Cyclops 1

Alternating Currents: Cyclops 1, Drew and PatrickToday, Drew and Patrick are discussing Cyclops 1, originally released May 7th, 2014.

Drew: Leaders are often defined by their circumstances than any personal characteristics. Abraham Lincoln may be remembered as a persuasive orator, but that reputation takes a back seat to his role in the Civil War. That tendency can flatten out historical leaders, but absolutely steamrolls fictional ones, turning “leadership” into a character trait at the expense of any others. Raphael may be “cool, but rude,” and Michelangelo may be “a party dude,” but “Leonardo leads.” I’ve long had this association with Scott Summers, who I know is the de facto leader of the X-Men, but that’s kind of it. Oh, and he shoots lasers from his eyes. Complicating his circumstances (transporting him in time, taking him to outer space) have multiplied the potential for elucidating his personality, but I was still unconvinced that there was enough to him to support his own title. Fortunately, writer Greg Rucka manages to find an incredibly relatable handhold — Scott’s relationship to his father — delivering a confident statement of purpose in Cyclops 1.

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Free Comic Book Day 2014

FCBDFirst held in 2002 to capitalize on the anticipated release of the first Spider-Man film, Free Comic Book Day has grown into one of the most celebrated annual events in comics. For some comics shops, FCBD has turned into a comic con in miniature, complete with artist signing, cosplayers, and food vendors; for others, it’s more of a low-key excuse to come in on a Saturday (and hopefully put comics in some new readers’ hands). Living across the country, we of course had very different experiences this FCBD. Here are our thoughts.

slim-bannerSpencer: I remember being a little disappointed the very first time I attended Free Comic Book Day (nearly a decade ago!) and realized I couldn’t have any comic I wanted for free. Since then, though, I’ve come to appreciate how magical FCBD truly is — especially as done by my local comic shop, Captain Blue Hen Comics in Newark, Delaware. FCBD is a Comic-Con in miniature, a chance to unite a community of nerds of all shapes and sizes, and a glimpse at the next generation of comic book readers as they begin to fall in love with the medium. I couldn’t have had a better time.

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New Avengers 17

new avengers 17Today, Spencer and Drew are discussing New Avengers 17, originally released April 30th, 2014. 

slim-bannerSpencer:  On the surface, the Great Society and the Illuminati — the two teams at the center of Jonathan Hickman and Rags Morales’ New Avengers 17 — seem to be as different as day and night, but the more we dig into these groups, the more similarities emerge. They may handle the Incursions differently, but deep down, both teams seem to know that they’re only delaying the inevitable: it’s the way they face the end of the world that truly defines these heroes.

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Commentary Track – Chris Samnee Discusses Daredevil 1

Commentary Track, Chris Samnee, Daredevil 1

When Chris Samnee and Mark Waid closed their award-winning volume of Daredevil, they set themselves the herculean task of uncovering new ground for a new volume, living up to fan expectations, and ingratiating themselves to the newcomers that every #1 brings. More than up to the task, Waid and Samnee delivered a first issue that managed to tell us everything a new reader would need to know about the character within the context of a thrilling adventure. Much of why that works comes from Samnee’s clever implementation of visual exposition, which capitalizes on every piece of setting, lighting, blocking, and costuming as important storytelling details. Drew sat down with Chris and went through the issue page by page, so get your copy handy and join us on the Commentary Track.

Retcon Punch: To start off, can you tell us a bit about how you and Mark Waid break a story?

Chris Samnee: We usually talk on the phone before he writes anything. I get to toss out any ideas that I have, and then he throws them out the window (laughs).

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Batgirl Annual 2

 

batgirl annual 2Today, Shelby and Drew are discussing Batgirl Annual 2, originally released April 30th, 2014. 

slim-bannerShelby: A couple years ago I saw Melancholia in the theater, I believe with the esteemed Retcon Puncher Taylor. Spoiler alert: it’s probably the most depressing move I’ve ever seen. Beautiful, but calling it a downer would be an understatement. In it, Kirsten Dunst plays an extremely depressed woman; at one point, she is physically incapable of getting out of bed, relying completely on her sister’s aid. For me, it raised the question of how much leeway should we give people suffering from mental illnesses such as depression. While I was watching the movie, I was distracted by how seemingly mean the rest of the characters were to this severely ill woman, but you have to step back and think about the impact her illness has had on their lives. At what point do those closest to someone with this sort of disease finally snap from dealing with it, and can we really blame them for doing so? And finally, what happens when that mental illness manifests itself as super-powered criminal activity? (Okay, that last question is more about the Batgirl annual than Melancholia, but you get the idea.)

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Serious Issues: The Janelle Asselin Controversy pt. 3 – Marginalization

Serious Issues: The Janelle Asselin Controversy pt. 1 - ContextNo girls allowed!

Traditional

As we continue our discussion of the Janelle Asselin controversy, we’re daunted by the sheer scope of the issues it has brought to the surface. Asselin’s article addressed issues of representation — a noble endeavor we’ve taken up more than once here — but the reaction to that article turned this story into something much more complex. Clearly, the climate in which these conversations happen isn’t entirely healthy. Looking at the solicits for May, women make up less than 10% of the talent pool at either of the Big Two publishers — something that may explain the overrepresentation of male characters, but may also belie a more deep-seeded issue in comics at large.

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Batman Eternal 4

Batman eternal 4Today, Shelby leads a discussion on Batman Eternal 4, originally released April 30th, 2014.

Shelby: Last week, Spencer referenced the breakneck speed at which the Batman Eternal crew was giving us our story. While I do think this story is progressing along at a pretty good clip, I think it has more to do with us adjusting to a weekly story instead of a monthly one. Each issues gives us as much story as we’re used to, but now we’re getting 4 times the dosage every month. The weekly release schedule makes the story so much more effective — like Bruce, we are astounded and somewhat alarmed at how quickly events unfold.

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The Flash Annual 3

Alternating Currents: The Flash Annual 3, Drew and ScottToday, Drew and Scott are discussing The Flash Annual 3, originally released April 30th, 2014.

…at the end of the day, the Flash is still the same tone as it was before. It’s still the same character, but kind of just reinvisioned.

Francis Manapul

Drew: The above quote isn’t about Robert Venditti and Van Jensen’s new run on The Flash — Manapul was actually speaking about the start of his own run back when I interviewed him in 2012 — but it might as well be. That a statement can be used to describe a new take on the character as well as the newer take that succeeds is is a universal truism in comics, but it also speaks to an innate truth about the Flash: he needs to move forward. Of course, Jensen and Venditti aren’t privy to the clean break that started Manapul’s run, and have thus needed to address Barry’s past as much as his future. Fortunately, they are also paying attention to this series’ history of meta-commentary, addressing their own creative baggage right on the page. Of all the things they could have ported from the previous run, this is my absolute favorite, injecting The Flash Annual 3 with a sense of rebellion.

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The Manhattan Projects 20

manhattan projects 20Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing The Manhattan Projects 20, originally released April 23, 2014.

“Now I am become death, destroyer of worlds.”

Robert Oppenheimer, actual American History

Patrick: J. Robert Oppenheimer repeated this phrase, which he had read in the Bhadavad Gita, when we witnessed the first test of the atomic bomb. This is recorded in actual history text books, and widely believed to be true, but what exactly he meant by invoking the passage remains up to interpretation. Is he calmly asserting his own will over the strength of human life? Is he mourning his eternal loss of innocence? The odd syntax and the double verb make it an ungainly sentence, and speaking it aloud feels just as strange as the realization itself. Manhattan Projects has long been a series about an alternate American History, but this is the first issue to make a point of a similarity between all universes: Robert Oppenheimer is the face of evil.

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Guardians of the Galaxy 14

guardians of the galaxy 14

Today, Drew and Shelby are discussing Guardians of the Galaxy 14, originally released April 23rd, 2014.

Drew: Anniversaries tend to be opportunities to look back. In comics, they seem to be opportunities to deconstruct. Detective Comics and Daredevil both had big anniversary issues this year, and both seized on the opportunity to ask what really defines these characters. The answers those issues posited were buoyed by the strength of their characters, but what about a team series — especially a team with a relatively smaller history? Guardians of the Galaxy 14 sets out to answer this question in the most unexpected ways, separating the characters (or even eliminating them altogether) to examine what makes the Guardians work as an abstract concept.

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