Comic Picks By The Glick

This brings us up to issue #150 of the ongoing series and it’s a much happier milestone than the previous major one.  You know, where Negan beat Glenn to death (which is still what I’m expecting to see happen on the TV show, but that’s another story).  After the stealth pre-emptive strike against Alexandrea by Alpha, the leader of the Whispers, that left a lot of people with their heads on pikes as a warning, Rick now has to preserve order in a very frightened and angry community.  The panic manifests in ways both subtle -- a distraught Eugene noting that they have Alpha’s daughter to use as leverage -- and violent as Rick is beaten nearly to death one by some citizens who want to send a message.  It’s a very credible look at mob violence and even as you hope for Rick to find a way to get things under control, the feelings and (to a certain extent) actions of these people ring true.

That Rick does find a way to unite everyone and set forth a plan to take out the Whispers should not surprise anyone.  What should give readers some pause is how Negan figures into it.  Kirkman has sworn that the former leader of the Saviors will never leave the cell he’s currently in.  However, we’ve already seen that’s not going to stop him from messing with the minds of anyone who decides to pay him a visit.  Or, in this case, offering Rick counsel on the crisis at hand with possibly a side order of manipulation.  What Negan has to say about the threat of the Whispers is really on point and delivered with the same kind of entertainingly foul-mouthed magnetism that has always made his appearances memorable.  I’d say “fun,” but you also have to consider the times he shows up to murder characters I like.

Even if it is mostly just setup for the next major phase of the series, this volume shows that you can still deliver worthwhile and compelling material in the process of doing so.  There’s a lot in this volume that speaks to the current state of our own world, and as ugly as things are with “The Walking Dead” it’s still reassuring to see that Rick Grimes is around to lead the good guys.  At least, until Kirkman finally decides to kill him -- because that’s what happens to reassuring things in this world.

Well… This took its time in arriving.  It’s still a worthwhile read, even though this volume represents what they call in the sports world a “rebuilding year.”  After a well-done epilogue/victory lap for “Scorpion” Shiratori’s story, the focus shifts back to our three protagonists.  Kiyohara is working better with his team with the hope that, after dominating their regional tournament, they’ll go all the way to the nationals.  Takahashi has also joined the same team and is learning that he needs to work on developing speed as a wheelchair basketball player before he can truly compete.  Nomiya is, well, still hanging around after failing to be picked up by the team he tried out for several volumes back.

After being ignored for a good long while, it’s just good to see Nomiya finally get some decent page-time in this manga.  His arc has always been interesting to observe as this guy is the only one of the three protagonists without any physical impairments -- all of his problems are in his head.  Now he has to shake himself out of this mental funk and get his character arc back on track.  It’s a development that mirrors the meta aspect of how the character has fallen into disuse for the past few volumes.

Kiyohara and Takahashi’s arcs don’t have the same issue, even though the latter’s remains the more compelling as we see him struggle to become the player he knows he can be.  That’s not the best part about this volume, however.  After fourteen volumes, it finally feels like all three of their arcs are coming together in such a way that mangaka Takehiko Inoue isn’t telling three different stories in one series.  Of course, most of what’s done with the characters here is simply getting them into place for future stories.  Lots of setup, very little payoff, though that’s probably to be expected coming off of the excitement from vol. 13.  It does sell me on the fact that good things are coming for these characters down the line.  I’ll be sticking around for that, no matter how long I’ll have to wait.

Are you in the mood for some “Civil War II” crossovers?  Because Marvel will have you covered come July.  The majority of titles in this month’s solicitations touch on the event in some way.  Some of them are likely to be of significant relevance to its story, like the Bendis-written issue of “Invincible Iron Man.”  Others are just in it for the lulz as the two issues of “Deadpool” serve as a launching pad for the “Mercs For Money” ongoing series.  Then you have the “in it just to boost sales” tie-ins like “The Ultimates” as I struggle to see how its fate-of-the-universe agenda could be bothered to care with a spat between superheroes.  (Still looking forward to reading it as it’s coming from Al “Loki:  Agent of Asgard” Ewing.)  I’m also surprised that some titles I would expect to be involved in this, such as “Avengers,” “Uncanny Avengers,” and “Black Widow” are taking a pass on it.  Then again, that may change in the next two months as the event wraps up.  Gotta get some of that token sales boost before it’s too late!

This is somewhat old news, but Shelly Bond, chief editor of Vertigo and a 23-year veteran of DC, was recently let go from the company.  That might be putting things a bit too diplomatically.  One of the things that is said to have led to her dismissal is the failure of the mass launch of Vertigo titles in the last quarter of 2015 to make any kind of impression sales-wise.  A few critical and cult favorites have emerged, but none of them sold anywhere near what they would need to show that the imprint still had it after all these years.  The writing for Vertigo would appear to be on the wall at this point.

So what’s the next step for “mature readers” titles at DC?  The answer to that question would appear to be Gerard Way.  The musician/comic book writer will be overseeing a new imprint of such titles under the name of Young Animal.  While it’s assumed he’ll have input over all the titles -- including the Gotham-set “Mother Panic” and the in-continuity revamp of “Shade” from the “Changing Man” to the“Changing Girl” -- he’ll be co-writing the new “Doom Patrol” series and “Cave Carson Has a Cybernetic Eye” which sounds bizarre in an intriguing way.  (Mike Oeming will also be providing the art, so if anyone was expecting more issues of “Powers” in the future…)  Thanks to Way’s work on “The Umbrella Academy,” I can at least be optimistic for the titles that he’s directly involved in.  Whether or not he has the magic touch to make them all succeed… Well, let’s not be too hasty here.  Having just one be a creative and sales breakout would be enough to be an improvement over what has (recently) come before.

Things start off with a decent enough sci-fi mystery steeped in the history of the Marvel Universe.  The Guardians, with Captain Marvel along for the ride, are cruising along on their merry way when suddenly a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier appears right out of the ether!  If that weren’t surprising enough, it’s being commanded by none other than Nick Fury and crewed by the likes of Dum-Dum Dugan, Jimmy Woo, and Jessica Drew.  Though their stated reason for being out here is to make sure the Kree-Skrull War never happens again, most of the people onboard are either dead or have had their standing in the Marvel Universe dramatically altered over the past few years.  Bendis plays up the confusion in an effective manner for most of the story and most of the interaction between the two groups is fun.  Especially when Rocket Raccoon and Fury mix it up.  However, the revelation as to what’s really going on is fairly underwhelming and I was left wondering what the point of all this was at the end of the story.  Was it just to have Frank Cho draw these characters and show us how well he can draw a firefight in space?  If so, then I guess the results make it all worth it in the end.

Valerio Schiti illustrates the rest of the volume and, even if he’s not quite as detailed as Cho, shows why he’s a great fit for the book and Bendis’ style in general.  Not only does he great variety of alien species and locations look fantastic under his pen, but the conversation scenes have a fitting energy with the expressiveness with which he gives the characters.  It’s not enough to get me to care about the two chapters of “The Black Vortex” included here.  Then again, I’m not sure any artist could manage that.  At least Schiti and Bendis work together well enough to send the volume off on a high point as Peter Quill and the rest of the cast get dragged back to Spartax after it’s finally revealed to him that he was elected to be its new ruler.  They get a taste of the high life and have to deal with a threat that wants Gamora’s head on a platter.  It’s a good dose of adventure that’s in line with the more entertaining parts of Bendis’ (very uneven) run.  The writer has shown that he’s not the best fit for the characters or their adventures, but there’s enough good stuff here to get me to stick around for another volume to see if “Emperor Quill” is the angle he needs to really click with them.

Jodorowsky!  Manara!  Kirkman!  Miller!  Simonson!  Waid!  Milligan!  Arakawa!  All in this podcast (most for 50% off)!

Tsukimi Kurashita is an 18-year-old jellyfish fanatic living in Tokyo with a gaggle of other fangirls with their own obsessions.  Residing in a communal apartment and going by the nickname “Amars,” they live by their own camaraderie (and off of the goodwill of their parents) while maintaining a healthy distrust of those scary people known as “stylish individuals.”  It’s one such individual, Kurano, that comes to Tsukimi’s rescue when she tries to save a jellyfish in a pet store and crashes at her place for the night.  Though this woman is quite friendly for a “stylish individual,” she’s harboring one big surprise that’s going to completely upend our protagonist’s life.  Mind you, this is before all of the Amars girls find out that their apartment is going to be bulldozed to make way for a set of high-rise apartments!

There’s a lot about this series that is familiar.  From the “Save the building!” plot that could’ve come straight from an 80’s movie to the shoujo love triangle that starts to form here between Tsukimi and the two brothers, this is not a manga you’re going to read for its inventive storytelling.  Yet mangaka Akiko Higashimura does demonstrate some excellent comedic timing with her art, which is appropriately flashy for a series about women utilizing their beauty as a weapon.  That’s one of the two novel bits here as Kurano teaches the girls about how a woman looks is part of their arsenal for war in modern society.  In order for them to save their apartment complex (and for Tsukimi to get the guy of her dreams) they’ll have to master this complex art from the ground up.

The other novelty of the plot is something that I’m not sure is intentional on Higashimura’s part.  You see, if this was a series about a bunch of male otaku freeloading off of their parents to live in Tokyo, I doubt it’d be as charming.  Even “Genshiken” had its characters get jobs.  Except in this case the women’s lives are romanticized to a surprising extent.  I’m actually rooting for these jobless female slackers to save their apartment and continue living their indulgent lives even though I can’t imagine doing the same if their genders were reversed.  It’s a clear double-standard, but one that isn’t a dealbreaker for me yet.  As I said, I’m not sure if this is something that Higashimura has considered when she was creating this story.  At least she’s delivered one that’s enjoyable enough for me to want to see where she’s going with it.

The annual Image Expo was held earlier this month and (BIG SURPRISE) a lot of cool-sounding new titles were announced.  “The Black Monday Murders” is Jonathan Hickman’s new title with artist Tomm Coker and is based on the idea that all of the major financial institutions that run the world are actually secret schools of magic.  Bonus world-building material is promised in each issue which may give me an incentive to pick it up (digitally).  Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips are back with “Kill or Be Killed,” about a troubled young man who is compelled to go out and kill who he perceives to be bad people.  Pitched as a thriller and deconstruction of vigilantism, it also sounds like Brubaker is working out his desire to write “The Punisher” independent of Marvel.  Another creative team I’m quite fond of, Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso, are doing their first Image title with “Moonshine.”  The title is both a reference to the prohibition-era setting of the story and the fact that it appears to involve werewolves in some fashion.  The “Batgirl” creative team of Brenden Fletcher, Cameron Stewart and Babs Tarr is giving us “Motor Crush,” about a woman who competes in a motorcycle racing league by day and is a skull-cracking vigilante by night.

These are just the titles from the creative teams that I like.  Plenty more titles were announced and I’ll be checking them out as word-of-mouth dictates.  Hey, for all I know it could be one of those that turns out to be more entertaining than the ones I’ve mentioned here.  Except for the Remender/Opena joint I didn’t, that is.