From G4, Blair Butler has a look inside Warren Ellis’s new Avatar series, Captain Swing and the Electrical Pirates of Cindery Island. I’ve been a wee bit obsessed with this title–because I mean, the title! What’s an Electrical Pirate?

Well, the preview doesn’t really answer that question, but it still looks cool.

I’m particularly happy that it’s Friday this week–I’ve got an exciting weekend planned. To kick things off right, though, here are some stories from around the web.

Splash Page is speculating about Twitter rumors that Nathan Fillion and Rainn Wilson had a meeting with DC Comics.

Daryl Cagle’s been posting videos from the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists Convention. This one’s an interview with Mikhaela Reid and Jen Sorenson, two female editorial cartoonists.

More dirt on the terrible idea know as The Crow remake, which maybe isn’t so much a remake? Um, what?

To celebrate the release of The Nobody, Jeff Lemire has some lovely art and linkage over at Standard Attrition.

Since Neil Gaiman is off to accept his Newbery Medal for The Graveyard Book today, check out video of him reading from the book on his tour.

Finally, if you have a spare $20,000 or so, you can get a second-tier Twilight star at your party. No Robert Pattinson or Kristen Stewart, sadly.

It appears that your favorite superheroine, Wonder Woman, is running for Mayor of Washington, DC. And she’s running against quite a slate of opponents: Superman, Green Lantern, Batgirl, and Batwoman are in the mix.

OK, it’s obviously not actually true, so what gives? The New Organizing Institute runs a boot camp for political organizers, and part of their project is to run a virtual campaign for office. The bootcampers have had to design a site and a campaign for their superheroes, and there will be an actual election.

I’m with Wonder Woman–how can you resist this?

Dear fellow DC Residents and allied Truth Seekers:

I made a cornerstone decision over fifty years ago. I had just defeated the alien forces of the Imperium and joined with the Justice League as its sole female member when I was given the opportunity to leave planet earth and become a princess in another realm.

After having seen the worst form of war imaginable, I could not leave planet earth without knowing that I had done everything I could to fight for peace. So, unsurprisingly, I am still here.

I have dedicated my life to pursuing the self-evident truths of democracy through transparency, to equality and empowerment of the underserved and to peace and security. I have helped women maintain their uniqueness while also gaining more equal rights as men. I have worked towards keeping our country safe and secure through promoting a more peaceful world, and most importantly, I have sought to fight the cynicism and apathy that has taken hold of DC citizens and asked them to join me in being WONDERful.

While aliens pose no threat to earth at this moment, many other things do: inequality, crime and injustice, war and genocide, rat infestation. But, most of all, we are threatened by an ominous cynicism that could crush people’s belief in super heroes. If people stop believing in super heroes, they stop believing in their own ability to change the world. And then, won’t need aliens to come to earth. But, we can fight this cynicism with hope, change a little booze, a little rock n’ roll and a whole lot of action.

This is why I am formally announcing my candidacy for the Mayor of DC.

Together, we can make DC Wonderful. We can re-build lives in DC with a Lasso of Truth that will help free peple of their fears and bring them back into society, gain equality for women and other underserved communities and ensure create a more secure city through promoting peace.

Join me. Plus, I show leg.

Yours in truth,

Wonder Woman

Check it out–it seems like a fun way to teach people how to run a campaign. Voting will be 7am EDT to 6pm EDT on Friday, July 10th. You can even follow Wonder Woman on Twitter!

Now, once she’s mayor, can we send her down to Congress with that lasso?

The return of Peter Milligan to Vertigo just keeps on getting better. His take on John Constantine is going to new and interesting places–not easy for a character as old as Constantine–and now with this first issue of a new ongoing series, Milligan’s teamed up with Davide Gianfelice for a nasty little tale rooted in Greek myths and stories.

Anyone familiar with the story of Oedipus will recognize the plot of this first issue, but there’s no need to bone up on your classics to enjoy this story. You do need a strong stomach and a taste for the perverse–but if you’re a Vertigo reader, you already knew that, right?

Eddie is just a kid looking for his mom, but that goes about as spectacularly wrong as it can possibly go, and he runs off to Greek Street, the part of town run by criminals and other lowlifes, and watched over by gorgeous strippers who know all the dirtiest secrets.

This first issue sets up a bunch of loose ends will probably only get more tangled before any of them get resolved, and just begins to set up its world and its rules. There’s magic here, but how much and of what kind and how it will be blended with the gritty, cruel criminal underworld we just don’t know.

What we do know is that it’s vintage Vertigo, with Gianfelice’s luscious art making even the most gruesome scenes beautiful and otherworldly and at the same time making the horror truly gripping, visceral. If this book lives up to this first issue, it’s going to be a hell of a ride.

Before I go off to find fireworks and some sort of food on a stick (which I maintain is truly American) I’m going to give a quick shout to my favorite patriotic comic book.

It’s not Captain America. It’s certainly not any of the opportunistic Barack Obama comics to hit in the last few months.

It’s Transmetropolitan.

Yes, it’s filthy-mouthed sci-fi written by the British master of filthy-mouthed sci-fi, Warren Ellis. Even so, Transmet is indisputably American the same way Watchmen is. It’s a rough-and-tumble take on American politics, through the lens of a loathsome yet idealistic journalist and his slightly less loathsome Filthy Assistants.

And it’s the only comic I can think of that actually embodies some of the good things about America (and our politics).

Sure, Spider Jerusalem’s real loyalty is to the Truth, rendered in caps to make sure you understand that there is a truth and Spider’s telling it, but he also believes in democracy, free speech, and several other things that certainly aren’t uniquely American values. So why set the comic in the USA instead of in England?

The villains, if anything, seem more American–vile presidential candidates who want to slash at the Constitution or shit on poor people. And what could be more American than taking them on headlong with little backup and nothing more than a hunch that they’re the bad guy–and ultimately succeeding? That’s really the American dream, right?

Maybe it’s just me, but I see dissent as a value to be upheld. We were founded on it, weren’t we? And so for the Fourth of July, I’ll celebrate the right of journalists everywhere to make public officials lives’ hell for fun and righteousness.

And I swear I’m not going to inject heroin into my eyeballs.

Well, it seems this review is pretty timely. I was starting to wonder if Barack the Barbarian really had legs and then we get some legs.

Playing off Pres. Obama’s mention that he collected Conan the Barbarian comics as a kid, this comic, published by Devil’s Due and written by Larry Hama and drawn by Christopher Schons, is set in a time of swords and sorcery. A gathering of children listen as a shaman retells the legend of Barack the Barbarian. Riding in on a donkey, Barack the Barbarian is determined to set things right in the city of Warshingstun, “where every word uttered was lie, and every soul was for sale. A place where men traded dark secrets and openly peddled a powerful drug named Influence.” After fending off some ogres, Barack meets Manny the Fixer who will set him on the path to greatness. But first, they will feast and Barack will partake of a multicultural meal with a dash of Dijon mustard.

Considering that the flap over Dijon mustard is pretty recent, it looks like the creation of the rest of this four part comic is very much in play. So, it would only make sense to go for the gold and follow closely what Sarah Palin does next now that she’s abandoned her post as governor. It’s when Red Sarah, the fighting Queen of the North, makes her entrance that this first issue kicks into gear and it may very well be that the Wonder from Wasilla will bestow some of her mavericky magic onto the rest of this comic.

So far, the best of the Obama comic books is IDW’s comic book documenting the Obama campaign. It’s a serious approach and it’s spot on. And the best satire is MAD Magazine’s “Obama, The First 100 Minutes.” Of course, MAD is the gold standard. Barack the Barbarian is funny and seems aimed at all ages despite all the babes in bikinis. So, maybe for older kids. Overall, it’s poking fun at a time in history and isn’t really taking sides. I would only hope that the jokes get sharper.

The humor should be at least as funny as what The White House can create for a political roast. And delivered with as much style as the real Obama like in this perfect dig at the House Minority Leader, a true Republican partisan with a perpetual tan, John Boehner, told at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, May 9, 2009: “In the next one hundred days, our bipartisan outreach will be so successful than even John Boehner will consider becoming a Democrat. Afterall, we have a lot in common. He is a person of color. Although not a color that appears in the natural world.” That joke had the Commander in Chief cracking up. And it still cracks me up.

My short review: I like it.

Of course I’m not going to let you off that easily. I’ve got far more to say about it than that. It’s a pulpy, splashy romp with classic Bat-villains let loose on their own and teaming up to cause trouble. It owes more to Tarantino’s grind-house classic Kill Bill, with women in stylized costumes performing acrobatic fighting feats never seen in nature, than to common superhero mythos, though of course there’s that, too.

I picked it up because I can’t resist the bad girls. They’re easy to do wrong, sure, but I think there’s so much more possibility for a really interesting female character, at least in superhero-dom, in a transgressive villain. I love Catwoman because she’s always walked that line–she’s part noir femme fatale and part straight-up supervillain, with just enough heroine in her to keep your sympathy.

Here she isn’t quite up to her old tricks, and a run-in with a frat-boy wannabe bad guy takes more out of her than she’d like to admit. Poison Ivy saves her and brings her to the house she’s sharing with Harley Quinn and another familiar face, who hasn’t had much say in the matter. The all-bad-girl team-up is fraught with tension and mistrust from the beginning, of course, and the biggest problem is the one question that Harley and Ivy assume the Catwoman must know the answer to: Who is Batman?

I’m sure there have been complaints about the art–that the girls are oversexualized, that Harley’s wearing a schoolgirl uniform–and maybe it just says something about my comic-reading tastes, but I didn’t find them offensive. Guillem March’s art is hyperstylized and kinetic, with characters male and female twisting and bending into shapes not usually seen in nature, and the characters strike me as less sexualized than simply, well, comic-booky.

The three leads are very different women, and by virtue of their constant second billing have always been a bit of a stereotype, but giving them their own series allows for them to be fleshed out a bit more. I’m hoping for more especially from Harley, who has less to do in this first issue as far as character development goes, though she does get to kick some butt. Paul Dini is definitely capable of doing dark, as is hinted in the treatment of poor Eddie Nigma by Ivy and by the brief mention of the Mad Hatter, and I rather hope he goes for it in this series–I’d love to see a series where these three characters can really let loose all the screwed-up bits of their psyches and yet retain our interest and sympathy.

From Moonstone Books $3.99

Written by Joe Gentile

Art by Carlos Magno and Andy Bennett

Yes, just a little more Sherlock Holmes. I couldn’t resist this one after having reviewed work from SelfMadeHero and Dynamite Entertainment. A matching of Sherlock Holmes with the ’70s TV series, “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” sounds goofy but Moonstone Books is up for the challenge.

“Cry of Thunder,” a three issue comic, written by Joe Gentile, begins in 1890 out in the Wild West as two desperados peer at something weird just out of our sight. We then cut to present day LA at the modest offices of the Hollywood Dispatch. Kolchak’s purple prose is in full swing as he describes his good luck: Brandy Lexton, a pretty young woman, is interested in him helping solve a 100-year-old unsolved murder. She even provides him with an old journal full of clues.

Once alone with the book, he is chilled to the bone to see his own name scrawled within its writings but where exactly, or why, we do not know. Kolchak proceeds to read the journal which makes up the rest of Issue One. We are in London in 1905 as a new Holmes case takes shape involving the murder of Brandy’s ancestor, Clara Lexton. It turns out she was killed by a gun runner. This leads to Holmes disguised as a sailor, in mortal combat, after he’s gotten a little too close to a syndicate trafficking in American machine guns to the UK.

An opportunity to build on the momentum of the first issue is lost in the next when the assignments of the two artists are muddled. In Issue One, it was the light line style of Carlos Magno that illustrated the Holmes story and the rough style of Andy Bennett that illustrated the Kolchak story. It made perfect sense.

However, in Issue Two, we find the two artists working together through both stories and it’s like a third, painterly, style has emerged. It’s pretty good but the work is not nearly as tight and there are a lot of scenes that appear rushed, especially a less than dramatic fight scene between Holmes and a thug. I can’t fault the artists for experimenting. Overall, I dig what they’re doing but I still prefer what they started to do in the first issue.

I also have a little constructive criticism for the writing. I think that we might get bogged down with details a little too much for what should be a smoother ride given all the great elements at play. I would have preferred more solid connections between Kolchak and Brandy. I think I would have created a few back and forth scenes between the Holmes story and Kolchak and Brandy reading and reacting to it. Those opportunities to interact would have allowed clues to flow more easily and would have made their unlikely romance more plausible.

Issue Three has a lot of things to resolve but it catches a nice push at the end of this current issue. We get a little payoff on the last page as we get a full view of the highly coveted photograph that could explain everything while revealing something out of a nightmare.

It’s almost time to go buy comics, but in the meantime I bring you linkage from across the Internets on a variety of different things.

From Splash Page, Grant Morrison talks comics with Percy Carey, otherwise known as MF Grimm, the writer of Sentences.

Comics Worth Reading has a nice review of Patsy Walker: Hellcat that makes me want to read it.

Also from Splash Page, Evan Rachel Wood and Alan Cumming are confirmed as part of the cast of “Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark,” the upcoming Broadway musical directed by Julie Taymor. I don’t know about you, but between the casting, the subject matter, and the direction, this is shaping up to be a must-see for me.

Laura Hudson at Comics Alliance puts together the top 5 Michael Jackson moments in comics.

Laura Lee Gulledge answers some questions for The Big Feminist BUT.

The Trial of Sherlock Holmes #2 (of 5)

Written by Leah Moore and John Reppion

Art by Aaron Campbell

Cover Art by John Cassady

Dynamite Entertainment $3.50 US

The Trial of Sherlock Holmes is a new Holmes tale and a “locked room” mystery that finds Holmes appearing to be the only possible murder suspect in this five issue series published by Dynamite Entertainment. Poe’s The Murders in the Rue Morgue is considered the first locked room mystery and first detective story. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, among other writers, would build on the idea of a shrewd detective with an assistant/narrator as well as the idea of an impossible crime.

It’s a puzzle within a puzzle and lots of fun. Considering it’s been done by some of the best writers around, the bar is set pretty high for the writing team of Leah Moore and John Reppion but they are no strangers to telling a good yarn, particularly a good Victorian one. This is Alan Moore’s daughter and son-in-law and they’ve learned from the legendary storyteller. They’ve been around for awhile now and have gotten some credits under their belts. I suspect this could be their best work yet.

The art of Aaron Campbell picks up nicely from the impressive cover art of John Cassady. It looks like Campbell did his homework and studied the original Holmes illustrations by Sidney Paget and built on that. Campbell’s style also makes me think of the gritty noirish art of Sean Phillips, Ed Brubaker’s partner in crime for a  number of books including, Incognito. Interestingly enough, among the many comments of praise on the back of the first issue is a quote from Brubaker: “A fantastic opening shot, literally, to a great new Holmes mystery that I can’t wait to read the next chapter of.”

That opening shot is quite impressive with its steady pacing leading up to a dramatic explosion that sets the plot off and running. It is 1895 and a quarter of London’s East End is in flames after a bomb is detonated. A threatening letter is sent to Sir Samuel Henry, a retired police official, demanding that, unless he remains at his home at precisely seven the next evening, more explosions will follow. Sir Henry requests that Holmes be at his side at that hour. Holmes obliges and subsequently is found in Sir Henry’s room with gun in hand and a dead Sir Henry. Not only that, but it appears that Sir Henry had evidence proving Sherlock Holmes to be the infamous criminal mastermind, Professor Moriarty.

So, here we are into Issue Two and into a devilish mystery. Hats off to colorist Tony Aviña for his deft handling of moody colors and lighting. There is quite a lot of play with light to see as in an engaging scene with Watson struggling over what little clues he has before him bathed in lamp light. Campbell’s bold use of marks across a face or surface in place of more delicate lines adds to the suspense. All well in good for an issue that continues to set the tone for this story.

By the end of this issue, Holmes has escaped from prison and Watson has snuck into the crime scene and found another clue. This last one appears to be a scrap of paper. This could lead back to the threatening letter sent to Sir Henry. Perhaps Sir Henry sent it to himself. Or maybe it was from Mrs. Gammage, the overbearing housekeeper. For now, Holmes is on the loose disguised as an English bobby with only his wits to rely upon. Like Ed Brubaker, I can’t wait to see what happens next.

One of my favorite things about watching Marvel superhero movies is seeing what Stan Lee is going to do in his obligatory cameo. Let’s face it, the only good thing about the first Fantastic Four movie was seeing Stan The Man playing Willie Lumpkin. Now, word has leaked out regarding who Smilin’ Stan will be playing in Iron Man 2. The info comes from Collider.com, so I’m not sure how reliable it is, especially considering they’ve admitted straight up they’ve only got one source for the news. Nor will they give any hints as to the source’s identity. That’s some bad journalism, right there. But, the news sort of makes since in context with his cameo in the first Iron Man flick, in which he played a pseudo Hugh Hefner. So if you don’t mind getting this little bit of casting info spoiled for you, click on this link to find out. If you don’t want to know, then just ignore this post and move on to the next post. I’m sure it’s a good one.

I’ve written about Persepolis and Marjane Satrapi in the context of the current protests in Iran, but someone took it a step further and rebooted (remixed?) Persepolis to reflect the current situation.

I have no idea if Satrapi is involved in this project, but I do find it interesting that a completely new story can be made by moving some panels around and changing the captions. Aside from my interest in it as a political document–and the way comics can carry a message more potently than a simple news story–it is also an exercise in figuring out the weight of the message carried in the images vs. in the text of a comic.

Mez-itz 6″ rotocast vinyl collectibles that are cool by design.

seriesOne of Mezco’s designer vinyl line presents Hellboy & Abe Sapian. These figures, based on the character designs from the film Hellboy 2:The Golden Army unleash the potential of the Mez-itz designer figures. Applying the essence of these dynamic heroes onto the canvas like Mezitz vinyl Mezco produces something exciting and original.

These two figures are exclusive to Toys R Us and ToysRus.com.
They can be purchased at

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3684540

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3684541

or at your local Toys R Us retail location.

Sadly, it is not my review. Rather, I direct your attention, if you care about comics lampooning semi-unknown Minnesota congresswomen, to TPM’s review.

A highlight:

Right from the cover, which has a wacky cartoonish feeling as if it were somehow pencilled by Sergio Aragones and inked by R. Crumb, you know we’re dealing with a special politician:

Personally, I’m always sort of extra fascinated by powerful, successful women–and whatever your opinion of her, Michele Bachmann is a successful politician–who spend their time arguing that women should get back in the kitchen. It’s sort of a “physician, heal thyself!” moment–I argue that women should be represented equally in the job force (and in comics) and Bachmann argues for traditional family values, yet she’s in Congress (and starring in a comic).

Also, I’d rather see more critical takes on politicians in comics rather than 100 more Barack Obama appearances just to sell books. But I’m probably in the minority on that one…

Anyway, I’d love to do an actual review of the Bachmann comic, so I’ll see what I can do about getting my hands on one.

Pope Hats #1

Written and Drawn by Ethan Rilly

32 pages, 6″ x 9″, $4 US

Distributed by AdHouse Books

Everybody wants to rule the world. The characters in Ethan Rilly’s Pope Hats would love to rule over their own lives. We’re invited to see them try.

Don’t let it ever be said that there isn’t room for another comic about whining aimless youth. Meet Franny and Vickie. Two friends who have recently decided to share a house and who seem at their best when they’re not doing much of anything outside of witty remarks. The opening scene finds the two inside a KFC as Vickie eats and Franny observes, “I’m convinced that I spend an outrageous portion of my life watching you eat.” The conversations and the art work are executed with crisp panache. The thin brush lines go well with the dry wit similar in spirit to the work of Gabrielle Bell.

As the night progresses, we are privy to a callow conversation between the girls and a couple of boys, Louis and Peter. It is Vickie’s hope to get to know Peter better. Instead, Vickie gets wasted, has to leave the bar, and pukes in an alley. She is the aspiring actress and eveything must be dramatic for her. She steadies herself a little as she announces she will continue to vomit in a Boston accent. Franny is the more responsible one. She’s a legal assistant and doesn’t seem to have any interests outside of work.

They tell you in art school to create something that you are compelled to do. Anyone can draw a scene with a couple of girls chatting and maybe throw in a few other devices. Someone who is compelled to say something is going to take it further. That’s what Ethan Rilly is doing. I can sense a driving force at work. After all the cute banter, we find the spotlight falling on Franny as she discovers Vickie has wandered off in search of a boy or a hot dog in the middle of the night. Once alone, Franny begins talking to a cartoon ghost she’s spoken with before. The dialogue is funny but it can also be read as a meditation on loneliness.

Who is Frances Scarland? We know she’s what keeps Vickie together. We know she’s loyal to her job, she’s pretty mild-mannered, and she talks to a ghost. Maybe that’s more than enough for a girl of 23 or so. Maybe it’s a perfect picture of someone young who is trying to cope with an uncertain future, just a few steps away from the nearest Zoloft.

After a one page interlude depicting an old man cleaning out his yard, the last section of the book is an extended monologue of Franny talking about, what else, ghosts. Maybe this is Franny at that party she was racing on her bicycle to get to from the feature story. She had just had what she hoped would be her final talk with her cartoon ghost.

Following the success of the “Graven Images: Religion in Comic Books and Graphic Novels” academic conference, Boston University doctoral student, comics scholar and comic creator A. David Lewis has been granted a Library Acquisitions Award to create a new “Religion and Graphica” collection at the university.

The collection, which will contain works like MAUS, Persepolis, and Sandman (and one assumes, Preacher and Testament, two of my personal favorites), will be part of the School of Theology Library (OK, maybe Preacher won’t be appropriate).

According to the press release, this will be the first library collection devoted exclusively to the study of comics, and it comes in a religion department. This might seem odd, though I’ve had conversations before about the similarity of comics to religion, particularly superhero comics. They’re fables, archetypal stories that give us advice on how to live our lives, as well as part of a weekly routine–the Wednesday trip to the comic shop. Comics are reassuring, and fans often are very resistant to change in their books or their routine.

Of course, there are many brilliant graphic works that deal very directly with religion. Which ones would you suggest the library, which has already started purchasing, not miss?

Did you give Mysterius the Unfathomable a try during its DC Comics WildStorm six issue run? After reading the last issue of the series, out last week, I’m as big a fan as when I started and I can only hope that this is not the last we see of the magician/mystic/detective and his lovely assistant, Delfi.

Created by the team of writer Jeff Parker (Agents of Atlas) and artist Tom Fowler (Mad Magazine), this series says goobye for now. A lot has been said about the quality of this series to which I add that this is one you’ll want to read more of once you let yourself inside this fully realized world of quirky supernatural goodness.

It’s in the last couple of issues that things come to head between Mysterius and Delfi. With their lives in mortal danger, Delfi lashes out at her boss for being so selfish as to allow them both to get into such a mess. Just when he needs her the most, she abandons him. Of course, Mysterius does not realize how badly he’s behaved or how badly he needs Delfi. In the end, they both may need each other far more than they could ever admit.

And that is at the heart of this story. Nevermind, for a moment, the witches, the zombies, and the pits of hell that also make up the plot. Basically, this is a buddy story. Mysterius may seem to be a dapper yet bumbling middle-aged man with a pot belly. But, when he’s teamed up with the right assistant (this time it would be Ella Tamblyn aka Delfi) he has a better than even chance at summoning his formidable magical powers. It also helps if he can somehow make a human connection with his Delfi and, despite himself, he just might be able to inspire her to help him. Some pretty successful comics titles are based on much less. The foundation is in place for this series to come back with a bang and I would prefer it to be sooner than later. Check out the Word Balloon interview with Jeff Parker where he says he’d love to pursue more Mysterius comics and would definitely see a possible TV show. His first choice for an actor to play Mysterius would be Geoffrey Rush. I still see Bill Murray as a contender but I can see why Rush would fit right in.

Thanks to the artistry of Tom Fowler and colorist Dave McCaig, all hell can break loose spectacularly in this final issue. Human (and nonhuman) excess runs amok in this satire of Burning Man which is worthy of the best Mad Magazine parody. Much has been said about the European look of this comic. I would go ahead and say it is a European style, both in the writing and art, which is made up of elegant detail, delicate exaggeration, and overall irreverence. Most of these characters are mercilessly drawn with more than a little junk in the trunk. Things are played up for laughs and it works quite well here even when depicting minions from hell battling zombies. Americans can sometimes take things too seriously, including minions from hell and zombies.

Understandably, Mysterius the Unfathomable is a special taste, sort of like Seaguy, but easily accessible. Once you get the collected trade to this year’s best kept secret in comics, you’ll see what the fuss is about and you’ll enjoy lingering over it. Here’s a sample of a nice added touch of spookiness. Delfi and Mysterius are en route to see a client when Delfi thinks she sees something strange:

Delfi: Wait–No…How did he turn the other way so quick? Look here, bird!

Mysterius: You…can’t see his face?

(pause)

Mysterius: Did that bird not have a face?

Delfi: Well, I’m sure it did, I just couldn’t see it. No big deal, sorry to stop everything. I just do that.

Mysterius: No, it is a big deal if it was a portent. Faceless bird…

Delfi: Can’t a portent be for something good?

Mysterius: Almost never.

Towards the end of this story, just when everyone should be resting easy in a comfy epilogue, off in a corner, there it is again, that bird without a face. What a cool and eerie way to say that Mysterius remains at your service.

OK, I know it’s a cliche for comic fangirls to have crushes on Gambit, but in the interest of full disclosure–well, you get the picture. Especially in the wake of the luscious Taylor Kitsch in the Wolverine movie, my lust has been rekindled.

Marvel decided to toy with my emotions further on this one and have Mike Carey write Gambit’s origin story. Mike Carey! I think I may have squealed out loud when I read that. It takes a lot to make me buy superhero books, but an origin story for a character I dig, written by a writer I love? Sign me up.

The only downside? Is this really the only issue we get, guys? I mean, really? You finally give us a Gambit origin story, and it’s only a one-shot? That’s such a tease.

It reflects in the comic, too. It’s not so much an origin story as a selection of flashbacks, unfinished stories-within-a-story that don’t really add up to anything. Each little section of this comic could’ve been a full book–or several books–in itself. Instead, we get a bunch of setups without any payoff, never a complete story.

It’s even sadder because the art is truly beautiful, lush settings, closeups so real you could reach through and touch them, and yes, a shirtless fight scene (thanks, guys). What I wouldn’t do for several more books with this creative team working on this character…

If you’ve been following the recent goings-on in the Marvel Universe, then you know the score: Norman Osborn, having “singlehandedly” saved the Earth from the Skrull invasion, is now officially the man in charge of keeping the American citizenry safe and secure from danger, with the help of his own brand of Avengers. This major change to the Marvel U’s status quo, dubbed Dark Reign, has had one major inherent flaw from the very beginning: Osborn is formerly and publicly known as the villainous Green Goblin, and his Avengers are a team of felons, murderers and psychopaths secretly posing as bonafide heroes.

Ronin, leader of the underground band of Avengers, publicly called out Osborn on national television in New Avengers #50 and reminded the general public that maybe having a known whack-job in such a high position of authority isn’t the best idea in the world. This bold move forced Osborn to respond to Ronin’s charges in a sit-down TV interview in Dark Avengers #5. Did Osborn, and by extension Dark Reign mastermind Brian Michael Bendis, succeed in explaining away the huge gap in logic that put a murderer like Osborn in charge? Your mileage may vary, but I’ll tell you what I thought about it after the jump.

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Two comics for the price of one: that’s the idea. You get a regular full-length comic, and then you get a nine-page original extra story at the back. In this case, you tag a nine-page story of a character with a cult following that has been bitterly disappointed with her cancellation onto a brand-new original monthly that ties in to the other major DCU event of the moment. It’s win-win, right?

Well, it doesn’t have to be, but in this case it definitely is. I was one of the people more interested in the Manhunter backup than the Streets of Gotham story, but I’m glad I had to buy one to get the other. Streets of Gotham may tie into the rest of the Bat-books, but I didn’t feel at all lost reading it. Paul Dini knows his noir, could do it in his sleep, but here he’s having fun giving a bunch of lesser-known (translation: I hadn’t heard of ‘em) Gotham characters a workout.

Dustin Nguyen’s art manages to be cheery and dark in the same book, often in the same panel, but the book’s real charm is in living up to its name. It’s a superhero story, but one that takes place on the street and feels more like a crime drama, bringing a grittier, more realistic feel to the stories. It’s Batman from an outsider’s view, and it’s worth a read.

The street feel leads nicely into the backup feature. Kate Spencer’s been transported to Gotham to act as the new DA, but she hasn’t left her crime-fighting proclivities in LA–though she has left her son, a feature that will no doubt come back in later issues. Nine pages is basically only enough to set up a story, so this one was mostly exposition, but it manages to fill in the gaps with Kate beating a story out of someone rather than with simple conversation.

Manhunter was already a pretty dark book, and things are probably unlikely to lighten up for Kate Spencer in Gotham. The real question will be managing to make the backup features worth the money for readers who aren’t thrilled with the main title, but the creative team on this one (Marc Andreyko and Georges Jeanty) suggests that DC isn’t skimping on the backup book any more than they are on the front.

Together, the two make a nice pair of noir stories to roughen up your pile of superhero books–or to superhero-up your pile of rough books, in my case. In this case, the experiment gets two thumbs up. My only suggestion would be a bigger indication on the front cover that there’s another feature in the back. I wouldn’t have noticed the band across the bottom on the stand, particularly on the stands that some stores have that obscure the bottom half of the cover.