Comic Reviews 8/23/13

Here In Bongo Congo

     It's time for more summertime comic book reading recommendations, so let's get right to four new issue comic books that Good King Leonardo has checked-out for your end-of-the-summer-season comic book reading consideration:
 

Archie #645

Publisher: Archie Comic Publications, Inc.

Various Writers & Artists

     It isn't truly summertime unless I've reviewed at least one summer-themed Archie comic book, so this week I'm reviewing Archie #645, sub-titled on the front cover as "Archie's Ultimate Guide To Summer Fun!"  The giant-sized summer spectacular features three full-length tales; the first story is scripted by Tom Defalco with pencils by Rex Lindsey and inks by Rich Koslowski, while the second and third tales are scripted, penciled and colored by Dan Parent with inks by Rick Koslowski.

     The kick-off story is entitled "Summer Daze" and charts the misadventures of Archie on the first day of school break summer vacation.  Its a light slapstick tale in which from morning to dusk, any harmless summertime activity that Archie tries (waterskiing, carnival fun, a dance, etc.) ends with disastrous pratfall results for Archie.  The story concludes with a funny strategy that Archie adopts to try and get through the rest of the summer harm-free.  "Catch The Wave" is the brief, 5-page second tale and is a cute commentary on the pros and cons of video gaming, as Betty, Veronica and Veronica's parents, Mr. & Mrs. Lodge, become obsessed with playing a wi-style interactive surfing game on the Lodge's television.  "Surf's Up" is the third story with an actual real-world surfing plot, as Betty teaches Veronica how to actually surf so she might get hired for a reality-television series starring a hunky professional surfer.

      With every Archie comic book that I periodically check-out, it never ceases to amaze me how this old-school series maintains its relevance, stellar production quality and overall high level of reading entertainment.  The current issue delivers in that way on four counts.  First, the three story plots are balanced with a variety of themes.  The first tale delivers light-hearted Archie-as-endearing-goofball slapstick, the second provides social commentary on the potential obsessiveness of video gaming and the third delivers a meaningful and heartwarming life lesson on female empowerment and girl power.  Secondly, the production is very solid, delivering the familiar and consistent Archie Comics visual style among the various art teams along with a nice balance of appearances by the Archie storyverse support characters, including Jughead, Reggie, Midge, Moose and Principal Weatherbee.  Third, this seemingly old-fashioned comic book is anything but outdated, as each story is chock-full of effective references to modern technology and current-day pop culture.

     Fourth but hardly least, unlike any other current comic book series, the Archie Comics publishers stuff this comic with so many promos, sneak peaks and interesting samples of other Archie titles and series that its essentially as much an Archie Publications catalog as it is a stand-alone comic book.  And that's just as much fun as reading the three stories.  Among this particular issue's promo stand-outs that caught my eye are a set of three 400-page jumbo-sized "Best Of Archie" compilations for only $7.49 each, a beautiful, high-end "The Art Of Betty And Veronica" coffee table book and an "Everything's Archie" promo page that lists enough variety of Archie publications and products to last a year, at least.

     In sum, while we all started-out reading Archie Comics as kids, issue #645 proves once again that the world of Archie continues to be relevant to modern-day reading sensibilities, as well as a very entertaining comic book for readers of all ages.  So get-on over to That's Entertainment and check-out issue #645 as well as the rest of the store's wide range of Archie Comics inventory!

Six-Gun Gorilla #1 & #2

Publisher: Boom! Studios

Simon Spurrier: Creator & Writer

Jeff Stokely: Art

Andre May: Colors

     Boom! Studios has so far published the first two issues of a new six-issue comic book mini-series entitled "Six-Gun Gorilla."  While I initially read issue #2 first, I decided to also backtrack and read the premier issue and thus provide a more informative combined review for both issues combined.  The new title is the creation of writer Simon Spurrier, with art by Jeff Stokely and colors by Andre May.

     The series is a science fiction storyverse centering on the well-known plot theme of reality television run amok.  In a nutshell, the Bluetech Corporation ships suicidal volunteers off to the planet Blister, where they're filmed for reality t.v. viewers back home to view while they serve as very expendable cannon fodder in a corporate war against the Wild West-style Earth settlers of the planet, who crave independence from Earth.  Corporate hell breaks loose when a volunteer simply known as Blue is asked by a dying army general to return a watch to his wife back home.  Without being a detail spoiler, issue #1 climaxes with Blue handily rescued from the developing corporate intrigue shenanigans by the title's six-gun wielding talking gorilla, who is the result of a corporate biotech research project run amok.  Issue #2 finds our duo on the run from the corporate bad guys.  A good portion of this issue details the pair getting to know the unique and eccentric inhabitants of a small frontier town on Blister.  This issue ends in a very dramatic bridge to next month's issue #3, as Gorilla and Blue face overwhelming odds against a huge army force arriving in town looking for their respective heads.

     This very unique science fiction comic series reminds me more than anything of the many fresh and creative animation series that MTV pumped-out on a regular schedule back in the 1980's.  Like those shows, the plotline is a mish-mash of varied and disconnected plot themes, which in this instance include the wild west, interstellar warfare, corporate intrigue and reality television.  Yet in the hands of the very capable creative team, this seemingly random stew blends into a well-balanced and delicious meal of an entertainment.  There's some intriguing soap opera-style relationship drama among the players, as well as a lot of small tidbits about the dangers of the weird planet Blister, both from within the planet's oddball eco-system and imported to the battlefield by the warring human parties, enough to intrigue both the science fiction faithful and newcomers, alike.  The storyline also has a calm, measured pace to it that's rare to see in a six-issue limited series; in fact, the title's six-gun gorilla doesn't even make an appearance until the very last page of issue #1.  That's one bold and gutsy move that reflects the amount of story-telling confidence that the creative team has in its strong new series.

     I can't finish this review without a shout-out for the unique artistic style of this comic book.  The jagged, sharp-edged penciling and selected color palette deliver the perfect atmosphere of a dry, dusty alien planet run overrun with foolish Earthlings who bring their particular brand of meaningless violence and idiocy to this barren new world.  So a definite thumbs-up positive review recommendation for all good readers who are fans of science fiction, corporate intrigue and/or gorilla tales to check-out this very original new comic book series!

Revival #12

Publisher: Image Comics

Tim Seeley: Writer

Mike Norton & Art Baltazar: Art

Mark Englert: Colors

     Image Comics is up to issue #12 of a supernatural-themed comic book entitled Revival, sub-titled "A Rural Noir."  An inside-the-front-cover narrative summarizes the previous plot development: in the rural area around Wausau, Wisconsin, for one day the recent dead came back to life as non-zombie, living people and have resumed their previous lives.  The main character is police officer Dana Cypress, who is dealing with a multitude of soap opera-style issues resulting from the ensuing turmoil and basic weirdness.  The series is written by Tim Seeley with art by Mike Norton and Art Balazar, and colors by Mark Englert.

     Issue #12 advances the storyline by alternating between nine scenes populated by Dana and the story's additional characters.  There's Martha, Dana's sister who struggles with the knowledge of herself being one of the "Revivers." Other significant scenes address Dana dealing with her son's trauma of witnessing his aunt as both a Reviver and as his protector from a violent crime, a sub-plot about body part smugglers, plothreads featuring respective child and elderly Revivers and a murder-mystery storyline.  Issue #12 ends on a scene in which the extent of Dana's son's trauma is further revealed.

     In all of my many baby boomer years of comic book reading, I have never loved a comic title concept so much while simulataeously being so disappointed with its story quality.  I'm head-over-heels with the idea of this mysterious one-day rising of the dead, with the folks affected just resuming their old lives.  No zombies here, just regular folks who died recently, revived and went back to their lives with various degrees of puzzlement.  There's some great potential here for fine storytelling.

     The pitfall here is that writer Tim Seeley doesn't provide that fine storytelling.  Issue #12 is incredibly disjointed and jumbled; instead of the standard three-scene comic book story segment, we mistreated to the aforementioned nine quickie scenes which never allow the plot to hit a satisfying pace of story progression.  We're jerked in-and-out of too many scenes with too many characters and disconnected issues shmushed-together, thereby never establishing an enjoyable and entertaining storytelling atmosphere.  I still don't understand quite a bit of the story situation for some of these characters, given the jarring jump-around that we're forced to endure in this story lay-out.

     I thought about my reaction to this issue for a day after I read it, hoping that I'd be able to come around and recommend this really neat story premise.  But my gut tells me to be faithful to my initial reaction, and the "inner fanboy" deep down inside tells me to unfortunately praise the concept but recommend a negative thumbs-down pass for this well-meaning but seriously flawed and uncomfortable portrayal of this supernatural storyverse.  Here's hoping that the creative team gets its act together and can evolve this series into a better format, but until that day might come, for now I recommend looking to other comic books at That's Entertainment for your fix of an X-Files style of dark mystery spookiness.

Quantum And Woody #1

Publisher: Valiant Entertainment

James Asmus: Writer

Tom Fowler: Art

    As many readers know, Valiant Entertainment has been releasing over the past few years re-imagined versions of its 1990's stable of story characters.  The latest Valiant characters to emerge from retirement are the superteam of Quantum and Woody.  In the original series run, the duo were friends, while in the revised new series the pair are brothers, with Eric's (Quantum's) parents having adopted Woody when the pair were teenagers.  While the first two issues are on the new issues shelves, I decided to review issue #1 to get a feel for the new title's direction from the very start.  The new series is scripted by James Asmus with art by Tom Fowler.

     Issue #1 kicks-off a multi-issue revised origin story entitled "World's Worst."  Via alternating flashback scenes, we learn of the duo's family origins in their teen years.  Flash- forward to the present and the pair's scientist father is mysteriously murdered, bringing the now-estranged Eric and Woody together to investigate the murder mystery.  The trail of clues leads back to their Dad's research facility and the issue ends in a dramatic bridge to issue #2, as the duo accidentally trigger one of their Dad's energy research experiments, which clearly embues them with superpowers that will lead to Eric adopting the Quantum superhero persona in issue #2.

     I enjoyed this revision of the 1990's superduo for a few reasons.  First, James Asmus's script is extremely polished and of high quality, mixing the drama and humor in equal balance.  There's a lot of first-class and entertaining dialogue throughout this issue in which the pair wade their way through situations that are both serious and funny in equal portions.  Asmus also hits a homerun in structuring the personal dynamic between the pair, who clearly have a loving brotherly bond but are struggling with both past and present family dynamic issues.  Third, I liked the fresh spin of an African-American family (Eric's parents) adopting a troubled white street teen.  Its a nice break from the stereotypical and over-done pop culture template of the white family "rescuing" a minority kid from the streets.  Finally, the particular visual style of artist Tom Fowler is very appropriate and pleasing for this 1990's-style fictional storyverse brought back to life here in 2013.

     That last critical point was a key for me liking this comic book; it's nice to see a comic series that represented the best of the 1990's-era comics come back to life and again be an entertaining success, as a balance to so much of the modern-day dark-themed, lesser-quality new stuff floating out in the publishing world.  It proves that many older storyverses can have relevance for today's generation of readers and can continue to succeed in providing high quality entertainment for modern-day readers.

     So a definite and enthusiastic thumbs-up positive review recommendation for readers young-and-old-alike to check-out the return of Valiant Entertainment's Quantum And Woody, with both issues #1 and #2 currently available on the new issues shelves at That's Entertainment!

Contest Winner Announcement!!!

     Our latest contest took us back to the early days of television (that's the device that people used to watch before they had I-Phones).  Your challenge was to name the very first nationally televised children's show back in the pioneering days of t.v.  We had a few incorrect answers that made logical sense and came close (i.e., Captain Kangaroo and Kukla, Fran & Ollie).  And our contest winner with the correct answer is (drumroll, please...) Mike Dooley, who correctly identified the old Howdy Doody Show as that first national kids show that ran from 1947 to 1960.  Ironically, while some folks submitted Captain Kangaroo as their answer, the good Captain himself, Bob Keeshan, first played the original Clarabell The Clown on Howdy Doody before making his own debut as Captain Kangaroo in 1955.  Congratulations to Mike, who wins our first prize $10.00 gift certificate to That's Entertainment!

New Contest Challenge!!!

     We're in the dog days of summer, which means that we're also in the thick of the Major League Baseball (MLB) pennant races.  Which inspired our Bongo Congo panel of contest judges to challenge you with a baseball trivia question.  Only one player in the history of the game has completed the rare feat of winning the annual Most Valuable Player Award in both the National and American Leagues.  So your challenge is to e-mail us at Gordon_A@msn.com no later than Wednesday, September 4 and correctly identify that player who won the award in both leagues.  As always, in the event of multiple correct entries, the winner of the first prize $10.00 gift certificate to That's Entertainment will be selected via a roll of the dice.  Please note that our first prize $10.00 gift certificate to That's Entertainment is redeemable for regular retail merchandise or in-store, on-going specials, only.

     That's all for now, so have two great Red Sox watching (stay in first place, Red Sox!) and comic book reading weeks and see you again on Friday, September 6 Here In Bongo Congo!

Comic Reviews 8/2/13

Here In Bongo Congo

     Its Eclectic Week here again in Bongo Congo and as such, Good King Leonardo has decreed that we review comics this week that span a wide range of varied subjects and themes.  So let's get right to it and see how this variety-pack of titles stack-up against each other:

 

Red Sonja #1

Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment

Gail Simone & Walter Geovani: Writers

Adriano Lucas: Colors

     The heavily-marketed debut in Dynamite Entertainment's Red Sonja title of A-list writer Gail Simone kicked-off last week with issue #1 of a new Red Sonja title run.  While the credits also list Walter Geovani as the issue's writer, I suspect its a typo and Geovani is the artist, while Adriano Lucas provides the issue's colors.

     The untitled premier story segment provides two sub-plots.  The first storythread is a brief and revised Red Sonja origin segment.  In this retelling, Good King Dimath rescues Red Sonya from near-death as a mistreated prisoner from his defeated enemy's dungeons, whereupon she heads-off into the wilderness to become the familiar warrior-princess.  Flash-forward three years later and the main storyline kicks-in.  Sonya responds to a summons from King Dimath and learns that his army has been wiped-out by a plague deliberately caused by the barbaric Zamorans.  The King begs Sonya to rapidly train the remaining women of his court to defend his realm against the oncoming Zamoran horde invasion.  The issue ends in a surprise bridge to next month's story segment, as the horde attacks and Sonja makes a dramatic and startling connection pf the Zamoran horde leader to her previous imprisoned captivity.

     I've written in previous reviews that I've been disappointed in the below-par quality of the handful of Gail Simone-written titles that I've reviewed in the past few years.  I do like her well-known previous writing efforts with DC's Wonder Woman title and I was hoping that Red Sonja would again provide me with that high level of Simone-scripted reading entertainment.  So I'm very happy to report that I found this comic book to deliver that level of high quality script entertainment.

     Two significant elements of the story production stood-out for me as most responsible for this enjoyable reading experience.  First off, I enjoyed very much Simone's particular writing style, which brought a more human touch to Red Sonya.  Our heroine has often seemed one-dimensional in the previous Dynamite Red Sonya title run, over-heavy on the Conan-like dramatic battlefield pronouncements while swimming through pools of blood.  Those elements are more balanced here with some decent personality development and more routine comic book narrative and dialogue.  Secondly, there's a steady thread of light humor throughout this issue that's rarely found in a sword-and-barbarism comic book.  My particular favorite example are two naive and hapless teen warrior girls who Sonya takes under her bemused wing to mentor.

     The result of Simone's storytelling approach is a much complex and more fully fleshed-out tale that provides a richer and more satisfying read than many previous Red Sonya storylines.  So all in all, a very positive review recommendation is well-deserved for this premier issue of the latest red Sonja title run.  Congratulations are due to Gail Simone for her excellent writing effort on this title and here's hoping that she sticks around as the latest Red Sonya writer for a long time!

Day Men #1

Publisher: BOOM! Studios

Matt Gagnon & Michael Alan Nelson: Writers

Brian Stelfreeze: Art

Darrin Moore: Colors

     BOOM! Studios recently released issue #1 of a new vampire-themed comic book entitled Day Men.  The concept here is that vampire families employ humans, the aforementioned "Day Men," to conduct both their legitimate business affairs and their vampire shenanigans well-into the daylight hours.  The new series is co-scripted by Matt Gagnon and Michael Alan Nelson with art by Brian Stelfreeze and colors by Darrin Moore.

     Issue #1 interweaves two storythreads.  In the first sub-plot we're introduced to David Reid, the young mortal Day Man for the powerful Virgo extended vampire family.  We get a feel for his general duties and work situation along with an introduction to various Virgo family vampires.  The second storythread introduces conflict between the Virgo and Ramses vampire families.  The two storylines interconnect when David is assigned to clean-up a murder by a partyboy Virgo family vampire of a female vamp from the Ramses clan.  A shaky truce between the clans implodes over the killing, resulting in an extended battle between a handful of vampires from the two clans with David stuck in the middle.  The issue concludes with the truce badly shattered and David heading with the rest of his Virgo "family" into an upcoming period of vampire warfare.

      This is a pretty popular new title that's getting some strong positive reviews out in the fan world and I can see why.  First, the concept of "Day Men" is a creatively fresh addition to the well-worn world of vampire fiction, one of those periodical new fictional twists that makes me wonder why someone didn't come-up with the new plot idea earlier.  Secondly, the co-writers succeed in delivering a strong plot that's rich in believable dialogue, suspense and plot details that pull the reader deep into this new approach to vampire storytelling.  And third, the character development is very strong, with a range of vampire personalities that offer wonderful soap opera-style story possibilities to be explored in upcoming issues.  Finally, I liked the idea presented of fifty vampire families in a world-wide network of the vampire society, which also opens-up some fun future storytelling potential as some of these clans no-doubt enter into the fray of this new intervampire war.

      While this comic book deserves a positive review recommendation, two negative elements do keep it from getting a totally top-notch rave in my review opinion.  The first is the artwork, which is too crude and has an element of unfinished stiffness to it for my taste.  A comic of this fresh storytelling quality deserves a better visual palette.  For some reason, BOOM! Studios is marketing artist Brian Stelfreeze's work in this issue as the second coming of a Neal Adams or Jack Kirby level of talent, and that's hardly the case, here.  While Stelfreeze is acclaimed for a wonderful published portfolio of front cover artwork, that quality doesn't translate into the interior of this particular comic book.  I suppose it's all in a typical day's work of marketing a comic book for sales, but it's still inaccurate and at the end of said marketing day, we're still stuck with clunky interior artwork.

      Secondly, while it's a minor criticism, it seems illogical to me that each of the 50 vampire families employs only one lone Day Man, a sort of solo Alfred The Butler to the family's wide-ranging daytime needs.  It makes no sense, given the large size of these vampire families and their extended activities/needs that they each employ only one multi-tasking day-helper; hopefully, the creative team will evolve this item in future issues and add many more Day Men (and hopefully some Day Women?) to the limited cast of Day Guys.

     But these constructive criticisms don't damper too much the decent quality and entertainment of this new comic book series, for all of the positive reasons outlined above.  So whether you're a horror comic book fan or just looking for an entertaining fresh comic book story theme, either way Day Men is a worthy addition to your mid-summer new issues comic book reading pile!

The Rocketeer & The Spirit #1

Publisher: IDW Publishing & D.C. Comics

Mark Waid: Writer

Paul Smith: Art

Jordie Bellaire: Colors

     IDW Publishing has partnered with DC Comics to present a new comic book title pairing-up their respective pre-World War II pulp-era heroes, The Rocketeer/Cliff Secord and The Spirit/Denny Colt.  I'm a big fan of both characters and have reviewed previous issues of both of them in their respective solo titles.  As such, I was very interested to read the details of this new pairing of the duo.  The series is scripted by A-list comic book writer Mark Waid with art by Paul Smith and colors by Jordie Bellaire.

     Issue #1 is the kick-off segment of a multi-issue story arc entitled "Pulp Friction."  The plot setting is February of 1941 in The Spirit's east coast hometown of Central City.  When a City Alderman is murdered, his body mysteriously turns-up a day later in sunny Los Angeles, prompting The Spirit, Police Commissioner Dolan and the Commish's beautiful daughter (and Spirit girlfriend) Ellen to hop a plane for a bumpy, 1941-style flight out to L.A.  Hijinks quickly ensue between our two heroes, as their respective entourages mistake each other for criminal suspects.  Without going into details, after an extended action-adventure sequence, all misunderstandings are ironed-out.  The issue #1 story segment ends on a comedic note, as The Spirit and the Rocketeer's girlfriend Betty meet and Betty goes cartoony ga-ga over the visiting sleuth, to the fury of Ellen Dolan!

     I truly don't believe that you have to be a devoted Spirit and/or Rocketeer fanboy or fangirl to love this new comic book.  The series hits a grand slam on four major strengths.  First-up of course is the expert scripting by Mark Waid, who brings the perfect pitch of dialogue and personality to the plot.  More importantly, Waid captures the heartwarming and comical aspects of our favorite characters from these two respective storyverses and seamlessly blends them into one flawless script.  A newbie reader would assume that these folk have all been created together and live in one storyverse as opposed to meeting each other for the first time in this new pairing.

     Third, the art is just plain great, with an engrossing color pallette, great penciling and an overall entertaining visualization of the world of Los Angeles in the pre-World War II years.  Finally, the issue is peppered throughout with small comic stylings and moments that overshadow the bigger plot picture to provide the real fun of this read.  Among my favorites are the Archie Comics-like "Betty and Veronica" personality clash between Ellen and Betty, the funny connection between Commissioner Dolan and The Rocketeer's sidekick Peevy, and the perfect comment that Commissioner Dolan remarks upon de-planing after a bone-shaking cross-country trip in a 1940's-era passenger plane.

     I would love to ramble-on-and-on about the many pluses of this new title, but enough already.  You need to stop reading this review and get down to That's Entertainment to pick-up a copy of this new team-up comic book for your own great summertime reading enjoyment!

Batman '66 #1

Publisher: D.C. Comics

Jeff Parker: Writer

Jonathan Case: Art & Colors

Michael & Laura Allred: Front Cover Art

     DC Comics has just expanded its wide-ranging inventory of various Batman titles with the debut of Batman '66, a deliberately campy comedy series based on the style of the pop culture phenomenon wacky Batman television series that ran for three seasons (1966 to 1968) on ABC.  The new comic book series is scripted by Jeff Parker with art and colors by Jonathan Case.  In addition, the popular art team of Michael and Laura Allred created the issue #1 front cover.

     The premier stand-alone story is entitled "The Riddler's Ruse."  When the Riddler steals the well-known "Lady Gotham Statuette" from a public dedication ceremony, our campy Dynamic Duo arrive on the scene and fight the Riddler and his gang in pop art-style (lots of Bam! Pow! Poomf! sound balloons!).  The plot thickens when the Riddler escapes and our heroes begin to follow his riddle clues in hot pursuit.  Without being a detail spoiler, in a very fun way, Catwoman has become a legitimate nightclub owner and gets involved assisting Batman and Robin against The Riddler.  After much sleuthing, comedy and a second round of "Biff! Bam! Pow!" action, the Riddler is defeated, Catwoman returns to being a harmless goofball version of a baddie and the Bat-Signal announces "The End" of our issue #1 tale.

     I could write a very lengthy list of what makes this new title a great read, but for the sake of time I'll list here my "Top Four Favorite Reasons Why Batman '66 Is Not To Be Missed!"  Number one is the plot.  Writer Jeff Parker provides a surprisingly rich, detailed and quite complex storyline that mixes mystery, action-adventure and comedy into a brilliantly entertaining read.  Secondly, the creative team scores a "Perfect 10" in exactly duplicating the campiness of the acclaimed television show's wacky campiness.  The nutty riffs and homages to the show are non-stop, including the personalities of secondary characters (i.e., Chief O'Hara and Alfred The Butler), the Laugh-In style comedy that ensues when the Dynamic Duo pass apartment windows as they scale building walls and the stuffy/nutty dialogue between Batman and Robin in the midst of all the fistfighting.

     Third, I'm blown away by how well the art team duplicates on these comic book pages the features of the famous actors from the t.v. show; we're treated here to exact facial replicas of the actors Adam West as Batman, Burt Ward as Robin, Frank Gorshin as The Riddler and a purr-fect facial and sexy body replication of Julie Newmar in her famous skintight Catwoman suit (Rowrr...!).  Fourth, the creative/editing team made the right decision to emulate the t.v. series with a stand-alone story that has a neat end-of-issue conclusion, as opposed to altering the atmosphere of the series with a multi-issue story arc.

     It's ironic that the "DC Comics All Access" column in the back of this book highlights several other new issue DC titles with typical modern-day dark story themes and visuals.  It emphasizes even more how much the modern-day comic book sensibility has drifted away from its 1960's light-hearted campiness roots.  We really need the occasional dose of comic book warmheartedness and nutball humor to balance this drift to the dark side.  Creator Keith Giffen is our usual standard-bearer who lets some light into this dark comic book world, and its nice to also have this brave new edition that's both entertaining in its own right and a wonderful homage to one of the greatest superhero t.v. shows of all time.

      So if you're in a tight situation right now, my review advice is for you to "Biff! Bam! Pow!" fight your way down to That's Entertainment and relive the joy of the great 1960's televised version of Batman, Robin and their cast of wacky friends and foes in "Batman '66!"

Contest Winner Announcement!!!

     Our latest contest  challenged you to tell us the answer to an interesting history trivia question.  Portland, Oregon was named in a famous coin toss, in which the winner named the city after his hometown of Portland, Maine.  We asked you to tell us what the other New England city name was in that coin toss.  And our contest winner is (drumroll, please...) Keith Martin, who correctly identified Boston as the alternate name in the contest.  So somewhere in an alternate universe the coin toss went differently and there's a Boston, Oregon out there!  Congratulations to Keith, who wins our first prize $10.00 gift certificate to That's Entertainment!

New Contest Challenge!!!

     The Bongo Congo Panel Of Contest Judges has decreed that we go back to our baby boomer television viewing roots with our latest contest challenge.  Your challenge is to e-mail us at Gordon_A@msn.com no later than Wednesday, August 21 with the correct anser to the following question: What was the very first nationally broadcast children's television show back in the pioneering era of early t.v.?  As always, in the event of multiple correct entries, the winner of our first prize $10.00 gift certificate to That's Entertainment will be selected via a roll of the dice.  Please note that our first prize $10.00 gift certificate to That's Entertainment is redeemable for regular retail merchandise or in-store, on-going specials, only.

     That's all for now; we're taking our annual summer vacation next week, so have three great Boston Red Sox-watching (stay in first place, Red Sox!) and comic book-reading weeks and see you again on Friday, August 23 Here In Bongo Congo!

Comic Reviews 7/19/13

Here In Bongo Congo

     Good King Leonardo is looking for some cool relief from this current stretch of mid-summer heat, so let's get right to it and see if this week's comics are cool enough to provide that relief!

Wild Blue Yonder #1

Publisher: IDW Publishing

Mike Raicht: Writer

Zach Howard: Art

Nelson Daniel: Colors

     IDW Publishing has recently released issue #1 of a new science fiction action-adventure comic book entitled Wild Blue Yonder.  This is a post-apocalyptic themed comic book; after civilization collapses from radiation and pollution, humanity's survivors assemble into two camps, an underclass of underground miners and a "privileged few" who live in massive airfleets and wage war on each other as they live on mountaintops and battle among the clouds.  The series is written by Mike Raicht with art by Zach Howard and colors by Nelson Daniel.

     Issue #1 introduces two interweaving sub-plots.  In the first storythread we're introduced to Cola, a young "good guy" fighter pilot and her dog/sidekick named Critter.  At a mountaintop bar, Cola recruits a young unemployed miner named Tug to be her new gunner, after which the two spend most of the issue in an extended aerial firefight against the forces of evil in this storyverse.  The second storythread introduces the bigger theme of the comic book, that of the war between Cola's extended family and friends who make-up the last surviving group of good guy fighters versus the huge armada of bad guys, led by a hard-nosed dictator named "The Judge."  Without spoiling any details, by issue's end, the good aviators have won their latest skirmish but not without The Judge patiently laying the groundwork for advancing his long-range schemes against this last band of hardy flying foes.

     I liked many aspects of this comic book, but in the end I'm giving it an average, mixed-bag positive review.  Three strong story elements stand-out on the plus side of this new title.  The art is mind-boggingly exquisite, with the visual team providing amazingly detailed aerial battle scenes that pull the reader into an almost 3-D reading experience.  Secondly, the personalities of the main characters are both interesting and heart-warming, including the young, brash female pilot Cola, her down-to-earth new sidekick Tug, the human-like dog Critter and their fighter buddy Scram.  Third, there's a neat mix of Rocketeer-style fighters in the mix (including the afrementioned Scram), who jetpack around the fighter planes adding an exhilarating dimension to the action sequences.

     On the downside of this new title, the emphasis on this being a post-apocalyptic, fall-of-civilization version of the future dampens much of the story logic.  The world is portrayed as just too much of a wreck to sustain the level of massive, constant air combat and colossal waste of dwindling resources that are applied to the full-throttle, all-out warfare of this series.  Even for the suspension of logic that's routinely allowed in the world of comic book publishing, much of this version of reality is a stretch for a science fiction fan to accept as doable even in a funny book world.

     In sum, I couldn't help but feel that the creative team got so wrapped-up in the visual beauty of what they were creating that they forgot to balance it with enough plot logic to make many adult readers willing to commit to being monthly fans of this storyverse.  That doesn't completely take away from the positive and entertaining aspects of this new series, it just keeps it, for now at least, from being a top-of-the-comic book pile success.  So bottom line, for some mindless, harmless mid-summertime comic book reading, by all means take Wild Blue Yonder out for a spin and see for yourself what you think of this "world of the future" new comic book series!

Suicide Squad #21

Publisher: D.C. Comics

Ales Kot: Writer

Patrick Zircher: Art

Jason Keith: Colors

     DC Comics is up to issue #21 of its latest Suicide Squad title.   This is the third incarnation of the Suicide Squad, which had its debut in 1959 in issue #25 of The Brave and The Bold.  The current team consists of a group of anti-hero supervillains who act as deniable assets for the U.S. government, carrying-out Black Ops assignments in exchange for an eventual commute of their prison sentences.  The team operates out of Belle Reve Penitentiary under the command of government agent Amanda Waller.  The title's creative team consists of writer Ales Kot with art by Patrick Zircher and colors by Jason Keith.

     Issue #21 presents the final installment of a two-issue storyarc entitled "Discipline And Punish,"  and alternates two sub-plots.  In the briefer storythread that is set 17 days in the future and both starts and concludes the issue, we see members of the Suicide Squad battle a giant Frankenstein-like creation on the streets of Las Vegas.  The more dominent storyline fills the bulk of the issue, and presents a present-day revolt against both the Suicide Squad and Agent Waller by well-known Joker girlfriend Harley Quinn.

     After escaping the confinement of her Belle Reve prison cell, Harley runs amok throughout the prison, taking Agent Waller hostage while seriously wounding a Squad member.  Without spoiling too many details, the incident builds to a tense armed stand-off between Quinn and Squad member Jim Gordon, Jr., with Agent Waller perilously in the line of fire.  Quinn suddenly states that she wishes to negotiate a better prison commutation deal for the Squad via her hostage negotiation with Gordon, whereupon we're tossed back to that ongoing Vegas street battle set 17 days from the present time of the hostage stand-off.

     This comic book deserves a very positive review, albeit with one final significant point of criticism.  On the plus side, the art is excellent and the Suicide Squad team make-up is fun and entertaining, including the aforementioned Jim Gordon, Jr., introduced over the past few years in the Batman storyverse as the previously-unknown, criminally-insane son of Gotham City Police Commissioner Gordon.  Best of all in this issue is the presented personality of Harley Quinn; while various DC writers have each crafted their own take on her behavior, writer Ales Kot gives us a fresh and wonderful reinterpretation, cutting-back on the child-like innocence of her personality and emphasizing the stone-cold killer side of her criminal psychosis.  His dialogue for Quinn is flat-out great, peppering her language with sharp and creative street slang that makes her character all the more believable.

      The one glaring criticism is an odd lack of conclusion to either sub-plot in Kot's script.  This issue is the wrap-up segment of a two-part story, yet neither sub-plot concludes.  We're left hanging in the hostage stand-off sequence with Quinn's vague remark about wanting to "change the deal" on the Suicide Squad's Black Ops arrangement, and we're left in the very last story panel with the Las Vegas street battle still in full gear.  It just makes no sense to cut-off the story in mid-action for both storythreads and left me with a very dissatisfied feeling that the story didn't come to a proper and satisfying conclusion.  But the positive story elements outlined above are so strong that I happily still award this issue with a positive, thumbs-up review recommendation.  So by all means, get on-board with reading this very entertaining latest publishing incarnation of DC's long-running Suicide Squad!

Batman/Superman #1

Publisher: D.C. Comics

Greg Pak: Writer

Jae Lee & Ben Oliver: Art

June Chung & Daniel Brown: Colors

     DC Comics has just released issue #1 of its new Batman/Superman title within The New 52 umbrella of DC titles.  I was a big fan of the previous Batman/Superman title, which ran for many years, and as such wanted to review this latest version of pairing-up the two giants of the DC storyverse, Batman and Superman.  The new series is scripted by Greg Pak with Jae Lee and June Chung providing the artwork for the first 18 pages of the issue #1 story, while Ben Oliver and Daniel Brown create the visuals for pages 19 through 25.

     The kick-off multi-issue storyline is entitled "Crossworld," and provides a plotline that pairs the well-known main DC timestream with an alternate reality.  The alternate universe setting dominates most of the issue #1 story segment; in this timestream, both heroes are young adults and haven't met yet.  The plot is a murder mystery, as Clark Kent follows the trail of murdered Wayne Enterprises employees to Gotham City, meeting Bruce Wayne for the first time.  Action explodes as the pair unexpectedly come together during the next attempted murder.  Without being a detail spoiler, the killer is revealed to be a mystical evil spirit who unknowingly inhabits a person's body and commits the crimes.

     The final six pages of the issue shift the tale to our mainstream DC universe, as Superman is inexplicably teleported across realities to the mainstream Smallville.  Confused and outraged, he battles the mainstream-reality Batman until in a dramatic bridge to next month's issue #2, Pa Kent unexpectedly arrives on the scene to intervene and save Batman's life.  The issue's final story panel centers on the malevolent spirit-being relishing the chaos and plotting his next move against our heroes.

     This is a fresh addition to the many pairings of Batman and Superman over the years that works well in three respects.  First, its always fun to read a superhero comic book with alternate reality elements that refresh well-known facts about our heroes.  I enjoyed one particular commonality between the duo in the alternate universe, that both of those heroes lost their respective parents at a very young age.  I also liked that the pair are younger adult versions of themselves who aren't yet aware of each other's existence.  Secondly, the crossworlds concept is presented very well in this premier issue and offers a huge potential of various plotlines for upcoming issues.

     Third, a hats-off is due to whoever at DC made the decision to assign separate art teams to depict each of the two alternate realities.  The non-mainstream art is a very sharp-edged, non-traditional style that adds a very alien-like atmosphere to this alternate place and time, while the mainstream universe style, reminiscent of well-known comic book artist Phil Noto, roots this world in a more familiar comic book visual palette and establishes the sense that this is the mainstream, well-known world of our usual DC story-telling.

     On a minor constructive criticism note, there is some confusion here and there in the storytelling as to who or what is responsible for certain events playing-out.  I'm still not sure if the evil spirit-being plopped the alternate Superman and himself into the main DC world or whether they're both victims of circumstance.  But there's enough high quality entertaining stuff going-on throughout this issue to allow readers to relax about those confusing plot interludes and see just where the storytelling will take us as this multi-issue storyarc unfolds.  So a positive review recommendation is deserved for all Good DC Readers to take a seat on this alternate universe-hopping express and see where it all takes us for an entertaining ride of a read!

The Superior Foes Of Spider-Man #1

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Nick Spencer: Writer

Steve Lieber: Art

Rachelle Rosenberg: Colors

     Marvel Comics has recently published issue #1 of a new series entitled The Superior Foes Of Spider-Man.  The concept here is that five Spider-Man foes: Boomerang, Shocker, Overdrive, Speed Demon and the lone female Beetle, have joined forces as a new group called The Sinister Six (and yes, one of the lame running gags in this issue is that these hapless idiots do indeed realize that they have only five members).  The comic book is scripted by Nick Spencer with art by Steve Lieber and colors by Rachelle Rosenberg.

     The premier issue plot alternates between two sub-plots.  In the kick-off storythread, team leader Boomerang narrates an allegedly humorous story detailing his own origin as well as the details of how he formed the group.  The lengthier sub-plot details the group's present-day situation; with Boomerang in jail after being captured by Spider-Man, he directs the free members of the group in an elaborate effort to move stolen goods around, fulfill some group obligations to other bad guys and make some money on their own.  In a bridge to next month's issue, Boomerang is released from prison and its revealed that he's manipulating his dim-witted gang for his own selfish purposes.

     This new series is an attempt to provide the type of tongue-in-cheek, light satiric humor previously seen in such series as DC's "Formerly Known As The Justice League."  Unfortunately, it simply falls flat in trying to deliver that level of chuckle-humor.  No one is a more skilled writer than Formerly Known As The Justice League scripter Keith Giffen in delivering that type of quality, light-hearted farce; unfortunately, writer Nick Spencer is not in Keith Giffen's category, and try as he might the laughs are few and far between the mostly consistent flatness of this storyline.  While the artwork and style of narration is decent, it can't make-up for the cricket-chirping silence that results from the lack of consistent funniness in this comic book.

     So enough of the negative talk already, and let's just end this review with a "nice try pat-on-the-back" to the creative team and a review recommendation for all good fanboys and fangirls to take a pass on reading this new title.  If you really want to be entertained by a successful effort at Mad magazine-style superhero funniness, then by all means check-out the back issue bins and graphic novel reprint shelves at That's Entertainment for copies of the aforementioned excellent Formerly Known As The Justice League series.

Contest Winner Announcement!

     Our latest contest fantasized that our favorite home-away-from-home pop culture emporium That's Entertainment had a resident store cat, and challenged you to propose a genre-appropriate name of our "Comic Book Kitty".  And the contest winner is (drumroll, please)...Mike Dooley, who proposed the name T'Challa for the store cat.  For the uninitiated, T-Challa is the proper name of the Marvel Comics superhero The Black Panther.  We think that any storecat named T'Challa would protect That's Entertainment as fiercely as his namesake has protected his African Kingdom of Wakanda all these many years in Marvel Comics! Congratulations to Mike who wins our first prize $10.00 gift certificate to (where else) That's Entertainment!

New Contest Challenge Announcement!!!

     The Bongo Congo Panel Of Contest Judges offer-up a historical trivia contest for your consideration this week.  Its a historical fact that the city of Portland, Oregon was named after Portland, Maine by one of its pioneering founders, who immigrated from Portland, Maine and won the naming rights in a famous coin toss.  Your contest challenge is to e-mail us at Gordon_A@msn.com no later than Wednesday, July 31 and tell us what other well-known New England city was the other potential name choice available in that infamous coin toss.  Please note that our first prize $10.00 gift certificate to That's Entertainment is redeemable for regular retail merchandise or in-store, ongoing specials, only.

     That's all for now, so have two great Red Sox watching (stay in first place, Red Sox!) and comic book reading weeks and see you again on Friday, August 2 Here In Bongo Congo!