borrow a phrase, he can’t get no respect. In the second story of the issue, Ms. Marvel struggles with her ability to prove herself to a fellow hero and Nova can’t make headway with a pretty girl. These guys will soon have to work together to save the world from war-mongering aliens, but they each have something else to prove to others.

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Nov 16 2015

Last Sons of America 1

Alternating Currents: Last Sons of America 1, Drew and Ryan D.

Today, Drew and Ryan D. are discussing Last Sons of America 1, originally released November 11th, 2015.

As a distant planet was destroyed by old age, a scientist placed his infant son within a hastily devised space-ship, launching it toward Earth!

Action Comics 1, Jerry Siegel

Drew: I’m tempted to make the argument that world-building is an inherent aspect of comics storytelling — the environment that the characters inhabit literally needs to be created, line by line — but whatever the reason, world-building has been an integral part of comics at least as far back as Action Comics 1. Indeed, world-building has become increasingly important in modern comics, as characters are spun off into multi-platform franchises. It’s also become increasingly important for certain segments of comics readers, who catalogue every piece of continuity and police every perceived contradiction. Those readers tend to forget that the world is the setting, not the story, and that even the most intriguing worlds are nothing without compelling characters and an actual narrative. Sometimes that means a brilliant setting is relegated to the background, but when the story itself grabs you, as it does in Last Sons of America 1, that’s the right choice. Continue reading →

Nov 13 2015

The Goddamned 1

goddamned 1

Today, Patrick and Michael are discussing The Goddamned 1 originally released November 11th, 2015.

And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. For whoever has, to him more shall be given and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. There I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.”

Matthew 13: 10-13

Patrick: God makes Adam and Eve. They defy God’s will and are cast out of the Garden of Eden. They have two sons: Cain and Abel. The sons don’t get along, so Cain kills his brother. God is furious with Cain, marks him as a cursed man and sends him out to the land of Nod away from his family. My summary of the Cain and Abel story right there is about as long as the actual text from Genesis. That book is nuts – it can spend paragraph rattling on about lines of succession, but burn through two deep betrayals and the first murder ever in a scant few sentences. If there’s any meaning to be found in that story, it must be extrapolated out by the reader – that’s why people go to church every Sunday: so someone can try to explain the “meaning” of the stories to them. But even those explanations are hard to understand. Take Jesus’ answer to “why do You speak to them in parables?” above. The point of the stories isn’t to understand them necessarily, but to experience them. Jason Aaron and r.m. Guéra’s harrowing first issue of The Goddamned sets out very specifically to be experienced rather than understood.

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Nov 12 2015

The Ultimates 1

ultimates 1

Today, Taylor and Spencer are discussing the Ultimates 1, originally released November 11th, 2015.

Taylor: Canada recently elected a prime minister. His name is Justin Trudeau and people basically seem to love him. Maybe this has to do with his dashing good looks or maybe his liberalism is a nice shift from Canada’s previous, more conservative PM. Whatever the reason, he made headlines a week or so ago and further endeared himself to many when he was asked why half of his political cabinet are women. His answer: “Because it’s 2015.” Whatever your views may be on Canada’s new PM, this frank and forward thinking answer is certainly welcome in a world ready for a new breed of politician. “What does this have to do with comics?” you might be asking. Well, similar to politics, the comics world is prime for a new, fresh perspective, at least from the major publishers. Enter The Ultimates 1, a comic that promises to be progressive and different despite its trappings as a traditional title.

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Nov 11 2015

Doctor Strange 2

 

doctor-strange-2 reduxToday, Mark and Spencer are discussing Doctor Strange 2, originally released November 4th, 2015.

Mark: Do comic books—straight up comic books—make money? Like, remove the merchandise licensing, remove the blockbuster movies and animated releases, are comic books a profitable business? Both DC and Marvel operate under the umbrella of their corporate parents (Warner Bros. and the Walt Disney Company respectively), and while the publishing of comic books probably continues to bring in a tidy sum, these books are really just generating intellectual property that the real money makers (the aforementioned merchandise and blockbusters) can continue to exploit. It’s with that lightly cynical viewpoint that I approach the relaunch of Doctor Strange. Like Ant-Man earlier this year, Jason Aaron’s Doctor Strange feels like a timely relaunch intended to bring Stephen Strange to a more prominent role in the cultural landscape after years of languishing on Marvel’s bench. Continue reading →

Nov 10 2015

Klaus 1

klaus 1

Today, Michael and Patrick are discussing Klaus 1, originally released November 4th, 2015.

Michael: The minute I read that Grant Morrison was going to be doing a “Santa Claus origin story” I got super pumped. I hadn’t done a lot of research as to what the story was going to entail, nor did I gorge myself on every little bit of press that Morrison did on Klaus. All I had to go on was my favorite writer’s name and an image of the man who would be Santa Claus: a barbaric-looking figure accompanied by a savage wolf and covered in the blood of a freshly-killed deer, drawn by Dan Mora. That’s all I needed. Continue reading →

Nov 10 2015

Miracleman 4

Alternating Currents: Miracleman 4, Drew and PatrickToday, Drew and Patrick are discussing Miracleman 4, originally released November 4th, 2015.

Drew: What is religion for? Having not grown up with religion, I’ve never really understood. I can appreciate the origins of religion as a kind of pre-scientific way of explaining the world, but what’s the appeal nowadays, when most reasonable people accept that these stories aren’t literally true? I honestly have no idea, and religious friends can only give vague answers about community and faith. I suspect different people will have different answers, but for me, it seems that religion scratches an itch I just don’t have. That sentiment is sometimes met with pity from those who genuinely believe that a religious life is more fulfilling. I’d never be willing to dig through the stories and traditions that define any one faith, but what if faith wasn’t part of the equation at all? Miracleman 4 asks exactly that, looking into the life of a woman who has no doubt about the validity of her religion. Continue reading →