P R E A C H E R

What do god, violence, vampires and John Wayne have in common? If you said The American Dream, you're right. If you said Preacher, you're also right.

Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon lead the reader on a wild ride through an upside down universe where there really is no god in heaven in the 75 issue National Comic Award winning American epic, Preacher.

Ennis' hyper-violent pseudo-religious-western plays out elegantly against Dillon's soft, but sufficiently detailed pencils. In fact, the unreality of Dillon's somewhat cartoonish characters often serves to enhance the intensity of the violence -- the blank expressions and simple explosions that accompany gunshot wounds or the water cooler spout that ultimately serves as Herr Starr's catheter are two examples that seem to stick out. Needless to say, with Ennis' endless cast of quirky characters and calls for obscene violence -- this is one partnership that works out nicely.

Y The Last Man

Y The Last Man is a phenomenal epic. From the art to the pacing to the character development, this is one comic that I had trouble putting down.

First of all, I love J.G. Jones' cover art. His lifelike character interpretations, although a divergence from Pia Guerra's softer, more cartoonish style, offer a nice complement to the stories -- often setting the tone for the rest of issue. As a side note, Jones' recent covers for DC's Final Crisis were spectacular, rivaling those of fellow realist Alex Ross.

Pia Guerra's art, although not as lifelike as Jones', certainly holds it own. I found that his subtle attention to detail combined with his cooler color palette did Brian K. Vaughn's writing justice.

An interesting facet of this comic was the pacing / character development. The perpetual cuts in the time, combined with the obscured and often omitted scenes in the story seemed to create the sense that the story was going on even when the reader is not reading.

Additionally, the story seems to be perpetually moving forward. Although that may seem like a trite observation, Vaughn really doesn't skip a beat. Every line of dialogue, even if it is introspective, reveals a new element of the plot and moves the story forward. This onward-ness seems to be a typical element of the serial epic and was reminiscent of "Preacher" and "Walking Dead".

Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again

"Dark Knight Strikes Again" ("DKSA") is one of Frank Miller's crowning achievements. Building off of Dark Knight Returns, he continues to recreate the DC Universe in his terrifying image. And personally, I think it's never looked better.

Captain Marvel is easily my favorite character in this story. The separation of Billy Batson and Captain Marvel is a fascinating concept and one that I had not considered before "DKSA". My favorite Captain Marvel moment comes when he is dying and Wonder Woman asks him where he goes when he says the word SHAZAM and he responds: "Where does a wish go? Where does a dream go when you wake up?" Although to most this must seem incredibly corny, I find that corniness is the most important element of Captain Marvel's character -- one that is frequently played upon in continuity. That's what makes his final words so compelling, he retains Batson's childlike innocence despite their alleged separation.

Frank Miller is an extremely capable comic book artist -- both in his own unique style (demonstrated in "DKSA") and the classic sense. Chris Claremont even went so far as to hail him as one of the most talented comic book artists he has ever worked with (circa the Miller / Claremont run "Wolverine). But it is apparent at first glance that "DKSA" is not illustrated in the classic style. I personally found that his less-than-realistic design style coupled with digital inks perfectly portrayed an edgy, highly emotional, futuristic dreamscape.

Batman: The Killing Joke

Alan Moore's "The Killing Joke" is revered as one of the definitive Batman comics. Personally, I've never been that into it. Don't get me wrong -- it's a great comic and it certainly lays down some important Batman groundwork (Joker's origin story as well as the crippling of Barbara Gordon), but I wouldn't say it's Batman at his best.

One of the biggest problems I have with the story is Commissioner Gordon. When Batman ultimately frees him from captivity he tells Batman to "do this one by the book" in order to "show him that the system works". Although I like the honest, unflinchingly benevolent portrayal of Gordon, I find him a better counterpoint to Batman when he encourages Batman to act outside of the law. I guess I just can't believe that given Gordon's situation -- having been captured by the Joker and forced to watch the rape, crippling and torture of his daughter repeatedly -- that he wouldn't seek a higher degree of revenge. I find that it is often Gordon's desire to see a criminal suffer and Batman's decision to do "justice" that characterizes their relationship, not the other way around.

One of my favorite elements in this comic is the groundskeeper who sells Joker the abandoned theme park. From the moment the Joker electrocutes him, leaving him with a sickening grin atop a child's rocking horse toy, he does not leave this spot. Throughout the comic he appears several times, merely a piece of scenery, whenever new action is taking place in the theme park. This little touch is Brian Bolland's art at its best.

All Star Superman

It seems like every time Quitely and Morrison enter a genre, they walk out with a masterpiece. "All Star Superman" is no exception, critically acclaimed as one of the best Superman stories of all time, this Eisner, Harvey and Eagle Award winning series is certainly among the greatest Superman stories in recent history.

Morrison's take on Superman, in many ways a more gentle variant than the norm, captures what I find to be the most intriguing aspect of his character: his humanity, or lack there of. Morrison establishes something of an unspoken relationship between Superman and the reader in which both are cognizant of his ability to handle any situation at super speed and his deliberate choice not to. It is this decision, his pandering to lesser human ability, that truly characterizes his true inner struggle: his desire to be human. 

And Quitely's gentle lines and soft features, coupled with Jamie Grant's generally cooler color scheme seemed to further this notion. It was this dichotomy, between Superman's unbelievable strength and his gentle demeanor, that really spoke to me in this read of "All-Star" and in many ways, I found it to

 be the driving aspect of the story.

Another comment worthy of note is that Morrison uses "All-Star" as a vehicle to flesh out aspects of his "DC: One Million" storyline. "One Million" tells the story of the DC universe in the 853rd century and the Superman Squad, Superman Gold and Superman Prime are key characters. By adding these elements to Superman's past, he brings the "One Million" universe into continuity. In fact, as I recall, both Superman Gold and Lois Lane are still in the sun in "DC: One Million". 

I am not sure whether or not this series will continue, but I'm sure I'm not alone in hoping that it will.

AKIRA

Katsuhiro Otomo's "AKIRA" is nothing short of a masterpiece. Critically acclaimed and thought to be the work which brought manga to the West, "AKIRA" is truly a seminal work in the manga genre.

Katsuhiro, like most manga artists, is solely responsible for both the writing and art in "AKIRA". And consdering the fact that the series is over 2,100 pages long, that is no small feat. He also assumed responsibility for directing the animated feature film adaptation of "AKIRA" of the same name.

In fact, Katsuhiro developed an entire culture around "AKIRA". He actually published all of his related work (sketches, advertisements and toys) in a book called "AKIRA Club".

Book one, the first of seven installments in this cyber-punk epic, serves as the story's exposition. The general premise and major players are introduced and the story ends on a cliffhanger.

Katsuhiro achieves something of a cinematic style that I have found to be characteristic of manga. It would seem as though this is primarily through his panel work. The use of dynamic panels, often in odd shapes and dimensions, serve as jump cuts from one piece of action to the next and with the story's high speed pace, it's all a reader can do to turn the pages fast enough to keep up.

His humor is also an important element of the story. In much the same way that Frank Quitely's gentle, almost innocent art grounds Morrison's unbelievable stories, I have found that Katsuhiro's frequent use of humor serves to create levity and thus reality in situations that would otherwise be unbelievable.

As a side note, I have included the original trailer for the film, which I think does a great job of translating his sound effects into something a bit more tangible. Also, the sound track in the film is unparalleled.

WE3

Frank Quitely and Grant Morrison are one of the finest creative teams in the comic book industry. Every time they collaborate they seem to produce a memorable piece. Quitely's subdued, almost gentle style seems to ground Morrison's stories, which can often tend toward the whacky and downright outrageous, in a non-reality where they might actually be believable.

Their most recent work, "All-Star Superman" (2006 Eisner Award winner for best new series) is one of the most profound takes on Superman in recent memory. Morrisson tells the tale of Superman's "12 Labors" and "death", in what is essentially a set up for his 1998 "DC: One Million", which takes place in the same continuity as "All Star" in the 853rd century. But despite the title's lofty ambitions, the team truly rose to the occasion and created a spectacular piece that will most likely become a seminal part of future continuity and stand the test of time as one of the greatest superman stories.

"JLA: Earth 2", altough not as heady as "All-Star", is a similarly fascinating look into the heart of the DC Universe, the multiverse and the many reflections of reality that exist within as Morrison and Quitely guide the Justice Leauge of America to Earth-2, the inverse of our universe where right is wrong, hearts are on the right side of the body and Morrison is free to go wild with the bad side of the DCU.

"We3", only connceted to DC through its publisher (Vertigo), takes place in a universe all its own; or perhaps, more accurately, a world all Morrison and Quitely's and the story truly stands out as one of their finest works.

One of my favorite elements in "We3" is Morrison's dialogue for the animals. Every read and reread, I still feel as though I'm not quite grasping everything the animals are communicating. But even though I may not be picking up on every nuance, the general message comes across loud and clear and in retrospect, this obfuscation may even serve to enhance the believability of these characters: talking animals probably would not be wholly coherent to the untrained human ear.

Quitely's dynamic use of panels, especially in scenes with flying bullets, is remarkable. With a central image in the background, he spread the panels like tiles across the action, each panel a close up of one facet of the action. The sense of movement that he creates is both inviting and at the same time repellent: the reader's eyes are forced to move across the page to follow the action, yet in many cases they may seek to avert their eyes once they find out where it's going.

My only complaint in this read and this is not so much a complaint as a minor note / observation, would have to be the intense similarity in some of Quitely's characters across projects. Perhaps the most striking instance of this occurence would be the resemblance between the female scientist in "We3"and Wonder Woman in "Earth-2". (I couldn't find up close images, otherwise I would link you, but look for yourselves if you can!)