The Unwritten #1

Of all the new books coming out recently this one had me the most excited. Vertigo was really pushing this, there were three or four page previews in the back of Hellblazer and such for awhile, and I liked what I saw. The premise seemed strong, the art had that mix of style and accessibility that I like so much, Mike Carey was on board. And it was about stories. I love stories about stories. I know that sounds weird but it's true. Well issue #1 is finally out and I am not disappointed. I only hope that Mike Carey and Peter Gross truly realize what they've got on their hands (I get the feeling they do) because it feels like something special to me. It's only the first issue so I don't want to get ahead of myself, but I dig it, and I think it has legs. I don't want to lay out the premise for you because the way they set it all up is neat and much more fun to read if you don't really know where it's heading. And best of all it's only a dollar! Genius! I hope this comic sells through the roof so more publishers can see what a brilliant marketing strategy this is. Do you know how many more comics I would give a chance to if the first issue was only a dollar? Hell, I'd buy 'em all.

Keep and eye on this one. If you like comics that are well written, well drawn, and not the same old crap you've been reading since forever, you could do a whole lot worse. Go scoop it up. It's only a buck, and if you're really that cheap, I'll even spot you that.

Pluto #1-2

I've been sitting here for awhile trying to think of what to say about Pluto besides “you must read this book.” I'm having trouble. There's just so much good here.

Story: someone is gunning for the seven greatest robots in the world, as well a few scattered “Robots Rights” advocates. Detective Gesicht is put on the case, a robot himself, and incidentally one of the seven supposedly targeted by the killer. This is a retelling of the “The Greatest Robot on Earth” story arc from Astro Boy, by the legendary Osamu Tezuka. You don't need to have read any Astro Boy to get down with this, but if you haven't this may just inspire you to explore the phenomenon for yourself. If you are familiar with the source material then you will find much to knowingly nod and smile about. The themes concerning the nature of humanity and what it means to be “alive”, themes that made up the central concept behind Astro Boy, are well preserved and even expanded upon in Pluto. the way these supposedly “emotionless” characters are brought to life is remarkable.

Art: Naoki Urasawa has managed something pretty amazing in these pages. He has taken Tezuka's somewhat “cartoony” (for lack of a better term) style and brought it into the real world, while maintaining the unique character aesthetic and expressions that Tezuka is known for. Fusing these two ideas with his own style Urasawa creates a thing of beauty. The story is wonderful, but the art brings an emotion and drama to it that raises the work to a whole new level.

So, you really should read this book. Don't be afraid that it's manga, or that it reads right-to-left, or that it comes from something you may be unfamiliar with. None of that matters. This is good stuff, brilliant science fiction, and it will sweep you away in moments. If it doesn't then it's possible you may not have a soul. You might want to get that checked out.

Cursed Pirate Girl #0

It's a funny thing, I enjoyed the four page story in this “preview” more than I've enjoyed half the stuff I've been reading lately. Having said that, and having seen some of the preview work for this series, I believe it is one to watch, and now that it finally has a publisher, we can do that. Jeremy Bastian's art style is wonderfully unique and expressive. It ranges from absurd to realistic, sometimes even in the same panel. He is also quite funny. Let me give you a sample: “The worst pirate I ever seen went by the name Captain Squeak. When we came up on his ship he ordered his men to chop down their own mast, and then throw their cannons overboard. Then them buggers attacked us... with bananas! Turns out 'ol Captain Squeak was just two monkeys and a portrait of Queen Mirl of Gerrick.” Now that is funny. I urge you to put this on your pull list immediately. I've just got this funny feeling that it's going to rock.

Ignition City #1-2

Warren Ellis has become some sort of crazy, multi-media juggernaut. The sheer volume of work that he is currently producing makes it difficult for his fans to keep up with what he's working on. I'm a big fan of Warren Ellis, some of his books are some of my all time favorite comics, so it's kind of strange that I find his abundant presence dismaying. It has become obvious to me, and others, that he's spreading himself thin, and that his work is suffering somewhat as a result. I can no longer blindly pick up a book with his name on it, secure in the knowledge that it will melt my face off. He is no longer as consistent as he once was. So what about this “Ignition City”? It has potential. I'm not terribly thrilled with the art style, but it works. So far the story is interesting, interesting enough to see where it's going anyway. I'm willing to give it a chance to improve, only because I think it may, if I knew for sure that it was only going to be as good as it is now I wouldn't bother reading anymore.

The Boys #1-29

Okay, everyone who isn't reading "The Boys" please raise your hand. Good, I'd like all of you to stay after class for a well-deserved beating. Here's why:

"The Boys" takes place in a world where super heroes and villains are commonplace, they're celebrities, but all they really do is run around making a mess of things. The story centers around "Wee" Hughie, whose girlfriend is caught in the crossfire of a super hero/super villain battle and is quite messily killed. Hughie is subsequently tapped by a covert, government group know simply as The Boys, each member having some sort of axe to grind with super heroes. They're job is to observe and, if necessary, police the super powered community (though, honestly, they're pretty much just looking for an excuse to take them out). The Boys are super powered themselves, giving them the necessary muscle to deal with their enemies. The resulting altercations are wonderfully brutal and gory, as they realistically would be.

Garth Ennis (Preacher, Crossed) is in full swing with this one, clearly loving every moment of the ride, and pulling zero punches along the way. I get that same feeling I got when I was reading "Preacher" all those years ago. This confluence of entertaining violence, depraved sexual exploits, and a well crafted storyline are not something you see every day, and for good reason, because it's a damn hard trick to pull off. Darick Robertson (Transmetropolitan, Punisher) delivers as well, with his accessible yet unique style, bringing the story to life beautifully. You can almost feel every face crushing punch and rent limb.

"The Boys" is by far my favorite comic right now, I eagerly await its arrival every month and immediately devour its contents at the first available opportunity. It's super heroes as they would actually be in the real world; arrogant, selfish, power-drunk bastards with no concern for anyone. It's wonderfully violent and depraved, with engaging characters and terrific dialogue, often extremely hilarious, all topped off with some poignant social commentary (and lots of boobs). It's Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson at their best.

The first 22 issues have already been collected, so get your ass down to The Vault and start reading.

Final Crisis #1-7

Yet another reminder of why Crossover Event titles suck balls. Don't waste your money. Seriously, it's a complete mess. I can't even tell you what happened because I didn't understand any of it. Something to do with Darkseid and something called "Anti-Life" and every frickin' Super Hero that's ever been in a DC comic. Oh and Batman dies (right, like that'll take). I don't know, maybe I missed something amidst the twenty different stories being told simultaneously, but, since I couldn't possibly muster the will to go back and read it all again, I guess I'll never know. I'm extremely disappointed in Grant Morrison (whom I've always been a huge fan of) who, despite his intelligence and imagination, somehow crafted this disaster. Of course it's not entirely his fault. Everyone at DC Editorial should be ashamed of themselves. Hey guys, it's called "creating a cohesive storyline". Look it up. Perhaps I'm being too harsh, I suppose there are some interesting ideas caught up in all this, but the execution was just so sloppy that they must've gotten lost in the chaos. I really don't like being so negative but I'm haveing trouble coming up with something positive to say here. I guess bringing Barry Allen back was pretty cool. I always liked Barry.

Go pick up the Crisis On Infinite Earths trade instead, which is a fine example of how this sort of thing should be done.

Groom Lake #1

Smoking aliens, giant killer robots, hillbillies being abducted, secret government conspiracies, these are the things that make up Chris Ryall (IDW Editor-In-Chief) and Ben Templesmith's (Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse, Fell) new book Groom Lake. Most of you are probably all too familiar with the whole Area 51/Project Blue Book thing by now, unless you've been living in a cave for fifty years, so you'll come to this book with certain expectations. Rest assured they will all be met and promptly violated. This is not new ground we're treading, to be sure, but that's okay, because I like the direction we're heading. This being a first issue it's mostly about setting up the story, introducing the characters, and generally laying the ground work for what's to come.

The characters are fun (Leticia Pope, the kiss-my-ass government agent and Archibald, our smoking goofball alien buddy) and the few story tidbits have piqued my curiosity. Templesmith's art is, as always, amazing and he delivers the gross stuff with his trademark zeal. If the creators can properly expand on the concept without falling prey to cliches (an easy thing to do with this subject) then we could have a winner. The burning question this issue leaves me with is... did I really just see a guy with a cute, little puppy grafted onto his "nether regions"?

Moneyeyes is (at long last) here, feel free to breathe a sigh of relief.

So we were picking on Curtis last Saturday down at The Vault about things being a little "thin" around here and I happened to mention that I wouldn't mind dropping by for the occasional long winded diatribe about this or that comic. So he said "Sure!" and here we are. So who is this Jamie A.K.A. Moneyeyes anyway?

1. Vault patron from its inception. It is my home away from home and all its employees are my extended family.

2. Comics reader for 25 years. I know my shit, believe it!

3. Master (not) storyteller and writer of fiction.

That about covers it, anything else (FBI investigations, supposed links to organized crime, accusations of bizarre human mutation experiments) is completely superfluous.

I'm gonna try to keep this weekly, so check back often. Now let's talk about some comics.

The Great Unknown #1 (of 5)

A lot of Image titles fall flat, or completely disappear forever (Forsaken, Flak Riot, Ex Patriate, Pirates of Coney Island, Hector Plasm). But I'm not bitter. I'm not bitter because Image is a publisher who takes risks. Sometimes those risks pay off big-time (Hawaiian Dick, Battle Hymn, Nightly News). I didn't really pay much attention to The Great Unknown when it was solicited, but it had a neat cover (I like puzzles) and Christian put it on my radar (Christian and I agree 86% of the time). This was a really promising first issue. It had a few neat factoids and references to important but obscure historical figures. It was funny. The main character is nobody new--an intelligent slacker from a middle-class family who has big dreams but never "applies himself" to his "full potential". He has the brain of Nikola Tesla but the attitude of Scott Pilgrim. I really hate distributing comics along the spectrum of high and low-art, but this book sits nicely right between the artsy Omega: the Unknown (maybe only because of the similarities between the title and main characters) and the punky Teenagers From Mars (oh my god, please read it). Can't wait for the second ish.

4 (out of 5) over-used parentheticals and asides,
-sanford c bledsoe iii

angel of death.......again,i know.

the ed brubaker scripted "angel of death" premieres on crackle.com on monday,march 2nd.new 8-10 minute episodes will appear every weekday through march 13th.peep it.also homies new book with sean phillips is very awesome!its called "incognito" and is about a supervillain in witness protection.....thats the pitch,i dont want to say much else.issue #2 just came out so hop onboard!

Bad Dog #1

Joe Kelly (I Kill Giants, Ben 10) knows how to use swear words. I've got my eye on this son of a bitch; I Kill Giants and Four Eyes are must reads and now, so is Bad Dog. Werewolf Bounty Hunter and his born again, alcoholic, shit-heel partner hunt down low-lifes, though they themselves are low-lifes. I can't think of anybody doing better dialogue in comics right now than Joe Kelly across his titles. Does it bother you that "Dog the Bounty Hunter" is already a thing, that in fact the terrible theme song for that show acutally uses the words "I am the dog / the big Bad Dog"? No, it doesn't. Get over it.

One thing: Diego Greco, making his American Debut with this title, gives the whole thing an overall more cartoony effect than is cool. The titular Bad Dog looks more like a golden retreiver than a fucking werewolf and that is upsetting. Nevertheless, read this shit, you'll be back for more.

-Nick

The Stand: Captain Trips #1-5

As a self-described "anti-capitalist", I imagine the end of the world often. But, shit, man--I hope it doesn't happen like it does in this comic. I had the flu last week and kept hoping I didn't have Captain Trips. I don't want to die violently spewing snot all over my shirt. I don't think my mom could handle finding me like that. Anyway, this comic is real good, if you have decent taste. I dunno, maybe you just read Archie or some shit. That's cool too, I guess.

criminal:bad night? NOT IF YOU READ THIS!

criminal vol. 4 came out this week.i re-read the story therein and it is still fuckin awesome.all the volumes are seperate stories.....you dont have to read them in any order.if you're not reading criminal then fuck you.

Angel of Death

I'm gonna call this awesome already! Angel of Death is an online series that will air on-line on Sony pictures CRACKLE site.Zoe bell (stunt woman premiere,baddest in Death Proof!) plays Zoe,a hit woman who suffers some extreme head trauma causes her to see the ghosts of people she's killed......and they want revenge! To get herself some peace she starts killing of the people who originally contracted her...or she's hallucinating,crazy, and on a rampage! Either way, seems awesome to me!Starting in February the episodes will be 8-10 min. and premiere every week for ten weeks.I think my rabid respect and fandom for exploitation films and Mr.Brubaker is no secret, show yer support.watch these as they premiere and scwoop up the inevitable DVD later this year! they'll be like a video comic issue every week!talk to yer fiends about it!come into the comic shop and yell with us about what happened each week,and what will happen next! I expect hilarity,brutal action,and great line delivery!

Angel of Death

Written by Ed Brubaker
I'm gonna call this awesome already! It's an online series that will debut on sony pictures "CRACKLE" site.Zoe bell (stuntwoman premiere,baddest in Death Proof!) plays Zoe,a hitwoman who suffers some extreme head trauma (see fig.1) that causes her to see the ghosts of people she's killed......and they want revenge! To get herself some peace she starts killing of the people who originally contracted her...or she's hallucinating,crazy, and on a rampage! Either way, seems awesome to me!The episodes will be 8-10 min. and premiere every week for ten weeks.I think my rabid respect and fandom for exploitation films and Mr.Brubaker is no secret, show yer support.watch these as they premiere and scwoop up the ineveitable dvd later this year! they'll be like a video comic issue every week!talk to yer fiends about it!come into the comic shop and yell with us about what happened each week,and what will happen next! I expect hilarity,brutal action,and great line delivery!

FIGURE 1

ALRIGHT!!! did y'all see that! nixon is president!third term! world wide nuclear war is ineveitable! the owl is a dumpy man longing for his glory days! the comedian is shooting at JFK! things that are only hinted at in the comic are fully expanded on the screen.....i think! we'll see,and by that i mean i will definateley be seeing this for sure.....opening day style.and not in a fanboy/comic book anthropoligist way.yes,truly jazzed.i'm excited as a comic and film fan....and i will be making a t-shirt with watchmen written in kanji,yeh thats happening.
-when i first saw this my eyes got big and blank,and my nose started gushing blood.....so pumped i turned into a manga technique to show aroused excitement.whew...its's been quite the morning!

-trailer courtesy of traileraddict

Mister X: Condemned

Dark Horse has really led the pack this year with a number of tasty offerings to the comic gods. They have inched their way up to become the largest comic publisher that I wouldn't want to describe as a corporation; their motives are pure. Sure, they want to make money--but they make money publishing really top notch art. They appear to have no intentions to slow down in 2009.

To coincide with the release of an all-new 4-issue Mister X mini-series (by Dean Motter himself) DH has released a hardcover collection of the first 13-issue Mister X series (featuring Dave McKean, Seth, the Hernandez Brothers, Bill Sienkiewicz, Howard Chaykin and more!) I have been suckered into scwooping up some really expensive hardcover books, but I was a little reluctant with this one since I wasn't sure I was going to like it; I wasn't even familar with the character until recently.

I decided to dip my toes into the first issue of the new series to make sure I was even interested. I don't want to talk about it. I'll just say that it looks like now I have to buy an $80 hardcover.

Mister X: Condemned #1 (of 4) gets 3.5 (out of 5) demonically possessed children.
-sanford c bledsoe iii

Joker (Azzarello/Bermejo)

Brian Azzarello pretty much sweats the type of uncomfortable crime fiction where good and bad become grey, where everyone is getting played, and most everyone is going to die. The really neat thing about this Joker book is that it's perfect for fans of Batman comics or fans of Batman movies. Not that those affiliations are mutually exclusive, but there are a lot of folks out there who just don't read comics (for whatever reason), and this book is a perfect segue to convert those who have not discovered the glory of "sequential narrative". At the end of the day, this was just a really good story, with a really creepy villain. It didn't have to be the Joker, necessarilly, but boy was he fucking scary. Bermejo's art doesn't make you any less uncomfortable, and occasionally he takes off the kid gloves and throws in a nasty fully-painted panel.

A must read for fans of Criminal, 100 Bullets, Hellblazer, Scalped, etc.

4 (out of 5) wounded children,

-sanford c bledsoe iii

so, you've read watchmen........

ASTRO CITY-CONFESSION and TARNISHED ANGEL
w-kurt busiek a-brent anderson

hey man,watchmen was totally sweet wasn't it! maybe you're like "aw crud what's next?" well check out this Astro City! its phenomenally scripted by Kurt Busiek (dude wrote Marvels!) and he does superheroes as Extra-ordinary folks who do extraordinary things.start with "confession" for a wholly original take on the batman/robin dichotomy! "Tarnished Angel" follows multiple felon "steeljack" as he's released from prison and determined to go straight.He has no where to go,can't get a job on account of him being a career criminal and his flesh being 100% steel.He ends up in the slums of astro city where all of his former friends and partners in crime live.....and someone is killing them one by one.The law doesn't care at all because they're all criminals and steeljack is hired to find the killer.Problem is steeljack is no detective and is hired 'cause he's pretty much invincible.It's great mystery but its totally from the point of view of a terrible investigator.What steeljack lacks in brains he makes up for in heart...he really wants to stop his friends from getting murdered.Oh,and Steeljack's appearence is based off of one the greatest actors and faces in film history,Robert Mitchum.He has a face that has seen rough times and still has optimism,this is a perfect "cherry on top" to get the right "noir when its down on its luck" feel.awesome.

-5 outta 5 perfectley made bloody marys.

Invincible Iron Man #8

w-matt fraction a-salvador larroca marvel comics $3.99
dude this ish of iron man so effing sweet!last week i was real hyped up for what "dark reign" would do to invincible iron man since marvel made it the core iron man book,.......and it totally fuckin' delivered! the issue is the set up for one of the illest mistaken-identity espionage/action movies,and the dude everybody wants ice is IRON MAN! Im not excited much about the company wide bannering of "dark reign" but it is making tony stark an underdog which is awesome.this might even cleanse tony out of "complete asshole" fallout from civil war.

- matt fraction writes Tony Stark as a dude who puts on a suit not a robot with a human inside. GO GO GO FRACTION ACTION!
-salvador larroca-all the tech looks amazing! (OOH!they have this really fresh technique of showing tonys face through the armor so you can actually see HIS emotions!its badass.)
-the color is amazing here as well.i kinda finally noticed it.my apologies Mr.Frank D'Armata.
-this is an amazing place to start reading up on this piece.WORD.

Secret Invasion Dark Reign

w-Brian Micheal Bendis a-Alex Maleev published by marvel comics $3.99
Five dudes (one who is dressed like a woman) hang out in a room with no windows and stare and a gorgeous scantily clad woman.I need a $4.23 comic to do this? I call that saturday night.

- Alex Maleev really phones it on this one.Maybe he was trying a new style but it ends up looking like half photocopied uh...photos.
- All jokes aside, this was kind of a cool issue.It was all talking and set up but got me kind of curious as to what is gonna pop up next in the marvel universe.
(the inevietable answer is "WHATEVER THEY WANT" )
-I really want to love you marvel you just have to love me back.
- Some things are revealed and alls im saying is that Matt Fraction's Invincible Iron Man is going to get REALLY good.The collection of issues 1-7 just came out and #8 drops this wednesday.Get it.

Tommysaurus Rex!!

w/a- Doug tenapel published by image comics,2004 $11.95
Doug tenapel is the creator of the earthworm jim videogame series.much like those games which included loads of bathroom humor and challenging gameplay; Tommysaurus Rex is comic suitable for most ages while still having some real substance to it.Ely is a young boy who finds a A FRICKIN T-REX in a cave on his grampas farmland!Ely christens him Tommysaurus and they become fast friends under the judgemental watch of the small town.Families are united,lives are saved,lessons are learned,and the local fauna are rejuvenated by the copious amounts of T-rex turds!By the last page of this book i was leaking from my eye....uh cuz there was somethin' in it....yeah.Much like one my favorite comics of '08 "the Amulet", Tommy Rex (yeh,we're homies now) is mostly appropriate for all ages and is immediately accessible and enjoyable for everybody.

- Mr.Tenapel's work is always top ranking.in the vault's continuing effort to read anything that could be cool for kids,im reading everything by him again and im going bonkers for it.get used to posts like this.

Have You Read Young Liars?

Who forgot to blog about Young Liars? That shit will get you FIRED. Reading Young Liars is like getting kicked in the nuts by a super-hot chick whose foot is wrapped in hundred dollar bills. From writer David Lapham (Stray Bullets, Murder Me Dead). A bunch of twenty-somethings conspire against one another, plot thefts, drink too much and tell horrible lies. This book is super graphic and makes me feel a little nauseous sometimes, but I love it.

READ IT, IF YOU HAVEN'T.

Unknown Soldier #1

Originally appearing in 1966 from prolific Silver Age writer Robert Kanigher, Vertigo has just released an updated, socially relevant, kick-ass redux in association with Joshua Dysart (Swamp Thing, Violent Messiahs) and Alberto Ponticelli (Sam & Twitch, Various). This is one of the best first issues I've read in ever. Child soldiers, gun-play, social commentary, the Motherland, etc.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Criminal Vol. 1: Coward (w/ Brubaker, a/ Phillips)

Hardboiled, crime-noir books are in no short supply. GOOD crime-noir books are a little more rare. I had given up on Criminal back in 2006, after the second or third issue, deeming it derivative and uninspired. I brushed off Christian and Curtis' repeated attempts to persuade me otherwise. I don't know what made me pick it back up, recently, almost exactly 2 years later. I have to admit that I've written off Ed Brubaker, despite enjoying his run on Captain America, and despite the fact that he is a very critically acclaimed comic book writer (having won two Eisner and Harvey awards in recent years.)

Every volume in the Criminal series is a separate story arc, containing new characters and new plot twists. The catch is that all of these characters, in all of these stories, are connected. Thematically, and dramatically, the series sits halfway between 100 Bullets and Sin City. As of yet, however, there are no mysterious government organizations like 100 Bullets, and the characters are a little more realistic and human than those in Sin City. The series feels a lot more plausible.

The characters are dark, but not flat. You aren't sure if you like all of them or not, but you want to. Try to limit yourself to one volume a week, as rushing through the series might leave you experiencing the world with a Frank Miller-esque inner monologue.

I give Criminal 3.5 (out of 5) starving children,
-sandy