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Reviews and commentary by Tony Isabella
"America's Most Beloved Comic-Book Writer & Columnist"
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TONY'S ONLINE TIPS
for Thursday, April 28, 2005
Here's a Happy Birthday shout-out to my pal DICK AYERS, whose 81st birthday finds him continuing to entertain comics readers the world over. AC Comics is regularly reprinting his classic western tales from the 1950s. Thousands of pages of his Marvel work from the 1960s are currently available in softcover and hardcover books. And he's still creating new comics!
Such as THE DICK AYERS STORY: AN ILLUSTRATED AUTOBIOGRAPHY [Mecca; $17.95], the first of three 100-page-plus volumes. Dick's also working on CHIPS WILDE, a three-issue adventure telling of a young man's quest to find his lost father in the changing American West of the 1920s. I'll be reading and reviewing both works either here or in my COMICS BUYER'S GUIDE column.
Dick and wife Lindy are two of my favorite people in comics. It's always a pleasure to hang out with them at conventions. I've also been fortunate enough to have worked with Dick at both Marvel and DC in the 1970s. I'd love to work with him again, but I'm not sure I could keep up with him!
Here's wishing the happiest of birthdays to my colleague and friend DICK AYERS...and many more to come!
******
ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN
Several TOT readers requested I review ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #636 [DC; $2.50], but since that was a while ago, I figured I would review the following two issues as well. Let me warn you up front that I don't read every issue of every DCU title and so approach the comics from a far different perspective than those of you who do keep current with the books.
When last I read AOS, Clark Kent had been demoted to the Daily Planet police beat, a mystery villain was sending various criminals and monsters after Superman, and the Metropolis Police Department Special Crimes Unit was being commanded by the new-to-me Lt. Lupe Teresa Leocadio-Escudero. Don't be impressed that I know her full name; I looked it up online.
AOS #636 opens with Superman fighting it out with that mystery villain whose name was revealed to be "Ruin" sometime after I last read the title. This first part of "The Road To Ruin" has a small connection to IDENTITY CRISIS, mostly in that Superman doesn't know how to proceed against a powerful foe who knows and has threatened his loved ones. He doesn't want to make what he sees as the same mistake he made with Doctor Light and the Justice League's handling of that villain.
Writer Greg Rucka does a good job here. Ruin does come off as a Superman-worthy threat and Clark's anguish over the situation is believable. The guest appearances of Batman and Wonder Woman are handled well, revealing the bonds between the three heroes and the differences between them. The single page with Lt. Leocadio is a too-obvious place-holder for the character, but a scene with Lois Lane and Pete Ross comes off well. I didn't find the reveal of the power behind Ruin surprising, but that's mostly because I've read more comic books than Superman. I also think I know who Ruin is, though I'm hoping Rucka is just tossing readers the proverbial "red herring" in this and the next issue. On the visual end, we get a cool pin-up cover by J.H. Williams and outstanding interior artwork by Rags Morales (pencils), John Dell (inks), and Tanya and Richard Horie (color).
If there weren't so many seen-them-many-times-before elements in ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #636, I would rate it higher. As it is, the best I can do is a respectable three Tonys.
******
Ruin goes after Jimmy Olsen in the second part of "The Road To Ruin," attacking him within the very heart of the Metropolis Police Department. But the actual purpose of this obligatory fight scene - and the flashback which opens the issue - seems to be to give the readers clues to or cheap misdirections away from Ruin's identity. Rucka's scripting is better than his thin plot and he wins me over by ending the issue with Lois telling hubby Clark that "I think we need to have a baby." It's a great finish and I only reveal it to you because I can't review the next issue without your knowing what leads up to it.
Tanya and Richard Horie repeat as colorists, joined this time by pencillers Renato Guedes and Matthew Clark and inkers Guedes and Andy Lanning. It's another good-looking issue that earns three out of five Tonys.
******
ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #638 rises so far above the executive-mandated hopelessness of the DCU it should be given a special award just for that. In this heartwarming and magnificently wacky "Road to Ruin" interlude, Mr. Mxyzptlk plays stork for Lois and Superman. He brings them a super-baby and then skips merrily into the future to show them scenes of what could be their lives-to-come.
Rucka's take on Mxy is wonderful. His scripting is poignant and hilarious, especially when he and artists Clark and Lanning do takes on Frank Miller, Bill Watterson, and Bruce Timm. I actually - brace yourselves - felt good after reading a DCU comic. I'm not sure I have enough disembodied columnist heads to reward Rucka and company for that sorely-missed feeling. They'll have to settle for the full five out of five Tonys and my sincere wish that this issue be remembered in next year's awards.
******
JUGHEAD
Some issues, Jughead gets the bear; some issues, the bear gets him. He's definitely on the menu in JUGHEAD #164 [Archie; $2.19]. Writer Craig Boldman - with penciller Rex Lindsey and inker Rich Koslowski - kicks off the issue with "Two's a Crowd" and one of the oddest couples in homespun Riverdale. Restaurant adversaries Pop (of Pop's Chock'lit Shop) and Segarini (of Seg's Pizza) are forced by circumstances to operate out of the same storefront. It's a fun concept, worthy of its 11-page length, but it could've used more of a Neil Simon flair.
A broke Jughead tries to cash in all his coins in "Change Is Good" and mooches a ride from pal Archie Andrews. I knew this was gonna go wrong, but the suspense of waiting to see just *how* it would go wrong was entertaining.
The gem of the issue was "T Trouble," another story featuring Trula Twist, the analytical cutie who gets under Jughead's skin and into his head. As Juggy tries to figure out what her plan is this time, the story takes surprising turns.
The story and feature content in Archie titles have dropped to 23 pages, but they still deliver solid value to readers. JUGHEAD #164 earns three out of five Tonys.
******
NEW ARRIVALS
If you're a regular visitor to my message board, you may have noticed that I've been posting lists of items I receive for review along with some brief information on these items. The idea was to get board members to request the reviews they'd most like to see me write. Additionally, the TONY POLLS page would let folks vote on these review items. As ideas go, it was a good one...with just one small flaw.
I now have a list of over fifty review requests. I also have over two hundred review items I haven't gotten around to posting on the message board. I blame obstructionist liberals in Congress for this guilt-inducing gridlock.
I'm going to put the posting and the voting out to pasture as I work my way through the review requests, mixing up the requests with other items to keep you guessing. By no means does this mean you should stop making requests or that I won't do my best to read and review the items you request. I just figure I can better spend the time I've been spending on the posting and the voting actually reading and reviewing stuff.
Thanks for your seemingly endless patience with me. When I'm caught up on the existing request list, I'll even consider resuming the posting and voting. If I don't resume them, well, we all know who will be to blame, won't we?
I'm just trying to get along in Bizarro America 2005.
******
TONY'S MAILBOX
Digging into the e-mailbox, I found this July, 2004 note from FRED TIERI:
I read but almost never agree with your comic-book reviews or commentary. I read and almost never agree with Alexander Ness's reviews or commentary. Worst is Alan David Doane who belongs to the idiot left. I wonder if you and Ness are arch-enemies and, if so, how come you both post on each other's boards?
I'd guess you vote Democrat and Ness votes Republican, but I can forgive you both for that; we can't all be libertarians. Doane is green. 'Nuff said to that.
Keep on writing and I will keep on reading.
Far be it from me to speak for either Alex or Alan, but both are friends of mine. Alex is one of the nicest guys I've ever met. If he has a political affiliation, it's likely "Green"...because he is very considered about the environment. Alan might identify as a liberal, but you'd have to ask him to be sure. I think he and I agree on most political and social issues.
I vote "Democrat" because the alternative - the country I love under the thumb of the twisted-beyond-belief Republican Party - is too awful to contemplate. I don't mind being called a liberal, but I think "compassionate" and "progressive" would be much closer to the mark. Vote for me.
I don't always agree with Alex or Alan's reviews, but I think they are terrific writers. Alan sometimes gets a bit too strident for my tastes - it's not a crime against humanity to make a lousy comic book or to dislike one of Alan's heroes - and he has offended me on occasion, but, to the dismay of some of my other friends, I like the guy a lot.
I'm glad you'll keep reading even though you disagree with my reviews and commentary. The open exchange of ideas is vital to the comics art form and society in general.
Your fellow TOT readers can make up their own minds about Alex and Alan by visiting the former at...
www.popthought.com
...and the latter at...
www.comicbookgalaxy.com
Thanks to Fred and all my other readers for spending a part of their day with me. I'll be back soon with more stuff.
Tony Isabella
<< 04/27/2005 | 04/28/2005 | 04/29/2005 >>
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THE "TONY" SCALE
ZERO: Burn your money before buying any comic receiving this rating. It doesn't *necessarily* mean there's absolutely nothing of value here - though it *could* - but whatever value it might possess shrinks into insignificance before its overall awfulness.
ONE: Buy something else. Maybe I found something which wasn't completely dreadful in the item, but not enough for me to recommend it when there are better comics available. I only want what's best for you, my children.
TWO: Basic judgment call. I found some value, but not enough to recommend it. My review should give you enough info to decide if you want to take a chance on it. Are you feeling lucky today, punk? Well, are you?
THREE: This denotes something I find perfectly respectable. There are better books out there, but I wouldn't regret buying this item. Based on my review, you should be able to determine if it's of interest to you. Let the Force guide you.
FOUR: I recommend anything earning this rating. Unless you don't like the genre, subject matter, or past work of the creators, I believe you'll enjoy this item. Isn't it uncanny how I can look right into your soul that way?
FIVE: Anything getting this rating is among the best comicdom has to offer. You should buy/read this, even if the genre/subject matter doesn't appeal to you. It's for your own good. Me, I live for comics and books this good...but not in a pathetic "Comic-Book Guy" sort of way.
Please send material you would like me to review to:
Tony's Online Tips
840 Damon Drive
Medina, OH 44256
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