One Review, An Explanation and A Schedule

Right, now, as everyone who follows me at all might know that I've been VERY bad at getting back to people, letting conversations slide and all that. Well, the reason for that is very simple. I've been very knackered, and jus haven't got round to replying >.< I have about 30 posts to comment on, all in their own window, so I will get round to it, at some point. And yes, I know it is a slappable offence.

Anywho, I will be better at replying from next week - I finish work at the end of next week, and so from Sunday I will be free to do whatever I please. Which means lots of booze, gambling and hookers. *Beat* No wait, it'll be clothes designs, comic writing and maybe taking a holiday to the States. I haven't decided yet where or when, but if anyone has ideas or wants to meet up, let me know and we can see what we can arrange. Jus look out for the guy with long red hair and a fedora.

And now, finally, onto the review, and it will only be one, because the entire week disapointed me so much (Brightest Day was lame, with what, not even a page of Aquaman, some really confusing ass Martian Manhunter stuff, etc etc. Urge), Atlas (erm, so who the hell is this 3D-Man and why should I care? I wanted to read about the Agents of Atlas dammit) and my actual review. The good though were The Spirit (mediocore really, but enjoyable enough), DCU Legacies (enjoyed the stories on this, people living in a superhero world, good premise and all), Legion of Super-Heroes (passable, though when did Saturn-Woman have kids [though not any more, haha. It's like a dead baby joke...] and there were a few confusing moments, but it was alright) and Zatanna (tad disappointed, could've been so much more). But now, without further ado, it's on to the actual review, and if you read my blog at any point, you know what's coming. It's X-Men Pixie Strikes Back by Kathryn Immonen and Sara Pichelli. Fun times all round.

OK, now, this comic was just painful to read. Really, physically painful. I think I've got a brain injury from reading it. The plot makes sense, in a consistent sense anyway. But the way it's structured, the way the characters act, they way they talk is all wrong. And it's not just this series - Kathryn should not be writing comics in my opinion. Both Runaways and this have been utter disasters when she's been writing, hampered by her complete and utter inability to write something of any sense. The plot is just stupid, the writing is bad, characters don't act as they should do, scenes and segways are bad, everybody talks in the same disjointed style that Felicia Henderson of Teen Titans uses, I think they went to the same school of BAD WRITERS. URGH

And finally, on a final note on the writing on the final bit of the issue - so Pixie thought she was going home with her mom, but her mom things being with the X-Men is her home. OK, fair enough. But it's badly written and took me three attempts before I realised this. Before I just thought it was sounding stupid writing. Maybe it's my annoyance at Kathryn, I don't know, as I generally get this stuff straight away. It's just all horrible.

And now, on to the artwork. I suppose it's passable in a way, but I think that's more due to the colouring than anything else. I'll give credit where credits due, and the colouring is done in an offbeat, non usual comic standard, and I really think it works. Good work Christina Strain. But now, on to the bad, and first things first: where the hell have Pixie's wings gone? Erm, HELLO? WINGS people, WINGS!
And you know what else? It's comical the size of the breasts on the women in this series. Emma, both Masterminds and Psylocke. Just, wow. So much silicon and plastic in those things eh?

And now, before I pop multiple blood vessels, I'm gonna to stop right here and not review it any more. So, now that that mini-series is over and done with, maybe we can have some competent writers writing Pixie (and the X-Men I suppose). I do have to say with Kathryn writing both the on hiatus Runaways and this series, I did think that with the revelation of Jason being Pixie's dad, I thought she might run away from the X-Men and become a Runaway. But apparently not. I suppose it does save me from watching as Kathryn butchers Pixie some more.

So, and this is the final note, my ending statement, WHERE WERE PIXIE'S WINGS?!? ARGH!

First post, first review, so yeah...

Righteo, so, here we are then. Me, writing a blog. Oh dear oh dear, what has the world come to? Still, this won't be a blog of anything pointless, like what happens in my life. Oh no, not at all. Unless of course you count my drawings, which, well, could make an appearance here and there. Who knows, cause I certainly don't.

Now then, enough with the blathering. Today I'm going to review something which is pretty recent, something I really liked the first time I read it, and can't put it down whenever I re-read it. Obviously something like this has gotta be pretty damn good, and I can't see I've seen anyone ever comment on this tale, so I'll let myself be the first person I've seen to have a crack at writing a review on this comic.

And what is it, you may pray tell? Well, it is Superman | Batman : The Search For Kryptonite aka issues 44-49 of Superman/Batman, written by Michael Green and Mike Johnson, pencilled by Shane Davis, inked by Mike "Batt" Banning, coloured by Alex Sinclair and Pete Pantazis, and lettered by Rob Leigh. (Yes, I am going to do that for every review I do, even small ones, but it wouldn't be right to not give full credit to the ever changing staff who make these wonderous little things. Thank you one and all, including everyone I can't name, like editors, printers, publishers, adminers, coffee stirrers and everyone else involved in this wonderous industry. You make my life a brighter and gaudier place to live in).




















This tale begins brilliantly - a humerous take on the film industry making a comic book film (how appropriate considering my line of work), an incredibly stupid origin of Batman and the worst actor I've seen since, well, ever... After that, the main premise behind the story takes hold, and, addresses a key point of comics that's become especially blatant with Smallville: "Kryptonite is everywhere. It's ubiquitous. It's embarrassing."

I won't bother to summarise the rest of the comic, as I don't see the point when you can just read it. Instead, I'll point out some of the bits that I particularly liked:

- The dynamic between the new Aquaman and Supes/Bats. I've never particularly liked what happened to Aquaman, they really messed him around, then shunted him off and put a new kid in his shoes. Bleh. But at least here he's been arrogant, but not an arsehole like Damian, not getting on my nerves or anything. He's doing what he thinks is right, what he feels is best for his home, and, yeah, wanting to beat the crap out of Superman.

- It really gets under both the title characters skins, showing their inner workings brilliantly. Especially the bit during Dinosaur Island; Batman is stubborn, an arse, and completely dedicated to his 'friends'. And this is not the normal Superman, this is a Superman obsessed for the greater good of the world, who will sacrifice his own life as he recognises his own higher calling. I've never been the biggest fan of Superman (shock, horror), but he's someone who is needed, the just of the just, as it were.

- It's epic yet heartfelt at the same time; we've got Superman and Batman patrolling the entire world, going into space beyond the Watchtower, exploring magic islands and fighting Kryptonite super soldiers, while still being human and keeping the story personal. It's something that Superman/Batman can do really well, as it has the two constant internal monologues, while other stories generally spread them around a bit too much. And that bit with Lana, well, I don't get why that happened, but, well, wow. Someone's learned a lot from Kristin Kreuk...

- The artwork, the designs, all of it's just really good. Superman's lead suit is damn cool, as is AquaBats, the (non-regularly seen) supporting cast all look good. It's just highly polished in that respect. I do have to tip my heart to all the artists involved in this. It takes a damn good tale and just keeps on adding. The only flaw I can say about it, save the classic 'Batman's cowl should have those dags in it by the side' is the Phantom Stranger's eye shadow looked dodgy. And yes, that's my only complaint about the artwork here.

And the great thing about this comic in the end is that I can't slag off the ending for it being too convenient, as it's all established (which some writers still can't grasp, I'm looking at you Russell T. Davis), the writings top notch, the art is damn pretty to look at.

By now I'm sure you're fed up of me prattling on about this comic, so I'll just say: go and read it, enjoy it, love it. And now, with my first review all done, I'll just leave you with those immortal words of Saint Walker:
“All will be well”