As you may have seen from my recent thread, I will be starting review comics on a mostly weekly basis. This week I was expecting to review Swamp Thing #21, The Movement #2, Green Arrow #21 and Bedlam #7; but, due to a shipping error, my store didn't get in Swamp Thing or The Movement. (I will be reviewing those next week... maybe.) Before we get started, I should tell you about my reviewing methods. My reviews will probably be more akin to rants or ramblings. I will will try to avoid the use of buzzwords and filler found in most reviews; although, this may make my reviews on the short side. They will be broken down into three parts: cover, art, and story. Art will be graded from bad to functional to really good. A slight rant about covers: I am very picky about covers. I believe that way too many covers are just too damn generic. Most covers look like a splash page from the comic book; generally, they are a superhero striking a dramatic pose or a superhero engaged in a fight. I prefer covers that look like pieces of art and that look different from that inside of the book; if that means hiring a separate cover artist, then so be it. I also despise text on covers. Nothing screams old-fashioned than some dramatic text followed by an exclamation mark on the cover. And, apparently DC has made it their prerogative to clutter up as many covers as possible. I don't understand how they could think that some generic-ass text will want to make me buy the comic book. And speaking of text, why is "THE NEW 52!" still printed on every cover?! DC rebooted into the New 52 almost two years ago, but since we don't have enough cluttering text on the cover let us just keep adding more! The thought that years from now I will be buying comic books with "THE NEW 52" printed on the covers, makes me want to never buy a DC published comic book again. And speaking of clutter, this month DC decided it would be a good idea to clutter up the covers even more by putting an ad for Man of Steel at the top of the covers! Now to the reviews (warning reviews may contain spoilers): To start, I would like to say that I am one of the least qualified people to review a Green Arrow comic book. I only started reading Green Arrow after Jeff Lemire took over in issue 17. The only other Green Arrow I have read would be Green Arrow: Year One. (Side note: You should read it. It is pretty awesome.) Maybe someone can step in and school me on Green Arrow and tell me how I know nothing about the character and that I am making myself look foolish. The cover: As you might have guessed, based on my earlier cover rant, I don't like this cover. It is both a superhero in a dramatic pose and a superhero fighting. The cover sort of makes some sense once one has the the book, but at first glance Oliver appears to be fighting the kraken. It is by far not the most generic cover I have seen, but it is pretty damn generic. The art: Andrea Sorrentino has an amazing art style; no one draws like he does. In a world of barely passable and generic comic book art, Sorrentino's work really shines. His thin lines and the way he shadows things are what make him unique; although, at times he shadows people's eyes too often. His art really gets shown off in this issue thanks to an extended hallucination scene. The best examples are the extra wide shot of past Green Arrow villains and the dragon panel. I would put Sorrentino's art at really good. The story: This issue finishes the story arc Jeff Lemire started in issue 17, in it Green Arrow will learn the true secrets about his father and his origin. When the story arc first started I was really excited for it, but now my excitement begins to fade. I am realizing more and more that this is just a generic break-superhero-down-build-superhero-back-up story. At first, it was cool that Lemire was taking, what I considered, a goofy character and making him darker. He added suspense and mystery to the comic. But now that the answers are revealed, I am not sure I like them. I won't spoil exactly what happens, but let's just say it is some major supernatural comic book BS. It doesn't surprise me that Lemire went this route, and I am glad that he isn't just writing the same Green Arrow that everyone else does; but the feel that Lemire brings to the comic just seems out of place and odd. Not to mention that the whole thing seems kind of hokey. Don't think that this is a terrible comic book. It will still be staying on my pull list... for now. Edit: Actually, I think I might take this off of my pull list next week... maybe Warning: The following review is for a mature rated comic book. Read at your own risk. You may recognize this as the comic my avatar picture comes from. It is definitely one of my favorites. The trade covering the first six issues came out last month so it is a good time to get into the series. The cover: I really like Frazer Irving's covers. They are the antithesis to generic covers. But, they are getting a little samey, mainly due to them all having very similar color. So while this cover is very eye-catching and cool, when taken in the greater context, it is too similar to the others. Side note: The new back cover image is pretty freaking awesome. The art: Many fans, including myself, were disappointed to learn that Riley Rossmo, the original artist on Bedlam, would be leaving because Nick Spenser would not let him have creative input on the story. Because of this, I have been anxious to read this issue. Alas, the news is not all good. Ryan Browne tries his best Riley Rossmo impression. He really does try to capture Rossmo's loose, scratchy style, but he ends up being a little too loose and too scratchy. While it is not terrible, it serves as a stinging reminder of how awesome Rossmo was. Every time I look at Bedlam, I will think,"This guy isn't terrible, but he isn't as good as Rossmo." I would rate the art at functional. The story: Bedlam follows the story of reformed mass murderer Fillmore Press, a.k.a. Madder Red, as he tries to find redemption for his past actions. It takes place in the present now that Fillmore Press has been "reformed" by The Good Doctor, with occasional flashback to his time as Madder Red. I don't remember the last time I laughed so hard at a comic book. I am, of course, referring to the opening flashback scene. It may or may not involve Madder Red, who is dressed as a member of the clergy, using two peoples heads as hand puppets. I don't know if I should be disturbed at how funny I found it though... This issue definitely feels a lot more like a Nick Spenser comic book, with the sequencing and the way he focuses on many characters. Actually, his starting to focus on more of the towns people has gotten me really excited for what he will do next. Some might fault him for taking his sweet time when it comes to answering questions and introducing new ones before the old ones are even answer. But having read other Spenser comics, I know he will answer the questions eventually, it will just be when he damn well pleases. Fillmore press is still one of the most interesting characters in comic books, and the scene with the TV shows that all is not what appears to be. I would really like some honest feedback on how I could improve these.
