The Spirit Special #1 — Creator: Will Eisner
Four Eisner seven-pagers: “Sign of the Octopus,” from 1947, “Black Alley” from 1949, and the two-part introduction of Sand Seref from 1950. The only reason it’s on the “put back” list is because I already have all the stories; I chanced upon Denny Colt via the Warren magazine reprints 30 years ago, and have been a fan ever since. That being said, this is a wrongheaded package: the lead story prominently features Ebony, making this book problematic as a give-away to non-fans interested by the movie (insert your own joke here) and DC provides no editorial content to explain it, because at 36 pages they had no space after the ads. Shoulda gone with another four pages and a scholarly essay or two on Eisner, guys — it would have made this a better tribute, especially now that the general public is going to think of “The Spirit” the same way they think of “Howard the Duck”: as a cinematic disaster instead of a great comic.
Secret Invasion: Requiem #1 — Writer: Dan Slott; Artist: Khoi Pham
All about Janet Van Dyne: nine pages of new material, wrapped around a Tales To Astonish reprint of the Wasp’s first appearance (Kirby is listed as artist, but don’t get too excited; it’s more his rough layouts over Don Heck inks) and the Jim Shooter/Bob Hall Avengers story that turned Hank Pym into a wife-beater (it’s got the typical Shooter-era strengths — the imaginative situations and compelling soap opera — and weaknesses — the who-talks-that-way dialogue). The comics are recolored, and on considerably better paper than the originals, so they might be worth it if you’ve never read them; they’ll give you something to do while you’re waiting for the character’s inevitable resurrection.
Patsy Walker: Hellcat #4 (of 5) — Writer: Kathryn Immonen; Artist: David LaFuente
This continues to be a nice quirky diversion, lightweight but fun, with appealing art and a story that refuses to use any of the standard superhero-female cliches (except to gently mock them), and yet offers a very self-assured, strong and attractive version of the title character. If the final issue manages to live up to the first four, I’m going to have to back up, get them all, and move the whole package retroactively to the “Stuff I Bought” column….
Thor #12 — Writer: J. Michael Straczynski; Penciler: Olivier Coipel; Inker: Mark Morales
At issue #12, we’re presumably at the end of the second trade collection, so we get Loki and Hela meeting in Las Vegas, and the revelation of Loki’s True Evil Plan: and, with one possible wrinkle, it’s the same damn plan (s)he always has. Presented well, as always — Straczynski is nothing if not professional as a storyteller — but it’s still just old gifts in slightly newer wrappings, and I’ve yet to be able to warm to Coipel’s slick-but-soulless art.
Rann/Thanagar: Holy War #8 ( of 8 ) — Writer: Jim Starlin; Penciller: Ron Lim; Inker: Rob Hunter
Let me save you some time here (and spoilers, if you care…): Rann gets blown up, as the Weird and Synnar merge and explode, but the population gets ‘ported to Starman/Prince Gavin’s planet, which was empty of people anyway, so no biggie. The Weird sort-of survives, but he’s now merged with Synnar into a new being, who walks away muttering about cosmic destiny, and will no doubt eventually turn up in some other Starlin title to fight some big looming cosmic menace. After eight issues, the status is thus mostly back to quo (Bizarro even gets his square planet back), and other than all the typical Starlinesque sound and fury — which can, admittedly, be fun — it turns out there was almost no reason for you to spend your $30 on this.
Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom #4 (of 5) — Writers: Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray; Art: Phil Noto
The writing hasn’t gotten any better, and the art has deteriorated — Noto has practically given up on frills like, you know, backgrounds, and except for a decent alien-planet splash or two it’s all ugly, anatomically-distorted faces and figures. I’d say to avoid this like the plague (or the stock market), but judging by sales you’re all already doing that.
Ms. Marvel #34 — Writer: Brian Reed; Pencils: Sequeira and Melo; Inks: Santos and Benes
After ragging on Reed for that pointless two-issue flashback, it’s only fair to acknowledge that this issue, now back in the present Dark Reign continuity (it’s Norman Osborne’s world; we just live in it), is actually OK. Having Spider-Man guest-star helps — Reed has an affinity for his Bugs Bunny-like dialogue, and is able to create an interesting dynamic between the two characters — but the plot involves a search for an information-sponge called “The Essential,” and it’s just a MacGuffin to set up some future-issue Carol-against-Norman dynamic. For the first time in a while, though, this title seems to have a clear storyline, so it’ll bear watching.
Phil Mateer
