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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, July 21, 2005
This is NOT where I've been for the past few weeks. This is just a silly faux-photo cobbled together by my pal Bill Thom whose pulp news website - COMING ATTRACTIONS - is updated every weekend and which can be enjoyed at
members.cox.net/comingattractions/index.html
What *have* I been doing?
Besides dealing with a couple health matters, from which I'm recovering nicely thanks and don't give it another thought, I have been contending with major home repairs and renovation here at Casa Isabella. Sainted Wife Barb and I took advantage of a low interest home improvement loan to contract for some necessary repairs and a perhaps-not-necessary-but-prudent-given-the-interest-rate addition to our house.
Unfortunately, the project keeps getting bigger as our current contractor discovers not-up-to-code problems courtesy of our home's original builder and other things of which we need to be concerned. For example, we had hoped to get a few more years out of our roof, but an inspection burst that dream. Sigh.
My kids have been having an active sports summer with my son Eddie playing baseball and Kelly playing basketball and softball. Much to my surprise, I found myself volunteered to be an assistant coach for Eddie's team - a great bunch of kids - and also to serve on his league's disciplinary committee. The first is a joy and the second is a pain in the ass. I should be able to get an article or two out of this experience, maybe even a novel.
This column has been on hiatus, but you can find other "Tony stuff" in COMICS BUYER'S GUIDE #1608 [September, 2005]. I continue to anchor the magazine's reviews with my "Tony's Tips" column and to provide a smattering of shorter pieces, but, in the above issue, I also took part in "The Battle of the Ages," an incredible 26-page feature wherein I argued/discussed the nature and time spans of the Golden, Silver, and Bronze ages of comics with CBG editors Maggie Thompson, John Jackson Miller, and Brent Frankenhoff, and my fellow columnists Andrew "Captain Comics" Smith and Craig "Mr. Silver Age" Shutt. It's not quite a novel, but...
Besides writing for CBG's print edition, I'm hosting one of 29 forums on the magazine's newly-launched CBGXTRA.COM website. Every Monday, TONY'S OTHER ONLINE TIPS which have an exclusive-to-that-forum review. On a frequent basis, I'll also be posting my "Oddly Worth Noting" mini-columns. Naturally, I'll also participating in topic threads on my forum and many of the website's other forums. It's almost more of me than even I can stand.
You can visit CBG's new website at:
www.cbgxtra.com
******
I haven't been writing actual comic books of late, a situation I hope to correct in the near future. But I *have* been doing some rescripting of stories for Gemstone Comics.
Here's how that works:
Gemstone sends me copies of the art for these stories, all of which come from overseas. The captions and balloons have already been translated and typeset in the stories' captions and balloons. My job is to rewrite these captions and balloons in whatever space I have, making them read more smoothly for the US audience, adding gags and character bits where possible. These aren't my stories; I'm sort of a script-doctor on them.
However, if you feel the need for some "sort of" Tony comics, check out UNCLE SCROOGE #343 [$6.95]. I did whatever it is I do on Gail Renard's Gyro Gearloose story, "Gyro 2.0," which was drawn by Jose Maria Manrique.
The issue also features stories and art by Daniel Branca, William Van Horn, Pat & Carol McGreal, Jose Massaroli, Terry Laban, Romano Scarpa, Olaf Solstrand, Maria Jose Sanchez Nunez, Pat and Shelly Block, and Marcal Abella Bresco.
When I get a spare moment - hopefully, soon - I'll compile and run a list of all the Gemstone stories I've worked on. It's been great working with editors John Clark and Sue Kolberg and I hope to continue working with them for years to come.
And that's where I've been for the past few weeks.
******
ACTION COMICS
Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Superman debuted in ACTION COMICS #1 [June, 1938], changing what had been little more than a novelty item into an industry. Last month, to celebrate the Man of Steel's 67th anniversary, TOT ran over a dozen classic and not-so-classic ACTION COMICS covers. Though I'm a little late with this finale, I can't think of a better way to cap the celebration than by looking at two of the better Superman comic books I've read this year.
Superman doesn't look quite right on the John Byrne cover for ACTION COMICS #827 [DC; $2.50]. Once I got past that unfortunate image, though, I was absolutely delighted by his Nelson-inked art. Byrne's is a classic Superman. Not only that, the other key cast members - Lois, Jimmy, Perry - all look terrific and that has not always or even often been the case in recent years. It's Byrne, so you expect the issue's storytelling to be both clear and dynamic and, there, too, he does not disappoint. Were I a Superman editor, this issue and the following one are what I would be giving to any new Superman artists for guidance.
SPOILERS AHEAD
New ACTION writer Gail Simone kicks off her run with a solid two-issue adventure that makes use of the vast DC Universe without being exclusionist about it. She gets the existing characters as right in her script as Byrne does in his art. There is much to praise here and little that left me even mildly cold, so I might as well go straight anyway to the love-fest.
The good: Repulse, the imaginary bane of Doctor Polaris' life. Think evil Bettie Page.
The okay: Simone brings in an obscure super-heroine so Repulse can magnetically drop a traffic helicopter on her. I appreciated the single panel flashback giving me a clue as to who this heroine was and the "Sixth Sense" nature of her conversation with Repulse before the chopper comes down.
The good: Superman in Africa. It reads like Chris Claremont and not in a bad way. Big Blue's easy rapport with the Africans he champions, his swift defanging of those who threaten them, and even his realization that there's only so much he can do to protect them in the future all made me smile.
The good: Simone makes it very easy to accept Lois and Clark as a loving married couple. It's neither dramatic nor forced; it's just real.
The so-so: New writer, new supporting characters. Willis, a young photographer just starting to work with Lois, could be fun, but Simone tries too hard with Schuman, an older reporter who finds himself unexpectedly teamed with Jimmy. Both characters are a bit thin and in need of further development.
The good: That crazy-ass Doctor Polaris. Multiple personality disorder has seldom looked so good. On a color-coded threat level basis, Simone and Byrne elevate the guy to a glowing red. Time to duck and cover, kids.
The so-so: We learn the super-heroine at the beginning of this issue survived the chopper being dropped on her - in dialogue - and it comes off like a "just in case someone wants to use her again" cheat. Is anyone at DC really expecting a SUPERBOY AND THE RAVERS comeback? Maybe there's hope for SUPER-HIP.
The good: Pretty decent end-of-issue reveal that Repulse isn't a real person.
Moving on to ACTION COMICS #828...
The good: Simone and Byrne make Superman work as his battle with Polaris/Repulse continues.
The good: Lois breaks a big story in Suicide Slum. With two exceptions, I thought this was a great sub-plot. Near the end of this issue, we get a terrific discussion of why Lois did as she did and it was wonderfully real world.
The bad: The "real world" praise comes with an asterisk. No way does the public figure on the wrong end of Lois' story put his hands on her and in public...and his vow of revenge is melodramatic cliche. Stick a fork in him; he's done.
The real bad: The only African-Americans with speaking parts are bad guys. I don't object to African-Americans being villains in comic books - every villain in my second Black Lightning series was a person of color, even Tobias Whale - but I insist on balance. Sensitivity training, anyone?
We pause for a SHUT-UP digression.
I adore Gail Simone. She's one of the best writers in comics and a sweetheart of a human being. Unfortunately, the first means that I hold her to a higher standard than I do lesser talents. So, no, I'm not implying anything with that "real bad" designation of an element of her story. I'm just pointing out a fact of the story which needed to be mentioned.
End of digression.
The good: I like my Jimmy Olsen feisty and Simone delivers in that regard. Yeah, he's more than a little reckless, but that has always been part of what made him such a great character and worthy to be Superman's pal.
The so-so: I was disappointed to see that Repulse was based on someone from Doc Polaris' past. It did make sense, but I'd hoped for something less obvious.
The good: The three-panel flashback which revealed the above. I'm happy to see this storytelling tool used and used well.
The good: The arrival of Black Adam and the Reverse-Flash to "rescue" Polaris from Superman. I still think IDENTITY CRISIS was a particularly stinky and unattractive sow's ear, but some writers are making adequate not-quite-silk purses out of it.
The good: Once Polaris is safe, Black Adam helps Superman to prevent any further damage or injury. Since the DC heroes are now blurring the line between "hero" and "villain," why not allow their foes to do the same?
The good: More Lois and Clark at the end of the issue. I love the way Simone writes these characters.
The bad: The "Next issue: Darkseid" blurb. As terrific as he was when Jack Kirby created him, Darkseid may be the most overused villain in the DCU. Any writers who use him come to the plate with two strikes against them.
END OF SPOILERS
ACTION COMICS #827 and #828 are a great start to what I hope will be a long Simone/Byrne run on the title. Each issue picks up a solid four out of five Tonys.
******
COMICS IN THE COMICS
Regular readers of this column know that I have a special love for "comics in the comics," those comic strip which feature comic-book or comic-strip characters as guest stars or which entertain me with self-referential humor. Today's example of this "genre" comes from Bill Amend's FOX TROT for July 17:
You can visit the official website of the FOX TROT comic strip by going here:
www.foxtrot.com
I have a few dozen COMICS IN THE COMICS sitting in my files, so you can expect to see them on a fairly regular basis in columns to come. As always, feel free to send me any such strips you think I may have missed.
******
CORRECTION
In the "nobody's perfect" category, my column for June 27 had this comment from my pal ANTHONY TOLLIN, renowned comics and radio historian. He wrote:
I think I prefer SUPERMAN II to the first Christopher Reeve movie, mostly because it pits the Man of Steel against the Phantom Zone villains. I found Luthor way too campy in the first film. I have always thought the first film would've been more cohesive had it featured Superman battling his father's greatest enemies, rather than utilize the GODFATHER stunt-casting of Gene Hackman as Luthor, re-teaming him with Marlon Brando and scriptwriter Mario Puzo.
I have since been informed by several readers - Mike Everleth and Ken Quattro, among them - that Hackman wasn't in THE GODFATHER. The INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE [www.imdb.com] confirmed Tollin had, indeed, made one of his exceedingly rare mistakes.
TOT apologizes for the error.
******
TONY POLLS
New questions are posted each and every Tuesday at our award-wanting TONY POLLS page:
www.worldfamouscomics.com/tony/poll
We even posted them during the recent TOT hiatus, which gives us a lot of catching up to do. Let's start with these questions we asked in late June...
Did you see the new BATMAN BEGINS movie during its opening weekend?
Yes.....57.75%
No.....42.25%
Sure did. It's one of only two movies I've seen during their opening weeks this year, the other being FANTASTIC FOUR.
If you saw BATMAN BEGINS, how would you rate it?
Near-Mint.....53.06%
Fine.....31.63%
Very Good.....9.18%
Good.....4.08%
Fair.....2.04%
Poor....0%
I voted with the majority. To find out why I voted with the majority, you'll have to watch for my BATMAN BEGINS review, coming soon to a website near you.
Which story from the second series of the JUSTICE LEAGUE animated series is your favorite?
STARCROSSED.....35.62%
Secret Society.....15.07%
Comfort and Joy.....10.96%
A Better World.....8.22%
Eclipsed.....4.11%
Maid of Honor.....4.11%
Tabula Rasa.....4.11%
The Terror Beyond.....4.11%
Twilight.....4.11%
Hereafter.....2.74%
Only a Dream.....2.74%
Wild Cards.....2.74%
Hearts and Minds.....1.37%
When it comes to super-hero animation, it appears the voters like the big stories best. I generally go with the human stories and the oddball stories. In this category, I voted for THE TERROR BEYOND because I loved the idea of doing a DC version of Marvel's original Defenders and because Dwayne McDuffie writes Hawkgirl and Solomon Grundy so well.
Which story from the second series of STATIC SHOCK is your favorite?
THE BIG LEAGUES.....51.22%
Attack of the Living Brain Puppets.....12.20%
Bad Stretch.....7.32%
Jimmy.....7.32%
Pop's Girlfriend.....7.32%
Frozen Out.....4.88%
Static Shaq.....4.88%
Brother-Sister Act.....2.44%
Duped.....2.44%
Power Play.....0%
Sunspots.....0%
Static with Batman and Robin is a wonderful combination, one which DC should have exploited in a "Johnny DC" mini-series written by Dwayne McDuffie. "Jimmy" and its anti-handgun message made for as powerful an episode of a cartoon series as I've ever seen. But "Frozen Out" and its depiction of a homeless girl with super-powers touched my heart deeply. Kudos to writer Len Uhley for one of the most memorable episodes of an outstanding show.
Which story from the second series of TEEN TITANS is your favorite?
BETRAYAL.....20%
TERRA.....20%
Aftershock.....18.18%
Winner Take All.....12.73%
How Long Is Forever?.....9.09%
Date With Destiny....7.27%
Every Dog Has His Day.....3.64%
Fear Itself.....3.64%
Titan Rising.....3.64%
Transformation.....1.82%
Fractured.....0%
Only Human.....0%
The votes were fairly spread out, but it's clear Terra was a favorite among the voters. I choose "Date With Destiny" because it was good wacky fun.
Look for more TONY POLLS results soon.
******
TONY STUFF
For those obsessive souls who can't get enough of me, my pal JON KNUTSON has posted a long interview with me at his blog. It's the surviving portion of something he did for COMIC BOOK ARTIST in its TwoMorrows days. Between the two of us, we've managed to lose or misplace a heaping helping of the complete interview. However, for now, you get read a huge chunk of it at:
waffyjon.blogspot.com
Scroll down to the Thursday, July 14 postings and proceed to be astonished. Probably less by my breathtaking career and more by my amazing ability to prattle on and on and on.
As for this online delight...
TOT has resumed a Monday through Friday schedule for the rest of the summer. Once school is back in session, I'll add Saturday and Sunday to the festivities.
Once I get caught up on our TONY POLLS results, I'll increase the number of reviews in these columns and bring back some of your favorite features. NOTES FROM THE 100 and TONY'S CENTENNIAL COVERS are definite returnees and I'm thinking about resuming the MY FIRST MARVELS series from last year.
On the matter of reviews...
Advance looks at soon-to-be-published comics are going to be more of a priority around here. However, creators, editors, and publishers should NOT send me incomplete copies of comics and other items they want me to consider for review.
If you see more emphasis on DC Comics in the future, chalk it up to DC being more supportive of my review columns than any other publisher in the business. I wish other aspects of my relationship with them were so mutually beneficial.
About a month after my "Tony's Tips" columns appear in COMICS BUYER'S GUIDE, I post them online. Since that can mean I wrote the reviews as much as three months earlier, I'm going to try to review more recent issues of whatever I reviewed in CBG here. That means further reviews of DAMN NATION, MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN, and THE OMAC PROJECT are coming your way soon.
If you've requests and suggestions for other things you'd like to see in this column, please send them my way. I may not be able to accommodate every request or suggestion, but I'll certainly read and consider all of them carefully.
Donations to this column are always gratefully accepted. You can make them by clicking on the TIP THE TIPSTER link elsewhere on this page. I recommend this highly.
Thanks for spending a part of your day with me. I'll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
Tony Isabella
<< 07/20/2005 | 07/21/2005 | 07/22/2005 >>
Discuss this column with me at my Message Board. Also, read Heroes and Villains: Real and Imagined.
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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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