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January 14, 2005
Subway Reading: Hard Time, Nightwing, District X
Happy birthday to me! What did the MTA give me for my birthday? Delayed trains! It is raining, after all, so why should I expect the subway to run smoothly? I mean, when they built this system 100 years ago, how were they supposed to know that it might rain sometime in the future? And in the 100 years since then, each time it has rained and train service has been screwed up as a result, why should they bother to fix the problem? It's not like it's going to rain again or anything!
And what did Marvel and DC Comics give me for my birthday? Two mediocre comics and one good one!
Hard Time #12 - I'm going to start with Hard Time, because it is my birthday (have I mentioned that?) and I want to think pleasant thoughts. If you haven't been reading this series up to now, and according to the sales figures, you probably haven't, this is probably not the ideal "jumping-on point." In fact, this issue concludes "Season One"* of the title, which will be re-launched sometime in 2005. If you haven't read this book, I implore you to buy the first trade paperback collection. You will be rewarded with a rich story that bursts at the seams with more engaging characters and entertaining plot threads than any mainstream American comic on the stands today. Hesitant superhero fans, be reassured that this book has more than enough violent action and super-natural sci-fi elements to satisfy your quota. And any fan of cartoon art should treat themselves to the work that Brian Hurtt is doing on this title. His combination of drawing "chops" (perspective, anatomy, line, shape, tone ,etc), cartoony exaggeration, and storytelling skills make him one of my favorite comic artists of all time.
Looks like this review of issue 12 devolved into another gush-fest about the series as a whole. Sorry about that. Suffice to say that, except for the believability-stretching idea that a young woman would just stroll into a prison dressed like a prostitute without even the traditional trenchcoat to cover it up, this issue delivered all of the goodness that I have come to expect. 4.5 stars.
Nightwing #101 - I am not a regular reader of this title, but the "Nightwing Year One" story caught my attention. Exactly how and why did Dick Grayson trade in his scale-mail speedo for a mullet and black tights? As far as I can tell from this issue, it's because Batman is kind of a jerk. I have seen commentary from various fans who don't like the "Batman is a jerk" characterization, but the idea doesn't really bother me. Without a few drops of sardonic wit, however, he becomes one-dimensional and tiresome. That's what happens in this book.
Scott McDaniel's blocky, shape-based style is unique and interesting. He handled the action sequences ably. I would have liked to have seen better acting, though. Body language and facial expressions could have been used to convey a lot more emotion. This was sort of like watching a story that featured action figures instead of human beings.
If you're looking for some well-presented Batman and Robin butt-kicking - not that there's anything wrong with that - this is the book for you. If, however, you're in the market for nuanced characterization, subtext, or a unique look at iconic heroes, you might want to look elsewhere. 2.5 stars.
District X #9 - When this book focuses on the outcast mutants of Mutant-Town, I enjoy it. When the focus shifts to the various personal dramas in the life of Detective Ortega, I lose interest rapidly. Luckily this issue was largely devoted to the investigation of the murders being committed by slug-like sewer-dwelling mutant Winston Hobbes. There's certainly nothing ground-breakingly original here, but the execution works for me. Hobbes' story definitely outshines the domestic melodrama and the business with Melek and his band of underground mutant saboteurs. Another story element that makes me groan every time it appears is transparently plot-advancing nature of the psychic painter who paints scenes from the future.
Alejandro Sicat and Lan Medina's closed-line style still strikes me as too stiff. There is way too much distracting modeling, especially on the faces. On the positive side, I like the character design of Winston Hobbes as well as the briefly-glimpsed girl who describes him to the police artist.
Honestly I think I'm buying this title out of habit more than anything else. I like the premise, but more often than not, the book fails to deliver on it. This issue gets 2.5 stars.
* Am I the only person who is uncomfortable with this growing trend of referring to re-launched 12-issue story arcs as "seasons?" Aspiring to be thought of as a TV show sets the bar too low in my opinion.
Posted by jdonelson_nyc at January 14, 2005 12:24 PM
Comments
Nope, you're not alone. I also don't like it when comic series are referred to in "seasons". I think, if anything, it'll hurt my want to buy a series if it's in "seasons", much like what happens with my buying of tv series. I'm not going to go buy a dvd set of the third season of some show if i haven't seen the first two. Same will apply with comics. Hard time is on season 2 now? Well, crap, I missed out on season 1 so i'll just skip this and if i get around to reading season 1 maybe i'll pick up season 2 later on. If that's the case, i usually won't get either because it'll end up being too hard to find the original season or it won't be collected and there's too much other stuff for me to read to dig around and find older seasons of comics that are just coming out.
Posted by: Rick at January 14, 2005 01:12 PM
Happy birthday, oh Picky One! In celebration, I shall pick up the HARD TIME trade this weekend.
Posted by: David at January 14, 2005 02:13 PM
Happy birthday, J!! It seems like all the best people have birthdays within the next month or so....
I don't even like the idea of "seasons" on tv shows and I'm not a fan in comics either. Is "series" such a difficult word? I don't know what would be better, I guess. It's still not as annoying as the DVD-model trade paperbacks, but it makes me grumpy.
And I hope I'll eventually make myself write about the first Hard Time collection, so maybe David will give me the push I need. While it's not an ideal story for me, I really like the art. Even the story is more interesting than I had expected, but basically just not my quite thing.
Posted by: Rose at January 14, 2005 02:19 PM
Thanks everybody! Oh man, Dave, now I'm nervous about Hard Time. What if you don't like it...
Posted by: jdonelson_nyc at January 14, 2005 04:30 PM
Happy Brithday J. I do like the way "seasons" has worked out for a book like Sleeper (in terms of story if not sales) but I will admit it's not good terminology. Comparing comics to TV or movies always seems futile to me. Comics are comics and I would rather have people delve more into what that means instead of "let's be like HBO."
Posted by: Ian Brill at January 16, 2005 05:46 PM