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Aug 30 2016

Aloha, Hawaiian Dick 5

aloha 5

Today, Patrick and Mark are discussing Aloha, Hawaiian Dick 5, originally released August 24th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Patrick: Back when Mark and I wrote about the first issue of Aloha, Hawaii Dick, Mark had a problem with the bait-and-switch nature of the issue. What purported to be a first issue was actually another entry in a series dating back to 2002. And while the summary page at the beginning of the issue promised Hawaiian spirits and other elements lifted from tiki mythology, the first volume is grounded-as-fuck, and takes place entirely on the mainland. Even fans of the series might be thrown to see the series’ regular protagonist replaced by his little brother Mike. Through the course of its five issues, Aloha, Hawaiian Dick has become a mini-series about the dissonance between the story you expect and the story you actually witness. Writer B. Clay Moore leans in to every unanswered question and ultimately rests on the most satisfying mysteries of all: the everyday mystery of “what happens next?” Continue reading →

Aug 9 2016

Kill Or Be Killed 1

kill or be killed 1

Today, Spencer and Ryan D. are discussing Kill Or Be Killed 1, originally released August 3rd, 2016.

Spencer: Maybe I’m just sheltered, but even at 29 years of age, I have trouble wrapping my head around the concept of people killing other people. I obviously understand that it happens, but there’s a difference between accepting that and actually being able to put yourself in the headspace to understand being capable of such a thing. As much as I may dream of justice in such situations, I’m equally baffled by the people who are actually able to fight for it, be they police or simply someone out for revenge; I can’t even imagine taking a life to save my own, much less purposely killing someone, no matter how evil they are. What pushes somebody to that point, allows them to take such a drastic step? That’s one of the primary questions explored in Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, and Elizabeth Breitweizer’s newest collaboration, Kill or be Killed, which opens with its protagonist, Dylan, working as a Punisher-esque vigilante, before rewinding the clock to see how he became one in the first place. Continue reading →

Jun 27 2016

The Autumnlands: Tooth and Claw 11

autumnlands 11

Today, Patrick and Spencer are discussing The Autumnlands: Tooth and Claw 11, originally released June 22nd, 2016.

Patrick: Writer Kurt Busiek is one of the strongest world-builders working in comics today. Astro City weaves so much lore, both borrowed and invented, into its narratives that the series feels like a meditation on decades of character — and publisher — history. That amount of history (implied or otherwise) is sort of part ‘n’ parcel with the genre; superhero comics are increasingly reliant on a history shared by the readers, the creators, and the characters. There’s a slightly different approach in the fantasy genre, and worlds like Middle Earth and Westeros have evident history, even if it’s impossible for us to seek out back-issues showing it. The Autumnlands: Tooth and Claw takes kind of a third track, implying a great history while also relying on the reader’s assumptions about genre and mythology to make us fill in the gaps, slowly and uncertainly, on our own. Continue reading →

Jun 14 2016

Wolf 8

wolf 8

Today, Drew and Patrick are discussing Wolf 8, originally released June 8th, 2016.

Man is a symbol-making and -using animal. Language itself is a symbolic form of communication. The great writers all used symbols as a means of controlling the form of their fiction. Some place it there subconsciously, discovered it and then developed it. Others started out consciously aware and in some instances shaped the fiction to the symbols.

Ralph Ellison

Drew: I distinctly remember asking my high-school English teacher if she really thought writers consciously employ symbolism. In 1963, Bruce MacAllister had a similar question, but rather than pose it to his teacher, he sent a survey to 150 of the most famous living writers asking them about their use of symbolism. I’m less enamored with the emphasis on authorial intent, but I’m absolutely in love with the audaciousness of that move. Or, rather, I’m in love with the fact that so many writers responded — including Ralph Ellison, whose own use of symbolism so frustrated me when I was in high school. Ellison’s comments stood out to me particularly for the allowance he makes for the symbols to take primacy over other elements, turning a literary device into the very point of the work in question. In short, turning prose into poetry. Ales Kot often attains a similar poetic quality, weaving symbols deep into the fabric of his comics. Wolf 8 finds both new and old symbols once again taking the center stage. Continue reading →

Jun 8 2016

Paper Girls 6

paper girls 6

Today, Michael and Ryan M. are discussing Paper Girls 6, originally released June 1st, 2015.

Michael: I’d say that I had a pretty active imagination growing up – which is to say that I was a human child, really. Maybe it was due to a fascination with dinosaurs or an early notion of regret/paranoia at an early age, but I always loved time travel. Not just travelling to important moments in history but seeing what I would personally become in the future. After a brief hiatus, Paper Girls returns to semi-address my boyhood questions as Erin and her friends travel from 1988 to the present and meet her future self. Continue reading →

May 18 2016

The Fix 2

Today, Ryan and Shelby are discussing The Fix 2, originally released May 11th, 2016.

Ryan: The best art is immersive. After an afternoon with a book or a brief television binge, it can take a little while for my brain to climb back out of that fictional world. That’s why I knew what butterbeer tasted like before Universal studios invented a recipe or why I can’t be trusted to drive home from a Fast & Furious movie. By engaging more than a single sense, stories can offer a gateway rather than a mere window into a world. Writer Nick Spencer and Artist Steve Leiber offer that gateway in The Fix 2, by using their medium to engage more than just visually. Continue reading →

May 10 2016

The Wicked + The Divine 19

wicked and divine 19Today, Spencer and Shane Patrick are discussing The Wicked + The Divine 19, originally released May 4th, 2016.

Spencer: For a series about literal gods, The Wicked + The Divine has spent very little time exploring the idea of “belief.” I suppose that makes sense — these gods exist whether you believe in them or not, and probably care little either way. Issue 19 doesn’t change that, but it does explore belief in an entirely different context. With the Pantheon now split into two warring camps, each member’s loyalties seem to depend on which figurehead’s story they believe the most. Fascinatingly, though, writer Kieron Gillen seems to be hinting that neither Ananke nor Persephone can be trusted — or, at the least, both are hiding something big. Trying to discern the truth adds a lot of depth to this (already exciting) storyline. Continue reading →

May 4 2016

Saga 36

Today, Ryan M. and Patrick are discussing Saga 36, originally released April 27, 2016.

Ryan M: I’m a sympathetic cryer. When I hear that telltale catch in someone else’s voice, my eyes swell. It’s not limited to real people either. Characters in movies I don’t even like can get me pretty easily, as well as any one who is dying and says that they aren’t ready out loud. I’m also not really a fan of crying in front of people, so I tend to be wary about finishing a book on the bus or seeing heavy dramas at the movie theater. So, I made sure I was all alone when I read Saga 36. That’s how sure I was that Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples were preparing to gut me with empathetic sadness as they closed an arc with the death of one of the characters. Of course, I was pretty wrong about that. I still cried, but only happy tears. Continue reading →

Apr 25 2016

Tokyo Ghost 6

tokyo ghost 6

Today, Shelby and Drew are discussing Tokyo Ghost 6, originally released April 20th, 2016.

Shelby:  I used to listen to the news on NPR every morning, but I’ve stopped for a couple of reasons. The biggest reason is that it’s simply too depressing; so many shitty people being shitty to each other, it’s too much to take. And I’m not even talking about the election coverage, which I am completely sick and tired of, despite the fact we’re still only in the primaries. Not only am I tired of all the bad news about bad people doing bad things, I have very little trust in the news that I hear. Every news story has me wondering who paid for their version of the truth to be broadcast, who is trying the hardest to trick me into being on their side. I can understand why the people of New Los Angeles would rather plug into mindless entertainment than put up with sorting through the spin and PR to find the truth. And that’s exactly what Rick Remender and the rest of the creative team on Tokyo Ghost want me to understand: they want us to understand how easy it can be to become the willingly ignorant, and the cost of breaking free. Continue reading →

Apr 22 2016

Aloha, Hawaiian Dick 1

Aloha Hawaiian Dick 1 - Mark and Patrick
Today, Mark and Patrick are discussing Aloha, Hawaiian Dick 1, originally released April 20th, 2016.

Mark: I’m not really sure how to approach Aloha, Hawaiian Dick 1. Hawaiian Dick is a series dating back to 2002, and recently came off a successful Kickstarter campaign to bundle the series in a hardcover book. From what I can tell, the series has a small, but devoted, following. Unfortunately, Aloha, Hawaiian Dick 1 is pretty strictly a fans-only introduction to the series. Continue reading →