Carmine Infantino dies.

To the world of comics it can be said that a legend passed; to the world of the Elongated Man and Flash it must be said that the legend, Carmine Infantino, passed away at age 87.

He created the Elongated Man, Sue Dibny, Flash, the Rogues, Grodd, Batgirl, Animal Man, King Faraday, Pow Wow Smith, Detective Chimp, Black Canary and Captain Comet, and contribute to Adam Strange and the first Flash, and revamped Batman during the 60s. As you can appreciate, one can't possibly think of silver age without getting mental images of his art. Not only he was prolific, but his style truly capture the style of his era. As an architect, seeing his interpretations of modern an googie architecture is quite an experience. And the same goes for fashion enthusiasts. I didn't live through the 60s, but no artist gets the vibe of the shows and movies of era like Carmine.

R.I.P.

Since the experts teach best, here's some Infantino 101 from the master Ty Templeton: http://tytempletonart.wordpress.com/2013/04/05/carmine-infantino-and-roger-ebert/

The best of the new 52: October 2011

I have no idea about the number of issues that DC is going to release this month, and since I have no intention of finding out, I will still call them the "new 52". Anyway, here are my reviews:

Wonder Woman #2
My rating: 9.5 out of 10

I fell in love with this issue from page one. Azzarello clearly knows how to tell Greek mythology type of stories, and his gods are fascinating. Cliff Chiang art is just as cool. He makes those god physically intriguing, not to mention that the rest of the art consists of beautiful women, a sophisticated style and terrific compositions. Mathew Wilson also has to be mentioned. Colors are usually a given, but in this case, they really stand out and contribute to the mood.
So far, this series is a must. It's literally becoming legend--
--dary. Azzarello is making Wonder Woman's mythos bigger than life.

Action Comics #2

My rating: 9 out of 10.
I actually liked it better than the first one. In the previous issue, Lex helped the U.S. Army capture Superman, in this one, he is helping them "test" the resistance of Superman (ie, inhuman, anti-constitutional, torture). The characterization is great: Luthor's apathetic sadism steals the show; however, Superman, Lois and Sam are very interesting too. Rags Morales is doing the art (which is great as always), consequently they feel even more compelling and human. Morrison is pulling the same type of origin story Bruce Timm did in Superman: The Animated Series, in which a number of villains are tied to the first adventure of Superman. Incidentally, The Last Son of Krypton also ties Luthor, Metallo and Brainiac, only Grant is adding Sam Lane and John Henry Irons to the mix. Along with the previous issue, thi one forms a self contained story that serves as an introduction to a longer story arc; additionally, it leaves enough loose ends to leave us totally hooked.

OMAC #2
My rating: 9 out of 10.

For whatever that's worth, it's not that hard to rank hi in this list; writers that actually complete a story in their issues get a great head start. In this case, OMAC faces a new threat and defeats it without isolating the story from the overall story arc (which seems considered quintessential to DC suits these days). Additionally, both Giffen's art and his co-writing with Dan DiDio, feel refreshingly retro without making the dialog hard to follow for modern audiences. I love the caption boxes, specially the one with the editor's note (they should do that in all of the 52).
With the previous issue I said that it feels like a cross between the Hulk and Freakazoid! That doesn't change with #2; however, the creative team added a tone that makes it feel like the Bill Bixby Hulk TV series of the 70s.
The only bit that might cloud my judgement is turning Maxwell Lord into a villain. However, maybe he'll go from villain to hero this time around, which is something that I'd love.

Frankenstein, agent of SHADE #2
My rating: 9 out of 10.

Great action , intiguing backstories and we get to a point. This customer is satisfied.
Classic Universal monsters against creatures from another dimension, how B-list is that! Frankenstain feels like a cross of Hellboy with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and something with Vin Dissel on it. Lemire is the Tarantino of comics; he knows that he can take any genre and make it cool as hell! Go buy it... Now!!


Swamp Thing #2

My rating: 9 out of 10.

Ok, the plot thickens. Basically we learn the nature of the evil that appeared in the first issue. It is an entity known as the Sethe, responsible all plagues throughout history. It is the anti-thesis of "the green", a realm that connects the minds of all plants and that created the Swamp Things precisely to fight it. I get the impression that, like Morrison in Action Comics, writer Scott Snyder is pretty good at dosing us information so that there's plenty of mystery to keep us hooked. We get a clear picture on the status quo of Dr. Alec Holland and the threat that he's facing; however, there are a couple of surprise twists that complicate things and we are still clueless about the way Swamp Thing is going to save the day.

Yanick Paquette's clean yet grotesque art fits perfectly the mood of this book. Comics are not normally good at hiding the face of  the evil being like horror movies (artists seem desperate to draw ugly monsters), but Paquette's art is as good as it gets in that sense.
The pacing is good, but it is still one of those books in which you sense that nothing really happened. I'm sure I would rate this story better as a trade.

Animal Man #2
My rating: 9 out of 9.

We explore the weird blood stains that appeared on Animal Man's body as well as the odd powers that his daughter, Maxine, showed at the end of the last issue. They both seem related to a real called 'the red', which seems like the animal kingdom's equivalent of 'the green' (see the Swamp Thing #2 review). Maxine is somehow aware of it; she recognized her father's blood stains as a map of it and took him there. Additionally, something weird is happening with the animals of the San Diego zoo (which seems related to the threat that Swamp Thing is facing).
There's great characterization in this one. I love the family drama that Lemire created here; average writers should take notes: We don't need to have rape, infidelity, murder or psychopathic behavior as the source of drama among the supporting cast, the simple fact that they live with a guy that is risking his life on a daily basis is more than enough. The great thing about Travel Foreman's art is that it is very detailed but it feels like he is not trying to make things appealing at all, which gives it a lot of character. It's clinical style it also very effective when it comes to illustrating the eerie bits. I can tell that this is going t form part of a great story; however, it doesn't really stand alone as an issue.

Justice League Dark #2
My rating: 8.5 out of 10.

There's great art and the story is really interesting. How does a couple satisfy their needs when one of them is a ghost who can possess people? However, there's too little going on. Maybe this will read a lot better as a trade.

Batman #2
My rating: 8.5 out of 10.

This issue follow the patented Snyder formula: small talk about something that is familiar to the main character, a bizarre mystery, a bit of action, new faces, and the introduction of a very dark, mysterious and mean villain. In this case, gargoyles, a murder victim with tooth filling with the logo of some "court of owls" legend (that somehow the missed), Batman stopping some thieves or whatever in a train, a politician that is an orphan like Bruce, and some huge ninja with a costume that resembles a black owl and survives great damage.  It's well written, but I don't feel like I'm getting something new. When it comes to Batman, new weirdos rarely do the trick. Some of my favorite Batman: The Animated Series episodes had very new odd situations and, to everyone's surprise, the villain would end up being one of the old  guys: the Mad Hatter, the Scarecrow and Spellbinder were the kings of this (there was another planed with Hugo Strange), but it was also pulled with the Joker and Two-face a couple of times. Snyder is trying to hard to stuff the rogues gallery, why not taking the dust off of guys like the Tweedles or Sterling Silvermith?


The Penguin: Pain and Prejudice #1

My rating: 8 out of 10.
In this book, we learn about the story of the Penguin and the person he became because of that: hated by everybody but his mother he became a nasty, hateful crime boss. It feels like a decent introduction for a 5-part mini series.
Taking his cue from Joker's Asylum: The Penguin, Greg Hurwitz is doing at least part what I've always said that should be done with the Penguin: to portray him as a histrionic bastard raised by a spoiling mother. Histrionic people are self-obsessed, hyperactive, manipulative and neurotic brats, with no empathy or conscience. In other words, the Penguin is the Eric Cartman of Gotham, and, if portrayed properly, he has the same chances of protagonism. Burgess Meredith, proved that, if portrayed this way, the character can even steal the Joker's thunder.  
Where I feel this story is failing, is with the dark comedy; there are tons of darkness, but no comic tone. Why am I insisting with comedy? When one is not dealing directly with them, histrionic people can be quite funny, and charming (which is why the Penguin managed to run for mayor a couple of times in the past). That is how they become overachievers. As the art indicates, this version is just too tragic and dark. The bit with the vengeance from the guy that called him fat was a bit too much, considering how trivial the offence was. It doesn't work if we're supposed to believe that the Penguin is the top crime boss of Gotham. Turning the glasses into a monocle was a bit silly as well. 

Aquaman #2
My rating: 7.5 out of 10.

There we go. Cloying emotional scenes, nothing gets done... I had the gut feeling that this series was not going to be good enough. I don't understand how are we suposed to get impressed with Aquaman if his powers are finally portrayed right, but the dialog keeps making excuses for his lack of fame? The narrative and art is spectacular, it feels like a great blockbuster, but it also feels like we're getting a piece of that blockbuster every month, which is something I do not like. Nothing is achieved in this issue and I can't really tell if the story is going to be any good.
I don't get it, if DC wants slow and impressive pacing, they should publish more graphic novels not a bunch of issues with nothing on them!

Justice League #2
My rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Superman acts like an idiot, Green Lantern and Batman call the Flash to fight him. They come to their senses and start focusing on the mysterious boxes left by the parademons. The box they have, along with another one in Start Labs actvate and transport a buch of parademons. That's basically it. Uh, and Cyborg's origin story is shoved into that last scene. So far, we arely have a JLU teaser scene.
I don't undestand it; Lee is very slow to produce his impressive art... and Johns wastes it in a couple of issues with nothing happening?
Also, the story of Cyborg is cloying, corny and feels like a lame after school special. I'm betting that he's going to be some sort of canon Mary Sue. And let me get this, his father is a scientist at STAR labs, he has coworkers that are experts on health, and yet, he talks about fitness as obsolete? I can already imagine the Carebears ending next issue, with the JL, the Parademons and Vic's old man holding hands and chanting "We Care" to fix Cyborg.

Batgirl #2
My rating: OK.

Batgirl chases some villain who murders people who survived terrible accidents just because he did just that. He is a big and strong villain, like a bit of a lesser Batman, nothing noteworthy. I'm sure I'll forget all about him after the next adventure. However, this Barbara feels too clumsy and weak when she fights him; as if even the wheelchair-bound Babs from the previous continuity could take her. The supporting cast seems a bit cloying, the art is indifferently good. The good part is that we have the witty and practical Babs back. Now with a bit more of life experience after surviving the Joker.  

Huntress #1

My rating: Meh.
Forget about it. It's not a bad-bad story, but it's hard to care about it. Women traffic is an interesting real-life issue and yet, Paul Levitz presents it as if they were traffickin cows. How about a little back story sketch of one of those girls, like in that Liam Neeson movie? And the rest is the same Huntress is just some bimbo fighting crime (ugg, and not even a decent bimbo - they are covering all her sking again) and the "big bad" is just some Italian dude that kills any henchman that fails (great, another Black Mask wannabe). No backstory for any of them either, which means this story also fails as an introduction. Yes, it might get better the next issue, but that wouldn't make this one any less boring.

Related articles:

• The Best of the New 52 - September 2011 

The best of the new 52

POLL: "The best of the new 52"
I have to say, personally, I find more uncomfortable changes about the DCnU than cool ones. However, I'm not going to get into that ranting now; instead, I'm going to recommend the best stories I read of the "new 52". Whether we like the DC reboot or not, some stories are good and some are bad. Here is my ranking of the best issues:

10. Justice League Dark
My rating: 8 of 10.

I'm not sure about the concept. It reminds me of those themed Justice League teams they made for a 2001 story. Having heroes with diverse backgrounds and powers is kind of the point of Justice League. Having said that, this story feels like it's going to be good, but like Aquaman #1 and most of the 52, this first issue doesn't stand alone. We do get to see more than two of the members gather (take that, Justice League #1!) and the introduction of an interesting threat that justifies a team like this, though.

9. Aquaman

My rating: 8 out of 10.
I can't believe it, but Geoff Johns did it once again. Aquaman #1 might have that fanfic aftertaste that characterizes its writer, long with the feeling that nothing happened; however, it feels really solid and it got my attention. This is the cool Aquaman portrayal I've been waiting for ages. He's not just some guy who talks with fishes, but a true superhuman king. I just wish he didn't have the bitter attitude. If it were a perfect world maybe he wouldn't be like the version from Batman: The Brave and the Bold, but he would be a bit like Destruction (from the Endless).

8. Action Comics

My rating: 8.5 out of 10.
Grant Morrison is taking Superman back to the basics. The new Action Comics #1 echoes the original one of 1938, showing a Superman that makes no apologies to fight injustice and corruption and a Clark Kent that still has a lot of character to develop. In a role that echoes his cameo in Alan Moore's Swamp Thing #52 and 53, Lex Luthor is introduced as the idea man who helps the army to take down Superman. We also get the start of his envy of Superman. All in all, this issue didn't blew my mind, or showed something unseen before, bu it is definitively a nice setting for the rest of the series.

7. Superman

My rating: 8.5 out of 10
An old hallmark building is not demolished (never) but sold, changing the timeline can't possibly make white people black and I'm already tired of the drama that we're going to have between Lois and Clark before they move in together. With that being said, Superman #1 is a terrific issue. It completed an adventure, worked as a great story arc hook and introduced Clark Kent's world. The rest of the 52 rarely accomplished the three things. The story focuses on the new Daily Planet and its coverage of a fight between Superman and a strange alien; and while doing so, George Perez took the classic Superman supporting cast to the modern world.


6. O.M.A.C.

8.5 out of 10.
Keith Giffen and Dan DiDio rock! This book is pure Kirby fun. It mixes all previous versions of O.M.A.C., a bit of TVs Freakazoid! and some Hulk, which is probably why it feels like a Kirby power punch. This is the only book that truly stands on its own. Yes, it leaves a lot of unresolved issues, but it freaking feels like a complete story, something I didn't get from any of the other issues I've read so far. The story is basically about the mysterious O.M.A.C. hurricaning his way through Cadmus in order to get some secret files for Brother Eye. We learn that the blue hulk is Kevin Kho, a nerdy researcher for Cadmus who is dating his coworker, Jody Robbins. The rest is intelligently left as the mystery that will get us to buy the next issue.

5. Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.



My rating: 8.5 out of 10
Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #1 presents a world that is as much of a pastiche as the body of the main character itself. This campy cocktail includes classic and modern horror, battle, disaster, super spy fiction and super science; so, what's not to love? This issue we learn about the Super Human Advanced Defense Executive (S.H.A.D.E.), a really weird super government organization that manages a network of strange creatures (the Creature Commandos) who take care of super natural situations. Once the introduction is over (as simple as that sounds, a lot of the new 52 didn't get past that) this issue truly delivers the sensation that the survival of the World depends on the super bad-ass Frankenstein and his awesome team.

4. Wonder Woman

My rating: 9 out of 10.
I've waited so long for the Wonder Woman title to be great! The only reason this issue doesn't go higher in my rank is because it felt a tad short. The storytelling is solid, bold and interesting. Azzarello just made Wonder Woman rock by setting her in a very contemporary world that is still being manipulated by creepy and menacing supernatural forces from Greek mythology and by presenting her as a seasoned warrior that can defeat them. I know this had been done before, but this time you can't take the supernatural for granted. She's not a strong woman anymore, she's just strong, period. Strong compared to men, women or gods. You name it, this Wondie is going to kick its butt, so go buy it... Now, b*tch!
...Sorry, I got carried away.

3. Swamp Thing

My rating: 9 out of 10.
This issue makes it official for me: Scott Snyder is the king of horror and suspense, and the master of creepy introductions. Swamp Thing allows his macabre tales to finally go supernatural within the world of DC and, contrary to Batman #1, this time he skips the introductions to go straight to the first mystery of the series, which is masterfully presented. After resurrecting, a more cynical and pessimistic Alec Holland is dealing with his new life - a one day at a time sort of deal. He is not the ecologist he used to be. Meanwhile, the world is plagued by a really bizarre and eerie force that could give the Linda Blair a run for her money.

2. Animal Man

My rating: 9.5 out of 10.
Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Travel Foreman are people to watch. I applaud DC for picking this creative team. They are reinfusing DC line with the good old postmodernism that was lost when a number of properties became Vertigo territory in the mid 90s. Following the tradition established by Morrison with the original series, Animal Man #1 mixes elements of horror, suspense and action to present the life of Buddy Baker, a "regular" Joe that has to balance his everyday family issues with the hard and frequently surreal situations and dilemmas he faces as a superhero. Foreman plays with the format to take away the typical sense of balance we would get from conventional comic art.
In this issue, we learn that Buddy has reached fame as an environmental activist / actor / superhero, and that he is not quite sure about the career path he should take. He has not been very active as a superhero, but he goes on to save the day after hearing a report, anyway. However, in the process, he finds out that really strange things are going on with his powers and with his daughter, Maxine, who develops her own.

1. Batman

My rating: 9.5 out of 10.
Scott Snyder takes us for a full joy ride of the Batman universe. In a single issue he delivered a fight against most of Batman's rogues gallery, a couple of twists, a new situation, a mystery, and introduction to most of the supporting, a description of Gotham City and a the start of a new story arc. If the homework for the writers of the new 52 was to produce 52 comic book issues that introduce new readers to the DCnU and leave them hooked along with old readers, Snyder aced it with Batman #1.

Other readings that were decent or OK for me were:

• Stormwatch: 7.5 out of 10, your typical recruitment story with another otherworldly threat. However, I think it delivers and that its very well worth a shot.
• Demon Knights: 7.5 out of 10. The story was OK, but I thin Paul Cornell got most of his ideas from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. In my mind I was hearing its music in my mind the whole time - maybe that's why Jason Blood (the bearer of the Demon) and Madame Xanadu didn't seem to use horses. The baby scene reminded me of this:
• Batgirl: 7 out of 10. I liked the new take. Barbara Gordon can once again start his career as a tap dancer. -- Wait!... I'm being told she used to be a superhero / librarian, not a tap dancer. So, just eliminate the mental image of the tap dancing ginger. Anyway, Gail Simone used DC's universal timeline alteration to imagine a compelling comeback for Barbara as Batgirl, complete with the challenge that victims from extremely violent crimes usually suffer. Perhaps this was what Alan Moore originally had in mind for her after making the Joker shoot her in The Killing Joke. 
• Justice League: 6.5 out of 10. Yes, wonderful art, great cinematic scenes, but this is barely more than a teaser, which doesn't really work for 22 pages. As an issue, it feels exactly like this:

         I think the South Park kids truly have the same reaction as most of te JL fans, though.

• Justice League International: 6.5 out of 10. When people read "Justice League International", they expect to see campy and maybe surreal superheroics with tons of great sitcom type of humor. However, since DC seems to have something against humor after 2004, this time we only get a bunch of talking bureaucrat heads and a generic superhero team. I trust Jurgens, so I wouldn't be surprised if it gets better, though.

For different reasons each, I strongly recommend avoiding Catwoman, Detective Comics, Red Hood and the Outlaws - since I don't like to rant in this blog, I won't bother you with the details.

One flaw that I bet DC didn't see coming was the number of mysterious threats that are happening at the same time: the Swamp Thing plague, the Aquaman creatures, the Frankenstein creatures, the Greek gods thing in Wonder Woman, whatever is going on in the Outlaws, the Justice League Dark things, the Stormwatch cosmic menace, etc. The theme was a bit more repetitive with the Dark line of comics. I hate huge crossovers, but would be a bit more credible under an overall event that is related to the Mayan Apocalypse of 2012.

In general, all the issues that I've read seem to follow a similar format. We get a general introduction to the main characters, their setting and to the story of a first arc, leaving in a cliffhanger. I find extremely disappointing that there seems to be no stand alone issues and that a lot of issues don't even finish with the introduction. A constant problem that I'm seeing, perhaps due to the influence of Brightest Day and Justice League: Generation Lost, is that a lot of issues are mere teasers in which little happens. I understand that they are thinking about the way they are going to look when they compile them as trades, but the single issue format demands that, whether it is part of a longer story or not, it has a three act structure (setup, confrontation, resolution) so that the readers get something out of it. Multiple part stories in a comic book shouldn't feel like a mere story that has been elongated and randomly split. Each issue should be an adventure, even if it's part of an arc. Take any trades of great series like Swamp Thing, Sandman or Animal Man  to see what I mean. I invite everybody to back to The Anatomy Lesson and see how it's done. As Stephen King described them in his introduction to Sandman: Worlds' End, these issues should be "installments in a longer, unified tale", "eggs in a single basket", not bits of an installment or "an egg".

POLL: "The best of the new 52"

Related articles:

• The Best of the New 52 - October 2011