This gorgeous double-page splash is by Gabriel Rodriguez, a talented Chilean artist who also happens to be a super nice guy to boot (a few years back when I was still doing projects for IDW we got to hang out at San Diego). This is from Locke & Key: Head Games #1, published by IDW in 2009. Incidentally, if you haven’t read this series from Joe Hill, I highly recommend it. I’m not really a horror fan, and I ended up loving it. Solid writing, original and creative, and great art by Rodriguez.

Incidentally, the blog I mentioned above is called Daily Splash Page. Check it out, lots of great and varied stuff there.

Starting with the titles from the DC reboot, since we discussed them at length before they were ever released but only Tony has weighed in with reviews of three series’ so far: I picked up somewhere around twenty of the first issues, and only found a couple of them to be duds. My favorites among them:

OMAC: a big, loud, bombastic, fun comic to read. Besides Keith Giffen returning to his Kirby Klone roots for the series, Dan Didio shows he gets how to write Kirby characters, unlike whoever wrote that Eternals mini a few years ago. There’s a big difference between giving the readers a mystery, and giving them a series of revelations– Kirby did the latter, and Didio brings the same to OMAC while at the same time throwing in giant robot sewer gators. He also uses expository captions in this book! I almost cried when I saw them exhumed, and I may cry again now that I’ve seen this book is among the first on the chopping block of failed New 52 titles. Hopefully Didio and Giffen have a Kamandi book up their sleeves at some point.

Batwoman: As mentioned before, I am breaking my grilled cheese rule for this book. Let it be known that J.H. Williams III made me eat crow with this gorgeous comic. I really like the supernatural angle the series seems to focus on and hope they make it a regular theme; it really separates the series from the gazillion Bat-spinoffs. My only concern is that they keep the book all-ages accessible since it is part of the Bat-family; I don’t see Bruce Wayne in his underwear as much as the protagonist of this series.

Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.: I’ve taken to this book a lot better than Tony, apparently. It delivers for me all the science weirdness and idiosyncrasy I hoped for from Mister Terrific. I was surprised this one survived when OMAC didn’t, so here’s hoping it gets a long, healthy run.

All Star Western: I have a huge pile of books in my pull which the kind folks at the Ogre are being very patient with me for slowly chipping away at week by week. As a result, some titles might wait a while before I get around to picking them up and reading them. All Star Western sat in my pull for four months before I picked it up, and I’m kicking myself for waiting. Love this book, love the characters, love the mystery story, love the atmosphere, love the very simple line work of the art and muted coloring. I wish this were simply a Jonah Hex ongoing, but I’m guessing it will rotate several lead characters and creative teams.

Action Comics: Breaking another of my personal rules here– “avoid Grant Morrison superhero books.” Nevertheless, I’ve always liked comics that reflect the times they were made in, and the writer does a great job of reaching back to Superman’s roots as a depression-era crusader for the everyman and make him part of the 99% of today. Well done, but I expect it will be tough to maintain in the long run. Here’s hoping we don’t get a new world war to recast Superman in a more nationalistic image, anyway. Love the artwork, too– like Superman with a Mort Drucker influence. In a good way.

Superman/Batman/Justice League: Good, shallow, pulpy superhero fun. George Perez writes the densest comic I’ve read since, well, he wrote Wonder Woman. Mostly self-contained episodes, at that. I’m looking forward to Dan Jurgens returning to Superman in the next couple months, also. I’m surprised to be enjoying a Batman comic for the first time since Kelly Jones was drawing it; Batman is a detective again, Bruce Wayne has a role to play, and there is a civilian supporting cast. Good stuff, as long as no one uses the word “incorporated.” As for the Justice League… okay, lightweight story, but I have a soft spot for team books, and some of these characters were introduced better here than in their own books (I’m looking at you, Azzarello). Also, it’s always funny when they occasionally try to make Aquaman seem impressive. Darkseid happens to materialize his base in the ocean, huh? Okay, next issue a bunch of bank robbers try to escape by boat… And the next…

I, Vampire: This one tenuously hangs onto the top tier, as it’s horribly decompressed and the artist is a Jae Lee clone. But I need a horror comic since they decided not to give Swamp Thing the reboot he needs and put John Constantine on a super-team, and it does feature Andy… excuse me, Andrew Bennett in the title role. I’m listing it as an enjoyable read, provisionally.

There are a few the jury is still out on: Batgirl, Swamp Thing, Justice League Dark (which should have been called Night Force, dammit), Flash, all need a little more oomph if they’re going to stay on my reading list more than another month. The first issue of Hawkman didn’t tickle my fancy, but I see my favorite DC villain (I can’t believe I just wrote that), the Gentleman Ghost, will be appearing soon, so I might check back in. As for the duds… Catwoman and Red Hood never appeared on my reading list, so I missed some I apparently would have found outright insulting. Detective was too gory for a superhero book, Wonder Woman and Supergirl were overly decompressed fight scenes which told me nothing about the characters. Men of War was just an all-around failure (seriously, we can’t have a regular war comic set in modern times?). Firestorm was the biggest disappointment, my favorite old DC character recast in a tepid book.

The continuity-lite accessibility of most of these books, coupled with the lower price tag, has actually sucked my comic buying dollar away from most of the Marvel books that would normally have my loyalty. A few gems I’m sticking with: Daredevil has been pure joy, as Mark Waid takes the character back to his pre-Frank Miller laughing swashbuckler days. Frank’s run was great but everyone that followed (Nocenti/Romita Jr. excepted) was just imitation. DD needed a change of pace, and the character is back to being as fun as he was in the Lee/Colan days. I just wish Marcos Martin would settle into a book, any book, for the long haul.

I enjoyed Marvel’s short lived Atlas series enough to follow the creative team over to the Red Hulk’s comic, and was rewarded with a series of very compressed and winding adventure stories with a cosmic scope that hearkened back to the old Tales to Astonish days. I’d put this series in a care package for Kish, believe it or not, even if Red Hulk doesn’t keep T-Bolt Ross’ mustache. The latest plotline, however, was an unnecessarily long 5-parter, so I’m waiting to see if the series’ best days are over. Hopefully not.

Spider-Man: I was hooked on this character when I was five, and only the bad old days of the 1990’s clone story have ever kept me away from the character. This is one I’ll stick with through peaks and valleys, but the post-MJ days have been mostly peaks, and being able to subscribe to the series directly from Marvel for less then $1.50 per issue will keep it on my reading list for a while.

I would enjoy Marvel’s frequent “event” miniseries’ if they didn’t mostly flow from overly long, convoluted storylines in other books. Secret Invasion and Siege suffered from this (the latter I didn’t bother checking out), but Fear Itself I really enjoyed. Great Avengers story with a gazillion defining character moments, my favorite being Cap making a desperate last stand against the forces of evil with a militia of farmers and store clerks whom he deputizes as Avengers. Brought a tear to my eye, that did. If only they didn’t have all the crossovers from that series, especially the ones that immediately followed the “.1” issues that were allegedly designed to attract new readers.

Speaking of brand loyalty… I wrote a few years ago lamenting John Byrne’s work appearing in pro wrestling mags, but he’s rebounded quite well in my eyes. I’d been enjoying his licensed books at IDW (assorted Star Trek series’, Jurassic Park, and particularly the Angel vs. Frankenstein Halloween specials), but this past year he’s revisited his Next Men series and promised a sequel to follow, gave us the Ian Fleming-flavored Cold War spy series, and he even has an original superhero book in the works. That’s a lot of projects in an industry where most artists can’t handle a single monthly. Show those kids how it’s done, JB.

So there, I said some nice things just to prove I’m not a total grouch. I haven’t been visited by three ghosts, though, my heart is still in the same place it was six months ago. I’m well aware that DC has gone five months now without any rape in their stories, and that must be killing them. We’ll see how long they can hold out. Until then, I haven’t liked this many new comics since 1999.

Man, if I could combine Mr. Terrific and Frankenstein: Agent of SHADE into one book, I’d really have something.

When I last spoke about those books, I’d just read Frankenstein 1 and Mr. Terrific 1. With Mr. Terrific 1-5 and Frankenstein 1-4 safely in my files, it’s time for a fuller judgment.

Frankenstein had the more promising start, but pretty much held the same note through the whole first arc. In Issue 1, Frankenstein & Co. went to a small town that was being invaded by monsters. In Issue 2, they stepped through a dimensional portal to a planet full of monsters. Back on Earth, their boss Father Time and Ray Palmer were monitoring things from SHADE HQ. In issues 2-4, Frankenstein & Co. killed monsters and the monster titans.

The team never found out anything about the monsters, Father Time and Palmer somehow deduced there were end-bosses from Earth. I enjoyed the book, but it felt like three issues of watching someone else play a video game. I think I’m skipping Issue 5.

Here’s what’s been happening in Mr. Terrific (SPOILERS!)

Mr. Terrific defeats Brainstorm with a standard overclocking attack, then finds out the villain was indirectly responsible for the death of Mr. Terrific’s wife’s. Mr. Terrific beats the villain to within an inch of his life, then is sickened by what he’s just done (because he’s a man of reason, right?). Mr. T exiles himself to space, where he gets shanghaied by alien slavers. He beats the slavers by convincing an alien hermaphrodite to use his/her energy absorption and projection powers to destroy the alien ship. Meanwhile, back on Earth, some douchey businessman tempts that one chick to sell out Mr. Terrific’s company.

Here are the rough edges: Mr. Terrific probably doesn’t need to feel so bad about beating up the villain, but it is a nice piece of characterization. The slavery bit isn’t subtext, Wallace hits it pretty hard. Mr. Terrific never sees the alien hermaphrodite’s power before she saves the day, so it’s not clear why chooses him/her as the solution. And that one chick is still pretty undefined.

Still, it’s the first NuDC title I’ve read to wrap a storyline. Heck, we’re two arcs in already. I feel like writer Eric Wallace has a point of view, and is taking me somewhere. I’m going to miss this series when it’s gone.

General Category:

PANEL: Pulp – volume 17 of our twice yearly anthology series, edited by yours truly, Sean McGurr, and Tony Goins, and featuring the talents of the writers and artists of the PANEL Collective. Available for purchase here.

The Ineffables: All of Creation, by PANELista Craig Bogart (who is unfortunately having website issues right now, but hopes to be back online soon).

Also featured in this category, fellow Columbusites Max Ink (Blink:So Far) and Joel Jackson/James Moore (Radio Free Gahanna #2)

Mini-comic / Short Story Category:

PANELista Brent Bowman for his story from PANEL: Pulp, “Noor Jama, Somali Pirate”

You can check out the full list of finalists here.

Congrats to all, and we’ll see you at S.P.A.C.E. 2012, April 21-22.

7 Covers: Saturday Night Live!
by Chad Lambert

Believe it or not, there aren’t many comics out there related to Saturday Night Live. In fact, there are six…with one on the way. In Marvel Team-up #74, Pete and Mary Jane scored tickets to the show in 1976, which was hosted by Stan Lee and musical guest Rick Jones. The Coneheads came to comics in 1992 with a mini-series that tied in with the movie. And Seth Meyers and Bill Hader wrote an issue of Spider-man in 2009.

SNL’s 7th appearance in comics hits stores in February, and it’s all my fault. I’ve written a biography of Lorne Michaels and his show for Bluewater. I had reservations about writing a biography comic, but then I ran into Tina Fey at Disney World and decided to give it a shot. It took six months to write a 24 page comic about 37 years of television history. It wasn’t easy. But the end result is one of the best scripts I’ve ever written.

It must have been meant to be. Two weeks after I turned in the script, my name came up in the SNL ticket lottery. I found myself in studio 8H for the October 15th broadcast with host Anna Faris and musical guest Drake. It was a dream come true – though I would have preferred to see the Stan Lee/Rick Jones taping.

Please check out Chad’s book, available on the shelves now.

And if any other blog readers want to contribute 7 of their favorite covers, drop me a line at ferret@ferretpress.com

This was submitted by PANELista Andy Bennett, so he’s recusing himself. Good luck to the rest of you guys.

Dazzle – by Dara Naraghi

“How much longer?” she asked.

“Not much,” I answered, as I concentrated on painting a swirling design at the intersection of her nose, eyes, and forehead. The reflective paint mirrored the light in the room, making it hard to concentrate on the design.

She tried touching her lips again, but I gently batted her hand away. “Stop it, you’ll smear the pigment,” I said.

“Sorry, sorry. It’s just that it’s caked on pretty thick. And did you have to extend it so far out on the sides? I look like a clown. Or the Joker.”

“From the old playing cards?” I ventured.

“No, from the old Batman vids. You know, ‘The Clown Prince of Crime’?” She seemed rather disappointed when I replied with a blank stare. “Seriously? And you call yourself an anarchist cloaking artist,” she chuckled.

I ignored her jab, instead finishing the highlights on her cheekbones. “There, asymmetrical by an inch.”

She examined her face in the mirror and laughed. “Ugh, like the love child of David Bowie and a Kabuki dancer.”

I took some measure of consolation in catching the latter reference, but the former eluded me.

“What did you call this again? Dazzler?” she asked, as she tossed me her credit chip.

“Dazzle,” I corrected her. “It’s an old concept, but the term’s from World War I, when they’d paint battleships with odd geometric patterns, sort of a cross between camouflage and optical illusion. The idea was to make it hard for the enemy to discern size, speed, and direction of travel.”

“And you’re sure this’ll fool the facial recognition programs?”

“No guarantees, but it should,” I said, adding “confusion, not concealment.”

“Ten million people in this city, and twenty million security cameras,” she said, shaking her head as she slipped on her jacket.

“You’re not planning on robbing a bank or anything, are you?” I asked, not really interested in her answer.

“Nah,” she offered, pulling down her knit cap. As she headed out the door, she turned and flashed me an impish smile.

“Sometimes a girl just needs her privacy, you know?”

More details at the always amusing Comic Book Legends Revealed.

You might expect a random set of keys, laying out on Cleveland Avenue, to get stolen or tossed away. But really, there’s no need for that. I like to think that someone just decided to be nice and put the keys where they could be more easily found.

And it give me hope that someday I’ll find my keys, too.

Cleveland & Fifth avenues, 7:37 a.m.

Mercy sakes, you guys have been waiting for five months to hear what I thought of DC’s new Grifter series. Sorry about that.

I got issues 1-2 at Mid-Ohio Con, so I was able to read them both in one sitting. It felt like reading one issue, which is not necessarily a good thing.

The basic story is pretty familiar: Cole Cash is a former special forces operator-turned small-time grifter, who gets abducted by aliens called Daemonites. The abduction goes wrong, and he somehow gains the ability to hear the aliens’ thoughts. They’re chasing him, and apparently inhabiting the bodies of humans, so Grifter does his whole “They Live” bit. For some reason, he puts on a dew-rag mask.

The book is at its best when Grifter is conning someone, or relying on his wits to escape the aliens. In one sequence, he fights off a possessed cop with a frying pan and baking soda, then cons a bunch of cops who show up. In another, he hijacks a plane with an airline booze bottle. That’s a little of the old Grifter that we all know and love.

The biggest problem is the whole series is a little low-key (some might say “realistic”). Like, the payoffs aren’t big enough, or we’re not getting answers fast enough. After five issues, the Daemonites haven’t said anything about their plan other than they want to go home, and it’s not clear that they’re doing any great harm on Earth.

I think I’m just missing the original Grifter series, which gave you a lot more of that four-color spectacle. I got issues 3-5 the other day, so I may have more to say on this.