Category Patrick Ehlers

Patrick Ehlers, Co-Editor-In-Chief
patrick@retcon-punch.com

Location: Los Angeles

History With Comics: Patrick came late to the comics game. After enjoying adaptations of Batman, Superman and the Justice League, he was finally tricked into picking up a set of graphic novels after seeing Robert Rodriguez’ Sin City. Naturally, this lead to further exploration of Frank Miller’s work, specifically with Batman. But it was not until an unexplainable desire to read Blackest Night that Patrick began purchasing the trades of Geoff Johns’ run Green Lantern. With a convenient new entry point and a handful of friends to follow him into the madness, Patrick began reading monthlies with the New 52’s Justice League #1.

New 52 Favorites: The Flash, Swamp Thing, Batwoman

Other Favorite Comics: Usagi Yojimbo, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Saga

Apr 8 2014

Loki: Agent of Asgard 3

loki 3Today, Patrick and Shelby are discussing Loki: Agent of Asgard 3, originally released April 2, 2014. 

slim-bannerPatrick: I remember seeing a featurette on Kill Bill, Vol. 1 in anticipation of Vol. 2. In it, Quentin Tarantino mentioned a few of the storytelling accomplishments of the first movie. For the most part, Vol. 1 is an emotionally satisfying episode in and of itself: an emotionally and physically devastated woman finds the means, the will and strength to fight back. But Tarantino points out the importance of establishing the mythology of a Hattori Hanzo sword. By the time the second flick rolls around, they’re legendary, and their legacy adds an almost supernatural element to the fight between The Bride and Elle. I mean, it’s Hanzo Sword vs. Hanzo Sword for crying out loud! The thing is, the only way to communicate how powerful these blades are is to tell us stories about them. Al Ewing continues to explore the power of myth by having his antagonist craft his own mythical sword, not by forging the blade, but by forging the story of the blade. Continue reading →

Apr 7 2014

Action Comics 30

action comics 30
Today, Scott and Patrick are discussing Action Comics 30, originally released April 2nd, 2014.

Scott: Segues: you either love ’em or you hate ’em. I’ve listened to enough standup comedy to know that I’m a fan of the clean break, the abrupt change of topic. Lengthy transitions are just a waste of time. In longer storytelling formats, such as monthly comic books, there’s more of a virtue in spinning many plates at once. Even though stories are broken into defined arcs, some elements carry over from one arc to the next, making the clean break impossible. It results in issues like Action Comics 30, where writer Greg Pak’s first major arc comes to an end while also introducing important pieces of the story to come. The issue looks fantastic, but the story gets a little messy as it tries to connect the old with the new, making me wonder if Pak might have been better off nixing the segue.

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Apr 7 2014

Punisher 4

punisher 4Today, Patrick and Taylor are discussing Punisher 4, originally released April 2nd, 2014. 

slim-bannerPatrick: I can’t think of a superhero with a more troubling psychological origin story than Frank Castle. The circumstances are as cliche as they come: Frank’s family is murdered, driving him to take revenge on those responsible. But Frank’s able to abstract that responsibility and extend it to All Criminals. Very pointedly, he is not an agent of justice, and he’s not looking to make anything right — his goals and his ideology are so neatly wrapped up in his code name. Punisher. Obviously, his approach requires a horrifically oversimplified view of criminals, there’s no room for mercy or subtlety. But that also means there’s no room for complication: Frank’s MO is too pure for corruption. The world around Punisher isn’t so simple, and as issue four simultaneously focuses in Frank’s character and broadens out to illuminate his world, it’s clear that he’s up against threats on a scale totally inappropriate for a street-level executioner.

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Apr 3 2014

Inhuman 1

inhuman 1

Today, Shelby and Patrick are discussing Inhuman 1, originally released April 2nd, 2014

Shelby: I have always been somewhat baffled by racism. I can’t understand the reasoning behind looking at another human being and deciding that they are inferior because of the color of their skin. I understand that racism exists, I’m certainly not trying to deny it, I just don’t understand the logic (such as it is) behind it. How can any one human be inherently better than another? And what could skin color possibly have to do with it? As Charles Soule kicks off Inhuman 1, he presents us with a situation where there IS a branch of humanity which is measurably superior. The Inhumans are stronger and more powerful than the rest of us mere mortals, and some are not afraid to show it. The real question is, once these inferior humans start instantly transforming into superior beings, what are all those racist Inhumans going to do about it?

Continue reading →

Apr 2 2014

Weekly Round-Up: Comics Released 3/26/14

round upLook, there are a lot of comics out there. Too many. We can never hope to have in-depth conversations about all of them. But, we sure can round up some of the more noteworthy titles we didn’t get around to from the week. Today, Drew and Patrick discuss Tomb Raider 2, Aquaman 30, Red Lanterns 30, All-Star Western 30, Fables 139, Manhattan Projects 19, George Romero’s Empire of the Dead Act One 3, Superior Spider-Man 30, and Indestructible Hulk 20.

slim-banner4Patrick: It can be sorta tricky to take the story of any modern adventure game seriously. Like, we can all cheer for Nathan Drake and have a hell of a good time watching him trade barbs with Sully and running through the jungle with Elena, but we have to keep some emotional distance as he straight-up murders dudes for treasure. That’s one of the defining flaws of the Tomb Raider narrative: Lara Croft agonizes over her first kill, but her second, third and fourth kills all come minutes later and they’re instantly common place. In issue two of the comic series, Gail Simone tries to retcon the end of the game as something of a murderous fever dream, revealing that Lara encouraged her surviving teammates to take treasure from the Solarii. It’s sorta fucked up, but then Lara’s murderama doesn’t feel right in the game either — I’m interested to see where this is headed and if Simone’s retcon sticks, or if some manipulative forces are continuing to prey on her naiveté.

Continue reading →

Apr 1 2014

New Avengers 16

new avengers 16Today, Spencer and Patrick are discussing New Avengers 16, originally released March 26th, 2014. 

slim-banner

Spencer: What do you do when a problem has you stumped, when you’ve tried everything you can think of to fix it, but nothing works? Perhaps you ask for help, hoping that a fresh set of eyes will provide a new perspective, or perhaps you examine how others have solved similar problems in hopes of finding an answer. Lately the Illuminati have been taken both approaches in their attempts to end the Incursions. The Mirror has provided them with an endless variety of alternate Earths to observe, but no matter how things differ on the various worlds, so far they have all been recognizable as versions of the Marvel Universe. Not so, though, in Jonathan Hickman and Rags Morales’ New Avengers 16, where we get to see how the heroes of the distinguished competition might handle an Incursion. Continue reading →

Apr 1 2014

The Wake 7

wake 7Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing The Wake 7, originally released March 26th, 2014.

Anything could happen.

-Traditional

Patrick: Aristotle called it “peripeteia” — the conditions that trigger a fundamental change in what we understand about a narrative. We know it more colloquially these days as a “mindfuck,” and it’s simultaneously the most rewarding and most frustrating thing to experience as an audience member. We’ve all been there: suddenly you have to decide whether the leap has established a reality that you still want to experience. Is it fundamentally the same story once you know that Luke is Darth Vader’s son? No way. Is that new story worth experiencing? Oh, hell yes. Scott Snyder and Sean Murphy are fresh on the heels of one of the biggest shifts in storytelling since Psycho, and they’re already dousing the narrative in shocking new revelations. “Anything” has already happened — how the hell are they still surprising me?

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Mar 31 2014

A + X 18

a+x 18Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing A + X 18, originally released March 28th, 2014.

Patrick: There was always going to be something artificial about the A + X conceit. For as much as it feels like they’re all good guys, so they should have no problem teaming up for a little BAM-POW superhero adventuring, there’s just too much baggage to sustain it for very long. As the series comes to close, it appears that A + X was a promise too heavy to be supported by such a fluffy, carefree experience. The final issue seems split on this opinion, simultaneously expressing how similar the two groups are while stubbornly refusing to find common ground between the two.

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Mar 28 2014

Silver Surfer 1


silver surfer 1Today, Taylor and Patrick are discussing Silver Surfer 1, originally released March 26th, 2014.

Taylor: Surfer’s have always had a pretty bogus rap around popular culture. We tend to think of them as west coast bums who have forgone any responsibility in their endless pursuit of the perfect wave. It’s an unfair stereotype and one that fails to acknowledge the deep community and thoughtful demeanor of a lot of surfers out there. Similarly, the Silver Surfer has struggled with his one reputation. Once the harbinger of doom for Galactus, the Silver Surfer now spends his days trying to make up for a past life of wrongdoing. His reputation is poor but maybe with enough good deeds he can change the way others look at him… and perhaps change the universe as well.

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Mar 27 2014

Forever Evil: Rogues Rebellion 6

rogues rebellion 6Today, Spencer and Patrick are discussing Forever Evil: Rogues Rebellion 6, originally released March 26th, 2014.

Spencer: Villains aren’t exactly known for their teamwork. Sure, they team up all the time, but it rarely lasts and never ends well; egos get wounded, agendas clash, and varying levels of morality get in the way. Just look at the Crime Syndicate over in Forever Evil proper; they’ve been keeping secrets and plotting against each other from the moment they reached our Earth, likely even longer. The only group of villains who have stuck it out for the long haul are the Rogues of Central City. What makes them different? Brian Buccellato and Scott Hepburn’s Forever Evil: Rogues Rebellion 6 implies that it may just be because the Rogues understand the way the world works better than most villains.

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