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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 Tuesday, February 12, 2008
I have two more "guest reviews" for you, the last such reviews in my files. Let's get right to them.
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AMERICA, JR Guest review by Mark Dooley
I admire the guts of a creative team whose trade paperback starts off with a preface by an evil television president.
America, Jr. [Image; $9.99] is a collection of online comic strips by writers Nick Capetanakis and Todd Livingston with artists Brendon and Brian Fraim. It starts with a lively foreword by popular character actor Gregory Itzen, whose most noted role in recent years has been the sinister President Logan on 24. He proposes he was sought out for this honor because he has portrayed so many dirty-tricks political figures, much like the comic strip's Mayor Morris Thornton. I say that's what Itzen gets for looking so much like Richard Nixon.
The wonderful premise of the strip is that the citizens of the little town of Millersville have awoken to discover that they have seceded from the United States. In 1876, the town's fathers signed a temporary charter with President Ulysses S. Grant to return to the Union rather than become an independent country. With a bent that reminds me a lot of such down-home humor as Ed and Northern Exposure, the citizens, "led" by their incompetent Mayor and interim President Thorton, rally to prove that they can, indeed, live as an independent country within a country and become America, Jr.
Fortunately, the conscience of the town can be found in former entertainment lawyer Darren Finch, just returned to Millersville from La-La Land to retire at a very young age, only to find himself reluctantly caught up in the political shenanigans of Thorton and his off-center staff at City Hall. Finch is the Rob Morrow of America, Jr.
Every character plays a major role in this series. Besides Thorton and Finch, we have local artist and hottie Danielle Olsen, who may or may not wind up romancing with Darren; rockin' slacker Garry Barnes, whose choice of the new country's national anthem is inspired; Treasury Secretary and uber sci-fi geek Lionel Cooper, who discovered the expired contract and who immediately wanted to change Millersville's name to "Altair IV"; Beth Seidman, Thorton's self-centered assistant secretary and Cooper's romantic interest; and Jimmy Decker, Thorton's ten-year-old opposition in the upcoming Presidential elections.
This is another smooth blending of writing and artwork that makes for a seamless whole. The art by the Fraim Brothers is slick but never overly complicated. It does its job, complimenting the witty writing of the Capetanakis/Livingston team. Filling out the book are some interesting pin-ups by a variety of artists and their interpretations of our characters and their weekend activities, as well as "bloopers" and an abandoned storyline based around a lame-brained coup on America, Jr.
You can find more of the comic strip at:
www.americajr.net
This collection rates a four out of four Marks...and my high expectation for the next collection.
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ARANZI MACHINE GUN Guest review by Steve Chaput
They say you can't judge a book by its cover, but in the case of Aranzi Machine Gun, Vol. 1 [Vertical; $9.95], you can. However, you sure can't tell by the title. There isn't a single gun, let alone machine gun, in sight. In fact, the most violent thing you'll find is Mr. Monkey dropping a bucket of paint on Mr. Bear and that's by accident.
I guess you would call this an all-ages book, although I think parents or older siblings might have to read some of the stories to young children. While the art is simplistic (mostly line drawings done freehand) and colorful enough to capture the attention of non-readers, some of the dialogue, at least as translated here for the American audience, would be well above the level of pre-school and even kids just starting out. The book does have a few multi-page stories, but it also has several pages of four-panel strips, all featuring the same characters.
The dimensions of the book (7.1 x 5.1 inches), as well as the design, reminded me of the 'board books' we have in the library for kids too young to read. The Aranzi Aronzo company is known for its arts and crafts books, so folks might be surprised to discover that the book is filled with stories of some of Aranzi's characters in action. There is a section in the book which shows readers how to make appliqués for clothes, pillows and plush animals, but most of the book consists of pictures and photos of characters interacting. There is also a small, foldout poster in the front of the book which shows many of the stuffed animal characters found throughout this book and other Aranzi projects.
Although young kids might like to have this and the projects might be fun, I don't believe the average comics fan would want to spend ten bucks for this. On the other hand, if you like simple drawings and pictures of bunnies, bears and monkeys having tea and talking about collecting cute things, this might be something you would enjoy. Me, I'm donating this to the Friends of the Library bookstore.
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BLOGGY BITS
One of the few fun things about fighting off The Dreaded Deadline Doom is going through my files looking for interesting stuff to bring you. I'll have something coming up later this week that should amaze or horrify you. It's the first two script pages of what I've been calling "the comic book that will get me killed." These are the only pages I can share with you without giving away the actual series concept. I had to put the pilot script aside to work on my sorely-missed "day job" and Mid-Ohio-Con...and haven't been able to return to it since. When I do return to it, I'll need to rework it quite a bit. Even so, these two pages might give you an idea why I both fear and love this particular creation of mine. Keep an eye out for it.
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TONY POLLS
In last week's Tony Polls, we asked you to choose your favorite presidential candidate from the Marvel, DC Comics, Comic Strips, and All Others parties.
This week, the top vote-getters from each party will vie for their party's nomination. The winners of these contests will then compete against the other party candidates to become the President of the United States...at least in the wacky world inside my head. You can vote in this second stage by going to:
www.worldfamouscomics.com/tony/poll
Thanks for spending a part of your day with me. I'll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
Tony Isabella
<< 02/11/2008 | 02/12/2008 | 02/13/2008 >>
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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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