DCU Comic Book Reviews

WEDNESDAY COMICS #1

July 8, 2009

Written by Various

Pencils by Various

Inks by Various

Cover by Various

A Brief Introduction by Binkley (e-mail)

When this weekly series was first introduced, I immediately started to brainstorm how I would review these issues.  There were 15 stories per comic, so it seemed to make some sense to write reviews for each of the 15 stories.  I came up with a variety of different ways to present the text, but ultimately I decided to wait until I actually read the first issue before making a decision.  After reading it, what struck me the most is that a single page of a story is not enough to write a review.  There just isn’t enough to critique the plot, structure, or character.  And then it hit me.  I can provide my impression of the stories, my thoughts and ideas of what struck me as I was reading.  So, that is what you’ll get each week.  However, when the weekly series is done, I will go back and review the entire story, much as I do for a single issue of a comic.     

Impressions by Binkley (e-mail)

I am a little surprised that the story on the front page is Batman, rather than Superman, which is the comic that is being reprinted each Wednesday in the USA Today and the story in which the logo on front is the biggest.  I am also a little surprised that the logo for Metamorpho is on the back; Neil Gaiman is probably the most mainstream of the creators picked for this series, so you would think you would want his name up front somewhere.  I like the idea of using an image from the story used that week rather than some generic picture.  Most of them work well, although the girl next to Metamrpho is weird.  It might’ve been better to leave her out of it. 

The logos used for each of the various stories are also a little weird.  Some (like Batman) are using retro-logos while the Teen Titans logo is from the television cartoon and the Wonder Woman logo is brand new.  The others seem to be either completely new (as there ever been a logo for Metamorpho) or taken from the current series.  The weirdest is Green Lantern, which is using the logo that was used for New Frontiers (or at least that is the image I got when I saw it).  Considering there is a movie on the way and a huge Green Lantern-related EVENT just around the corner, you would think DC would want the newer model to be showcased more. 

It is also interesting to note the “created by” credits peppered throughout the issue.  Some, like Batman and Superman, are obvious because they are well know, but others like Deadman and Metamorpho are a nice touch.  But who created Hal Jordan? 

The best thing, so far.  The paper.  I’m serious.  It felt like I was reading a newspaper.  When I first opened, I immediately had the feeling I was opening the Sunday comics.  Granted, there was no Opus or Fox Trot, but I would rather read Metal Men than Nancy or repeats of Peanuts or Family Circle or any other of the tired comics. 

My favorite strips were easily Batman and Superman, for different reasons.  On Batman, Azarello and Risso have the noir feeling down cold (you should check out 100 bullets if you haven’t done that yet) and given the lack of space for a complicate, detailed plot, putting over the style works well for the small amount of material shown.  Also note the 12 bongs in a 12 part story (or the 12 panels next to the long vertical panel). Clues?  In contrast, I liked Superman because of the decent fight taking up most of the strip as well as the brilliant cliffhanger that plays off Superman’s well-known origin.  It is the type of thing that casual readers can understand, which is good giving the exposure the comic has received in the USA Today. 

I also like Metamorpho and Supergirl, both because they were just goofy fun.  The key to both are the artists with Mike Allerd on the former and Amanda Conner on the latter.  I really enjoy Conner’s art and the silent story works to her strength (great facial expression and timely comedy).

A lot of the lesser-known strips take the right task a provide background information of the readers helping to ease them into the story.  Kamandi (which is evocative of the Prince Valiant strips that appeared in the Sunday comics) and Deadman provide enough exposition and still manage to toss in a good cliffhanger. 

So far, Teen Titans seems to be the only comic to tie into continuity, with the team members exactly the same as can be seen in the title.  I am not sure why we needed the history of the Titans to this point.  It seems like a waste of space.  Is the rest of the story going to hinge on the history of the Titans.  Otherwise, that is a waste of 1/12th of the story. 

The Green Lantern strip, sticking true to its logo, has a New Frontier feel to it, even going so far as to use those words in the first word balloon.  However, Hal Jordan doesn’t appear until the very last panel, which seems like a weird move to me. 

I am unsure where the split story in Flash might be going, but I like the idea of showing the effects of Barry running all over the place has on Iris.  The Adam Strange strip takes the setting back to the way I think it was originally intended, with a more savage look for the natives.  You also gotta love the silver-agey dialogue.  And I liked the set-up for Catwoman and Demon, two characters you normally don’t think of going together.  Here, Catwoman is more like the iconic character we all remember, rather than we currently have in the main DC universe.  Finally, Hawkman is a strange look through a bird’s eyes, presenting an aspect of Hawkman that I don’t think has been done before.  Was there ever a time he could talk to birds.  Still, I love the center panel.  Great drawing. 

My least favorite were Wonder Woman and Sgt. Rock.  For the former, it was because it was just too much too read.  Sitting for too long trying to hold the paper can make for some sore arm muscles.  And the latter because just as the story got interesting, it had to end.  I think the Kubert’s need to work on their pacing.  And while I wasn’t too thrilled with Metal Men, I must say a second read through helped and I enjoyed the strip much better.  The problem, I think, is that in normal clothes, it was tough to determine who was supposed to be who unless you really slow down and examine the art.  And since it is by Lopez and Nowlan, I recommend you should do that.

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