Top of the Pile 4/24/2013

Rachel Rising #16
by Terry Moore

There was a news blurb on a comic blog about the possibility of Rachel Rising being optioned for a television show. If the zombies of the Waking Dead comics can do it, I suppose witches and devils can also make the transition to the tube.

So, with this news, Rachel Rising was the first book I read this week. It’s usually a quick read and as always, the art is a pleasure to look at. Not too much is revealed in this issue. Mostly it’s the dead girls, Rachel and Jet, meet with their Aunt Johnny to talk about their situation. Young Zoe gets a bone handled knife which kills goats pretty easily. And Lilith burns. If this doesn’t make sense, reading the prior 15 issues helps a little, but not completely. It seems the story is coalescing, but the conflict has yet to really hit. I’m looking forward to when it does.

Like the other Terry Moore comics, I would add this to the library. It certainly doesn’t belong in the children’s area, but older teens with a slightly goth/supernatural sensibility would like this book.

Top of the Pile - 4/10/2013

Saga #12

Written by Brian K. Vaughan

Art by Fiona Staples

Image Comics

As I mentioned briefly last post, this book was to be banned from the Apple online store due to some graphic content. But I guess that didn’t come to pass. Regardless, I put this book on the top of the purchase pile because its one of the best comics being produced. Initially, I guess the problem with Apple stems from a couple of homoerotic images that appear on the first couple pages. But other than the gay sex, this book was one of the slower in the series so far with more exposition over action.

The basic plot of the book is that two soldiers from opposite sides fall in love and make a child. This causes tons of repercussions on both sides of the conflict and the young family is on the run. And as a space opera, as I mentioned, its one of the best in comic book form. Brian K. Vaughan throws tons of characters at us and all of them are bonkers in some way. Royalty that have CRT heads? Spaceships made out of wood? Cyclops romance writers? It’s all really out there if you think about it too much. And the art by Fiona Staples is wonderful. When I look at the art in a comic, if it doesn’t help the narrative, then it takes longer for me to read. With this book, it’s a pretty quick read, but then I go back and examine the art again for the extra details. I don’t do that for many books, but with Fiona’s work though not as detailed and baroque as some artists, it is worth extra examination time.

As for picking this up for a library, I would get it. In fact, we have the first volume of the trade in, but it has only checked out once. Certainly there are mature themes and language, but after Walking Dead, it seems to be the indie comic of the moment.

ICv2 - Apple Bans ‘Saga’ #12 From iOS Apps

ICv2 - Apple Bans ‘Saga’ #12 From iOS Apps

Guess what will be the top of the pile this week?

Top of the Pile - 4/3/2013

Thanos Rising

Written by Jason Aaron

Art by Simone Bianchi

This week, Thanos Rising was the first thing I read from the comic shop. I picked up the Skottie Young variant cover from the shop and entered the digital code to read it on my iPad. And I have to say, I was a little disappointed.

For those of you who don’t know, Thanos is the bad ass of the Marvel Universe. He made a cameo at the end of the Avengers movie and has been at the center of most of the cosmic events Marvel superheroes have to deal with. And with Thanos Rising the story, related as a flashback, we get to see baby Thanos grow up to into a picked on sensitive tween. Most of the comic shows Thanos wanting to play with the other kids in the schoolyard and looking for his father's affections.

Written by Jason Aaron, this book doesn’t have the impact that I believe it should. It seems he’s trying to make Thanos into a sympathetic character by bringing up his misunderstood childhood. That’s not really something that needs to be done. Will this make Thanos that more evil as we see him become the destroyer? And if you’re a new reader to Marvel and don’t know Thanos, his true malevolence isn’t shown in this first book.

However, the art by Simone Bianchi is fantastic. He has a unique style that has a European flair. The characters have an emotional intensity that lifts from the page. And the detail in the backgrounds set the a space/science atmosphere. The colors by Simone Peruzzi also add a depth to the story telling. The different shades of purples for Thanos’ skin. He uses a lot of blues and greens in the book to give it a cool feel. But hopefully, the story will pick up and get a little more hotter in the color pallette.

This is a 5 issue limited series, so I’m going to continue picking them up. As for purchasing this book for a library collection, I think this is optional. There isn’t any real backstory for people to pick up on. And normals won’t know anything about Thanos, so unlike Spider-Man or Thor, it’s not likely a casual reader will pick up.